All The Leaves Are Brown...

All the leaves are brown and the skies are grey, we went out for a sail on a winter’s day......

Cold foggy mornings

Or so the song almost goes. And now we are freezing our butts off! But everywhere is so pretty this time of year as the trees are changing colour it's almost worth it.  This might not mean much to anyone else but it’s been a long time since we have seen the change of seasons and it’s truly wonderful.  On the way up, the ICW waterways were lined with thick green foliage.  Now the sparse trees are red, gold and brown. If only we weren't so cold!

I love all the autumn colours

With many layers of clothes we left Swansboro as we crossed the border from North Carolina into South Carolina feeling the temperatures raise a fraction as we did.  Khaya Moya are still with us as we make our way south down the windy ICW, anchoring for the night in shallow creeks and rivers. Some days the skies were blue and others thick with fog. The waterways are busy this time of year with all the boats migrating south seeking warmer weather and we often find that we are in a line of nine or ten other boats, piling up as we wait for bridges to open.

Single file down the ICW -the Intracoastal waterway.

As the miles slid beneath our keel layers of clothes were shed until we were back in shorts and tee’s but this was false hope and didn't last long as through the following days the temperatures plummeted to freezing and once again we were bundling up.

We passed the notorious ‘rockpile’ area just north of Myrtle Beach where a moment’s lapse in concentration will have you on the rocks in the narrow channel.  We passed through the stunning Waccamaw River, undisturbed by development and one of the highlights of the ICW - lily pads float past all the trees in their autumnal glory, dripping in Spanish moss and eagles sit regally up high on naked branches or ICW markers.  It is totally enchanting.  We anchored for a night in a tiny creek with barely enough room to swing a boat, lined with a thin layer of trees and nothing but open marshland and the noisy hum of nature.

Anchored in the tiny Guendalose Creek

The following day we were led by our nose to the smelly town of Georgetown, one of the oldest working ports in the US and named after King George of England who designated it a colonial port.  The paper pulp factory emits a rather stinky smell but as the town will tell you they are a big source of employment so a blind eye in the nostril sense is turned.  Another cute historical, seaside town, we went alongside the free dock and jumped ashore with the crew of Khaya Moya to find somewhere to do our piles of laundry from all the extra clothes we are wearing.  We would have liked to have stayed a little longer but time is pressing on and we fair weather sailors need to find warmer climes.  The temperatures plummet to below freezing tonight and I am grateful to Sim who only ten days before insisted on getting our heater working, converting it from diesel to propane.  So wish us some sunshine as we brave the frosty waterways on our journey south. Next stop Charleston, SC.

Foggy morning - can you see the sail boats?

Khaya Moya

Interesting properties on the ICW

The area known at the rockpile

The ICW

The awesome colours of the Waccamaw River

And many cloudy days 

Awesome tree on the Waccamaw

And another!

The pretty Waccamaw River

The eagle has landed!

The paper plant assaults the senses and not in a good way!

An exciting day out doing laundry

Welcome to Georgetown

Wandering Star alongside the free dock in Georgetown

Shrimp Boats in Georgetown

Cold but happy :-)