A relatively easy day. 9:45am departure, 1:45pm arrival in Myrtle Beach at the Marina at Grand Dunes. Far enough down Myrtle Beach to be past all of the no wake zones. The Sunset Beach pontoon bridge was reportedly no longer in service so I wouldn't have to factor it in the schedule... not true... it's still operational in terms of openings until about Christmas. They are dismantling it presently. Had to wait 45 minutes for the next opening. Ironically, I checked email while floating there waiting and there was an update email from Waterway Guide. It said "just heard this morning that the Sunset Beach Pontoon Bridge is still on hourly opening schedule"... had to laugh. I emailed back and said "yes it is, and I'm stuck waiting for it".
Among the notable features of Myrtle Beach is a 3-mile long stretch known as the "Rock Pile". The channel is narrow and cut through the large boulders at points so you can see the tops of the rocks just a foot outside the channel. This is not an area where you want to meet someone large coming the other way. Most large vessels make a "Securite" announcement before entering the Rock Pile form the North or South so that other vessels know. For me, the 3 miles takes less than 5 minutes to transit but for a sailboat or trawler traveling 6 knots, this can be a 1/2 hour of anxiety. Today, the water level was so high that you couldn't see the tops of the boulders. I think I prefer seeing them, to knowing they are there just below the surface. A little video of the run through the Rock Pile.
A lot of people go outside (ocean) to skip Myrtle Beach because of the long slow passage, but in the end, it was nice to slow down the pace a little after the past 3 days. Marina at Grand Dunes is a nice marina with a secluded basin off the ICW channel and out of the passing wakes. They greet you with a bottle of wine and offer a special price on a dinner for two at the Ruths Chris restaurant on site. After washing down the boat, we took advantage of the dinner special and some prime beef. After dinner an $18 cab ride took us to Broadway on the Boardwalk, a massive complex of shopping, dining and entertainment. It was off season and late so many of the businesses were closed but I imagine this is a very busy place in season. We found a bar and watched the first half of the Eagles blow-out of the Redskins. Tad flies out of Myrtle Beach in the morning so I'm single-handed from here. He's done a great job, has taken a ton of photos on his cell phone and even managed to start a new song. It's been nice having someone help me through the past 530 miles. More dolphins today.
Tad shot this video with his cell phone during the first 5 days and 530 miles of the trip South (including the bay). He edited it on some free software and did a great job with the music as well. You get a little feel for running 35 mph in the 3-4 footers coming down the Chesapeake but that was just the beginning... they grew and grew. No video of those 8 footers, just holding on. Thanks Tad, nice job!
