Sunday, October 19, 2008

ASSUME and the Waccamaw River


Assume – how does it go?? If you ASSUME you will make an ass out of you and me..
Sorry - no pics of the bozoos!!

Great example of that today!! The day started peacefully with me brewing some coffee around 7am. I’m not one of those cruisers that leaves at first light. Well I heard some voices and the mention of repositioning some lines so I figured some one is getting ready to leave the dock. I stuck my head up and noticed the sailboat in front of me getting ready to leave. I thought I would go offer to help with their lines – and maybe hear there plans on how to leave – but then again I met these guys last night – 3 French Canadians – and they were bragging how they came in Cape Fear Inlet and down yesterday in the blow – so I assumed they were very salty sailors and would be insulted at the offer of assistance. I went back to breakfast. Then a few minutes later I hear a sound like an airplane running but with a funny vibration so I know it is in the water – I look out the port facing the stream and here goes that sailboat as hard as it can just inches from scraping my topsides, all hands like statues facing dead ahead with grimaces on their faces and clenched teeth – what the hell!!! I dart up on deck. They clear my boat without scraping me and all have a sigh of relief. They turn and head south again. A quick glance at the water shows that they left with the current coming aft of them. WHAT STUPID AMATEURS!!! You never leave with the current aft. You have no steering control. You must have flow over the rudder to control. If the current is aft you are just a log in the water until you can accelerate faster than the current then the control is proportional to how much faster than the current you are.. A very common mistake by beginners. I had assumed they were seasoned but they really just had a lot of bravado.

Whew that was close. We left by ourselves with the current coming forward and had no problem leaving the dock unassisted. The rest of the day was just an enjoyable ride through the Waccamaw river after leaving Myrtle Beach Behind. We anchored here on the north side of Butlers Island just 5 miles from Georgetown. We will visit Georgetown for a few hours tomorrow and then head down to Minim Creek to anchor for the night unless Karen wants to spend more time there.



With an early season Canadian High Pressure coming in tonight and NO Light pollution here I expect to do some fine star gazing tonight but bundled up – supposed to be in the low 40s tonight.

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