Tuesday in Georgetown we went up to the main drag to check out some of the places we had seen on the map. First stop was the Indigo Bakery. A husband and wife team, they were pulling trays fresh out of the oven when we walked in. I got a scrumptious blueberry stuffed croissant.

From there we walked the shops a bit and went into the Georgetown Maritime Museum. It had some interesting information and artifacts from some of the notable ships to come through the area. Most of the shipping industry revolved around the rice and indigo cultivation, which were the dominant crops here before cotton.

All that walking around can make a girl hungry, so Sweetie’s Homemade Ice Cream was just the thing to satisfy. I then went over to the Gullah museum. It was particularly interesting to learn how the different African tribes had combined their different languages to be able to communicate with each other and the culture that has been passed down to their existing descendants, the Gullah Geechee.

I also went to the rice museum. I never knew rice was such a prominent crop grown here in the States. The process of utilizing the fresh water rivers using special dams was quite specialized for the area and very labor intensive. Just prepping the land took years. Indigo also became popular at that time and was another lucrative crop but tricky to grow as well.

We went for an early dinner at one of the restaurants on the boardwalk along the water and took the fluff for a walk. Wednesday morning we were up early. It was only just over 20 miles to our next stop, Wacca Wache, but we had an airboat tour booked for 11:00 am.

The main reason for stopping here was their fuel prices, they famously have the lowest fuel prices maybe of the whole Loop. So we made sure to fill up before getting set up in our slip. The airboat tour was right down the dock so we headed over just before 11:00. Neither Don nor I have ever ridden in an airboat before and it was a lot of fun!

They just skim across the water, the guide said the shallower water the better the boat performs. He had us going right over some of the grassy areas.

We went up some narrow creeks and saw a ton of turtles, most of which were very skittish and dove in the water when we got near. We also saw a few baby alligators who were just the opposite. They were actually very curious about the boat and came right up to investigate.

When we got back we walked around and met some other Loopers also staying here. We made plans to go to dinner with Pamet, who we had actually meet in Savannah, and Pharm Life. They were Gold Loopers, just starting their second trip, having done their first Loop a few years ago.

They had a car here so we all went to the Marsh Boardwalk and a restaurant called the Dead Dog Saloon. All the walls were covered in pictures of old pets, inside and out on the patio where we sat. The food was excellent, I got one of the best burgers I’ve ever had anywhere! It was so tender, topped with braised pork belly, smoked Gouda, fried onion strings and BBQ sauce. Delicious doesn’t begin to cover it!

Thursday morning we were headed back up the ICW. As we were going along we kept seeing large dark objects in the water. Some were quite sizable logs we steered around, but several of them were actually much bigger alligators that as we got closer, steered around us. From far away it was hard to tell which was which.

We came to Barefoot Marina in Myrtle Beach, where Shandie was docked. Though Shane and Brandie were out of town. They did leave us the keys for their golf cart and told us some of the places to go. So that evening we went across the canal to this large outdoor dining and shopping complex that encircled a nice pond.

When we got back we met up with Loopers Domino Effect for docktails. We gave them a tour of our boat and while we were out on the dock, one of the marina workers pointed out another Looper boat across from us that was from Tonawanda. He was originally from Amherst himself. Coming from North Tonawanda that was the first we’ve ever seen another boat from so close to our home port.

Friday morning we took the golf cart to the grocery store to reprovision. Came back to unload everything, then got our swim suites on and headed to the beach.

After soaking up some sun we stopped at the Amish Country Living store on the way back. We got this maple bacon jam I am excited to try!

Saturday was a rainy morning. In between showers I did some laundry and took the fluff for a walk. A little turtle crossed our path on his way to a pond, Skia was a bit unsure about him and jumped all four feet in the air when he’d suck his head in when she got too close 😆. We also saw our first Magnolia tree. The flowers are huge!

We made it back just in time for a heavy downpour. I planned out our stops all the way to the Dismal Swamp. We are told it’s much more enjoyable than its name suggests.

Razors Edge arrived today but docked across the canal. There was another break in the weather that evening, so we went over and met them at Tortuga Island. A nice pavilion bar out on a boardwalk over the pond. The neat thing about it was they had some swings for seats all around the hexagonal bar. You couldn’t swing far out obviously, but it was still fun.

Thunder started rumbling so we headed back to the boat and made sure the golf cart was all buttoned up.

Sunday we were up early to make the nearly 60 mile trek to Carolina Beach State Park, which brings us into North Carolina. To put on and take the front windshield cover off you have to lift the windshield wipers. While putting the last one back down it popped off and dropped right into the water.

It was a beautiful day on the water though and there were not as many slow/no wake zones, so we actually made really good time. There was an auto parts store not far away so we took the fluff and walked to see if they had the type of windshield wiper we needed. Luckily they did, and Don got 4 to replace them all as they were way over due to be replaced anyway.

This morning we woke up to a surprisingly gloomy day. It didn’t end up raining, it was just cloudy the whole way, but the water was calm so it was a smooth ride the 66 miles to Swansboro, NC. We have several longer travel days ahead of us, but these last 2 were the longest in a while.

It is a nice quiet marina, even with the pistol shrimp serenading us again. So here’s hoping for a nice calm night.