S/E Marina Recommendations

[Gold70]

Hi,

New to the forum. Looking for recommendations for a nice marina in NC,SC,GA or North Florida and panhandle. We're in the process of looking for a 36'-40' and a place to keep her. We're "semi"-retired and are looking for a clean higher end marina to spend time sailing her (not liveaboard). Very flexible on a new location. I know it's difficult to find slips so wanted to find a potential location early. Any thoughts or input is appreciated.

 

[kloudie1]

Not a slip recommendation; carefully look at the tax and registration requirements for the state. Florida may require you to pay sales tax on the value of the boat in addition to the registration fee. Another thing to consider is hurricane rules. Some marinas demand that the boat be removed from the marina if storms are imminent. Many require the marina be named on your insurance policy. There are some nice places just west of Pensacola on the ICW like Barbers Marina in Alabama.
welcome to the group!

 

[kloudie1]

I have some experience with the Oriental NC area ; a very nice sailing oriented area with a few nice marinas.. worth a look for sure..

 

[capta]

Charleston City Marina is one of the best marinas I've ever stayed in, anywhere in the world. When I was there, dockage was all inclusive, so I wasn't being nickled and dimed to death with further charges. Dock personnel are friendly and helpful and have carts if you have a big load to take to the boat.
It is in town, so most things are close.

 

[smokey73]

Take a look at Beaufort SC. There are three marinas there.

 

[rgranger]

Charleston City Marina is one of the best marinas I've ever stayed in, anywhere in the world. When I was there, dockage was all inclusive, so I wasn't being nickled and dimed to death with further charges. Dock personnel are friendly and helpful and have carts if you have a big load to take to the boat.
It is in town, so most things are close.

+1

 

[Parsons]

Welcome to SBO. Obviously a huge, open ended question, and @kloudie1 comments are good - it depends on what you consider "higher end" or nice. Have a list of attributes in mind and research the requirements and costs. One big 'corporate' player is Safe Harbor - "Holiday Inns of marinas". Like any chain, they are profit motivated and could not care less about anything not driving profit, but they have a fairly consistent product and a web site with a list of locations (Home).

More considerations -

1. Depth - certain harbors and inlets, particularly as you get into Florida, have severe depth limitations. Yes, you can make it into Stuart inlet and to your dock at high tides, but the surf is rougher and you may need to wait around or time your day sail.
2. Prices - do a comparison (tools available on-line) of costs of living as there are big differences in small-town rural and big town city. If you are moving and not bound by family or jobs, then you get to pick. Most of your spending will be within 20 miles of your home/boat.
3. Insurance - further south you go into hurricane territory, more money and less availability. I estimate half of my insurance goes to the hurricane coverage, and that's with a 5% named-storm deductible. Most insurers will quote you for a location ... or laugh at you on the phone when you ask about south Florida.
4. Suggest you study the nautical charts for the area you are interested in, and the Active Captain comments on harbors: https://activecaptain.garmin.com/en-US/Map

 

[smokey73]

@Parsons has some great suggestions to get started in your search.

For instance, Charleston has a wide open harbor with some shallow water but you can avoid those and sail the harbor or out to the ocean. Some commerical traffic to be careful of but not too bad. Beautiful city with the biggest marina right at the edge of town. Still a little walk or uber/cab to the main part of town though. Google is your friend. There is at least one boatyard for work when you need it. Marine growth on the bottom will require periodic in water cleaning if you want to have something other than a "dock queen." Charleston is right on the ICW. If you are retired military, Charleston has Joint Base Charleston.

Beaufort SC (Port Royal Sound) has a channel with some breakers on one side but no breakwater on the entrance to the sound so you don't get the breaking waves in the channel like at some harbor entrances (see St Augustine below). Port Royal Sound is wide open and great for day sailing and you can reach the ocean from Beaufort marinas in about 2 hours. All three marina's are right on the ICW and there is a good boat yard (Marsh Harbor) too. The Downtown Safe Harbor Marinia is right downtown with a 1 minute walk to the historic Bay Street. Think of the Beaufort as a "mini Charleston" with Spanish Moss, huge live oaks and multiple places to eat steps away. There is a swing bridge going North on the ICW and a fixed bridge with 65 ft clearance going south, which you have to transit to get to the sound to sail. Be aware that 65 foot clearance is a Mean High Water, which means that some high tides that are above the "mean" you have less than 65 feet clearance and may have to time your passage there. (I have to do that with my 40.5) Beaufort is just north of the FL-GA line which is the point where most insurance companys ding you if you are going to be ther during Hurricane Season. I don't think the marinas require you to vacate during a Hurricane. There is also a marina on Dawtaw Island. Bottom cleaning periodically will be required here too. There are two military bases in Beaufort (Parris Island and MCAS Beaufort plus the Haval Hospital Beaufort)

I love St. Augustine but trying to get through the breakwater with opposing current and wind can be a harrowing experience . I've nearly broached a 45 foot sailboat there. Had to go back out and wait about 3 hours to try again and still "surfed in" a lot more than I like. It was downright scary.

Cost of living is pretty low in Beaufort and probably in Charleston (as long as you are not trying to buy a house).

 

[Parsons]

Moving from the frozen north, you will likely be concerned about hurricanes. There is great historical data on the US National Hurricane Center (Tropical Cyclone Climatology) a department of the National Weather Service. Hurricanes are not an every-year occurrence, but they can ruin your boat. Due to global warming, they are becoming more frequent and intense as the southern North Atlantic between Africa and the Caribbean becomes hotter. You can protect against them by good seamanship (hauling the boat, securing in a slip, removing windage, etc.) and having proper insurance from a company that will pay rather than argue. It's not stopped me from owning boats in hurricane zones, but it's something to consider.

Here's a cool map showing historical hurricane strikes from the past 110 years, that may influence your decisions (https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/climo/images/strikes_us.jpg

 

[jssailem]

So the Georgia coastline from about St Andrew’s Sound to Wassaw Sound have, like the coast of Maine, escaped the wrath of hurricanes over the past 110 years.

Could the path of the Gulf Stream current have influenced this phenomena?

 

[Boomer2it]

Hi,

New to the forum. Looking for recommendations for a nice marina in NC,SC,GA or North Florida and panhandle. We're in the process of looking for a 36'-40' and a place to keep her. We're "semi"-retired and are looking for a clean higher end marina to spend time sailing her (not liveaboard). Very flexible on a new location. I know it's difficult to find slips so wanted to find a potential location early. Any thoughts or input is appreciated.

I was just visiting a friend who keeps his boat at "Windmill Harbor" just over the causeway on Hilton Head SC, very nice facility and extremely safe from storms.

 

[Parsons]

So the Georgia coastline from about St Andrew’s Sound to Wassaw Sound have, like the coast of Maine, escaped the wrath of hurricanes over the past 110 years.

Could the path of the Gulf Stream current have influenced this phenomena?

Not so much Gulf Stream as the steering winds. Two factors - the Atlantic High oscillates around various spots around Bermuda, and all weather rotates around it counter-clockwise like a global-scale merry-go-round. The farther west it is, the more likely the northward turn crosses the eastern coastline. The jet stream pushes things east at high speeds, and it shifts north and south across the US like a loose garden hose. If you look at hurricane maps, you see that what you think of as big (Florida, Cuba, etc.) are tiny blips to the scale of hurricane movements.