Mmhm. The gator won't really bother you. If he comes over to investigate, just poke him in the nose. He'll go away.
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Myrtle Beach, SC - Sailing Good?
- Thread starter Rich Stidger
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Many years ago we looked in NC,New Bern and others and we ran real fast,we being from NY we just did not fit with the south don't know it is beautiful for sure and just spent time in SC this past weekend.
You talk about skinny water WOW great for my kayaking for sure,we went and looked in Florida
that is what my wife said HOTHOT.
I have been here in Punta Gorda since 08 and she loves it and rather not go up north to visit,west coast of Florida is great for sailing and cruising to many great places.
We first looked in Tampa and it had great sailing but living on Long Island wanted less crowds on land and water and Charlotte Harbor was very nice and not crowded like other places like Tampa and Ft Myers.
Good luck looking and keep asking first just what I did and never looked back and everyone from US andCanada down here and so friendly.
Nick
Many years ago we looked in NC,New Bern and others and we ran real fast,we being from NY we just did not fit with the south don't know it is beautiful for sure and just spent time in SC this past weekend.
You talk about skinny water WOW great for my kayaking for sure,we went and looked in Florida
that is what my wife said HOTHOT.I have been here in Punta Gorda since 08 and she loves it and rather not go up north to visit,west coast of Florida is great for sailing and cruising to many great places.
We first looked in Tampa and it had great sailing but living on Long Island wanted less crowds on land and water and Charlotte Harbor was very nice and not crowded like other places like Tampa and Ft Myers.
Good luck looking and keep asking first just what I did and never looked back and everyone from US andCanada down here and so friendly.
Nick
rich....my sister and brother in law live in mattapoisett. they are sailors and got relocated to florida. they couldnt wait to get bach to mass. they are back and i doubt they will ever leave. there are so many places to sail to here i will never leave. i think we are where others dream of being.
Come on down to Charleston the sailing is great, if you're a racer we have Wednesday night and weekend races for all groups. If you're a crusier there are plenty of places to go for the weekend or just crusing the harbor. Heck with a 40" it's out of the harbor take a southerly heading and you're in the Bahamas on the 4th day.
While we love the sailing in the LI Sound and north and visit on a trip every year, I have to say if I ever wanted to live someplace else which somewhat which was some wwhat like the Chesapeake, thats where i would go New England.
The advantage of the Chesapeake is of course the longer sailing season, ( We will start in about 1 week and go to Christmas), the relatively cheaper rates for a slip in a marina to protect your boat or work on your boat ( so very few up north) and the uncountable places to just pull in and anchor without being exposed because the towns/ private mooring fields have all the protected spots.
We do have a brutal July and eary August here with heat, humidity and little wind so you could do what we do...head up to New England. LI Sound for 3-4 weeks. Its very beautiful up there, the people are nice, and the scenery and sailing is top notch. Then come back for the beautiful long fall though November. An added bonus is you dont have to pull your boat out of the water because we rarely get a hard freeze here of the Bay which cant be handled with an occasional use of a bubbler.
The two sailing capitals of the east coast are in both places Newport and Annapolis.
So move here. Take advantage of both areas, new England and its majestic scenery and also the Chesapeake with its long sailing season and great peaceful anchorages.
Dave
Yep, found that out artifact diving in the Cape Fear downtown Wilmington. Although they seem to prefer the battleship side of the river.
Did someone mention alligators? Here's a shot from Kiawah island in SC you might enjoy.
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Mabbe my taxes aren't too high after all. That's a seriously scary sight! Did you guys import those things just to scare the northerners away?
The real estate guy actually said "And there aren't any gators here because they don't like fresh water." I'm thinking .... OK, I'm from NY, but I'm pretty sure fresh water is where you find the prehistoric critters. Which, by the way, scare me a whole lot more than sharks ever could. I've never had a shark chase me across a golf course.
My mom is selling her house on Carolina Beach and is having s problem because of flood insurance being so high. I am going back down next month to install flood vents on the house to bring it down. I checked into marinas and there were good deals. I never,sailed when I lived there so now I am looking at charts and Cape fear looks like a handful.
The Cape Fear River itself can be a handful but it can also be a good sail. The river is a main shipping channel so you have to be watchful of large vessels, but the channel is also deep and wide enough to tack in. You have to manage tide times because the currents especially the ebb can be bad. Use them to your advantage you can fly but try to go against them and you can prepare to creep along with little progress. Southport, Oak Island, and Baldhead are at it's mouth an a straight shot out into the ocean.
I was thinking about heading down for a month and getting a slip at Joyner Marina in the summer. We have some work to do on the house and might as well have fun. I was over at Snows cut and between the tides, currents, wind, and power boats(not to mention shallow waters) it looked like you needed some local knowledge. I used to work on Bald Head but never had a boat. Oh and there are gators we lived behind the lake and the lady down the street had one for days under her house.
campuscab, I'm right across the canal From Joyner at Waterftont Villas and Yacht Club. send me a message when you get in town and I show you around the water. Hopefully, I will have my shaft and rudder back in by then.
NC/SC sailing
Hey Rich,
"Come on down" would love to have another 40.5 owner in the area, here is my 2cents worth, we live in Raleigh and keep our boat in New Bern, NC it is a 2 hr. drive house to dock , but we are looking to move to New Bern in 1 or 2 yrs. (retirement) New Bern reminds me of Annapolis 30 yr's ago, the conflunce of two rivers the Trent & Neuse that flow into the Pamlico Sound.
There are plenty of Marinas to choose from in this area if you Include Oriental, I personally think it has some of the best sailing on the East Coast with very little boat traffic, commercial or pleasure there are plenty of weekend trips, and villages or places to explore, from New Bern an easy sail of 20NM your in Oriental, another 5 Nm your at River Dunes, with probably the nicest Marina on the East Coast, (read some of their online reviews) Oracoke Island, is a long weekend or destination, as is Beaufort, Morehead City and Cape Lookout which is just 5 N. Miles off the coast of Beaufort and you swear you were in the Bahamas, going north you have Washington NC, Bath (former home of the most infamous sailor Blackbeard) Belhaven, continue north to the Island town of Maneto, and many creeks and small coastal towns to explore.
There are a varity of all marine services in the New Bern, Oriental with both full service and DIY yards, one of the things I like best is that the sailboat poulation in this area out numbers the power boat population 10 to 1 if not more.
Myrtle Beach is a destination ( imho) several nice marinas but very limmited sailing area as the ICW is fairly narrow in that part of SC and really only 1 or 2 all weather inlets north of Myrtle Beach and not again untill Georgetown south of MB
Another consideration I know long term slip rental is higher in the MB area than the New Bern/Oriental area and your boat insurance will be higher as well (more exposure to hurricanes, I beleive the rate increases start south of Morehead City)
Hope you find this helpful,
Capt. Ron
S/V Wind Dreamer
Legend 40.5
North West Creek Marina
New Bern NC
Hey Rich,
"Come on down" would love to have another 40.5 owner in the area, here is my 2cents worth, we live in Raleigh and keep our boat in New Bern, NC it is a 2 hr. drive house to dock , but we are looking to move to New Bern in 1 or 2 yrs. (retirement) New Bern reminds me of Annapolis 30 yr's ago, the conflunce of two rivers the Trent & Neuse that flow into the Pamlico Sound.
There are plenty of Marinas to choose from in this area if you Include Oriental, I personally think it has some of the best sailing on the East Coast with very little boat traffic, commercial or pleasure there are plenty of weekend trips, and villages or places to explore, from New Bern an easy sail of 20NM your in Oriental, another 5 Nm your at River Dunes, with probably the nicest Marina on the East Coast, (read some of their online reviews) Oracoke Island, is a long weekend or destination, as is Beaufort, Morehead City and Cape Lookout which is just 5 N. Miles off the coast of Beaufort and you swear you were in the Bahamas, going north you have Washington NC, Bath (former home of the most infamous sailor Blackbeard) Belhaven, continue north to the Island town of Maneto, and many creeks and small coastal towns to explore.
There are a varity of all marine services in the New Bern, Oriental with both full service and DIY yards, one of the things I like best is that the sailboat poulation in this area out numbers the power boat population 10 to 1 if not more.
Myrtle Beach is a destination ( imho) several nice marinas but very limmited sailing area as the ICW is fairly narrow in that part of SC and really only 1 or 2 all weather inlets north of Myrtle Beach and not again untill Georgetown south of MB
Another consideration I know long term slip rental is higher in the MB area than the New Bern/Oriental area and your boat insurance will be higher as well (more exposure to hurricanes, I beleive the rate increases start south of Morehead City)
Hope you find this helpful,
Capt. Ron
S/V Wind Dreamer
Legend 40.5
North West Creek Marina
New Bern NC
Thanks to captron & all others. I am evaluating your suggestions. I plans are very preliminary and there are many things to investigate. I do realize that I am presently in an excellent sailing area in Narragansett Bay and that east of me to the Cape and Islands as well as north to Maine are areas that probably can't be beat.
Everything is a trade-off. I don't expect to find sailing in the south as good as it is here, but achieving a desired change in lifestyle with a smaller house, warmer climate, and a more affordable existence may help balance the less desirable sailing. I've had 30+ years of sailing, and while I'm not ready to stop, I do recognize that I won't sail forever. If somebody told me 40 years ago that I would be doing what I am today I would not have believed them. Who knows what the future holds?
Please keep your suggestions coming.
Everything is a trade-off. I don't expect to find sailing in the south as good as it is here, but achieving a desired change in lifestyle with a smaller house, warmer climate, and a more affordable existence may help balance the less desirable sailing. I've had 30+ years of sailing, and while I'm not ready to stop, I do recognize that I won't sail forever. If somebody told me 40 years ago that I would be doing what I am today I would not have believed them. Who knows what the future holds?
Please keep your suggestions coming.
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