We arrived in in Isle of Hope, Georgia at about 6:50 Thursday night, with just enough light to dock the boat after completing 70 ICW miles (plus about 2 - 3 back down the river where we had spent the previous night). It was a good, long day, but our starboard engine had started having trouble at higher RPMs, and we were headed into the wind and current for too much of the day. Ben wanted to get the engine looked at, and since both needed their 100 hour service we decided to stay at Isle of Hope Marina on Friday, since it was an authorized Yamaha dealer. Isle of Hope didn't have a travel lift, and to change the lower unit oil the motors needed to be raised. Ben decided that to save the $300 haul out fee, he would pull the engines out the top of the boat himself, basically deciding to take on the most intense cross-fit workouts of his life which included dead lifting two 150 lb engines multiple times, high enough to clear the engine cowling, and back extensions while laying on his stomach in the dinghy in current, detaching and then reattaching the through bolts and engine tilt pulleys which were slightly above his head, all while solving mind puzzles which included detaching (and then reattaching) the electrical harness from both motors. There were a few times he did not think he would be successfully able to remount the motors, but despite being sore and bruised he is rightly proud of himself. After having the spark plugs changed the starboard motor is once again keeping up.
While Ben was working on the motors I borrowed the loaner car and went to Super Walmart for some grocery shopping and also managed to pick up Mad Men Season 2 on DVD. Big news since we are down to our last 5 episodes of Friday Night Lights Season 1, which would leave us out of new series having finished Dexters Seasons 3 and 4 and Mad Men Season 1. I had directions to Piggly Wiggly as well as Super Walmart, but decided to try Walmart first since we needed zip ties and a vacuum (which I forgot to look for), and I wanted to check out the DVD selection. We hadn't been too impressed with a Piggly Wiggly previously, so I decided to also check out the "super" part of the Super Walmart. I was mostly impressed with the fruit and veggie selection. It's no Whole Foods, Harris Teeter or Publix, but it rivals a Piggly Wiggly or Food Lion, plus you can apparently pick up paint or fabric from the hardware or sewing sections.
After the motors were reinstalled and were started to ensure the reinstall was correct (and then a fuse replaced when one of the motors wouldn't turn over), we went out to celebrate Ben's success. The marina welcome pamphlet described Jalepenos in nearby Sandfly as being authentic mexican. We weren't really sure what to expect but weren't counting on authenticity. We figured it was a good sign when we got there and the restaurant was packed. We put our names on the list and were told it would be an hour to an hour and ten minute wait and we decided (as usual) to try and get seats at the bar. We got one seat right away, and each started out with a margarita. It was only about 30 - 40 minutes before they called our name, but at the same time someone else left the bar and we were able to snag two seats together. Our food was better than we expected - the meat was all cooked really well although there was a little bit lacking in vegetable department (except for the salsa and a few onions, I don't think there were any veggies). The most amazing part though was when the bill came. It was under $55, including a large tip for both of our dinners, 5 margaritas, and guac and queso for the tortilla chips. And there was plenty of food - we had the leftovers for an early lunch the next day.
We got a late start leaving Isle of Hope because we needed to get gas and pump out and they didn't open until 8, and then we got an even later start because we realized we hadn't returned the bathroom key and needed to turn around (we only lost about 20 minutes). We made the easy trip to Beaufort (SC - pronounced Bew-fort as in rhymes with Eww - Fort) and were planning on anchoring on the north side of the bridge. We ended up chickening out when the 10 - 12 ft anchorage mentioned in the book ended up being more like 20 ft, and we realized that even though the tides were advertised as being less intense, there was still a 7 foot tidal range. Since we had already gone under the bridge we decided to dock at Ladys Island Marina, and take the dingy back under the bridge for dinner. Once the no see 'ums started biting we decided to close up the boat and head under the bridge. Since the dingy trip was a little bit longer we fully prepared, taking two life jackets, the spot light and a radio. Really the things you should normally take, but sometimes we don't when it's a really short ride. We tied up to the town dingy dock.
We had remembered from our trip down that we had some good meals and I sadly realized we should have taken better notes at the various restaurants (and marinas) we stopped at. I thought the wood fire pizza place we ate at was good, but Ben could only remember the overweight bartender talking with one of the other employees the whole time we were sitting at the bar. We got a margarita pizza, which turned out to be ok, although it would have been excellent if it would have been left in the oven for about 30 more seconds. Then we went to the fancier of the two other restaurants for a main course, wine and a delicious, chocolatey dessert. We were taking our time because we were right near the middle of the tides so the longer we waited the easier the dingy ride back under the bridge. While we were eating a fog descended, thick enough so we could barely make out the bridge from the town dock. Like a pirate holding out a gas lantern, I held out the spotlight so Ben could slowly navigate us back under the bridge to the marina.
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