Ken_Potts Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 I'm heading to Charleston, SC for a Thanksgiving sailing trip and I've never been there, so I'm seeking local knowledge of the waters. Plan A is to put in at a ramp near the Cooper River Marina (don't know where one is) and leave my truck parked at the marina for 3 days while I stay with a friend in Ansonborough (I have a slip reserved there). Any information on boat ramps, multi-day parking, currents, weather or anything else would be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_stewart Posted November 23, 2009 Report Share Posted November 23, 2009 Ken, My friends down there will tell you "Chahleston is wheah th' Ashley and Coopa Rivahs come togetha to form the Atlantic Ocean" Spent many good times in the Charleston / Sullivans Island / Isle of Palms area but (sady) have never sailed there. Dawn has cruised the harbor via kayak, of course. I don't know of a wind forecast website good for Charleston specifically, but some of the usual suspects might give you a clue if you drill down to the Charleston area.... http://www.sailflow.com/windandwhere.iws?regionID=111®ionProductID=30&timeOffset=-1 http://www.intellicast.com/National/Wind/WINDcast.aspx http://forecast.weather.gov http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/hdfForecast?query=charleston%2C+sc&searchType=WEATHER Have a great time! What kinda boat(s) will you be sailing? CS17? OPB45 ? --Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sscoville Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 I lived in Chas. for a few years, but I never did any boating while there. The Charleston Yacht Club - http://www.charlestonyachtclub.com/ is right downtown. From looking at their webpage it does not look like you'll be able to put your boat in there or anything, but I would call them with your questions. A friend of mine who still lives there tells me that there are no convenient boat ramps downtown, but there are some just outside of town. It's good you're planning ahead. If I recall correctly, Ansonborough is near the old city center. Driving even a small car w/o a trailer can be a challenge - parking too. I think the closest boat ramp is across the Ashley River, off of Folly road, on Wappoo Creek. You may be able to park your car with the trailer at the city parking garage which is at the end of Calhoun St. - next to the aquarium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted November 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Paul, I'll be sailing a strangely yellow CS17. I heard that same thing about the Ashley and Cooper rivers earlier today - We certainly owe those South Carolinians a debt for the ocean they give us Then again it would be kind of nice to take a train to England. Those weather sites were the ones I was looknig for - I spend too much time on Jordan Lake so I have to get reminders from you salt-water sailors when I go places where the current actually changes direction. SScoville, I've certainly not been able to find downtown boat ramps - I'm planning to put in outside of Charleston, park the truck and trailer somewhere and sail into town. The friend I'm visiting lives in a building that has a private dock and I've had fun getting clearance to tie my boat up there. First they were concerned that they could accommodate me on such short notice, then they seemed a bit bemused when they heard my Sailing Ketch was 17 feet long. :cool: They've reserved Slip #1 for me (the one farthest from the entrance) and from what I see on Google Maps it looks like I could get three CS17s in there. They warned me to call security at some phone number or another to let them know I'm entering but I think I'd rather signal with flags and a broadside salute... The trip from Cooper River Marina to my friend's place looks pretty workable to me but I don't know if I'm going to be sailing against 4 knot currents or getting run down by cruise ships etc... Hence the call for local knowledge. Right now it looks like winds will be light and air temps will be chilly. I'll check the weather sites Paul sent and maybe see if I can find water temps so we can dress accordingly. Anyone else with local knowledge is more than welcome to chime in... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oyster Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Find a new sport for the same time frame. There is limited access in the harbor area and the tidal flow creeks and rivers which narrows up do not meet your criteria. Sure there are sailboats in Charleston, but most are larger in water hulls which takes eliminates a lot of things. Remember the Hunley was found down that way too, a purposed built wooden boat. :cool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted November 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Hi Oyster, The last time you told me not to sail I was happy I followed your advice. Our backup plan is to daysail on the Cooper River and leave the boat on the trailer at night (I found a place to park). I thought CSS Hunley was Iron. Hunley had a bit deeper draft than a CS17 too... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oyster Posted November 24, 2009 Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Correct, I had Ironsides on the what is left brain. HEHE! Give me a call tonight and I will pass along some info that maybe usefull to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted November 24, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2009 Hey Oyster - Did you get my PM? I'm not sure if I sent it right... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted November 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2009 Sailing Charleston was lots of fun. The winds were light out of the South today and we sailed across to the aircraft carrier (museum) where there was a pod of dolphins frolicking by the hull. As we approached they swam around the boat, surfacing just two or three feet away and every time we tacked away from the carrier the dolphins followed for a while swimming up in our wake, under the boat and surfacing alongside to get a look at the funny looking critters in the yellow box. I heard numerous exclamations from the people on the carrier - "Look at all the dolphins by that boat!" :grin: We completely lucked out weather-wise. We put the boat in the water Thursday in the City Marina and sailed around the peninsula to our friend's dock Just North of the RO/RO (car carrier) dock on the East side. I was nervous about paddling the boat out of the City Marina because of the twisty route through all that expensive plastic, but the wind and tide were on our side and once we were in the open and set sail it was a pleasant trip around with light winds out of the West. The next day we just tacked back and forth along the Eastern shore in a little bit more wind (still out of the west). Our sailing range was dictated by the shore to the West, the traffic to the east, the RO/RO car carrier ships to the North (they're like mountains) and the whitecaps to the South (we stayed in the windshadow of the city because we had a new sailor aboard). Saturday Southbound lay neglected in her slip while we walked around the city sharing great conversation and absolutely decadent food (seriously, undescribably good stuff). Sunday (today) the winds were light out of the South and playing with the dolphins was lots of fun on the way to the ramp on the Wando River where we put the boat back on the trailer (I was afraid to try threading the needle back into the City Marina ramp; The rising tide and South wind was a good excuse to stay on the Cooper/Wando Rivers). Good company, good food, good sailing, what else can you ask for? Okay, pictures - If any of my companions with cameras send me good photos I'll post them but we were so busy enjoying the time we didn't think of photos too often. So, even though I didn't manage the traditional trimmings and traditions I had a thoroughly enjoyable Thanksgiving weekend :cool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottWidmier Posted November 30, 2009 Report Share Posted November 30, 2009 Please write it up as an article and submit to duckworks or Small Craft Advisor. Sailing in that great bay has really tempted me on my one trip to Charleston with the Boy Scouts to sleep on the carrier. Taking the boat along for a family outing to Charleston really sounds like a good way to extend the fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted November 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2009 Thanks for the suggestion Scott - What sort of additional information (besides pictures) do you think would be helpful? I think I would have to put a huge disclaimer up front because I really got the best of weather and I'm not that good with predicting currents and stuff so I don't know how close I was to getting us all killed. Boat ramp access was an issue since I was using a slip at a private dock that has no ramp. The City Marina said I could leave my truck and trailer for three days, no problem, but there was a gate and it looks like there is normally a charge (as it turned out we just shuttled the truck and trailer to my friend's place). I called about the other public ramps in the area and was told there was a 24 hour limit and that they would tow my truck. The ramp at the city marina is buried at the back so there is a bit of maneuvering required to reach open water. Also I was told that ramp is not usable at low tide. The Remsley Point ramp was user-friendly and I was able to sail right between the pilings at the end of the dock rather than go in the real entrance. As we went in between the pilings I was waiting for the thump of a hidden obstruction but after we got to the dock a couple of Lasers sort of slalomed between some of the pilings then headed up the river (they looked like they were having good fun). The Carolina Yacht Club looked like a small-boat friendly place but when I called the dockmaster to see if we could use the ramp he told me that I had to be either a member of their club or another one (I'm not). A visiting member of another club is required to write ahead to the board of directors to request ramp access for a given day. Maybe the single most useful piece of information I found was an article on the web that was written by a member of the Carolina Yacht Club about racing Sunfish in the harbor. In the article was a little gem about figuring out where the eddies in the current are. Wherever the wind is blowing the same direction as the current the water will be smoother. The article advised racers to pick the choppier water for windward work and the smoother water downwind. That way the numerous eddies in the harbor can be used to advantage. The effect was most obvious on the day we had the lightest wind (when we chased the dolphins around). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted December 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 Leaving the ramp at Charleston City Marina we had to paddle out through a maze of big boats, then rig the sails once we were in the clear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted December 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 A sailor has to keep a sharp lookout in Charleston Harbor... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Potts Posted December 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2009 Some of the traffic - A schooner and two roll-on/roll-off car carriers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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