Need some advice on this trip. Headed down to Lady’s Island Friday for a weekend trip with some friends. Saturday morning we are wanting to get up and make the day trip to Savannah, stay a few hours, and head back to the Beaufort area. All the boating I’ve done on the ICW and offshore has been from Georgetown to Edisto. Will be in a 26ft center console and have all the electronics needed just wanted any advice or tips from the people who have done it before. Easiest parking in Savannah, and best route or things to watch out for. Thanks as always for the advice guys.
I’ve done it many times. It’s a fairly easy and straight forward trip. Intracoastal waterway all the way. Keep the red on the right. Port Royal can get real sloppy if the wind is against the tide.
It would make for a fairly long day trip, probably 60 water miles each way. What do you want to do in Savannah and how long are you staying? Eat lunch and leave? That would determine which way I would send you.
quote:Easiest parking in Savannah, and best route or things to watch out for. Thanks as always for the advice guys.
The intercoastal waterway is the easiest way to go. It takes between three and four hours. Just follows of red and green buoy’s and you chart plotter.They have a day dock right downtown on river street. Make sure and use bumpers as big ships go through causes the boat to push against dock.
quote:Yes docking, sorry, and we will spend about 3 hours for lunch and a few drinks. Thanks again
OK, you’ve got two choices. When you get to the Savannah River you can hang a right and run about 8 miles upriver to the downtown tourist district on River Street. There are 2 dozen tourist restaurants and more bars than that. There is a day dock at the Hyatt hotel and another across the river at the Westin. Check in at the desk on either. The Savannah River stays very busy with shipping traffic, container ships, tug boats and such, so pay attention to them and use plenty of fenders docking. They won’t slow down for you. Current can be very strong and lots of logs and junk floating down the river. Dock with your bow pointing upriver, the current is strong enough to sink you if your stern is tied into it. But it’s the party spot. When you turn right into the Savannah River, the nav buoys are red, right, returning (from sea). Keep red on the right, black or green on the left going upriver.
Choice 2, when you get to the Sav. River, cross it into the Wilmington River, staying in the Intracoastal, take it about 8 miles to Thunderbolt, GA. Go under the bridge and Bahia Blue marina will be on your right. They will let you tie up there for a few hours and you can walk a block to Tubby’s Tank House. Very good seafood and bar. More local than tourists. No ship traffic to worry about. But you’d have to take a cab to get downtown from there.
Thanks guys. I know NFishing said it takes 3-4 hours. I had another buddy tell me around 2. I understand it depends on speed and we are not going to fly but not poking along either. Should we account for a 4 hour one way trip?
Where do you plan on putting in? I have a friend with a place in lands end and there are several ramps you can use. Or make friends with the older gentleman that has the ramp in his yard and that is super convenient. I don’t think it will take 3-4 hours. May depend on where you put in at but we run to Savannah all the time from harbor town and it takes about 45 min by boat running behind Daufuskie. I can get from Daufuskie to the broad in about 30-35 min. I would probably just come through skull creek there are two no wake zones there I believe that are pretty short. Once you get out of there it’s smooth sailing. Just watch your gps for where to cut through to the Savannah river once you get around Daufuskie. Once we get to the Savannah we always follow it straight up to downtown. Once you get close to down town there left you have to make to run up to river street. There is a public dock right in front of all the restaurants. Just make sure you have good boat bumpers cause the dock is a little rough.
The hotel-related day docks around the Savannah area sometimes have issue with your boat length. I think the number they use is 26’. If you’re less than 26’, they may act funny and point to insurance. I just stood quietly when she said “your boat is bigger than 26’ right?” and she moved on. I was in a 22 Sea Hunt. She gave me a permit and I put it on my boat. There was a guy at the dock that kind of asked it too, again I just let it blow by. I assume the big ships are risky. They do push a huge wake. It is HUGE, especially out towards the ocean. I think they slow down a bit by the docks , but may be wrong on that. Out towards the ocean, they push wakes big enough for dolphin to play in. Sometimes that’s fun to watch, but you’re pretty close to them if you get to see them.
I think there is also a public dock just down river, we’ve tied up there before as well but had to hunt/wait for a spot. Don’t make a mistake and dock at the police/coast guard/fire/something official(?) dock even further south.
Coming in from the ocean, just as you see the big sand operation on the left, there’s a rock jetty coming off of an island to the right. Stay clear of that for sure. I think I recall to the right of the island is a sunken shrimp boat. Just stay middle of the markers.
Lastly, we did Beaufort > Salty Dog on the south of HHI once long ago in an 18’ bay boat. The weather turned and that Port Royal crossing would have capsized us. It’s no joke. Don’t take it lightly. We poked our nose out into it, pissed our pants, and turned back. Wetied up in HHI at the Skull Creek Marina and literally waited for hours in a laundry room while the weather pounded but the weather never passed. We took a cab from HHI to the landing to the get truck, came back and got the boat in the morning. Sav > Beaufort is a long ride, if weather starts to turn, you’re probably too late unless you’ve go the right boat. Our bay boat wasn’t going to cut it.
If you’re putting in a Station Creek, which is kind of