August 10: Myrtle Beach

 

Cattitude’s engines roared to life at precisely 6 am. We have 78 miles to cover to get to Myrtle Beach from Wrightsville. The houses were gorgeous and the river was calm.

Eventually the current started giving us a push which is normally great except when you are in a head sea. The winds built up early which is why Debbie elected not to head offshore. So by the time we got to the middle of the Cape Fear River where three rivers converge, all hell broke loose. There were 5’ waves at about 3 second intervals with the occasional ferry passing us with passengers heading to and from Bald Head Island. Cattitude’s nose would scoop up water and the waves would spank poor Furball’s underbelly.

In the middle of this, Debbie got a phone call. She asked the caller if he could call back in an hour and apparently he wouldn’t. So I got to take the reins and ride the rocking horse through the slop. Fortunately we made it to a narrow cut and turned in. It was as if nothing ever happened. Except for the salt covering every inch of the boat and the little black cat who retired to the litter box. There’s a reason they call it Cape Fear.

Debbie has started something weird. I was playing on my iPad last week while she was driving and she said something about it being “my shift.” I asked what that meant and she said it was my turn to drive. I’ve been driving periodically throughout during her lunch or when she had to pee but not in a structured “shift” sort of way. I’ve never been on ANY other cruise where the captain left the helm, picked out a passenger and said “It’s your shift!”

We arrived in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, at 2:30 and rinsed and dried the boat. My strategic selection of this marina back fired when we arrived and the brewery is on the other side of the ICW.

Luckily, these guys have a Tiki bar with  happy hour and Cosmos are FIVE DOLLARS!

Tomorrow is Debbie’s birthday. We are heading to scenic Georgetown.