Conway, SC to Wilmington, NC – A Week Turns into a Month

First of all, a big huge thank you for all of the supporting and loving comments to the passing of our Admiral Kiki. It’s been a tough few weeks, but it’s time to resume the blog.

This entry takes us back to the before times, when Kiki was still healthy and everything in our world was right.

We pick back up in Conway, SC – where we last left you after an amazing 4-night stay on their town transient docks.

We turned around, spent a night at anchor again at the secluded Cox Ferry and then backtracked in the morning down the beautiful Waccamaw River to return to the ICW. And then continued northbound through Myrtle Beach.

On a weekday afternoon, recreational traffic was a minimum through this narrow cut – making passing through the fabled ‘Rock Pile’ a breeze. With the channel lined with shallow hard rocks that can’t be seen at high tide, it’s not a place you want to deviate outside the markers – least you want to damage your props.

This entry covers June 3-7 and our 105nm journey from one side trip of Conway, South Carolina to another in Wilmington, NC.

For the video version of this segment of our travels, click the play button… or read on:

Stop 1: Bird Island Anchorage – North Myrtle Beach, SC

A long (for us) 43nm cruising day – most of that backtracking from Conway down the Waccamaw River to return to the ICW and then through Myrtle Beach.

We ended the day anchored off of Bird Island, right along the ocean.

We got ashore, and walked the beach to the Kindred Spirit mailbox – which was placed there a few decades ago as a place for people to journal and leave their thoughts. It was apparently featured in a novel at some point, and became a bit of a destination.

A lovely night listening to the waves crash – but a lot of recreational traffic passing through. It was also a touch swelly to the beam as tides reversed. So not the calmest of anchorages. But it did the trick before we headed on in the morning.

Stop 2: Holden Beach, NC Town Dock

Before weighing anchor at Bird Island, we called ahead to the Town of Holden Beach to see if we could reserve their transient dock. And it was open for the night!

So we had a putter of just 18.5nm up the ICW, got docked by lunchtime and then checked in at the town hall across the park. At just $1.25/ft (plus $10 electric) it was a pretty affordable stay with access to the ‘town’.

There’s a couple of restaurants for dining (with typical coastal grille menus), a great Italian ice shop and the beach all just a couple blocks away.

But other than that, Holden Beach doesn’t offer much, really.

We did get the bikes out for a long ride on the main road, and a run in the morning on the beach. Shore access for fitness is always appreciated by us.

Provision Company across the ICW did have enjoyable live music that we listened to on deck in the evening.

And, since there’s a pump out station lined up precisely with our side deck, we did take advantage for just $5. Not often these essential services are so accessible!

All and all, not a bad stay.

Stop 3: Pipeline Anchorage – Southport, NC

When you’re doing the Great Loop and pass through Southport, North Carolina – it’s kind of a right of passage to stop in for some Porch Time with Harbor Host Robert Creech.

Robert and his wife did the Loop many years ago, and genuinely love meeting and helping Loopers out as they pass through the area.

In fact, they love it so much that if you show up in the area and don’t reach out.. you’ll likely get a knock on your hull anyway.

They have an amazing house right on the Cape Fear inlet with a gorgeous view.. and host ‘Porch Time’ to give their recount of upcoming stops on the Loop. Apparently, most evenings you can find several Loopers gathered there.

They also give you a warm welcome to their town of Southport.

We did a quick stroll through town before the winds really picked up .. so we got back to the dinghy to return to the boat anchored about 2 miles away at Pipeline. It was already pretty choppy out.

Stop 4: Wilmington, NC – Port City Marina

We took a little detour off the official Great Loop up the Cape Fear River on a lovely day, riding the current 28.4 nm the whole way.  We crossed our wake with Zephyr – from when we took the Fort Fischer ferry many years ago on our original boat hunt excursion.

Even with the engines basically in idle, we were pushing 9 knots and arrived a bit too early for the high tide approach the dock master recommended.

We had heard marvelous things about Wilmington, NC – so booked a week at Port City Marina, right downtown (tip: don’t book week or more stays online, call them – you’ll get better rates!). Our arrival was smooth and easy, and the staff absolutely amazing and welcoming.

As soon as we got docked, the first thing that became apparent was that this was going to be a very social visit.

We were immediately welcomed by another Bayliner 4788 owner and invited to docktails that night.

And then we quickly encountered multiple followers also at the same marina and in the area. It was right off to dock parties, shared meals, friends visiting and making new friends.

There’s an outdoor concert hall right at the marina with weekly tribute band performances and multiple restaurants onsite.

And then there’s Wilmington itself, which the heart of historic downtown is just about a 1/2 mile away – offering dining, theaters, bars, coffee shops, shopping, farmer’s market and more. Combine that with an amazing riverwalk for walking/running – we were instantly hooked.

After a couple days, we found ourselves right back in the marina office asking about options for switching to a monthly stay. A week just wasn’t going to be enough.

Wilmington turned out to be a perfect place to enjoy a longer stay, tackle some boat projects and immerse ourselves in community.

And our month stay would put us staying through the 4th of July weekend, with the fireworks show right near the marina. Perfection.

Wilmington has made it to our very short list of places we could see ourselves returning to longer term. And we highly recommend any ICW cruise who has the spare time to make the diversion.

Real Time Update

We left Wilmington, the first time, on July 9.  And only got a day out before we noticed Kiki’s appetite had declined and her belly was swollen. So we turned around and returned to Wilmington to attend to her – a place we knew, had community and had access to resources.

You already know the sad outcome of that.

Today – we are finally attempting to leave Wilmington in our wake again and resuming our cruising ..without our Admiral.

It won’t ever be the same, of course.. but cheers to the adventures ahead!