• Home
  • “Thinking Outside the Boat”
  • From The Helm
  • Destinations
  • About

Cruising The ICW

~ "Thinking Outside the Boat" ~ Destinations ~ Marinas ~ Restaurants ~ Attractions ~ Marine Services

Cruising The ICW

Tag Archives: 2006 Mainship 34T

Destination: Historic Beaufort, NC

05 Thursday Aug 2021

Posted by “Oh Captain My Captain” in From the helm

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

2006 Mainship 34T, America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association, Atlantic ICW, Beaufort Docks Marina, Beaufort NC, Belhaven Community Chamber of Commerce, Belhaven NC, Blessed, BoatUS, Coastal destinations, Cruising, CruisingTheICW, Friends, Georgetown SC, Grateful, Harborwalk Marina, Hospitality, Life, Love, Mainship, Mainship 34T, Marinas, Memories, Myrtle Beach Yacht Club, Passage Maker Magazine, Reflections, Slow Dance, Soundings, Soundings Online, Swansboro, Thinking Ouside the Boat, Trawler, Waterfront dining, Wilmington NC, Wrightsville Beach

Last year, due to COVID-19 we did no long distance cruising. For this year’s journey, we spent our final night at home on the boat, so we could get an early start . On July 12, 2021 at 7:01 AM we cast off from the dock, idled under the Ben Sawyer, and began CruisingTheICW north!

First stop, Harborwalk Marina, Georgetown, SC. “Slow Dance” seems happy to be cruising again! Since returning from our 2019 summer on the Chesapeake, she’s gotten a new stateroom air conditioning unit, windless, the head serviced, new generator water pump, the hull waxed and new bottom paint, beautiful new Eisenglass for the upper helm, and last but not least, the annual service of the main engine, generator, and transmission. Since 2006, the main engine and generator’s oil has been changed every 100 hours, not counting the annual service done prior to departure for our multi-week cruises. Though we didn’t put 100 hours on her during COVID-2020, we adopted the rule of service annually or every 100 hours, which ever comes first.

While it’s rare for us to spend less than two nights in Georgetown, for a variety of reasons we had to keep pushing back our departure, so Georgetown was just an overnight stop on this journey. As always, Harbormaster Chris and his crew provided excellent service and a beautifully clean facility. And added bonus, it’s hard to remember when we’ve gone into Harborwalk and not seen at least one large and beautiful yacht docked there. If you’re CruisingTheICW through South Carolina, and have never visited Georgetown, put it on your itinerary. It’s a quaint little historic town with a harbor, Southern hospitality, good restaurants, SC Maritime Museum, and shopping,

Second stop, Myrtle Beach Yacht Club, Little River, SC. Since 2017 when we began our summer CruisingTheICW north, the yacht club has been our second night’s destination. Why? Reasonable dock fees, traditionally great fuel prices, great and reasonably priced food at The Officer’s Club private dining for transients and members, and as always, an accommodating and professional crew to help with docking and most anything else we might need. Unfortunately, the The Officer’s Club is closed Mondays and Tuesdays, so for the Admiral and me, there’s always next time!

Third stop, Seapath Yacht Club, Wrightsville Beach, NC. When we began CruisingTheICW north in 2017, we made it a point to spend at least a couple of nights in Wrightsville Beach to visit with old friends. Sadly, an old best friend, Bruce Allcorn, the friend that always met us at the dock no matter where we stayed in Wilmington or Wrightsville Beach, passed away unexpectedly last October. This year’s visit without Bruce was tough. To know the guy was to love him. Our friendship went back over 50-years to our high school days and love of Austin Healey 3000s. At his celebration of life last May, the only person in attendance to have known him longer than me, was his older brother. Memories, so many memories.

“Beach Music,” the perfect name for a beautiful vintage Hatteras yacht built in North Carolina, home of beach music and beach bands like the incredible Embers, who made the song, “I Love Beach Music” famous.

Seapath Yacht Club is only a couple of hundred yards “off the ICW,” with limited transient slips, but a quiet, sheltered place to overnight. Their new shower facility has to be one the newest and nicest on the ICW. Another plus is their proximity to some of the finest dining in Wrightsville Beach. For many reasons, Wrightsville Beach will forever be on our northbound cruise itinerary.

Next stop, the new Town Docks at Swansboro, NC. In years past, we visited Swansboro by car, and a couple of years we stopped by the town docks for Kate the Mate’s “nature call.” When I recently read that reservations could now be made for overnights at the docks, we decided to overnight there instead of having such a long day getting to Beaufort. While walking around Swansboro that afternoon, we stopped by the visitors center and learned the town is in the process of putting in shower baths and a washer and dryer for transients’ use, in the Swansboro Visitors Center. While the visitors center is not adjacent to the docks, the new facilities will be no further away than those of some other marinas we’ve visited. It’s great to see small towns like Swansboro welcoming ICW transient boaters. To many, the ICW is their “intrastate highway.”

On to Beaufort, our first multi-night stop this summer. In 2018, our departure from home was scheduled around getting us to Beaufort in time for the Admiral to celebrate her July 4th birthday there. This year it was scheduled around getting her to Beaufort in time to enjoy Saturday’s Farmer’s Market! I’m happy to say we made it.

Like Georgetown, Beaufort is a favorite stopping point for large yachts, and this year was no exception. As we entered the Beaufort harbor, the 142′ superyacht, “MISSING LINK” could not be missed. Owned by Jack Link, of America’s #1 Jerky Brand, “MISSING LINK” was designed and built by US builder, Christensen Shipyards at their Vancouver shipyard. The yacht’s interior was designed by Carol Williamson and Associates.

On the right of the photograph is “MISSING LINK,” and on the left is “Slow Dance.” “MISSING LINK” travels with an Invincible center console launch that is the approximate length of “Slow Dance.” It can be seen perpendicular on the other side of the dock between “MISSING LINK” and “Slow Dance.”

We first “discovered”Beaufort when my parents bought a little place on Harker’s Island, a short distance from Beaufort. When visiting the island, Beaufort was where we went for dinner and shopping. Today, we enjoy Beaufort Town Docks, but it’s not the only marina in Beaufort. When staying there, we can walk or cycle most anywhere around town. But, others we’ve met while cruising swear by Homer Smith’s Docks and Marina, the full service Town Creek Marina, and the new Beaufort Yacht Basin.

What to do in Beaufort. Having spent my career in the travel industry, I’m about the worst tourist you will ever meet. We love to travel, but when we visit a destination, we enjoy getting local input on things to do. While rarely do we visit every attraction and museum in the local visitors’ guide! But, in Beaufort, there are some things I’d encourage doing.

  • Visit the North Carolina Maritime Museum
  • Beaufort Historic Site and Museum Visitors Center
  • Old Beauforte Farmers Market (A Saturday event)
  • Water tours ~ there is a myriad of water tours offered in Beaufort. Though I’ve never taken one, but I would encourage a visitor to Beaufort or Morehead City to take two specific water tours, (1) a tour that takes you to Cape Lookout Lighthouse, (2) a tour that takes you to the 5,400 acre Rachel Carson Coastal Equestrian Preserve or the Shackleford Banks to see the beautiful wild horses in their natural habit.
  • For detailed information about the many reasons to visit Beaufort, Morehead City, and all the Crystal Coast of North Carolina, visit the Crystal Coast of NC.

Dining in Beaufort. Years ago when we came to Beaufort from Harker’s Island for dinner, Clawson’s was the old standby. Today there are a number of quality restaurants from which to choose. Some of our favorites within easy walking distance of the marina are Finz, Black Sheep Beaufort, Front Street Grill, The Spouter Inn, Ribeyes Steakhouse, Mezcalito Beaufort, and of course, the old standby, Clawson’s.

Historic Beaufort, Morehead City, and the Crystal Coast of North Carolina. Great cruising destinations.

“Dwell as near as possible to the channel in which your life flows.” Henry David Thoreau

Share this blog with a friend!

  • Email
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

You Could Be CruisingTheICW!

28 Tuesday Aug 2018

Posted by “Oh Captain My Captain” in Cruising Life Style, From the helm

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

2006 Mainship 34T, A Word to the Wise, America's Great Loop Cruisers' Association, Ashley Yachts, Blog, Boat Clubs, Boats, BoatUS, BoatUS Magazine, Cargile Cutter Cruisers, CruisingTheICW, Dream, Family, Floating office, Friends, Life, Mainship, Mainship 34T, Memories, Office, Passage Maker Magazine, Reflections, Trawlers

“If you can dream it, you can do it.”  Walt Disney

 

Tuesday, August 28, 1018.  If the “Admiral” and I can go CruisingTheICW, then anyone can go CruisingTheICW.   When it comes to cruising, money may only dictate the price of your boat and the distance you cruise. Our daughter, her family, and friends, as well as some of our neighbors often do weekend cruises to Beaufort or Georgetown, or Myrtle Beach, SC in their center console boats.  Once there, they stay in B&Bs or Air B&Bs. Stories have been written about adventuresome souls even doing America’s Great Loop on jet skis and 16-foot Boston Whalers. To again quote Disney, “If you can dream it, you can do it!”

How We Started CruisingTheICW

In 1999 we returned to the SC Lowcountry after ten years in Raleigh, NC.  In making the move, we decided we wanted “smaller home, bigger boat.”  The problem was that four years earlier I had launched a new company, with the office located in our Raleigh home. Our decision to downsize as part of returning to the Lowcountry meant locating an office outside our home.  In discussing it with our CPA, he asked about the possibility of locating the office on the boat that was to be part of the “smaller home, bigger boat” lifestyle. Once I got over the shock of his suggestion, I said we could make it happen.

SunSmiles from Naut-Less
The 1977 30-foot Cargile Cutter Cruiser known as “SunSmiles”

In the mid-1990s, the “Admiral” had accompanied me to a meeting in White Fish, MT.  On our drive from the airport to White Fish, we passed a home with the most unusual cabin cruiser that I had ever seen, parked on a trailer in the side yard.  A few days later we returned to the home to get a better look and take pictures of the boat. We learned it was a Cargile Cutter Cruiser that was normally kept on Flathead Lake, near Kalispell, MT. After looking over the boat, I told Carolyn that if we ever moved back to the coast, I wanted a Cargile Cutter Cruiser.  Little did I know that we would eventually return to the Charleston area, and a Cargile Cutter Cruiser would become my office.

Coastal Living story 3-05

With a floating office, not all meetings are held in stuffy offices or at boring meeting tables.

When we made the decision to move, and knew a boat office was a very real possibility, I began researching Cargile Cutter Cruisers.  I learned they were designed and built by Allen Cargile from about 1970 to 1980, in Nashville, TN.  Thanks to the Internet, I was able to track down and call Mr. Cargile.

The late Allen Cargile was a fascinating and gracious man.   When I told him the story of seeing one of his boats in Montana, and now wanting one, he offered to help in any way that he could.  When I described the Montana boat, he told me it was a 28-foot model, but that I needed to find a 30-foot model. He said it would be more comfortable, and would be like the 1977 Cargile Cutter that he had cruised from New York to Paris in twenty eight days to prove the seaworthiness of his boat. That boat had been especially outfitted with bladders for additional fuel, and powered by a newly released Volvo-Penta diesel with stern drive. Proving the boat’s seaworthiness included surviving a freak, night storm with 50-foot high waves, by backing down against two sea anchors!  His feat was legendary for his time, but then again he was a fearless, former Navy fighter pilot.

After an extensive search, we located a 1977 30-foot model outside of Houston, TX.  Following an inspection and sea trial, we bought it, and had it delivered to our new hometown of Mount Pleasant, SC to become our “bigger boat” and floating office.

 For the record, in 1999, at $15,000 we paid less for our 1977 Cargile Cutter Cruiser than many people were paying for their used 21-foot center console boats!

Choosing Your CruisingTheICW Boat

Today there is a wide variety of new and used boats available to wannabe cruisers.  They come in all models and sizes, and some very popular ones are trailerable.  For those that desire cruising something larger, but still affordable, there are numerous older trawlers and motoryachts that can be bought for a fraction of their original price.  “SunSmiles” was that kind of boat.  Older. Affordable. Spacious. Comfortable. In our son’s words, the boat was very utilitarian, which made it easier to maintain.  One thing was for sure, it  attracted attention in every marina we visited, and in every day spent on the water.  It is long gone, but our memories of days spent onboard will last a lifetime. “SunSmiles” proved to us that CruisingTheICW and beyond could be done affordably.

In 2012, we sold “SunSmiles” to a family in Portland, OR.  Like I had once done, the father found “SunSmiles” while doing an Internet search for a Cargile Cutter Cruiser.  His desire to own one stemmed from the fact that when he was five years old, his father had bought one.  His daughter was turning fives years old, and he wanted her to grow up with the kind of fond memories he had of his father’s boat.  The minute she saw the picture of “SunSmiles” Fighting Lady Yellow hull, and heard the name “SunSmiles,” it was the boat she wanted!  Sadly, “SunSmiles” was destroyed in a freak accident while being towed to Portland.  Twenty-three miles outside of Laramie, WY, “SunSmiles” and two tractor trailers were hit by what the highway patrol described as a “hurricane force wind,” and all three were destroyed.

In 2016, we began another boat search.  This time we wanted a trawler with twin engines, two or three staterooms, and two heads.  A friend strongly advised us to work with a “buyer’s agent.”  It was advice that I am glad we followed.  We started out with a male broker, but the relationship only lasted a short while.  The day that I emailed him a couple of questions that would help determine the boat we needed, he suggested that we decide what we wanted and then get back to him.  I never got back to him.

We then chose Katie Williamson, a broker with Ashley Yachts, in Charleston to be our buyer’s agent, and she was outstanding.  With a few short questions, Katie had us rethinking the boat we wanted and needed.  How often will you use two or more staterooms?  If you are buying a trawler, how often do you figure you will travel offshore, or need the speed provided by twin engines? And last but not least, how often will you need two heads? Before we could answer, she said, “Keep in mind that what you are talking about will needlessly double the annual maintenance on the boat you choose.” Suddenly, we were looking for a sweet little trawler with one engine, one stateroom, one head, and a molded stairs to the flybridge for our dog, Kate to join us there.  When we found our little 2006 Mainship 34T, our buyer’s agent said, “She will drink six, feed four, and sleep two, very comfortably.  AND Kate will have easy access from the dock to the boat and up to the flybridge!”  SOLD!

BEST Slow Dance at Moise Island 3

“Dwell as near as possible to the channel in which your life flows.” Henry David Thoreau

A Word To The Wise Is Sufficient 

After cruising “Slow Dance” for a couple of years, we realize if we had a larger boat we could enjoy friends or our grandchildren sometimes traveling with us.  It goes to prove that you should “measure twice and cut once” when considering exactly how the boat of your dreams may be used.  All things considered, “Slow Dance” may be our forever boat.

In addition to the expense of maintaining twin engines, twin heads, and twin staterooms, keep in mind that unless you own the boat slip, the size of your boat will dictate the expense of dock fees, whether at home or while cruising – and 40-feet seems to be the dividing line on when per-foot costs increase.

When it comes time to buy, work through a reputable yacht broker or buyer’s agent, and by all means, get the boat surveyed as part of the purchase agreement. BUT before paying the expense of a survey, do a personal tour of the boat in question, or if it is a distance away, find one closer to check out.  The “Admiral” and I looked at a Mainship 390 and another Mainship 34T before deciding a 34T was the boat we wanted.  As we discussed it while driving home from Deltaville, VA where we had inspected a 34T, I said I wanted to check YachtWorld.com one more time before putting a contract on the Deltaville boat.  That one last look at YachtWorld led us to the boat that would become “Slow Dance” – and it was definitely worth the wait.

For the record, I am not a yacht broker, marine surveyor, or marine technician.  I am a boat owner that went through a multi-month process of research for an affordable boat that would fit the needs of a retired couple and a dog that wanted to go CruisingTheICW.  The following short list of considerations was compiled based on our personal experience in the boat search and purchase process.  I sincerely hope it will help as you deliberate taking your cruising dream to the next level.

  • Think long and hard, and then do your research to determine the type of boat you want.
    • USE A BUYER’S AGENT!!!  Unless you’ve owned numberous cruising boats and know everything there is to know about the exact boat you want, USE A BUYER’S AGENT TO HELP YOU THROUGH THE DECISION PROCESS AND TO NEGOTIATE THE DEAL.  AND, use a buyer’s agent that both you and your partner can relate to. (The “Admiral” and I used a young woman that had lived aboard and maintained a small trawler.  Though it was a bonus that she and my “Admiral” had graduated from the same college, her knowledge of cruising and living aboard was priceless in helping identify what we needed and might want to consider in the “boat of our dreams.”)
    • TO REPEAT:  If for no other reason, use your buyer’s agent in determining the value of fair market value of your dream boat, and in negotiating the offer.
    • What type of cruising will you be doing?
    • In-shore or off-shore?
    • Just cruising the ICW, planning the Great Loop, or is offshore in your future?
    • How often will you need two staterooms, two heads, and two engines to maintain?
    • What is your budget for this dream boat?
    • If possible, buy a boat you can afford without financing.
    • Discuss your desires/needs with experienced cruisers of various sized boats
  • Before putting a contract on a boat, or ordering a survey, visit the boat for a walkthru to see the layout, the general and obvious condition, and determine is that is really the boat you need or had in mind. EXAMPLE: The “Admiral” did not want a galley down model of any boat, until she went onboard a Mainship 390 with galley up, and then the Mainship 34T with galley down. After touring both boats, she realized Mainship’s galley down did not leave her feeling like she was in a cave, like she had experienced on other boats.
  • Once you’ve found the boat of your dreams and are ready to put a contract on it, THEN schedule the survey.  Your buyer’s agent should have surveyor contacts regardless of wherever the boat is located.  I personally recommend the engine(s) and generator be surveyed by a licensed surveyor that is extremely knowledgeable about the specific engine(s) in your dream boat.
  • I also personally recommend a second surveyor to do an indepth survey of the overall boat.  Once the survey is complete, you can cross-check their reports related to the engine(s) and generator.
  • Let your buyer’s agent negotiate the “survey allowance,” – if there is any – with the owner’s broker.

As a novice boat buyer/owner, I readily admit that you, any broker, or buyer’s agent could add to my list.  Just consider my list a starting point to get you thinking about the process of your dream of boat ownership and cruising.

In the words of Richard Bach, in his 1977 novel, Illusions, the Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah, “You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however.”  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Share this blog with a friend!

  • Email
  • Print
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...
← Older posts

“Follow In My Wake”

Starboard sunset
Lanes Ferry Dock and Grill features the best hot dog on the planet!
Lanes Ferry Dock and Grill features the best hot dog on the planet!
Captain Buck's Port Chef James Kohler
Captain Buck’s Port Chef James Kohler
Big Tuna, Georgetown, SC
Big Tuna, Georgetown, SC
The Admiral enjoys reading, while Kate the Mate stands by the captain.
The Admiral enjoys reading, while Kate the Mate stands by the captain.
Southport Marina
Southport Marina
Bridge Tender Marina
Bridge Tender Marina
Sullivans Island skyJPG
An early sunset casts a warm light on the "Next Chapter," a beautiful 130 ft Westport, at the popular Southport (NC) Marina.
An early sunset casts a warm light on the “Next Chapter,” a beautiful 130 ft Westport, at the popular Southport (NC) Marina.
Myrtle Beach Yacht Club
Myrtle Beach Yacht Club
Follow Cruising The ICW on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 249 other subscribers

Blogs I Follow

Categories

  • A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words
  • Attractions
  • Classic Yachts
  • Cruising Life Style
  • Cruising pups
  • Destinations
  • Dining
  • From the helm
  • From the Writing Room
  • Marinas
  • Marine Services
  • The Writing Room
  • Thinking Outside The Boat
  • Uncategorized

Boatyards

  • Atlantic Yacht Basin

Destinations Along the ICW

  • Beaufort, NC
  • Beaufort, SC
  • Belhaven, NC
  • Chesapeake, VA
  • Elizabeth City, NC
  • Georgetown, SC
  • Golden Isles, GA
  • Hampton, VA
  • Little River, SC
  • Morehead City, NC
  • Southport, NC
  • Swansboro, NC
  • Wilmington, NC
  • Wrightsville Beach, NC

Great Boating Magazines

  • BoatUS Magazine
  • Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors
  • MarinaLife Magazine
  • PassageMaker Magazine
  • Power & Motoryacht Magazine
  • Soundings Magazine – Real Boats, Real Boaters
  • Southern Boating & Yachting

Marinas

  • Atlantic Yacht Basin
  • Belhaven Marina
  • Harborwalk Marina
  • Isle of Palms Marina

Blog at WordPress.com.

Cruising Aboard Monk36 Trawler Sanctuary

Cruising Adventures in Another Life

The Alchemist's Studio

Raku pottery, vases, and gifts

My Serene Words

Seeking Solace in the Horizon & Beyond

Cosy Chaos

Always have a blanket and a notebook nearby

Ailish Sinclair

Stories and photos from Scotland

Writing about...Writing

Some coffee, a keyboard and my soul! My first true friends!

  • Follow Following
    • Cruising The ICW
    • Join 56 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Cruising The ICW
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d bloggers like this: