Having a Bachelor’s degree from the University of California - a university which prides itself on the well-rounded education it provides - as well as having attended some great public schools in Southern California, I had assumed that I knew most of what there was to know about the significant parts of the United States. We have 50 states, tons of National Parks, all kinds of war memorials and sites on the East Coast, and I guess historical Gold Rush sites on the West Coast. So I was absolutely SHOCKED to move to Florida and learn that there was a WHOLE CANAL THAT WAS CARVED AS AN INLAND WATERWAY FROM THE NORTHEAST ALL THE WAY DOWN TO FLORIDA??? WHAT? I have done some (limited) surveying of my friends that also grew up on the West Coast and using my very small sample size I’m going to make a vast (non scientific) generalization : The East Coast’s best kept secret is the Intra-Coastal Waterway (ICW). GEORGE FREAKING WASHINGTON HELPED DIG THE ICW. WHAT IS THIS MAGICAL/STRANGE PLACE? Well let me tell you about it because after arriving in Charleston, South Carolina and spending a couple days restocking on groceries and wandering in search of a laundromat (quite the big ask from the water apparently), we cruised north to Maryland on the ICW. Just your local Trash Scientist blending in. (Photo by Grant Bemis) SO LETS TALK ABOUT THIS RAD WATERWAY
Kismet (Photo by Grant Bemis) After we ran aground, we tried to get off the sandbar that we were stuck on and almost made it off before we got good and stuck. Just our luck, the tide was dropping, so we had to just sit. A dolphin swam smug lazy circles around us shortly after realizing that we were really really stuck before leaving us to wait on the tide. 6 hours later the tide had come back enough for us to pull Kismet out of the mud and creep cautiously over to the closest anchorage where we spent a night a little shaken before continuing our cruise north. Contrary to the speed this picture portrays, we were not moving (Photo by Grant Bemis) So much of the ICW is surrounded by absolutely beautiful natural land, and I think my favorite natural area in the Carolinas had to be the Alligator River. We saw a bald eagle soar across the river, an osprey flying in front of a rainbow, and nothing but gorgeous trees and water for an entire day of gorgeous motoring. The Alligator River We spent about a week in Elizabeth City, North Carolina waiting on the Army Corps of Engineers to clear the Great Dismal Swamp Canal for boat passage following Hurricane Isaias. The Great Dismal Swamp is actually one of the more beautiful places we went - it’s this incredible natural area made up of thousands of acres that sits just outside Norfolk, Virginia. But maybe the most exciting part of the canal through the Great Dismal Swamp is the two locks you get to go through! Locks are really cool tools in waterways to raise or lower boats - we got to get lifted into the swamp and we got lowered into the waters just outside of Norfolk! I love locks (photo by Grant Bemis) Virginia was a particularly exciting part of our trip for me because we stopped to meet a friend that I made on the internet! Emily is a journalist and rad lady who runs the blog Dinghy Dreams. We started talking on Instagram at the beginning of my trip in Florida and we got lucky enough to meet up in person, socially distant of course! I also got to meet another super cool lady sailor, Julie (check out her Instagram here), who happened to be visiting Emily at the same time! In addition to absolutely wonderful conversation, Emily and Julie gifted me a totally rad romper, which was a welcome clean clothing item as well as an upcycled piece of clothing - win-win! This is the motion I do when I talk about kelp...so Emily, Julie and I decided to all be kelp! (Photo by Grant Bemis) We sailed across the Chesapeake and got Kismet tucked into her slip at the marina without too much more of an ordeal, and my gosh, the first shower at the marina definitely is one of the top best 5 showers of my life - nothing beats the first shower after a long adventure! And after nearly 6 weeks of sailing and motoring and learning, I’m flying home to the West Coast breathing in stale coffee breath from that good Atlanta Airport coffee in my N95, already daydreaming about the next trip where I can say goodbye to land and see what the next adventure will bring. Kismet in Maryland - we made it! **Author's Note: It has been brought to my attention that the ICW does in fact extend past Florida and goes up through the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf ICW extends from Carrabelle, FL to Brownsville, TX. It bears noting that I have neglected over 1000 miles of the ICW by only discussing the East Coast portion of the canal.
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AuthorBree Gibbs, here. I'm a recent Master's Grad just trying to share what it's like to be a trash scientist (for those who aren't in the know, I'm a marine biologist). Categories
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