4th of July

Selfie of the Crew

We had planned for several months to cruise to Brunswick to visit our friends Steve and Bonita on Solemar for the 4th of July.  They had told us about how the fireworks were launched just across the water from their marina, and we thought it would be fun to have a front row seat.  So when our niece called and asked if we would take her son, Brice on a week-long trip, we figured what better time to take him.  We decided to stay two nights on the hook as we leisurely headed south.  Then we would pull into Brunswick for one night to recharge the batteries.  Next, we would head to Cumberland Island for two more nights on the hook with trips to the island to view the wild horses and spend time at the beach.  Then we would head back to Brunswick on the 3rd and stay for the fireworks on the 4th.  Finally, we would head back to Savannah on the outside to give Brice a taste of the sea.  Sounded like a plan sure to please any 14 year old!  At the last minute, our granddaughter, Tori, was able to join us so we were sure it would be a fun trip!

Filming the dolphins on the bow wave!

The day started out perfectly.  We departed Savannah on time.  The weather was great and the kids got to watch several groups of dolphins riding our bow waves.  All went according to plan until we reached our anchorage for the night.  Just as we arrived, so did a nasty storm.  We were suddenly engulfed in rain so thick that we could barely see in front of us.  We navigated by instruments and found the anchorage.  Luckily, the storm eased up just as it was time to drop the hook, but Marie still got soaked getting it set.  We realized how thick the rain was when we departed the next day and discovered we had entered through a field of crab

Storm rolling in

traps.  We had not seen one of them coming in!  We were lucky to not have gotten tangled up in them!

The anchorage, which was off Blackbeard Island, was nice.  Once the rain stopped, we tried out our brand new dinghy and took the dog for a walk.  Brice and Tori found lots of shells and horseshoe crab shells.  There is a long beach that we had all to ourselves.

By the next morning, the weather had once again cleared and we were ready to resume our trip.

The storm heads off in the background

About 4 hours into the day, the engine suddenly stopped!  Reminiscent of our breakdown in St. Augustine, it sounded like I had run out of fuel.  So we dropped anchor and I jumped down in the engine room and switched fuel tanks.  I re-primed the engine and started it back up.  After pulling up the anchor, we were off again.  For an hour.  Then the engine died again!  This time I could not get the engine to re-start, so we called for a tow.  With the engine failure, our second night on the hook was scrubbed as we were towed two hours into Brunswick Landing Marina for repairs.

First ride in the new dinghy

Our friends, Jim and Ann, on Wild Goose were still in port and met us at the dock.  Since we arrived late, repairs were put off until the next morning.

Not to leave the kids bored, Jim told us of a discarded dinghy with a slow leak.  We pumped it up and he supplied some oars.  The kids spent the rest of the evening exploring the basin and nearby beach.

Learning to raise the anchor

After Jim and I spent a good part of the day replacing filters and troubleshooting the fuel problem, we discovered the problem was me!  Or at least my lack of information about Elixir's systems.

It turns out that I had simply run out of fuel!  I had been led to believe that I had a 300 gallon capacity when in fact I only have 150 gallons.  Combine that with an equalization line I was unaware of and when I thought I was only running off one tank, I was actually draining both.  Since I was only filling one tank at a time, after awhile I was basically running with about 75 gallons when I thought I had 300.

TowBoat US to the rescue!

So I ran out of fuel!  After some quick calculations, we decided this was also the cause of our breakdown in St. Augustine during our trip to Captiva Island.

This also answered some other mysteries like why could we not balance out our starboard list caused by the spare batteries by running off the tank on that side and why did they only install a fuel sending unit on one tank.  Now it all made sense.

Row, row, row, the dinghy

Meanwhile, Marie took the kids to visit some of the stores nearby and a walk around downtown Brunswick.  While taking refuge from the heat in the shade of a church, they got invited in for cold drinks by the pastor.

Once we discovered I was in need of fuel, Jim ran me up to the gas station twice to fill up a 5 gallon can with fuel.  That gave me 10 gallons to get to a fuel dock and fill up.

Tribute to WWII veterans

That night, Jim and Ann joined us at Fox's Pizza to celebrate the ability of Elixir to get back underway!  Fox's Pizza is a favorite of ours when we visit Brunswick.  It is within walking distance of the marina and you can build the pizza your way!

After a good nights sleep with bellies full of pizza, and with 10 gallons of diesel fuel in Elixir's belly, we set off for Cumberland Island, back on schedule.  We waited until 9a.m. to leave so that we could fill up at the nearby commercial fuel dock.  With the equalization valve in the closed position, we filled both tanks and took on 150 gallons, thereby confirming Jim's calculation that my tanks were 75 gallons each instead of the 150 gallons I had believed.

Brice and Ron working on transmission

With full tanks we were off again for our adventure on Cumberland Island.  But it was not to be.  Just moments after departing the fuel dock, forward momentum died.  The engine was still running but we were not going anywhere!  I tried shifting into both forward and reverse, but nothing happened.  We were adrift in a commercial shipping channel.
I jumped down into the engine room (this was becoming a bad habit)  and tried to shift the transmission by hand, but still no power to the propeller shaft.

Brice cooks the blue crabs he caught

Once again, we called for a tow boat.  And of course, it was the same tow boat captain that had pulled us in just two days earlier!

Back at the dock, Jim again came to the rescue and began helping me troubleshoot the transmission problem.

Luckily he had all the right tools on Wild Goose, including a hoist to help remove the transmission from the engine.  Once we removed it, we discovered the damper plate was shattered.

Taking a break in the forward berth

Thankfully, it would be a much easier (and cheaper) fix than having to replace the transmission!  Unfortunately, the part would have to be overnighted from Virginia, so the trip to Cumberland was scrapped.

With two days of having to sit in the marina on their hands, the kids jumped into finding ways to have fun.  They discovered the fun of geocaching.  They went fishing and crabbing.  They investigated the town.  Both of them took the cancelled trip to Cumberland Island in stride and decided to not let it spoil the vacation!  We were proud of them!

Hanging out on Solemar

The other boaters all pitched in to help with offers from Ann to accompany them on geocaching trips.  Jim and Belinda on Rickshaw threw a banana pudding party and the kids ate it up!  Jim and Belinda are on their last leg of a two year trip around the Great Loop!  Upon arriving in North Carolina, they will have accomplished what few boaters get to do!

Steve and Benita opened up their boat, Solemar, for the kids to enjoy a 4th of July dinner and watch the fireworks!

How many Defever Owners to fix a light bulb?

Everyone offered the use of their cars to take the kids to swimming pools, shopping, or wherever!  It is great to belong to a community where everyone is so willing to help each other out!

When Hurricane Arthur formed off the coast and sent high winds our way, we realized the cancelled trip to Cumberland was a good thing!

In all, there were six Defever style boats there, but two of the owners were absent.  Five were on our dock, Wild Goose, Solemar, Y-Knot, Rickshaw, and Elixir.

Bombs bursting in air!

Our son, Josh, and his wife, Melody, unexpectedly showed up for the the celebration.  It was great to have them there!

When night fell on the 4th, we were all treated to a wonderful display of fireworks!  We were so close that we could watch the workers lighting the fireworks!  The whole city came down to the marina to watch, but we had the front row seat!

The fireworks display lasted a long time and both Brice and Tori said it was the best they had ever seen!

Brice takes a shift at the helm

Once the display was over, we said our goodbyes to Josh and Melody, who had to return to their home, and turned in to bed.  Since we had a 12 hour trip home the next day, we needed to start early.

The next morning we were up before dawn, but ended up getting a late start.  We pulled out just before 8a.m. and headed north to Savannah.

Most of the day went fine, but in the afternoon, a thunderstorm began to chase us.  We kept going and it seemed we would stay ahead of it when about 6p.m., another one appeared in front of us.

The crew is tuckered out!

 Although Elixir is built to take the rain, wind, and waves, this was a very active lighting storm so we dropped the anchor and waited it out!  I did not want to be underway if we took a direct hit.  We saw many lightning strikes very close, but none hit us, so after about 30 minutes, we lifted the anchor and headed on with the rain still falling.

We could wait no longer as we had to get through Hell's Gate and across the sandbar into our marina and the tide was falling fast.  We crossed both with nothing more than the stress of watching the depth gauge showing less than a foot beneath us.

Finally, about 9p.m., we pulled effortlessly into our slip and tied up.  The lines would have to wait until the next morning to be dressed, as dark had fallen and we could not see them well enough to work them.  The trip was over and although nothing went according to plan, we all had a good time!