Intracoastal Waterway Cruising (ICW) | Charleston, SC to Beaufort, SC [Wildly Intrepid Ep 90]
May 21, 2020 · 13 min · 3K views · Charleston
What this video covers
Alex and Cory navigate the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) from Charleston to Beaufort, South Carolina, managing bridge schedules, tidal currents, and shallow depths. The crew misses a bridge opening in Charleston by 15 minutes, forcing a three-and-a-half-hour wait at anchor while rafted up with another vessel.5:48 Planning the transit requires calculating current speeds, which reach up to 3.5 knots near ocean inlets, and monitoring bridge closure times that restrict movement during rush hours.6:15 The crew encounters 8-to-9-foot tidal ranges, which render several planned anchorages inaccessible due to shallow water and mud.11:31 To maintain progress, they complete a 57-mile day over 10 hours, primarily under power, with three hours of sailing.12:54 They reach Beaufort shortly after sunset, occasionally touching bottom in shallow sections at mean low tide.12:36 Successful ICW passage requires balancing bridge transit windows with current forecasts and tidal depth constraints to avoid grounding or unnecessary delays.
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