When you come back off the ocean at Winyah Bay Inlet, you are in the Waccamaw River which takes you up to Myrtle Beach. The Waccamaw is one of the prettiest sections along the ICW with cypress tree forests along either bank. We often see bald eagles along the Waccamaw, but this time only saw several ospreys, sitting on their nests.
The first night off the ocean we anchored off Butler Island, a couple hours up the river. The next night we stopped at Wacca Wachee after refueling.
In addition to the lowest diesel prices on the ICW, Wacca Wachee has a great restaurant and beer selection. This visit Rivah got to sit with us on the deck as we had a beer and appetizers and listened to an excellent singer. When we had stopped here back in January with the temperature in the 20s, we ate inside and Rivah had to stay on the boat.
Tides Inn sits at anchor off Wacca Wachee. Its a short dinghy ride over to the marina.
Next up ICW north of Myrtle Beach is the Little River Inlet. We anchor just inside the inlet breakwaters, off of Bird Island. This is a popular spot for local boaters but most all of them depart at nightfall. We were one of 5 sailboats that anchored for the night. Fortunately there is lots of room here for boats to spread out.
Well, not all the local boaters left at sunset. This poor couple had sat on the beach for too long as the tide went out. When they went to leave, their boat was firmly stuck in the sand and too heavy to lift off. They had to stay until the tide came back in and finally departed sometime after midnight.
Sue scoured the beach for shells but we confirmed that this is "Bird Island", not Shell Island. There were only a couple shells worth collecting. But no problem, we have Holden Beach and Cape Lookout ahead.
Next up the ICW is Holden Beach.\, home of lots of shells.
