The next morning I awoke to Philip chatting with our boat neighbors. They were a sweet couple who had been up to Norfolk, VA and were now making their way back home to western Florida. They were planning to stay in Beaufort a few days as they were in no hurry to get back. They weren’t going to be able to cross the Okeechobee Waterway and Lake Okeechobee until mid June due to maintenance on the locks. They were a wealth of information and shared their knowledge of stopovers etc. with us. After getting fuel, we were off towards Daufuskie Island, a small, sleepy island just south of Hilton Head Island. Along the way, we planned a quick stop in Bluffton, SC for breakfast and some shopping. However, the beginning was slow going, shallow water, and many slow spots. We decided to skip Bluffton so we could get to Daufuskie earlier. Being Memorial Day, we heard they would be very busy and I wanted to make certain they had a spot for us. The only access to the island is by private boat or ferry and the docks tend to fill up before noon on holiday weekends. Golf carts are the predominant form of transportation on the island, though there are some cars and trucks as well. It was the one place I really wanted to explore during our trip and I really didn’t want to miss it!
The island is known to have “more turtles than humans” and was first settled by Indians who named it Daufuskie, meaning “point of an arrow” as the island is shaped like an arrowhead. Part of its charm are the old buildings, school houses and dirt roads. Nowadays, it seems one family is keeping the tradition alive and owns the only marina, only ferry service and only winery on island.
We made it to Freeport Marina and Old Daufuskie Crab Co. about 11am and it was already packed! There was boat after boat on the docks and some smaller boats were beginning to raft up on the face dock. Live music flowed down to the docks from the restaurant, inviting us up to listen. We eagerly obliged. After lunch, we rented a golf cart to explore the island further. Our first stop was, Daufuskie Island Rum Company, a local rum distillery in the islands interior. It sat in a small simple building overlooking a pond with many lily pads.
We then meandered thru the moss covered oaks to the Silver Dew Winery, which just so happened to have a grand re-opening that day! The winery had previously grown their own grapes but lost them all during Hurricane (by then Tropical Storm) Irma. The owner ended up buying grapes from Oregon and transported them all the way to Daufuskie Island. The winemaker then got to work in the tiny “wick building” of nearby Bloody Point Lighthouse. We sampled their Riesling which was the perfect amount of sweet and dry and strolled thru the vineyard and grounds towards the lighthouse.
Next, we made the short drive to the beach and put our feet in the water. Philip found a sand dollar for me in the surf while Peyton planted a “baby palm” (as she called it) at the edge of the waves. It was a perfect day and I can’t wait for a Daufuskie weekend in the future!
It was getting late into the afternoon at this point, so we hopped back on the boat and headed for Thunderbolt Marina, just outside of Savannah. We had originally hoped to stay at Daufuskie but with Memorial Day and only four overnight slips we had to keep moving. Thunderbolt was just a short trip south and we were soon settled into our spot on the face dock for the night. We had dinner on the boat and rested up for the next day of sightseeing in nearby Savannah!