Pinopolis lock and Cooper River Charleston SC May 7th

[DieselCamel]

It was a fun day... the unloading.. driviNG the boat an hour.. then back an hour ... reloading... trailering the boat about 35 min then unloading was a bit of a pain... but not even mother nature and a closed lock could keep this group from the trip and the night in beautiful charleston...
View attachment 36745

@bronze_10 we have the same view. Awesome trip down.

 

[bronze_10]

I think we and another boat.. can't remember who.. are going to the marina about 9 am...

 

[DieselCamel]

Sounds good to me if I can beat my crew out of bed

 

[bronze_10]

Randy and his crew are who we are planning on following..

 

[spaz1868]

I think we and another boat.. can't remember who.. are going to the marina about 9 am...

@robert843 is leaving around that time too. We plan on leaving with the early group as well.

 

[bronze_10]

Roger... well those of you who know where u r going.. make sure one of you have a red 2008 sx230 behind u cause I have no clue how to get back! Lol

 

[Seadeals]

Randy and his crew are who we are planning on following..

Our plan is to leave for the marina at 9:00, ready the ships and fuel up, then set out (probably 10:00 at that point) cruise by Fort Sumter, Castle Pinckney and the Yorktown before heading up River.

 

[robert843]

I'm going to try and leave the hotel around 9 should be to the boat and ready to move by 9:30. I do need to get fuel.

 

[Andy S]

If you haven't been through the lock before, once you get to the Hidden Cove entrance don't turn in, go no more than a mile farther up the river to see the backside of the massive steel gates of the lock, it is worth checking out. Who knows maybe the lock will be open and you can go through the lock to lake Moultrie then turn right around and back through the lock.

 

[DieselCamel]

If you haven't been through the lock before, once you get to the Hidden Cove entrance don't turn in, go no more than a mile farther up the river to see the backside of the massive steel gates of the lock, it is worth checking out. Who knows maybe the lock will be open and you can go through the lock to lake Moultrie then turn right around and back through the lock.

Definitely on the list of things to do today

 

[Julian]

Guess its lucky I didn't plan on this trip...being boatless now! LOL..... Will have to do it with the new ride next year!!!

 

[tim h]

A big thanks goes out to @robert843 for inviting the Hamilton family this weekend. Had a great time, and most definitely need to go back to Charleston. Also, thanks to @Ramblin Wreck for hook'in us up. Can't wait to see ya'll again in a month.

 

[Rob9550]

We need to set up a Lake Murray meet up. I would love to have other kids around that mine can hangout with.

 

[bronze_10]

We had a blast... we were actually a little sad when we turned the corner and say the bridge showing where we turn into the Marina... I think this will be an every year thing!

 

[robert843]

Well the trip truly did not go as planned at all but overall I think most had a good time in the end. I have done this trip 4 years in a row in the first week of May and saw the roughest conditions we have ever seen on this trip even with the great looking weather forecast. We all left Rocks Pond at close to 11am and ventured across Lake Marion to the diversion canal towards Lake Moultrie. This was my first experience on Lake Marion and unless your are fishing I really wouldn't recommend this lake to anyone it is extremely stumpy and very shallow in parts. As we entered Lake Moultrie to make are way across to the lock we came across 2 ft heavy chop which made the 12 mile run across a little longer then normal but not terrible but due to the wind and wave conditions we arrived to the lock only to find it was closed due to those conditions. I called the lock operator and was told it could open later in the day but they were calling for the same wind conditions the next day and they would likely be closed again. So instead of waiting and risking not being able to get back to our vehicles the next day we all returned to Rocks pound and towed 30 minutes to Hidden Cove Marina just on the other side of the lock. We redropped and in a few different groups in an effort to save time made our way down the Cooper River into Charleston. @Seadeals group was the first to make it to Charleston my group arrived shortly after and the last group arrive close to 8pm with the delays. Conditions when my group went through Charleston Harbor were a little rough a again coming around the peninsula heading towards city Marina probably 2-3 foot seas but the final group to arrive said that the lake was rougher then what they had experienced coming into Charleston so it had calmed down a little by the time they arrived. The trip back today was nice and was done again in a couple groups conditions were much better we were able to tool around Patriots Point and a few other areas in the Harbor with the nicer conditions we made it back to Hidden Cove Marina about 1pm and I know there was another group leaving Charleston later. I didn't take any pictures or video this trip but I'm sure some others will post some up I know @tim h took a bunch today. It was great meeting all and hope everyone had a good time even though we had to skip the lock. I did run to the base of the lock before pulling out and it was still closed today so it was a good thing we didn't wait for it yesterday.

 

[Seadeals]

Even though it did not go as planned (and there were some moments of crew tension) it was probably a better experience overall. This was our first "jetboat journey". It was very different leaving the tow rig behind for more than just a day on the lake. Navigating the river and unknown lakes was great experience. Dealing with some of the roughest conditions we have seen as a family put great perspective on the boat's handling and honed my skills minimizing the impact on my crew. Running for several hours at a time has increased my awareness of fuel burn and comparing notes with others offered interesting perspective on the other makes and models. The sights were far from ordinary and the company was first class all the way. Thanks to everyone on the trip. We look forward to future journeys.

 

[DieselCamel]

@robert843 @andy07sx230ho Thanks for planning this.. My crew had an Amazing time.. Was great to see old friends and make new ones. Wish we would of had more time to socialize. The WorldCat handle way better than expected in the rough stuff. Think this was the first time in my life were something has lived up to the hype. No pounding whatsoever. The faster you went the smoother it became up to about 30. We were with the last group to pull out of Charleston made it back to the launch at around 4ish. Made it home at 9.

 

[Mrs. Tim H]

 

[veedubtek]

Ditto what he said ^ Always great hanging out with everyone and making new friends. That was a whole lot to cram into 2 days, but definitely worth it. After Bimini last year, I was just jealous of coastal boaters. Now I'm jealous of river boaters too! I don't know how I'm gonna manage at my tiny little lake anymore... Also not sure why I even have a boat anymore. 150+ miles on the ski the last 2 days, and I just want more. Probably gonna feel that tomorrow though...

That mega yacht Tracy just posted is available for rent! Only 800K for either the summer or winter if you need something temporarily @Julian

 

[tim h]

Just made it home. We had to stop and pick up the pooch from Grandma's house... Great trip !