The Houses of Charleston, SC

Charleston, SC, is a historic city in South Carolina. It is built on a peninsula that served as a major shipping port because of its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean while still being protected from ocean weather.

While the port may be famous, the real charmer in this town certainly has to be the old houses. These massive mansions which sell for way too much money are lavishly decorated in souther charm style and painted such bright colors. 

We have spent a few days so far simply walking around the town admiring all the different and historic homes that seem to line each and every street. If you plan on stopping by Charleston, be sure to bring your walking shoes! 

Functional Artwork

At the Gibbs Museum in Charleston, they had on display an old sign for a dentist.

Now, back in the old days, the remedy for any painful tooth was to extract it. This left you with a toothless mouth! This dentist commissioned a wood carver to create a sign for his practice that would advertise that he would put your teeth back (in the form of dentures).  

Maddie, an artist and art teacher, has made it very clear that for something to be "art" it must only meet the purpose of being art. If it has any other purpose, then it is that thing and not "art". That being said, it was fun to see how history can look away from the fact that this piece of art was actually a sign board used to attract paying patients to this dentists office and hang it on the museum wall displaying it as "art with a past purpose" even though now it is merely a piece of art. 

South Carolina

Traveling down the east coast of the United States has been interesting, but it all still felt rather familiar to us. Then we got to South Carolina!

Gardens at Middleton Plantation

When we reached Charleston, we took a tour of a nearby plantation. This place was amazing! Now, plantation is just a fancy word for "Huge Farm", meaning that everything here had its purpose. 

The animals that were kept on the plantation all offered some form of economical advantage. The goats were used for their fur, milk, and meat. The birds were kept for their feathers, eggs, and meat. The water buffalo were kept because they are docile, strong workers, and for their meat. Then there came the fields, and plantations have a reputation for what happened on the fields. 

This plantation was one of 19 owned by the Middleton Family. Most of these plantations were used to make lots of money, but this one was used as the headquarters where business deals took place. Therefore, this plantation home was lavish and gorgeous with immaculate gardens on the property. 

This pool, for example, is one of many pools and ponds in the garden. The sights with the trees overhanging the water and the Spanish Moss hanging down from the branches just takes away all your thoughts as you stare off into the perfectly orchestrated design. 

This was our first day in Charleston and we have been thoroughly impressed!

Pros and Cons of Electric Propulsion

After having cruised part time for several years and now full time for several months, we have compiled a list of advantages and disadvantages for electric propulsion. This list is not meant to sway you towards or away from electric propulsion, but merely to educate you on its potential advantages and drawbacks that way you can make the most informed choice for your own yacht. 

Let's start with the disadvantages, as people who have diesel motors tend to pick on this system quite intensely; later we will go over the advantages. 

Disadvantages: 

Range is limited to the size of the battery bank.
Weight of the battery bank can add up quickly.
Range can be supplemented by using a generator, but your speed will be limited by the size of the battery charger.
Electronic components on a boat are prone to corrosion caused failure.
Parts are not readily available, as they are not common components.
Skilled and qualified labor is hard to find.
Battery technology has a long way to go to provide the amount of range of a fuel tank.
You can't charge your batteries by running the motor.
Deep discharging is damaging to the batteries.
When it fails, the culprit is not always obvious.

Advantages: 

Nearly no noise.
It is very small in size.
It is light weight.
It starts up immediately without needing to warm up.
There is no exhaust smell.
No risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
There is no need to winterize the motor.
It provides instant torque and has very fast throttle response.
You can install and service the motor yourself with basic tools.
There is no risk of oil leaks or oil spills.
Enviromentally friendly since it uses no oil or fossil fuels.
You can recharge it with solar panels and wind generators.
It acts as a hydrogenerator when sailing.
The motor is air cooled so you don't have to worry about clogged strainers or sand in the waterpump.
No fuel filter to clog.
Less moving parts to fail.
Nearly maintenance free (only two Zerk fittings to grease once a year).
No oil changes needed.
You don't have to worry about fuel quality or water contamination in the fuel.
You don't have to polish your fuel.
Long and short term costs are less:
The cost of replacing dead batteries is less than the cost of fuel consumed over the same distance.
You will save a lot of money on fuel costs.
The electric motor is cheaper to buy and the parts are also innexpensive when compared to a similarly powered diesel motor.

Anchoring Stars

Part of cruising is experiencing new places, but these places could easily (and probably much more easily) be visited by land or air. While the sights at the destination are identical, there is a time when cruising will set its sights apart from any other method of reaching this destination. 

This shirt was developed to embody the wonder of an anchorage, where the mast head anchor lights blend into the night sky as extra stars. The yachts beneath them disappear into the darkness of the night, with only a small light high above them quietly displaying their presence.

You can purchase this shirt at Teespring by following the link below: https://teespring.com/anchoring-stars?tsmac=store&tsmic=rigging-doctor#pid=2&cid=2397&sid=front