A Savannah afternoon and crazed currents Lindsay McRory November 30, 1995 We spent three cool days slowly working our way down to Isle of Hope near Savannah, Georgia. This section of the Intercoastal Waterway links a series of winding rivers. And as you move south, the tidal swing gets larger. At Savannah the tidal range can be 9 feet, which makes for some challenging navigation when combined with the winding rivers. Coming from the Pacific Northwest, we're used to big currents. But in a shallow river they are a much more dramatic factor when you steer the boat. The river bends and the entrances and exits to the landcuts are the worst. In these sections, I borrow some techniques from whitewater kayaking. In the big bends, I start to make the turn a long way before the river bend and keep turned into it most of the way through, depending on where the deepest part of the channel is. Most of the marinas are located right alongside the rivers. The pesky currents make for some challenging docking. Down here, the dockhands who work at the marinas give advice over the radio before docking and are usually there to help you tie up. In most areas in North America you usually don't think twice about tying up to a slip then seeing the dockmaster (or wharfinger in some parts). But in these Carolina lowlands, you sometimes have to circle around the marina like a buzzard until someone answers your radio calls and comes to help with the tricky dockside handling. To date we have stayed at marinas every night, although our preference usually is to anchor. There are few anchorages in the area of Virginia and northern North Carolina, but more as you move south into Georgia. These anchorages are typically found in rivers and creeks that feed the rivers of the Intercoastal. We plan to anchor more once we reach Florida, where the nights will be warmer and we'll be able to take the kids ashore in the dinghy. It's tough to kick a ball around in a marsh. In Savannah, we took advantage of the local transit system to tour the city. Savannah is a fairly clean work town with a lot of history. It was a nice, leisurely afternoon walking down River Street and viewing some of the old monuments. We'd all like to spend a couple of days here, but it's time to make tracks for Florida.