Georgetown

Ernie, the mechanic showed up early in the morning and worked with Dwayne changing fuel filters, checking the fuel for water or dirt, running the engine to determine symptoms and explore cures.  

One possibility was something like a rope or line snagging the propeller which could cause the reduction in engine rpm.  Time for someone to go swimming and it wasn’t going to be the mechanic. 

Dwayne borrowed some goggles from the owner of a neighboring boat and took the plunge.  The water was so dark the goggles were worthless.  Dwayne had to run his hands over the propeller and shaft to determine if they were free of any foreign object such as ropes or lines.  This may be the South but the water is no warmer than Lake Michigan.  No lines were found on the propeller or shaft.  Dwayne headed for a hot shower right after his swim.  More work on the engine and eventually it seemed to run better.

While the engine trouble shooting was underway, Dwayne got a call from Susie and Terry who live in Augusta.  They heard we might be heading down the ICW and were somewhere in South Carolina.  They wondered where we were and if we might get together.  I just so happened, they were also in Georgetown.  We were able to spend some time together on the boat and at a nice restaurant in town.  After lunch they helped cast us off as we attempted to rejoin the rally group in Charleston.  We didn’t get too far and the engine bogged down again.  So, our visit with Susie and Terry was extended.

After consulting with the mechanic, it was decided the fuel lift pump might be the problem and it was placed on order for overnight delivery.

After dinner, we took a stroll through downtown Georgetown.  It is an unusually interesting town with a long history.  It is the third oldest city in South Carolina and has over 60 homes which pre-date the American Revolution.  Many of these homes were the city residences of plantation owners and wealthy merchants.  The town’s decline began with the end of slavery and the demise of the profitability of growing rice due to the high cost of labor after the Civil War and inability to utilize mechanized equipment in the swampy rice fields.  The Rice Museum was particularly interesting in explaining how at one time Georgetown exported more rice than any other city in the world and how this crop was raised on the over 150 plantations in the county.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgetown,_South_Carolina