We were watching weather models of Hurricane Ian from the beginning, but after all the devastation in Florida, we weren’t expecting it to move offshore, strengthen back into a hurricane, and head straight for us in Charleston.
Fortunately, we had a couple days to prepare. We removed and stowed all cushions, canvas, eisenglass, and our code zero sail. We tightly wrapped our mainsail bag and put out lots of extra fenders and dock lines. We booked a nearby hotel and hoped for the best.
Things started to get ugly on September 29th and continued until around noon the next day. The marina closed and turned off water and power. The roads flooded. We don’t know how strong the winds were, but the 40 foot monohull in the slip next to ours heeled over far enough that it’s mast nearly hit ours. We watched the storm from the comfort of our hotel room, except Brandon who spent most of his time on the boat adjusting dock lines and repositioning fenders.
Finally, it was over. Hurricane Ian had made its second landfall in Georgetown, about 40 miles to the north of us. Luckily, we had very minor damage compared to some of the other boats in the marina. Our sail bag was torn and the mast step developed a leak – nothing a little thread and silicone couldn’t fix.
