Big Red gave us all he had.

We spent a relaxing, wonderful eight nights in Beaufort before setting sail again for Isle of Hope. We hit all of our favorite spots, took care of a few small boat projects, and soaked up the energy of being in our favorite place.

Our classic charcuterie board to celebrate arriving in Beaufort. SV Infinity has named it a “Peguterie board.”

It’s not a stop in Beaufort without getting tomato pie from Low Country Produce. We were trying to remember how we learned about it and decided it must have been somewhere on the internet. All I know is that we’ve had one every time we’ve stopped here since we started cruising back in 2018.

Mmmmmm!
It just doesn’t get any better than this.

It seems like whenever we’re in Beaufort, we always see a few classic cars parked downtown:

Sweet!

This was our second Thanksgiving in a row in Beaufort. There’s a Publix only a 15 minute walk away from the dinghy dock where we once again were able to buy the fixings for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner:

And proof that Beaufort just keeps getting better and better, there’s a Waffle House just down the street from the Publix! Yes! One chocolate chip waffle and hash browns scattered, smothered, diced, and capped please!

Finally it was time to reluctantly leave and head towards Isle of Hope to get the engine replaced. Once again, the weather gods were smiling on us. All week in Beaufort there either hadn’t been wind or it was in the wrong direction. But on departure day we had good wind for an easy sail to our anchorage at Bull Creek.

I think people must feed this pelican at the Bull Creek anchorage. He flew down, landed right by us, and hung around for awhile. We’ve never had that happen before. The different color gradations in his feathers was very cool to see up close.

All good things must come to an end, however, which it did on our last travel day. It was cold, rainy, and raw, and there was no wind. With the dinghy side-tied, the two-stroke Yamaha did a great job of pushing us along. Of course with only 4 hp, we were occasionally making 2 knots against the current, but at least we were moving. I don’t think the 2.3 Honda four-stroke could have pulled it off.

Ever since Georgetown we have been using the engine for only a few minutes a day. We’ve primarily used it to raise and lower the anchor, and then once to get in and out of the marina at Charleston. As we approached Isle of Hope Marina, where we were thankfully going to be on a face dock, we discussed our strategy.

The dinghy was side-tied on the wrong side of the boat for the face dock, so we were going to start the engine a few minutes away and move the dinghy so we could tow it behind us. We had very light wind and a current against us.

We started the engine and within a minute it started sounding even worse than it had been. Then there was a squeaking sound and it stopped running. We quickly scrambled to move the dinghy from the stern to the port side while I tried to eek out any forward movement with the jib. It was a hectic minute or two, but Jeff leaped into the dinghy, started the outboard, and we limped into the face dock without any trouble.

Big Red had clearly given us all he had. He lasted long enough to get us out of the marina in Charleston without colliding with any boats. He lasted long enough so that Jeff didn’t have to raise the chain and anchor by hand. And once Big Red saw that we were within spitting distance of our final destination, he gave up the ghost. RIP Big Red.

Next up: Son of Big Red gets welcomed into his new home, Pegu Club.

6 thoughts on “Big Red gave us all he had.”

      1. Hope all goes well with the engine install. I suspect you’re making the right decision to replace rather than attempt a repair- as hard as that bullet is to bite.
        I’m contemplating repowering with a Beta for a similarly sized boat (C&C29)- aside from this current engine ordeal, have you been happy with how much power the Beta 16 has given you? Do you wish you’d gone with the 20?

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      2. Thanks, Ian. I think you’re right about the replace vs repair. Yes, aside from hitting the bad luck lottery, we have been very happy with the Beta. It’s been flawless up to now. We do wish we had gone with the 20 based on some of the strong adverse currents along the ICW, but the 16 certainly has sufficient power. With no current and no wind, we can easily motor along at 5 1/2 knots at 3/4 throttle. It’s just poky in particularly bad currents, but we’ve learned to relax and deal with it.

        We are replacing with another 16, because those occasional annoyances wasn’t worth the modifications that would have been needed to replace with the 20.

        Good luck, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any other questions.

        Kimberly

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  2. Happy New Year to both of you!

    I’ve followed your blog as a fellow 1977 B29.9 owner and have learned much. I’m still working on my boat and will be set free in Spring of next year to do what you’re doing!

    I’m appalled and terribly sorry for your experience with you Beta Marine engine. Mine was re-powered with a Yanmar 2GM20F in 2005 and is still running strong (knock on wood) with about 1,000 hours on it.

    Assuming you performed recommended routine maintenance and used your Beta as it was designed to be used, it is shameful the company will not make you whole on an engine six months and 500 hours out of warranty.

    I encourage you to contact Yanmar, tell them what has happened with your Beta and see what they’re willing to do to help. All I can do to support you is go to the Annapolis Boat Show in the fall with a megaphone and tell everyone within ear shot they’ll be buying a new Beta the moment the warranty expires!

    Really appreciate both of you and please keep the updates coming. Cheers, Drew

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    1. Hi Drew: Sorry for the delay in my response – I’m woefully behind on the blog and didn’t notice the pending comment. It’s always great to hear from a fellow 29.9 owner, and that’s fantastic that you’ll be cruising on it next year. She’s a great boat for adventuring, and has forgiven all of our early mistakes.

      Thanks for your kind words about the Beta. We were pretty appalled too, but there really wasn’t much more to be done. We debated switching to a Yammer, but decided this was a highly unusual incident and it would be easier (and cheaper) to swap like for like. It wasn’t an easy decision, but it is what it is.

      Keep in touch as you get closer to tossing off the docklines, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!

      Kimberly

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