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Reviews: Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

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Holding:
3.78
Wind Protection:
3.89
Current Flow:
4.00
Wake Protection:
3.89
Scenic Beauty:
2.33
Ease of Shopping:
4.44
Shore Access:
4.89
Pet Friendly:
5.00
Cell Service:
4.43
WiFi:
1.50

  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Janeen Axtell on Sep 22, 2024
    Vessel Type: Power
    LOA: 53'
    Draft: 4.5'

    Overall Rating:
    4
    Holding:
    5
    Wind Protection:
    4
    Current Flow:
    4
    Wake Protection:
    4
    Scenic Beauty:
    3
    Ease of Shopping:
    5
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5
    Cell Service:
    3
    WiFi:
    3

    As mentioned is previous reviews it is better to come in at high tide. The water is very skinny at low tide. We have a 4.5 foot draft and saw 6 feet depths but never touched bottom. Due to the mill, the scenic beauty was dependent on the direction that your boat swings on anchor. We did experience "the smell" which was annoying but did not make us sick or repulsed enough to move. The current was mild and our anchor held dutifully for multiple nights. Sadly, there are many derelict boats spoiling the way in to the anchorage which you have to weave around and keep in mind when setting the hook. Georgetown is a quaint little town with two free docks for day use and provided a nice place to tie your dinghy to when coming to town. There are restaurants, bars, shops, museums, parks, and a small boardwalk along the water. We walked the .5 miles to the Dollar General twice for provisions. The visitors as well as locals were wonderful. When you come don't forget to visit the free Maritime Museum (donations welcome) and eat at Rollin' Local which is a very popular eating establishment with indoor and outdoor seating. Also fun Buzz's Roost has an outdoor deck with a stage. They hosted live music Friday night which we listened to from our boat. The band was excellent by the way. Lastly, Georgetown is very pet friendly with waste stations and shops that put a bowl of water outside their door for pets to drink.

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Pam & Terry Partis on May 9, 2024
    Vessel Type: Power
    LOA: 45'
    Draft: 3.8'

    Overall Rating:
    4
    Holding:
    4
    Wind Protection:
    4
    Current Flow:
    4
    Wake Protection:
    4
    Scenic Beauty:
    3
    Ease of Shopping:
    4
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5
    Cell Service:
    5

    We are at this anchorage for a 2nd night. There are some derelict boats and several on private mooring balls. We went all the way past the commercial area of downtown down by the "mill." It depends in which way the boat swings how nice the scenery is. It is a working mill and it does produce an odor. It was not offensive to us, but you can definitely smell it. 2 FREE day docks to go ashore. Many restaurants for a small town. For us, it seemed shallow coming in at low tide, we saw some 3' (our draft is 3.8) but we never touched bottom. We entered from the North as Aqua Maps shows it with little to no depth on the south entrance of the tiny island. It's extremely convenient to dinghy in for shopping, dining or pet relief.

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Scott A Westwood, Aphrodisiac, on Nov 4, 2023
    Vessel Type: Sail
    LOA: 32'
    Draft: 4.3'

    Overall Rating:
    4
    Holding:
    4
    Wind Protection:
    4
    Current Flow:
    4
    Wake Protection:
    4
    Scenic Beauty:
    3
    Ease of Shopping:
    4
    Shore Access:
    4
    Cell Service:
    4
    WiFi:
    1

    First time. Very glad we stopped. We draw 4.5ft and came in near low tide and didn't see less that 7ft. Wind was light and NE so no reported smell from steel plant. Great waterfront town. Front street has free nautical museum and places to eat and shop. Pigly wigly 1.5m and Food Lion about 2m. This Sat 12-3 about restaurants on Front st. are all doing fund raiser on sidewalk with food samples. Buy tickets and walk along sampling as you go. We will be back.

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Jeffrey Womack, SV Mischievous Mermaid, on Aug 6, 2023
    Vessel Type: Sail
    LOA: 44'
    Draft: 5.0'

    Overall Rating:
    3
    Holding:
    5
    Wind Protection:
    4
    Current Flow:
    5
    Wake Protection:
    4
    Scenic Beauty:
    3
    Ease of Shopping:
    4
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5
    Cell Service:
    5
    WiFi:
    1

    The worst part of downtown Georgetown in a sailboat is the narrow shallow channel getting in. Plan your arrival for high tide, if possible. We never drug with our 5' draft, but the depth alarm went off constantly. Charming little town with an abundance of history. No big box retail near harbor, but plenty of places to eat & drink. Nearest coin laundry was about .6 of a mile away. Holding was good with our 65 lb. Mantus M2, but there was no wind or current. We'll see about the, "Baby poop" mud when we haul the anchor tomorrow.

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Brian Speicher, S.S. Minnow, on May 30, 2023
    Vessel Type: Power
    LOA: 40'
    Draft: 3.6'

    Overall Rating:
    3
    Holding:
    5
    Wind Protection:
    5
    Current Flow:
    5
    Wake Protection:
    5
    Scenic Beauty:
    2
    Ease of Shopping:
    5
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5
    Cell Service:
    5
    WiFi:
    1

    Thick mud bottom.. think baby poop.. held great on first try with excel anchor and 100ft chain. plan on cleaning chain locker and anchor when leaving. good protection from all wind directions. came in at high tide and never saw less than 9 feet. free town dock just a minute away. great town to spend a day in. But I think it's worth springing for a dock here just because of the mud. Oh, the Steel mill is back in business and the sirens start at 7 AM

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Graeme Walker, Confirmed Aquaholic, on May 3, 2023
    Vessel Type: Power
    LOA: 54'
    Draft: 4.0'

    Overall Rating:
    1
    Holding:
    1
    Wind Protection:
    1
    Current Flow:
    3
    Wake Protection:
    3
    Scenic Beauty:
    1
    Ease of Shopping:
    5
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5

    I wouldn't even attempt to anchor here. The entire channel up to the steel mill appears to be live-a-boards. We tried six times with our Mantus M2 105# and couldn't get it to set. I'm assuming the bottom is really soft silty mud. The wind from the west was quite strong with little protection except the smell of the paper plant. If we had gotten out our Fortress FX37 and set the mud flaps we might have had more success but due to wind it wasn't worth it. We ended up at Georgetown Landing. None of the marinas along the channel appear to be able to take a boat our size, all seem to be

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Abroad Reach on Mar 28, 2023
    Vessel Type: Sail
    LOA: 37'
    Draft: 4.5'

    Overall Rating:
    4
    Holding:
    3
    Wind Protection:
    5
    Current Flow:
    5
    Wake Protection:
    5
    Scenic Beauty:
    2
    Ease of Shopping:
    5
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5

    This anchorage has great wind protection from all directions but the mud is very very soft so it can take a little extra effort to get the hook to set. We've found that giving it some extra time to settle before backing down works wonders and in four visits we've never dragged once set. The mud is also really smelly and it sticks to the anchor and chain like nothing I've ever seen. Be prepared to spend some time with the washdown hose or a bucket as you bring up the anchor.

    Georgetown's waterfront has some really great restaurants and cute shops. Highly recommend getting pastries from Indigo Bakery for breakfast. The Maritime Museum and the Rice Museum are both interesting and worth a visit!

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Captain Gene, Galene, on Oct 30, 2021
    Vessel Type: Power
    LOA: 39'
    Draft: 4.0'

    Overall Rating:
    4
    Holding:
    3
    Wind Protection:
    3
    Current Flow:
    1
    Wake Protection:
    1
    Scenic Beauty:
    2
    Ease of Shopping:
    5
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5
    Cell Service:
    4
    WiFi:
    1

    October 29 2021 anchored here with eleven other boats after 20's winds on the river southbound. Wind down to single digits after six. Second time anchored here both times no issues. Came in through the channel on town side. Visited town by day docks during the day. Following the latest soundings with Navionics and Aqua map COE survey no issues

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: francis Kilcoyne on Apr 23, 2021
    Vessel Type: Power
    LOA: 49'
    Draft: 6.0'

    Overall Rating:
    1

    Do not try this anchorage! As I approached the depth went from 13' to 4' very quickly. Luckily we were approaching slowly so when we grounded in the mud we were able to extract ourselves. Paper mill also smells terrible, in short pass this one by.

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  • Review for Georgetown - Steelmill Channel

    Reviewed by: Tom Hale on May 19, 2018
    Vessel Type: Power
    LOA: 38'
    Draft: 4.5'

    Overall Rating:
    4
    Holding:
    4
    Wind Protection:
    5
    Current Flow:
    5
    Wake Protection:
    5
    Scenic Beauty:
    2
    Ease of Shopping:
    3
    Shore Access:
    5
    Pet Friendly:
    5
    Cell Service:
    5
    WiFi:
    2

    The anchorages is very well protected. Eash shore access at town docks The old steel mill is an eye sore. The towns people think it is going tobe reopened in 2018. We saw no sign of live there and certainly there is a lot of work to do to get it operational. The town is lovely. it is about a half mile walk to a grocery store. Many good restaurants. The Rice Museum is a very fascinating worth while stop.

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