Lake Murray Visit

[OneMoreHour]

We're going to be on Lake Murray this weekend for the first time while camping at Dreher Island State Park. I'll be pulling our camper down, and my wife will pull the boat.

Are there any interesting places to visit or see on the lake? Can anyone recommend any good restaurants for a family on the water?

Should I bring extra bumper thingies in case I encounter an alumacruiser driven by SeaRide? :smt001

 

[chuck1]

Should I bring extra bumper thingies in case I encounter an alumacruiser driven by SeaRide? :smt001

You should be ok, I think searide is in FL for the week. :lol::smt043:lol:

Hope you have a great time and take lots of pictures.:thumbsup:

 

[SeaRide]

Bill,

You are safe. I have the alumacruiser with me in Destin/PCB.

How long will you be staying? If I'm around, I'll look you up and give you the nickel tour.

For dining, try Lighthouse Marina/Rusty Anchor or Lake Murray Marnina on the east side.

On the west side, try Spinners - They might want to charge you a $60.00 membership. I'd try telling them you are a tourist for the day and buy a t-shirt. That should do the trick.

 

[OneMoreHour]

Thanks for the restaurant tips.

We'll be there Thursday night through Sunday afternoon. But we do have to drive down to Awendaw on the coast on Friday morning to pick up a child from a summer camp.

Enjoy yourself in Florida and post lots of pictures and notes. I want to get down there with the boat sometime.

 

[midway]

Be sure and check out the Purple Martins coming in to roost on Lunch Island late in the afternoon. You have probably never saw that many birds in the air in such a small location. It is a site to behold.

 

[SeaRide]

...and keep your mouth shut while looking up.

Bill, I won't see you this time around. Maybe next time.

 

[OneMoreHour]

Sorry we'll miss you SeaRide.

Midway, is it possible to narrow down the time in the late afternoon when the purple martins begin their commute home. Is going to see them something I'm going to regret later when I have to clean purple martin poo off my boat?

 

[midway]

I do not remember the exact time, I want to say it was a couple hours before dark, we stayed until dark and eased our way back to the place we were staying, going back to the pictures from that day it looks like we pulled out from the house about 7:30 and when we arrived the birds were already swarming, you will understand when you see it. We did not get even one spec of purple martin poo on any of the boats in our group. Charlie (SeaRide) should be back in here later and he can tell you more about the times. In the event Charlie doesn't get back in here I'm sure the state park folks can tell you what time they arrive.

 

[SeaRide]

Try about an hour before sunset. Oh and watch for errant canbotes. Last time we were out there, a canboter wrapped his stern line around his prop shaft while pulling up anchor. Naturally my boat was w/in 50' of this happening. Also don't try to tell the canboters that their docking lights are not to be used as headlights. Quite frankly I'm surprised they have not rigged their head lights with high/low beam switches.

FYI, Lunch Island (AKA Bomb Island, see Jimmy Doolittle) is about dead center of the big water area of the lake. The island is not nearly as lush as the others due to Doolittle's practice missions.

 

[SeaRide]

Bill,

Lake depths generally run from at least 20' to well over 100'. Most shoals are well marked. Dreher is a very nice state park and the ramp has several lanes with a nearby docking. Parking for your truck and trailer is plentiflul. Those with lake front sites simply drop anchor just off of the shoreline.

 

[midway]

I just pulled Google Earth and Lunch Island is at 34deg 03' 32.29" N and 81 deg 18' 36.82" W depending on where the pointer is over the Island.

 

[OneMoreHour]

Headin' down in just a little while. Thanks for info guys.

 

[OneMoreHour]

Got back from Lake Murray yesterday. We were very impressed with Lake Murray and Dreher Island State Park. The weather didn't fully co-operate, but we still got to spend plenty of time on the water.

The lake was great. The water was clean and relatively clear. The water clarity was about the same as Lake Keowee's, better the Lake Hartwell's, but not as clear as Lake Jocassee's. Trouble spots seemed to be well marked. There are plenty of islands and coves to get away from everyone, and the open main body of the lake was nice as well.

There is a healthy population of canbotes on the lake, and some of them did have their "headlights" on at night, but we didn't have any bad encounters with them.

Dreher Island State Park was very nice as well. It has four launch ramps and there was plenty of parking while we were there. Saw lots of deer walking around, and the campground was better maintained than many of the state parks we have camped at.

We'll definitely be returning here for visits in the future.

 

[chuck1]

Sounds like fun, now where are the pictures??

 

[OneMoreHour]

Unfortunately, we didn't take a lot of photos but here's a few:

A Great Afternoon on the Water

Purple Martins Returning to Lunch Island

Sunset

 

[chuck1]

Cool, great pics thanks for sharing.