Category: Dataw Marina

Join us! 2020 Offerings at the Dataw Island Marina

The Dataw Island Marina now has fuel as well as dry stack storage, VIP service, and wet slips. Storm haul-out assurance also available!

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For those who are called by the water, Dataw Island keeps you close to the sea.

Updates: 
*The Dataw Island Marina now has fuel as well as dry stack storage, VIP service, and wet slips. Due to the current travel restrictions, the Marina is not serving transient boaters at this time.

*2020 Storm Haul-Out Assurance priority sign-ups now available to existing customers (Opens to public on June 1st)

*2020 Rate Sheets are now available

*The Morgan River Grill is open for Lunch and Dinner for Dataw Island residents only during the Covid-19 service restrictions. View their menu online and call ahead to order your food for pick-up (843)838-8474.  LUNCH: 11 am – 5 pm  |  DINNER: 5pm – 9 pm

Just three miles from the Intracoastal Waterway, boating to the Atlantic Ocean from Dataw is an enjoyable and scenic 30 minute ride – although many fishermen are content to cast a line or to fly fish right here in the coastal waters of Dataw. Several community docks are available from which to drop a crab trap, launch a kayak or catch a sunset.

Dataw Marina is now owned and managed by the Dataw Island Owners Association.  The facility offers wet slips, dry storage, fuel, air-conditioned showers and laundry, marine surveyor, an on-call diver, and a full-service boatyard.The Dataw Island Marina is also pleased to offer a Storm Haul-Out Reservation Program, in which boaters may pre-pay for haul-out and storage during named storms.   

Sailors delight (as do all boaters!) in the activities offered through the Dataw Island Yacht Club, a member-based social boating organization. Offering regattas, kayak tours, sailing adventures and the much-anticipated Commodore’s Ball, the Yacht Club is a local favorite. For more information on joining, please visit the DIYC website.

You are invited to subscribe to our Dataw Island Marina blog and follow us on Facebook. We love to see your photos!

Welcoming our new Harbormaster, Chad Langford

The Dataw Island Owners Association is pleased to welcome our new Harbormaster, Chad Langford.

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The Dataw Island Owners Association is pleased to welcome our new Harbormaster, Chad Langford.

Chad brings great skill and experience to the Dataw Island Marina, including a five-year tenure as a hands-on General Manager of the Hilton Head Boathouse. “I like to know how to do every job in the yard. For one, I don’t like to ask anybody to do anything I wouldn’t do myself. And, if you know something that I haven’t learned yet, I want to learn.”

And, Chad lives this mantra. While at the Boathouse, he became five-star Yamaha certified to work on boat engines, “just so I knew how to do it.” He says that the team at Dataw Island has been very receptive and supportive. “Some places, coworkers try to ‘protect’ knowledge and hold it close to the chest. I really appreciate that the team at Dataw Island, from Whitney to the GM, and everyone else for that matter, shares knowledge and seems to want to work for the betterment of the whole operation.”

Dataw Island General Manager Ted Bartlett seems to share the sentiment. “Chad is doing fantastic. I am just thrilled to have him here!”

Bartlett also said that although the Dataw Marina continues its talks with a third-party management company, that Chad’s background and skills would be a great benefit to them as well.

Growing up in the Lowcountry (in Ridgeland, Beaufort, and Savannah) Chad has always loved the outdoors, especially fishing, golf, and boating. In fact, he spent several years in the earlier part of his career in the 1990s working in the golf industry, including as Assistant Golf Professional at Bray’s Island and running a golf store on Lady’s Island called Stic’s. From there, his career has meandered through video poker (back when it was legal!) to the boating industry, and working for a beer distributor.

It may sound like a wide set of experiences, but when speaking with Chad, it quickly becomes apparent that each position he has held has a common thread: working with, and helping, people.

And, connecting with people is important in any role in a club. “Chad is off to a great start and is already connecting with members,” Bartlett said.

Chad added, “I love the salt air and being out in the sun, but mostly I love working around people. And, most boaters are really passionate and form a ‘family’ around their passion. They’re good people. And their boats are their babies, and I get that. Being able to support them is a privilege.”

The Miss Saginaw River

Harbormaster Update 1/23/20

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Many of you are aware that there is a beach re-nourishment project going on at Hunting Island State Park.  They have 2 crews and 3 vessels working on that project.  The dredge boat stays out near the park taking on sand from the bottom of the ocean and depositing it onto the beach where it is shaped by bulldozers. 

The other 2 vessels are leasing dock space at the Dataw Island Marina for the duration of the project.  The company name is Great Lakes Dock and Dredge, Inc.  They do these projects all over the country.  Below is a photo of their 55 foot crew boat, the Saginaw River.  The crew arrives at 7am, parks their vehicles in the lot and boards the vessel for the trip out to Hunting Island.  They return at 5 pm and go home.  No one stays on Dataw overnight. 

Soon, the rest of the crew will arrive with the second and smaller scout vessel. They will also be leasing vehicular parking space at the Marina while they work a straight 2 week shift living on the dredge at Hunting Island before being replaced by another crew.  Again, they park their vehicles here but do not stay on island. 

Both vessels will also soon be fueling up with our new dispenser.  We are pleased to be able to provide a convenient staging location for Great Lakes Dock and Dredge while they work on a much needed project that will benefit the Beaufort community and beyond. 


The electrical system is complete and inspected.  Our electrical system is in compliance with the newer 2017 electrical codes for marinas and the pedestals are more sensitive to vessel electrical current leakage than they used to be.  This results in some vessels tripping the ground fault circuit interrupters when they connect to shore power.  We have ordered a meter that will read this leakage so that it may be remedied by a certified electrical technician. 


The forklift has been repaired and has been hauling boats this week in spite of the cold weather. 


The travel lift concrete runway work has been completed and travel lift haulouts are reconvening.  We waited until the slower season to repair the deteriorated runway surface and it should now be in good condition for decades.


Beer, wine, snacks, drinks, pizzas and basic household and boating items are competitively priced and available at the Marina Store between 9 and 5 daily.


The latest prediction from the restaurant owner for Morgan River Grill is that they will be opening in 4 weeks.


We have had a side scan sonar done to examine the marina footprint for underwater hazards.  This week, divers and a barge removed all hazards except one that still needs to be removed.  There are buoys marking this remaining hazard.