Day 5 - Trip through Jurassic Park

We survived the rolling waves coming into the jetty during the night, but we're both pretty tired. 6 am starts (to beat the wind) are taking a toll. If we had more time, we'd layover a couple nights to catch up on sleep. The heat and sun (even though cloudy) are wearing.

This pic is sunup at Bellhaven Marina. We had dinner the night before at "Jacks" and are now departing for the Alligator and Pungo River Canal. Pungo River is a very large nature preserve with bets, alligators, snakes, deer, turkeys... We will wind through the canal for about 20 miles and enter into the opening to the Alligator River - just off Abermarle Sound. 

This boat, moored just in front of us, is the Rpad - 2 really neat people (he's a trauma PA) - but the boat reminds us of Captain Nemo's submarine.

Cleverly designed, powered by 2 - 60hp outboards, catamaran design, and fully enclosed.

Heading out the harbor and getting ready to enter the Pungo River portion of the canal in about 10 miles.

Check the location out on the map. It's really wild, great bird hunting, and only really able to be experienced by water. It's like a Walt Disney safari experience - but with alligators not hippos. Keep your hands in the boat. Not the place to go overboard.

Here we go. Wish us luck. See you on the other side...

Tricia on alligator watch.

While en-route in the canal, we passed this Valiant sailboat and had a short conversation (by radio) with the couple onboard. They hail from Nashville TN and are bound for Chesapeake Bay. Maybe we'll see them again.

This is Jurassic Park territory. The killer bugs are baby Pterodactyls. They make noises like little Cessnas, dive bomb like F18's, and have spear-like stingers. (We watch them up close on the windows.) One got in the pilot house and it was mayhem! Nearly ran aground. Had to institute an "emergency procedures" protocol for safety. Kept the screens closed but we weren't sure that would keep them out.

This is truly alligator country. If the venomous and biting insects don't get you, the reptiles and bears will. So why are we preserving this huge chunk of land? (Tricia thinks theres a secret government installation in the interior...)

Passed by another boat - look at the tannin-discolored water. It's the color of molasses and stains the white fiberglass. The many trees that have fallen in the water cause the discoloration. It's referred to as the "loop mustache" and all the boats traveling on the Great Loop have it.

We arrived about mid afternoon at our destination marina: the Alligator Marina located on the other side of a swing bridge that had to open to allow us through. Pretty sure we held up traffic for about a mile or more on either side of the bridge. 

Then we enjoyed company with about 5 other looper boats for the evening - chips, wine, cheese, and tales of adventure on the high seas. 

Arghhh.

Day 4 - You chose: roll, slew. or yaw

Early start from Oriental NC this morning - the plan was to beat the afternoon winds and building seas. We had to cross 3 really large rivers: the Neuse, the Pamlico, and the Pungo. All these rivers are important in the history of colonial settlement, pirates, and naval warfare. The Neuss River is one of the locations Blackbeard haunted and hunted.

I would have taken more pics, but the weather fell apart about mid morning with 15-20 knot winds and really messy 3-4 foot waves and cross chop. When the waves hit us on the beam (the side of the boat), they caused us to roll violently. When they came from the stern (end of the boat), they caused us to slew and yaw. It was a crummy last half of the day, but we thought we had a calm dock reserved in the Bellhaven NC marina.

Not to be so. The strong south wind blew right into the normally protected marina and created rock and roll for all boats. One sailboat ran aground in the wind and was good and stuck until a tow boat came to help them out. We tucked ourselves back as best we could, but even as I write this blog (10 in the evening), we are rolling back and forth at the dock; it's raining intermittently; and the forecast is the same for tomorrow. We might stay for another 24 hours until things settle out.

Part of our passage between the rivers was a protected canal that offered a nice ride. Between rain showers that is.

















Monsters in the sink - soaking the stiff mooring lines in fabric softener to soften them up (old Indian recipe from Mom)

Finally moored at Bellhaven Marine, but not before a lot of maneuvering in tight spaces in strong winds and shallow waters. We ate dinner at "Jack's", and had stroganoff. By then (after fighting waves and winds) I would have eaten a horse.

Another AGLCA boat is moored just in front of us. I'll get a better photo tomorrow. We call it the Captain Nemo boat because it looks like a submarine. 

Day 3 - Follow the Cross

OK. It was a windy and rolly night, but we've been thru worse. Nothing a good cup of coffee wouldn't help... Lets make it a shorter day and plan to go to bed early.

So, off to the little town of Oriental NC, where it is said (by a store owner) that it's a great little town: "There are only 500 of us here - half to get away and not be found, and the other half are in the federal witness protection program."

Leaving the winding channel out of Morehead channel, we followed the cross - literally and figuratively - after our restive night at anchor.

Ahhh. Sweet dawn. Reminds me of a Puget Sound rough-weather song we once sang: "As I fall on my knees, with my face to the rising sun, oh Lord have mercy on me..."

Only 200 more miles to Norfolk, Virginia, the northern beginning of the Inter coastal Waterway. We are averaging about 50 or so miles per day. Our progress greatly depends on the tides and currents which can really help or hinder.

The AGLCA burgee is how we and other "loopers" identify each other: Americas Great Loop Cruising Association. (This picture shows us at anchor with an anchor bridle in place and red chain - indicating 50 feet of chain rode deployed.

Sorry, no pics of the great little town of Oriental... We were too tired and mostly sat around meeting with and talking to other "loopers" who were moored adjacent to us. They would end up becoming our partners in our northward trek along the Great Loop.

Day 2 - "It's all good, y'all..."

We putzed up the ICW (Inter Coastal Waterway) today from Wrightsville NC in light fog and rain. Cant get lost however because the channel is like a 2 lane highway. Just have to watch out for the nuns and cans (left and right marker buoys) so you don't run aground. Started out the day with preventive attentions: if the winch handle decides to take another suicide leap overboard, at least it will now float and we can retrieve it!



"Hmmm. That's big step," says the pretty girl with the hand beaded baseball cap.



See the rain jacket hanging on the door? Cool and comfortable in the pilot house. Hot and North Carolina humid outside.



A picture of the helm: charts, Garmin plotter. iPad, compass - oh yeah, and cookies.



Smell the fragrant clover and grass smells. Then shut the door. It's raining.



The draw bridge is opening for a boat ahead of us. It's a swing bridge (really slow) and we've been told by the bridge tender that he'll keep it open for a few more minutes until we get there: "It's all good y'all. I'll wait for you." Great southern charm.

















We're now in Camp Lejeune (US Marine) territory now - just after the swing bridge. Periodically the marines have live fire exercises that shoot across the ICW. Guess what? We arrived at 2PM just as the marine police closed the ICW for 2 hours!

I guess better to anchor in the river than cross their live fire zone.



So we did: anchored in the river and rafted up with 2 guys in a catamaran sailboat who we had been traveling with most of the day. Good conversation and story telling while we waited out the war games. Also cookies, crackers and cheese...




This delay put us behind schedule. By the time we bucked the tide and current leading into Bogue Sound, and finally arrive at Morehead City, NC, it was getting dark and I felt unsafe negotiating the inner harbor. So we anchored outside the city, in a large area just off the main waterway. The wind blew all night and I had to get up to take bearing about 6 times over the night to make sure we weren't dragging anchor. Otherwise all was well, but neither of us got any sleep. Mint tea, and an orange for breakfast the next morning - and hopes for quieter weather.

Day 1: Rain, shoals & porpoises - Oh my!

Day one and it's a little tense. The electronic fuel gauges don't work. I can't display engine parameters on the new engine monitor. The electronic tech is playing trial and error. And the captain we hired for the day (Captain Jack!) is arriving any minute! But hey, it's vacation, and what could possibly go seriously wrong?

So we departed, Tricia took the helm, and I fiddled and cursed at the electronics. Capt Jack assisted in navigating the Cape Fear River, and off we went. After several miles we got stopped in our tracks by a VERY LARGE ocean freighter being maneuvered by a tug boat. We had to jog in position for about 30 minutes while the ship got re-oriented towards the ocean. Then we picked up steam ( 7 knots) against the current and headed towards Snow's Cut and the onto Intracoastal Waterway. 

We learned about the red-right-return rule (once again) and how it varied depending on the nearness to an ocean inlet. We learned about the ICW markers - green triangles on the right and red squares on the left when heading north - and began to realize how really narrow and shallow these channels really are! At some points we had as little as 1.5 feet of water under us. At no time did we have more than 8 feet of depth under us. We saw several smaller boats aground as they tried to cut corners. Best not to cut corners in life.

Oh, and something broke today...

Taking turns cruising the river and watching for dead heads, freighters, crab traps (everywhere), and Seadoos. (Kids are out of school because North Carolina teachers are on strike.) What better way than to enjoy fishing and swimming in the 80 degree weather?

Speaking of running aground on a sandy shoal, there is brisk business in offering emergency tow services. I re-read our policy to make sure we have tow insurance. We do. Hope we never need it.

Made an initial stop at Joyner Marina on the other side of Snows Cut, but ended up leaving (after a masterful docking maneuver) because we decided the weather and hour would allow us to go a little further. So we eventually docked this evening at Wrightsville Beach - words cannot describe how beautiful these beaches are. It is a sports fisherman's paradise. Also kayakers, crab boats, and paddle boards galore. Even a Polynesian outrigger canoe.

Mom at the helm. She doesn't like those freighters. Wherever they are, they're too close.

 Registering at the marina. Nice showers and a nearby restaurant.

Uh-oh. Tow boat heading out.

Dolphins in the channel, right alongside our docked boat. 

And a little Port for the occasion...

You know, as stressful as the currents, tides, low bridges, shoals, and weather are - this might just work.

Cheers.

Boat Bites and other creatures.

The tide is out but no clams (like in Puget Sound). More likely alligators and snakes.

Playing shadow games. 

Mom says quit messing around - we have to make a run to West Marine and Flaming Amy's Burrito Barn! Radish, fried avocado, beef burrito. Really spicy. Really good!
Also have to drop the car off at the airport. We're leaving tomorrow and heading north.

 OK. No more car. We're on our own. Back to the boat for some of Mom's homemade tortilla soup.
(Have to love the Instapot!)

Who is this pretty girl? And what is that beaded Chippewa design on her hat?

Some fun boatyard pics and sailboat names... 

Who needs a real tire when you can paint one on.

Nice Polynesian sea turtle design. Head for the Caribbean and don't stop till you see sea turtles.

Looking down the dock and checking for alligators.

 And this is Bob on his Lord Nelson 42. He's installing solar panels and will be heading up to the Chesapeake in 2 weeks. His boat is from Hawaii, but he's not. Maybe someday, he says...

Patricia Anne is ready for departure tomorrow. If weather permits (thunderstorms predicted) we're headed to the intercostal waterway via the Cape Fear River and Snow's Cut. (Check it on a North Carolina coastal map.)

Maybe a 3-4 hour trip.

We refer to the dingy as Patty Ann. Shorter version of Patricia Anne. 

Relaxing, drinking orange juice (best on a hot day), reading, and eating salty crackers. 

It was a tough day working outside on the dingy and the outboard engine. Lots of scrapes, bumps, cuts, and sunburn. 

 It wouldn't be right without the "boat bumps". But we all survived, and except for almost dropping the outboard engine into the river, no one was seriously injured or anything of significance lost overboard.