North to South Carolina

Friday November 5th  - Woke up to pretty cold temperatures in the morning.  It's hard to believe we were in North Carolina. Pulled up the anchor and thank goodness the wash down pump for the anchor worked. It was caked in mud and would have made for a very long, cold morning. Our trip today was short, Moorehead City Yacht basin, and it was the first time we had ever been to this marina. We spent  a couple of  wonderful days here. We explored the little town and did some necessary chores (laundry, food shopping).  We enjoyed our time with Ted and Nancy and took an unscheduled country drive thanks to the provisioning of a loaner car from the marina. Enjoyed a wonderful Veterans Day parade with many veterans participating. On our second day Robin and Jim Roberts joined us all for dinner at the Beach Bums restaurant and later had dessert and coffee aboard their vessel  'Adventures'.

Sunday November 7th - Early in the morning, we untied our lines and headed down Bogue Sound. The winds were blowing but because they were coming from the WNW, there was very little chop on the water. We passed several sailboats along the way and later they caught up with us in Mile Hammock Bay. That evening we rafted up with Ted and Nancy aboard Aloha Friday. There were 26 boats including us in this anchorage. Nancy served a delicious Tuscan style pasta dish for dinner. Came back to the Summer Wind not only with a great recipe in hand, but a few  gadget and space saving ideas. Thanks for a great time!!

Monday November 8th - Untied our lines from Aloha Friday, with deep gratitude for their company and we bid 'adieu' to Ted and Nancy. Our plan today was to make up some time lost due to the bad weather and possibly do a 70 mile day. The timing was absolutely perfect down the Cape Fear river, at one point we were travelling 11.8 knots and we normally travel around 7.5 knots. By the end of the day we were exhausted but glad to be tied up at the St. James marina in Southport.

Tuesday November 9th - Today we crossed  into South Carolina and finally found the warm weather. Our jackets and sweatshirts finally came off!!! YEAH!!! Tied up at Barefoot Landing marina in Myrtle Beach, SC, which has an outlet shopping area. Yes we did some shopping but would you believe we purchased sweaters,, aren't we heading south??  Barefoot is a cute place to stop but its still struggling with the economy,  sadly many more shops are closed.