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.

Heading South Looking for Warmer Weather

Sunday October 31st - Thursday November 4TH - Untied our lines from the basin in Portsmouth and began our way down the ICW. Norfolk is MM1(mile marker) of the Intracoastal Waterway. The Summer Wind joined the slow train through the Virgina Cut, a narrow passage under the timed bridges and through the Great Bridge Lock. Our final destination today was Midway Marina, in Coinjock, NC. As we were tying up we noticed small boats pulling up to the docks, with  usually 3 hunters all dressed in camouflage with their listening devices and rifles. It's deer hunting time and seems that the deer are very aware of it because none of the boats had a carcass, hence lunch time at Crabbie's.

Our plans to travel the next day were dashed by the winds. That evening we were joined by our friends Nancy and Ted McCarley aboard Aloha Friday. We enjoyed spending some time with them that evening. We had talked about possibly going to Manteo together  with another cruiser and made plans for a departure time in the AM.

 Low n Behold, mother nature had other plans, the weather pattern changed again and the winds were whipping 15 - 20 knots. The Pamlico looked rougher and if we didn't at least try to cross the Albermarle, we were going to be socked in for a few days. So out we went, well, that day we wished we had Aloha Friday's magic button. This magic button engages the stabilizers which helps reduce the rocking motion of the boat. Several yelps were heard aboard our boat when we crossed the wide open Albermarle, no we won't say from whom! But it was a day we were happy to get over with! Dropped the hook in a very quiet anchorage, relaxed and enjoyed a beautiful sunset in the Pungo River.

Wednesday morning woke up to windy conditions, so crossing the Neuse wasn't a great idea. Instead we rafted up with Aloha Friday in Long Creek to wait it out for one more day just at the entrance to the Pamlico River. It was cold, rainy but we enjoyed the company of Ted and Nancy aboard the Summer Wind and shared a hot pot of chili!

Thursday morning the winds had calmed but we were socked in with fog. Slowly and steadily we made our way up the Neuse and to the Cedar Creek anchorage. Once again we attempted to raft our boats, but the wakes made it very uncomfortable for all of us. So, we broke apart and dropped the hook. That evening the temperatures dropped again to the low 40's, when your anchoring you can't run your heat unless you have the generator running. We don't run the generator when we're sleeping therefore, thank goodness for warm comforters!!

A Hauntingly Good Time

Wed. October 27th-30th - In order to catch even a little bit of the tide heading down the river we had to be up by 6am. It was still very dark out at this time, but when the sun started to rise the clouds first appeared with a hint of pink. It's very quiet that early in the morning. So, we prepared the boat and made plans to untie the lines when there was enough light  for us to see.
For the past few weeks the weather has been unpredictable, it seemed to change every 12 hours and today was no exception.There were a couple of fast moving fronts coming through as we were travelling , fortunately we missed the thunderstorms that rocked other areas.

 As we were coming upon the Reserve mooring field, the waves had built to 2 -3 feet and the Summer Wind was ploughing steadily through with no problem.

Late afternoon, we finally arrived at the Portsmouth basin, but decided to put off our fuelling for a day that wouldn't be so windy. We spent 3 days in Portsmouth, thanks to the weather. But our time there turned out to be great fun!

Our first night we enjoyed a fun evening at the Commodore which is a 1940 style Dinner Theatre where you can dine and watch a movie in comfy arm chairs. It's an interesting experience, not to be missed. There were servers and we enjoyed a light meal of salad on real dinnerware  before the feature movie "Secretariat"  which was a definite must see. Oh, yes there are the typical fare of popcorn, candies and soda for those that indulge.



Time went fast in Portsmouth. We had spent many evenings dining with friends. Jim & Robin, Sam & Barbara joined us for dinner at Bruttis. Another evening we were joined by Robin, Jim, and Karen and we enjoyed a wonderful German style meal at the Biehr Garden Restaurant. Another evening we enjoyed a great meal aboard 'Adventures'with Jim,Robin, Karen and Jeff. It's all about the food and great company! Thanks guys!

It's Halloween and the ever Southern town of Portsmouth was in full swing for the festivities. We took part in the "Ghost Walk" throughout the "Olde Town of Portsmouth" . The brick sidewalks lined with historic homes were an excellent backdrop where we heard hauntingly scary stories of former residents. We're  still not sure if the story tellers were of the  'living'. For the survivors of the walk, a nice warm cup of Apple Cider topped off the evening.

 It didn't have to be the dark of night to bring out the trick or treaters. There were several, ghosts,gremlins and ghouls that strolled through the streets. But not to fear, there were a  cute bumble bee and fairy princess or two.

Oh yes, we did get to meet up with Dyna and Dylan, the masters of aCapella. Tails were wagging and we instantly knew that we were to give them a good rub on the ears. Apparently they have quite the knack for training!