Day Eleven

It was great to wakeup and hear the birds rather than the sound of wind or rain on the hull. We arose to calm seas and a brightning sky at about 0530. We were more than ready to leave this sheltered, but uninspiring anchorage, so we had a quick breakfast of cereal and coffee, did our morning checks of hull and engine and prepared to up anchor. What a chore that was. The gale force winds of the previous day had caused to anchor to set VERY deeply. It took about 15 minutes and several nudges of engine power to finally break it loose. Then it was totally encrusted with that lovely black muck which stains everything it touches and dries to the consistency of concrete in about 10 minutes. Needless to say, my First Mate/Deckhand had a bit of work to do with bucket and scrub brush as we slowly headed downstream.

What a difference a day makes. Today, there was only a light chop on the water and we were able to easily make 7+ knots rather than the 3 of yesterday.

We are currently cruising by the boat that was our next door neighbor in the anchorage for the last 2 nights.

By 1100 we were through the bridge along with several of the other sailboats which had been holed up the day before, and were heading west up the Albemarle Sound in a brisk west wind. Once we cleared the mouth of the Alligator seas increased to 2+ feet as we experienced the long fetch up the Sound so we had to slow down a bit. Naturally the wind was right on our nose so we couldn't sail. After we turned west, boat traffic dropped to almost nothing, but Buck's total count of transient boats past for the cruise was 366. Of that, at least 350 were heading north.

The cruise up the Sound was uneventful, and we were fueling up at the marina by 1500. Aside from marina staff dropping my waste pumpout cap overboard and losing it, we had no problems. We used less than 1/2 our fuel supply on the 3-4 day trip up from Oriental; a total of 26 gallons. Not bad since we only motorsailed with the jib one day.

This was another great cruise; one that exposed us to a great variety of weather, seas, and interesting places to visit and to which to look forward to the next visit. Each time we cruise we learn more about the boat and our confidence to safely handle her under a broad range of conditions increases. We also eat better and better each trip. I think I'm hungry again....Let's go cruising!

Day Ten

We arose to a grey and windy landscape Friday morning after a night of wind-driven rain. Since we only had to travel about 15 miles to the Alligator River Marina at the mouth of the river where it enters the Albemarle Sound, we didn't try to get off early. We knew from monitoring the weather forecasts the previous day that wave heights of 3-4 feet were forecast for the Albemarle Sound for Friday so we didn't plan to try to cross.

As soon as we rounded the protected point where we had anchored for the night and were hit by the full force of the wind, we knew that getting downstream to the Alligator River Marina was going to be a challenge. Wave heights were at 3 feet by 0800 and trending higher with the wind. within a couple of miles, wave heights were exceeding 4 feet and the wind was gusting over 30 mph. We were safe, but were having to slow down significantly to minimize pounding through the waves. After about 1/2 an hour of struggling northward, we decided to turn around and run back to our protected anchorage. We did so and were back by 0930.

Over the course of the day we were joined by 13 other boats. The wind continued to buld and gusted over 40 mph at times. I extended our anchor rode to a factor of 10 to decrease the chances of dragging. I also enabled the anchor drag alarm on my chartplotter/GPS. I put in a movement factor of 25 meters to take into account the potential stretch of the nylon anchor rode (rope). Even with this much of a factor we got several alarms as the wind caused the rode to stretch more than 25 meters. The photo shows my swing pattern before and after I increased the length of my rode. By the way, I also put up both the port and starboard cockpit side curtains to act as somewhat of a "storm sail" to minimize swing.We heard on the radio that the Alligator River Bridge had been closed for several hours due to the high winds, so we definitely made the right decision in turning back.

We spent the day listening to a local FM radio station, doing some maintenance and reading. We whipped up a pot of navy bean and ham soup for lunch and, had sauted salmon steaks and rice for dinner. Unfortunately, we had finished off the salad fixings the night before. Luckily, the wind slacked off by around 2100 so I was able to get a decent night's sleep. The previous night I kept getting up to check our position relative to shore and the other boats in the anchorage (That was before I thought about enabling the anchor drag alarm.

Day Nine

Thursday morning we rose late at 0615, downed our coffee, on the afterdeck (aka in the cockpit) cereal and berries, completed our ablutions and bid Dowry Creek goodbye by 0730. Luckily I was able to back out of the slip with no help (unlike the day before), and we were on way north.

Within an hour we were in the Pungo Canal cruising at a leisurely pace with the wind and light rain on our nose. It was a grey kind of day and felt much more like late Fall than late May.

About 0900, we passed a large sedan cruiser, The Rose, hard aground on the starboard side of the cut. We had met the crew in Oriental a couple of days ago. They were waiting for a tow boat to pull them off. I made a remark to Buck about not paying attention and running aground. It turns out I should have kept my mouth shut. About 10 miles further up the canal just north of the Fairfield bridge I was not sufficiently attentive at the helm and 2 TAC E also ran hard aground on a submerged snag about 50 feet off the starboard shoreline. When I say hard aground, believe me it was. About a foot of bottom paint was showing and the bow was elevated. I tried backing off and it didn't budge. Then I got in the water and tried pushing it off the snag; no luck. Next I got out the spare anchor and rode and hand carried it back about 50 feet, then put the rode on a winch and tried kedging the boat off with no success. I then got a passing sailboat to stop, launch his dinghy, and carry the anchor further out into the canal so that I could get a better angle. (Oh, I forgot. The anchor fouled in my original location and I had to dive down and clear it so that it could be raised by the dinghy) . We then tried kedging it from both the bow anchor windlass and the cockpit winch and it still wouldn't budge. By the way, it was pouring rain as all this went on. After an hour or so of trying to free the hull I recognized that it was beyond my capabilities and picked up the cell phone to call Sea Tow. It was about 1230. Naturally, we were in a cell dead zone. I then tried calling them on VHF with no response. After this I called the Coast Guard on VHF and requested that they relay to Sea Tow. They were able to do so and let us know that it would be at least two hours. Buck and I then waited aboard for 3+ hours for Sea Tow to arrive. This was the first time I have ever had to use either Sea Tow or the Coast Guard and I was very impressed with them both. The Coast Guard gathered initial information on out boat and passengers, determined that we were not in immediate distress, and then continued to check on us via radio at 30 minute intervals. While Buck and I waited for assistance, I whipped up a pot of black bean soup. It was a soup kind of day, and I'd gotten quite a chill working in the water. I really wanted to join Buck in a beer, but I figured I'd better wait until the boat was in better shape before I imbibed.

It was about 1530, when Capt. John Mohr, our local Sea Tow operator, pulled up in his tow boat. He had trailered his tow boat from Hertford, NC to the mouth of the Alligator River (an hour's drive), and then motored 20+ miles to our location. He was able to pull us free in about 15 minutes with no damage to the boat. When I got the paperwork for the tow, I thanked my lucky stars that I had recently renewed my Sea Tow membership. Had I not been a member the charge would have been $1,520.00 as I would have been charged for 6.5 hours of his time and boat plus the tow fee. As a member, it was free. I've just covered quite a few years of a $115 annual membership.

By 1600, we were heading north in fog, rain and increasing wind. I had planned to spend a couple of hours exploring the Upper Alligator River beyond the canal cutoff, but that went by the wayside for this voyage.

Our most notable sighting that afternoon (aside from the Sea Tow Boat) was a mature bald eagle perched in a dead tree by the canal.

We made it to a relatively sheltered anchorage 1/2 a mile down the Alligator River from the canal entrance and before the sharp channel turn to port going north. The anchorage is opposite Deep Point across from Marker "Green 43." It is the only place with shelter from north winds until you get to the Straits which was another 5 miles north. We were soon joined by 3 other boats.

By this time, I figured I had earned a bourbon and branch. I was "whupped" physically and mentally. My boat was in good shape, but it might not have been. We realized that we never saw the Rose again even though a tow boat had been enroute to them. They must have had damage and had to retreat back to a boat yard in Belhaven; that could just as easily have been us.

Given everything that had transpired over the course of the day, we decided that simple was needed for dinner so we quickly whipped up bacon and cheese quesadillas with chipotle sauce and a mixed salad. By 2100, I was in my bunk.

Day Eight

We rose early (but not too bright), Wednesday morning, had a quick breakfast of cereal and fresh strawberries, and were backing out of our slip by 0630. This presented more of a challenge than I would have preferred as the wind was blowing up the channel on our beam and tended to push me into the bulkhead. I ended up passing a line from our stern quarter to a helpful soul on shore. We then kedged ourselves slowly out of the slip and were soon on our way up the Neuse, motorsailing with the jib and a SW wind. We made good time down the Neuse River, past Bay River and up the Hobucken Cut.

Several shrimp boats parked on the starboard side had "for sale" signs on them. These folks are getting killed by the cheap farm-raised shrimp.

Here is a shot of the small Coastguard Station at Hobucken. Little did I supsect I'd soon have need of their services....

Here is a shrimp boat working on the Bay River.

We then went up through Goose Creek and hit the Pamlico River. crossing by 1100. Winds were picking up and we had a 2 foot chop, but we crossed with no problems, and headed up the Pungo River. As we turned into the mouth of the Pungo we passed Jock and Elana Muir exiting the river southbound heading toward Bath. We exchanged greetings via VHF, and we continued up the Pungo.

We reached Dowry Creek Marina around noon and easily tied up in slip 33. The wind continued to pick up over the afternoon until it was really howling. We were very glad that we had made our break early. I was disapointed to find that Dowry Creek does not have wireless internet. This was the first marina on our voyage that did not have internet . It shifts my preference in Belhaven to favor River Forest Marina as I believe that access to the internet gives a major safety edge to cruisers. You can not only check the various weather forecasts for your route, but can also view current weather radar.

We spent a good part of the afternoon washing the salt spray off the boat. We then relaxed and watched the other boaters. A small but interesting aside - when I went to drop off our trash at the marina's containers. when I looked down into the can, there was a female possum lounging in the bottom of the can. You could see a very small baby possum in the mother's pouch. I wish I'd thought to go get my camera.

It was soon dinner time on the Gourmet Cruise. For this night's dinner we prepared a chicken sate with peanut sauce, and farfalle pasta with sauted peppers and onions.

Day Seven

This was to be a layover and maintenance day so we stayed in the Oriental Marina for another day. I started the day with run around town then we prepared a hearty breakfast of corned beef hash, shired eggs, sliced tomatoes toast and fresh strawberries. Since it was quite warm we ate breakfast in the boat's cockpit. Oriental is a very dog-friendly town. There is no leash law and many owners bring their pets when they stop by the local coffee shop (The Beanery) for their morning java. The Beanery was directly across the street from our boat slip. When the dogs smelled the corned beef hash, they left their owners and we soon had 5 dogs neatly lined up next to the boat looking for a hand0ut.

I needed to install a new wind vane atop my mast, so I pulled out my climbing gear after breakfast, while Buck worked on polishing the rails.

I use rock climbing gear to climb the main halyard

and it's very efficient compared to having to be cranked up by someone else. It's still 40 feet above the water, so it takes a bit of energy. I prepared my tool belt, climbed the mast with no problems, removed the old part, then brought it down to fix. The problem arose when I climbed the mast a second time to install the fixed part and it wouldn't fit. Down the mast and off to the marine store I went.

I bought a variety of small parts that might work and came back to the boat. After a quick lunch of salmon salad prepared by Buck, up the mast I went for the third time. This time I was able to jury rig the new parts and make everything work, although I was hanging on the masthead for close to an hour. By the time I got back down the mast, I was done for the day. A shower and a nap, and it was time for cocktails. We then prepared a mixed grill of steak and lamb chops with sauted wild mushrooms and a veal demi-glace, garlic mashed potatoes and salad for dinner. It was a memorable meal. I used my computer to check the weather after dinner and saw that there would be small craft warnings on the Pamlico Sound as of noon the next day. Since we needed to cross the Pamlico River at the mouth of the Sound heading north, we decided to leave early the next morning to try to beat the weather.

Day Six

About 0530 we were awakened by a local crabber checking his traps just off the stern of our boat. Winds had died overnight, but it was cold! I cranked up my small propane heater and the cabin was toasty in about 10 minutes. We had a quick breakfast of cereal, fruit and coffee and upped anchor by 0630 and headed south down the ICW toward the Neuse River. Even though the wind was less than the previous day, by the time we made it through the Hobucken cut and into the Neuse we had a following, wind-generated swell of 2-3 feet over our stern. This type of sea makes it very difficult for our autopilot to track, so I fought the helm a bit as we surfed the waves, quite often hitting 9 knots on the backs of the rollers. This wasn't bad for us, but it was really rough for the boats coming down the Neuse in the other direction. It was really a pounding sea for them and they had to slow way down.

By noon we reached Oriental, one of my favorite cruise destinations, and we secured a slip at the Oriental Marina. This is a great facility. It is a bit older than Oriental Harbor, but it has great service and a superb location.

Due to our shallow draft, Buck and I ended up in the slip next to the bulhead and side walk. This led to a constant stream of people over the next 2 days wanting to know more information about our boat (Nimble Wanderer Motorsailer), which looked very different than any of the other boats, with its chunky profile, yellow and green hull and tan bark sails.

We then took an afternoon walk around Oriental, which is the sailing capital of North Carolina. The town has a great community feel to it and is quite immaculate; it's just a bit far from any decent-sized town. They are also very friendly. I was looking for a specific sized screw and the marine supply place was out, but they loaned me a bike to get to the hardware store on the other end of town.

We decided to take another break from cooking Monday evening and ate at the Toucan Grill which is attached to the marina. I had a fisherman's stew and Buck had fried oysters. We finished off the meal by splitting a strawberry-peach cobbler alamode. After-dinner drinks and conversation in the cockpit finished the day. This is the view from our table at sunset....

Day Five

We arose with the sun on Sunday morning, enjoyed a simple breakfast of smoked trout, sweet Bavarian mustard, cream cheese, capers and whole grain toast with coffee, and then headed down the river taking a brief look back at the little town we'd enjoyed visiting. As soon as we cleared the narrow channel downstream of Washington, we upped our sails and headed down the river. We had a great sail for about 3 hours, averaging 5-6 knots. About noon, the wind picked up to 25 knots+ and even with the jib reefed to about a third we were still getting put on our beam ends, so we reluctantly dropped sail and motored south.

We entered Goose Creek heading south on the ICW, and then ducked into a very sheltered anchorage up Eastman Creek, which is a couple of miles south of the northern entrance of Goose Creek.

We went up the creek about a mile past several docked shrimp boats, and a grave yard of old wooden hulks against the northern bank. We dropped the hook in about 7 feet of water in mid-stream about 300 yards upstream of the wrecks. By this time, the wind was rally howling overhead, but we were well sheltered by thick woods to the north. Not only was the wind howling, but the temperature dropped like a rock as well. It eventually dropped into the 40's overnight. We simply buttoned up the cabin and prepared a light, cool weather dinner of turkey and black bean chili with egg noodles and salad, washed down with Pilsner Urquell beer. I then tried a little fishing with no success. By dark, we were in our bunks.