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Hayden, Patricia, Eric, Radeen, Jeff and Sandy Team Island Packet Owners meet at the Causeway Diner

After a quick stop in Wrightsville Beach, NC and a breakfast gathering with Jeff and Sandy, IP380 Xperience owners Bahamas bound, we ran an easy leg today of 27 miles from Wrightsville Beach to Southport, NC where we always turn into Dutchman Creek and drop anchor. This creek is big enough for 3 to 4 yachts and lucky for us, we had it all to ourselves with our buddy boat Cutter Loose. With an Island Packet 35 and an Island Packet 460 anchored, we have called the creek CLOSED to more vessels. It is narrow, and we dropped anchor in 8 feet of water in mid creek. Your bow will point into the current as the tide floods and ebbs. Obviously the current runs in and out of the creek so your boat will face one or the other direction. Tides are 4 feet so at low we may be in the mud but that is OK. We will depart at 6:30 AM and that is also high tide, so we are good to go.

Tonight we will drop the tender and motor over to Cutter Loose where we will share a fantastic meal and some fine wine as Eric and Patricia are fantastic chefs and always make beautiful meals. Tomorrow we plan another easy run of only 43 miles to Myrtle Beach where we will take a dock at Barefoot Landing and enjoy the OUTLET SHOPS and restaurants! Where else can you dock your boat to an outlet mall? Should be fun….

Island Spirit and Cutter Loose at anchor, Wrightsville Beach, NC

Anchored off Wrightsville Beach, NC, what a great town!

IP380 Xperience and IP460 Cutter Loose on the ICW southbound

Notice the piling height for hurricanes! I am guessing 20 feet.

Brown Pelicans work the scraps at a fishing boat

Destination: Dutchman Creek among the grasses….BEAUTIFUL spot

Cutter Loose anchors off our bow, the creek is now closed. Only room for 2 boats….so we say

Tomorrow….we take on the Myrtle Beach Shopping Outlet Stores at Barefoot Landing Marina!

The fleet passing through the Surf City, NC swing bridge

Running the ICW south from Mile Hammock Bay is so simple and so easy that a “caveman could do it” as the commercial says! All you have to do is stay in the middle between the shore line 25 yards on either side of the boat and also follow all the other boats. Yes, we have a boat parade going south. Today was really fun with boats from New York, Maine, Maryland, Canada and even New Zealand in a pack of about 15 boats.

Everyone bunched up at the bridges to wait for the scheduled openings and then we all ran through the bridges in a single line. “Bring it on, keep it coming, get up here” are the calls from the bridge tenders as they urge the fleet of southbound yachts to get close and keep the speed up. Boaters really get nervous when close together and they all tend to slow down to a crawl. This compounds the problem of getting through the bridge and then getting OUT OF THE WAY and moving on. Sailboats seem to take FOREVER to get back to full speed after these bridges, whereas powerboats make the bridge and then HIT IT. Sailboats like to putt-putt through the bridges at 2 MPH and then slowly, like 10 minutes worth of slowly, come up to speed and get back to 6 or 7 knots of speed….whoa…hold on, Nellie!

So, it was bridge #22 today as we approached Wrightsville Beach, NC. This is a wonderful beach town, where you can dock the dinghy and walk one block to the ocean beach! Pizza, ice cream, pubs, and many shops make it a joy to explore the town. Yes…Wrightsville Beach is a place I could move to, it is a great town…..

Sand dunes at the Swansboro, NC turn

Two Pelicans fly by the dunes, Swansboro, NC on the ICW

Yes, it is really PINK…a pink house on the ICW, and we are not even in Florida yet!

Yacht YEHBUDI II from Auckland, NZ

An interesting dock to the water from a huge shoreline home

Figure Eight Island Swing Bridge with IP460 Cutter Loose

The Wrightsville Beach Bridge is #22 since Norfolk, VA

A cottage on the Motts Channel, Wrightsville Beach, NC

Finally….access to our first beach from the boat. We love to take our boat to places where we can walk to a beach!

Dinner was delicious Beef Pot Roast and warm biscuits and WINE

Sadly, we departed Beaufort, NC, where we were totally spoiled by Greg and Kate, IP350 owners and gracious hosts. Greg and Kate provided shelter from the strong Nor’easter low pressure that was blowing 35-40 knots for 2+ days. Friday we stayed out of the rain and then went to the Ruddy Duck for dinner in Morehead City. Saturday, we toured Fort Macon, had lunch at the Beaufort Grocery Restaurant and re-visited the waterfront. Then we capped off our visit with the most delicious home cooked pot roast in the history of the world! Yes, we were spoiled indeed, with good wine and many laughs at the Home for Wayward IP Sailors!!

We needed to press on to points south, so we untied our lines and powered along with a strong 25-30 knot wind at our backs. Exiting Beaufort & Morehead City, we entered into Bogue Sound which is protected and secure from the ocean rollers offshore produced by the gale winds that have been blowing. Our buddy boat, Cutter Loose, was boarded and inspected by the Coast Guard off Swansboro. They passed the routine safety inspection with a 100% and kept moving on. These boardings are intimidating, yet I guess needed when looking for yachts breaking the law. Possibly due to the current Coast Guard Auxillary Inspection sticker on our mast, they skipped over us and then selected the next boat after us to board and inspect. The 44+ mile day ended in Mile Hammock Bay, a basin inside the Camp Lejeune Marine training base.

Fort Macon, a beautiful restored fort

Departing Beaufort in 25 knot winds

Peak winds of 33 knots true….Gale winds are 34…close

Sand dunes along Bogue Sound and ICW

IP460 Cutter Loose is boarded by the Coast Guard

Bogue Sound with a parade of boats running south

ICW has these MILE MARKERS, here is #245 The is the number of miles from Norfolk, VA, mile #1

Eric, Hayden and Greg, what fun we had…

Everyone in the cruising community always talks about the real treasure of cruising is not the journey, but rather the people you meet and connect with along the way. That is what makes this life so special. Our trip into Beaufort, NC was one of the finest examples of this as we were invited to visit with a fellow Island Packet Yacht owner and enjoy the town and a home cooked meal. No cruiser, living on a boat, can refuse such a generous offer and we took Greg and Kate up on the plan. Arriving at their private marina and docking next to Greg’s IP350, ei’Lean, we backed Island Spirit into a slip and tied off to the pier. Greg welcomed us and made us feel right at home with a full tour of the grounds, clubhouse, and bathhouse. Kate is a dream! They are like your long lost college roommates! We feel like we have known them for many years, yet this is our first meeting. We have never visited anyone’s home for the first time where they made us feel so welcome and so comfortable. Truly amazing….

Too much Champagne is a GOOD thing…Kate, Radeen and Patricia

After touring of the facilities and their beautiful home, we were swept off to town for a walk down the waterfront, the main street and around town. After seeing the area, we returned home where we were treated to a spectacular Italian meal with homemade bread, salad and plenty of wine and Champagne.  With lots of lively stories and conversions and plenty of laughing we party into the night nearly up to midnight! Most boaters pass out around 9pm, but with the endless hospitality of Greg and Kate, we had no clue we had stayed so late. We walked back to our boats at midnight and slept in with no worries of the building Nor’easter off the coast.

Today, we will stay in dock, enjoy the company and friendship with Kate and Greg, sincerely appreciating their hospitality!

Island Spirit meets ei’Lean

Custom homes surround the private marina

The Marina is home to the Morehead City/Beaufort Yacht Club, this is the pool area

Look….just like on our boat….china from France and linen table cloths with candles What a treat….Thank you so much!

Tug Pamilco pushing a loaded barge

Departing Belhaven, we sailed down the Pamilco Sound heading to Oriental, NC….BUT….we could not withstand the draw of the newest planned community called River Dunes! This community has the most beautiful marina, clubhouse, bathhouse, workout rooms, pool, hot tubs and manicured grounds in the area. Se we diverted and used our Buy one Get one Free card given to us at the Annapolis MD Boatshow for two nights of dockage and relaxation. Unfortunately the restaurant and bar are closed during the week and only open on Fri, Sat, Sun and we arrived on a Tuesday…oops! No worries, as we had the entire place to ourselves and they also provide a free car for your use if you dock here. So, we used the free car to run into Oriental, NC to see Penny and go out for a nice lunch at M&Ms where we also bumped into another friend and IP owner named John. John lives aboard in town and was at M&Ms when we stopped in. We enjoyed a nice visit and a wonderful lunch. Oriental is a popular sailing town and many cruisers retire to this town where they still can be connected to the cruising community. It is amazing how closely connected the cruising community is as we are always bumping into boats we recognize or people we know all along the way. What a great life….sail on…

Photos of the River Dunes, Pamlico leg…

We sailed in 20-25 knots downwind with a jib only, beautiful day

Tug Pamlico pushing a loaded barge

The floating docks of River Dunes, 45 feet long!

Our new club house at River Dunes, very comfortable

The new homes overlook the marina where we were docked.

Typical home that overlooks the marina. This single home is listed for $785,000

The canal entrance to River Dunes where all the canal front lots have been sold This is the house on the point, 1.8 million dollars!

So after enjoying River Dunes for two days, we sadly departed and made ourselves move on. There are so many beautiful places along this ICW, and we are only 200 miles down the road with 800 more miles to the Florida Keys. We know how diverse and how beautiful it is, and we are enjoying the ride once again….

Sunrise entering the Pungo Canal

After a beautiful sunset at anchor just before the Pungo Canal, the day presented us with the most beautiful sunrise! One aspect to the cruising life is the way you live fully in the weather and you take in all aspects the weather presents for the day. When living in a home, you rarely take time to watch a sunrise or a full sunset because you are usually inside the home and not taking in the beauty of the weather. Where as on a boat, you are always outside or at least it seems like you are, and you live by the weather. This day we were so lucky to be transiting the canal in beautiful high pressure where you get these beautiful days. The Pungo Canal is 22 miles long and the southern end brings you to the town of Belhaven, NC. In Belhaven we dropped anchor and spent a spooky Halloween off the town where Popeye arrived with trick or treats via the dinghy! WHAT?

Photos of the Pungo Canal….

Sunrise as we enter the canal with the swamp trees

AM fog rising off the canal along the shore lined trees

Cutter Loose, our boat buddies in their IP460 enter the canal

Happy Halloween from the Pungo Canal

American Bald Eagle keeps watch over the canal

The beautiful, but hostile shoreline of the canal

Popeye visits the harbor with treats

Pirate Radeen off Island Spirit heads to town

We departed Elizabeth City, NC this am at 0900 hrs for the Alligator River 51 miles away. The day was spectacular at day break with the most beautiful sea smoke I have every seen. We had a strong Nor’easter off the NC coast that dumped SNOW on the northeast and chilly temps in NC. We awoke in a boat that was 40 degrees inside with a thin film of ice on the decks! WE NEED TO GET south ASAP! So I shot a few photos of the sunrise and the sea smoke as the yachts were leaving the city docks and then we had a wonderful sail south across Albemarle Sound in 18 knots NE winds. We killed the motor and actually sailed the entire way across the sound. We know that this could be the only sailing we could have until we reach the Florida Keys, so we set sail and enjoyed a beautiful day sail.

Tonight, we are anchored just before the Pungo Canal in Alligator River, where Radeen is on Alligator watch all night. We are keeping the alligators off the anchor chain as they are well known to climb up the anchor chain and pay a visit on your deck. Here is a photos to prove the point….

See, here is an Alligator trying to get onto the deck via the anchor chain!

Another GREAT day on the ICW as we press on south toward the Florida Keys! More photos and stories as we move into better internet access. Here, in Alligator River, Verizon has been sparse with the towers….we only have 1X speeds…

Harbor of HOSPITALITY is so true This town really makes boaters feel welcome

We arrived in Elizabeth City, NC, at the free city docks and we plan to wait out this cold front passage tonight and tomorrow. There is a strong low pressure building off the NC coast and this low will be blowing strong NE winds in the 30-35 MPH range. The same low will be causing SNOW in PA, MD and NY! It is COLD…but we are enjoying the town and taking care of common items.

Today I fixed a flat tire on the bike so I could then ride it 2 miles out to the bike shop where I had spokes repaired which turned into replacing the entire front rim for $40. Then I walked 1.5 miles to the grocery store to meet up with the IPY team, Radeen, Patricia and Eric who hopped a ride courtesy of Farm Fresh. After this adventure, I walked back to the bike shop, picked up my newly tuned up bike and rode it back to the boat where I returned it to the deck bag storage.

It is interesting, when living on a boat, how simple tasks such as going to the grocery store for milk, bread and eggs can take ALL DAY, especially when you have to walk or hitch a ride since you have no car. Life is simple, just imagine not having a car for a year, walk everywhere you need to go or ride a bike, and oh yea, carry or collect all the water you will need….these are the simple tasks you deal with when living on a boat. It is simple and it is fun.

Photos of the PASQUOTANK RIVER as you arrive Elizabeth City and some around town…

Anchored 8 miles before Elizabeth City, NC behind Goat Island on the lovely Pasquotank River

Pasquotank River scenery is beautiful

You drive your boat around trees, as you exit the swamp

Elizabeth City Bridge, at an angle and double roads, opens on demand

A walk up main street and the restored homes in the historic district

Some more colorful than others

A must stop….the BEST coffee in town is at MUDDY WATERS

The local library is new, modern and very impressive. We always enjoy libraries!

The Elizabeth City Free Public Docks and tree lined brick walkway

Bow into the docks and a step to access the short finger pier No tide here, so it is easy to set up a simple step

Roses are given to the ladies of transient boats as a tradition of the “Rose Buddies” These are roses from Fred Fearing, the creator of the Rose Buddies in 1983

Bike services, fixed a flat tire and rode to the bike shop for new spokes

Great logo for the City, the good life is here….welcome to NC http://DiscoverEC.org

6am Photos of the Portsmouth Ferry Basin, Cutter Loose and Island Spirit

Long day…but fun day….Portsmouth VA to Goat Island NC, 43 miles

• 0600 Wake to buy coffee from the Portsmouth Coffee shop 2 steps off our dock!
• 0730 Depart Portsmouth, South Ferry Basin (way too soon for the bridge 8 miles away)
• 0930 Gilmerton Lift Bridge
• 1100 Enter Deep Creek Lock to be lifted 7′ up to the Dismal Swamp
• 1130 Enter the swamp, run 22 miles for the other lock
• 1530 Enter South Mills lock, drop down 7′ to Pasquotank River
• 1800 Drop anchor behind Goat Island at mile marker 43
• 1900 Make and serve hot pasta with beef, salad and wine
• 2000 Process 205 digital photos taken today, select the best 12
• 2030 Write this blog post

This is the 3rd time we have traveled the Dismal Swamp and I am still taken by the beauty of the canal. The overhanging trees, the lily pads, frogs, egrets, and tannic acid stained water, all make for a very unique experience. None of the 205 digital photos I shot today show the true beauty, you really need to transit this canal and take a look for yourself.

 These are the best photos, to share the experience….

Our First Bridge, Norfolk Southern Railroad Bridge in the UP position

The chaos at the Gilmeton Lift Bridge, 16 sailboats and 6 power yachts Race for the bridge opening and the race south is on!

After the Gilmerton Bridge, you are presented a choice to divert to the Dismal Swamp Or keep on straight for the Virginia Cut. Both run south to the ICW

We chose the SWAMP, where you have to enter Deep Creek Lock and be lifted up 7 feet into the Dismal Swamp

The lock holds 10-15 yachts, we are all rafted up and the lock door is closed Within 10 minutes we are all lifted up the 7 feet and the door opens to the Dismal Swamp

Radeen tending the bow line as we rise up Lines need to be pulled in to keep the boat under control as the 1,200,000 gallons enter the lock!

There we are, lifted up to the top of the dismal swamp

The view into the swamp as the lock doors

The reflections in the Dismal Swamp are beautiful Lucky for us, we were the lead boat or 12

More reflections and beautiful photos in the swamp

Look at that…..a view aft over the stern with the USA flag

The sign in the lock showing the mileage 1,217 miles to Key West……that is where we are going!

South Mills Lock, 22 miles from the Deep Creek lock Time to lock DOWN out of the swamp and into the river

Lock doors opening and you are at river level Welcome to the Pasquotank River, another gem!

Overhanging trees, and winding river bends, require total attention

Finally, we reach GOAT ISLAND and we drop anchor at 1800m hrs What a great adventure

Onboard, all systems are running well. The motor is great, the fuel burn seems normal, and the speed is good. It has been very rewarding to tear down the motor systems, rebuild them and then take off for a 1,200 mile drive and have it all working better than ever. Tomorrow, we will move into Elizabeth City and take a break as we enjoy that town and the public library. Life onboard is a dream, it is easy, peaceful and adventurous. Thank you for following along….

Daybreak over Willoughby Bay Spit, VA

Departing at daybreak, we carefully navigated the Naval Exit Channel out of Willoughby Bay into the the Elizabeth River toward Norfolk and Portsmouth Virginia. This passage we always find a bit stressful and challenging as you are dealing with Navy ships, tugs with barges, and 1,000 foot long container ships, all working the same narrow channel. We only had 9 miles to go today, but it seemed like 20 miles due to the all the ship traffic. Welcome to the AM rush hour in a busy seaport harbor! Radeen had the helm and I managed the navigation as we pushed on to Portsmouth, where we moved into the South Ferry Basin and docked right up against the city streets. This is such a fantastic spot with a friendly coffee shop only steps from our boat!

Our buddy boat, IP460 Cutter Loose in the AM sun

We rode the commuter ferry over to Watersides in Norfolk where we enjoyed seeing the Tidewater Community College and had lunch at a Cuban restaurant. Back in Portsmouth, we walked the old town and historic districts. The evening was capped off with our favorite dinner movie theater, the Commodore Dinner Theater. This beautiful 1945 movie theater has been converted to a restaurant where you may order sandwiches and salads along with wine or beer and then turn your comfortable chairs to enjoy the latest run movies. We saw “Footloose” – fun!

Tomorrow we will make the 0930 Gilmerton Bridge opening. giving us access to the Great Dismal Swamp and locks. Thank you Portsmouth for the use of the ferry terminals, we greatly appreciate this town’s hospitality.

Photos of the day….

Again, we had the honor of traveling next to PANGAEA the world explorer http://MikeHorn.com

We dodged container ships in the morning light This one was actually a USA flagged ship from Philadelphia, a first…

Of course it was followed by a container ship from Singapore

Look at the scale of these ships. That is 13 tractor trailer boxes across!

There it is R36, Intracoastal waterway mile marker #1 The trip starts here, only 1,100 miles to the Florida Keys!

Two IPs docked right in the city of Portsmouth VA and walked the town This is the South Ferry Basin in Portsmouth, VA

Norfolk…..Mermaids on Parade….these sculptures are everywhere over 100 in the town!

http://MermaidsOnParade.com

Island Spirit docked in Portsmouth, VA

Overall, another wonderful day as we revisited these two great waterfront towns, Norfolk and Portsmouth, our official starting point for the ICW run south. Now, we can enter the SWAMP and we hope it is not a “dismal” day….more on that next…