The Journey Continues....North to Elizabeth City, NC

Adventures of "At Last"

April 27, 2015

Turtle swimming next to At Last

We leave our anchorage early and continue north.  Osprey Marina, Myrtle Beach, SC here we come!  It is a great travel day....cool and a bit windy.  Along the way we see dozens of turtles....it's mating season.  We arrive at Osprey at around 4:00 and immediately go to the fuel dock to replenish our tanks.  This is the first time we have purchased fuel since we were at Osprey on our way south in the fall.  We take on 364 gallons after traveling 1119 miles.   Dave is very pleased with our fuel consumption.  Osprey Marina is a great facility.  It is well protected.  The people are great and it usually has the best fuel prices in the area, and you can't beat their welcome bag...best pepper jelly around.  Today's ride was 85 miles and we put in about a 9 hour day.

April 28, 2015

We are spending today at Osprey Marina as well.  It is a "work day" for us.  The weather is cool, sunny, and dry.  I tackle the boat chores....cleaning, changing sheets, doing laundry.  Dave takes this opportunity to wash and polish "At Last".  She needs a little TLC after her salt bath in the sounds. When Dave is done, the boat looks great....all spiffed up and ready to continue.  Osprey Marina is often a stop for "Loopers" and we meet three other couples who are also doing the Loop.  We are all on different schedules, but we might catch up with each other along the way.  After a dinner of baked ham and fried rice, we relax and enjoy a glass of wine on the bow.  The weather forecast is for rain. We'll have to wait and see if we wait out the weather or continue.

April 29, 2015

It is already raining when we wake up, but we top off our water tanks, empty the garbage, store our cushions, buy ice and we're off.  We'll travel as far as we want today, depending on the weather. Today is "Rock Pile" day.  We have absolutely no problems "en route".  Our transit through this area is easy.  It rains most of the morning, but eventually clears.  At about 5:00 pm the downpours begin once again.  As we arrive in Southport, NC, we decide to head in for the night.  We dock at a free dock in front of the Provisions Company.  If you have dinner at this restaurant, you can remain at the dock for no charge.  It is a great little restaurant....very casual...the food is good and reasonably priced.  Unfortunately, it is raining heavily and we do not have a chance to explore the town.  Today we traveled more than 8 hours and went about 56 miles.

April 30, 2015

Mahogany Tree
(after clean up)

We are up early after a restless night and head out by 6:30.  It is gray and cool, but the rain has stopped.  Today is "bridge day".  We need to time our travels, because some bridges open only on the hour while others will open on the hour and half hour.  In a trawler there is often not enough time to make the openings between bridges and we usually have to wait. Through the day we pass under fixed bridges and through lift and swing bridges. We also receive news from our friend Gary in Okeechobee that our Mahogany tree was damaged in a bad hail and thunderstorm and is now missing it's top.  It used to have a mushroom top and provided a lot of privacy between the creek and the house.  The good news is, our Royal Pociana tree is in bloom (May) and is absolutely gorgeous. Too bad we are not there to enjoy it.

Royal Pociana Tree
in May

After more than an 11 hour day and over 70 miles, we arrive in Swansboro, NC where we tie up to the town dock.  The current is raging, but we manage to secure the boat.  Around sunset, we are joined by a beautiful 1943 wooden fishing boat, "Karen" which was refurbished to a yacht.  The four gentlemen aboard are on their way to the wooden boat show in Beaufort, NC.  (Pronounced with a long o sound)
The boat is very nice and the captain graciously allows us to take a tour.

"Karen"

May 1, 2015

We leave the dock at Swansboro by 7:00 am and begin our trip to Whittaker Pointe Marina in Oriental, NC.  The weather is cool and overcast, but there is no rain until just before we get to the Marina.  The marina is very quiet compared to when we were there in October.  Ashley helps us into our slip.  After checking in, we borrow the courtesy car and run some errands.  We re-provision, buy some oil, get a pizza for dinner and head back to the boat.  Ashley has left for the day and we are the only ones in the marina for the night.  It is a bit strange, but kind of nice to have a whole facility to ourselves.  It is a very windy night with lots of bugs.

May 2, 2015

We are up by 6:00 and Dave checks the weather.  It looks okay, so we decide to continue.  Before leaving, I do the laundry (one has to take the opportunity when it arises) and Dave changes the oil. Today want to be able to position ourselves so that we can cross the Albemarle Sound tomorrow. The forecast is calling for good conditions.  We travel in choppy conditions for most of the day, but the sloppy conditions improve after passing RE Mayo.....a good stop if you are looking for fresh seafood.  It is a working dock.  We stayed there for one night in the fall, but today we continue to head north.  We find a nice anchorage at mile 127.5.  It is Kentucky Derby Day......we are anchored just in time to see American Pharaoh win the race while enjoying chili.  We watch a beautiful sunset and enjoy a bright moon tonight. The trip today took 7.5 hours and we traveled 46 miles.

May 3, 2015

At 5:50, we pull our anchor and have a beautiful ride down the canal.  It is a misty sunrise.  We make excellent time to the Albemarle Sound.  It is a bit choppy, but a very comfortable ride and we arrive in Elizabeth City around 3:45 pm.  At Mariner's Wharf, there are plenty of slips available for free dockage and we choose one.  The wall is also available for boaters.  We opt for an early dinner at Grouper's Waterfront Restaurant.  When we arrive back at the boat, we meet Gus.  He is a gentleman who has continued the practice of Rose Buddies.  The tradition is that when 5 or more visiting yachts are in port, a wine and cheese party is hosted by the local tourism office and the lady of the boat receives a rose from the beautiful bushes grown along the walkways.  Tonight there is no party as it is a Sunday, but I receive my roses from Gus.