Traveling the South Carolina & North Carolina Coast (MM 465- 84)...

April 17, 2023




I’m our attempt to get to Norfolk for the Great Loop meeting on time, we are having to do many one day stops on this leg of our trip. There will be minimal history but as you will see other interesting items of note!

Leaving Charleston Harbor and going north on the ICW allowed us to get closer to Fort Sumter though it was so early, its marvelous USA flag was not on display. 


We passed Sullivan’s Island and saw its lighthouse. We always enjoyed spending time here when Morgan lived in Charleston and Isle of Palms. 

Throughout our travels during this stretch it was just pure simplicity of nature with the noise of water splashing from fish and dolphins as well as the cackling of the various birds. 
    
























Eagles, white pelicans, and great egrets in their mating plumage!

Prior to arriving in Georgetown, we saw these small islands with wooden gates set up.  When we looked into this further, we realized these were rice fields and the wooden gates controlled the water.

Our first stop was Georgetown. We have been here by land before and is a cute town with its Main Street on the water. As we approached our marina in a No wake zone, a current,  and anchored sailboats in the middle of the river, a boat came upon us while I was getting lines ready. While I was screaming at the boat,  Danny heard me with the headsets we use to communicate. He put the engine in neutral and avoided an accident. The people never stopped or radioed before or after this. People at the marina saw it. Danny was upset and wanted the person to know what they did was wrong. We found the boat and the dinghy but not the people. Danny filed a report with the marine resources and the nice officer took statements from us and the witnesses. The officer found them, called us and said they were coming to say they were sorry. He said the people thought we were in the wrong and he explained why that was incorrect. The officer also said I think there may be a language issue. While the boat they had was from Deltaville, they were German. They found us not far from the marina eating dinner. The man stood there with his wife by his side and hands folded in front of him and said- "We are sorry you have had a bad day but we didn’t see things the way you and the witnesses did."  He said they wanted to enjoy the United States. We told him we wanted them to enjoy our country too but we wanted him to know how to safely operate a boat so no one would get hurt. We thanked them for coming by and they left. If you get a chance, I would encourage you to come to Georgetown with its nice stores and restaurants. They have a Gullah museum and Rice museum(which we came to previously) but take note many places are closed on Monday. 


From Georgetown, we moved north to North Myrtle Beach in an area called Barefoot Landing. Prior to getting to the marina, we made a stop in Wacca Watchee where they had a great deal on fuel. Nice area as well as nice people. There was lots to do around Barefoot Landing. In addition to seeing a surprising alligator come up out of a pond!  And yes, he was real and he was big and I have video!  We accomplished getting hair cuts which we needed badly!

When leaving North Myrtle Beach, the big concern in this area was something called The Rock Pile.  We had no difficulty but I could see how some would be intimidated.  You could see the rocks under the water on both sides.  We were lucky that no one was passing us during our time at The Rock Pile.  Next stop was going to be Southport, NC which we have also been to in the past but the weather this Saturday is suppose to be bad with wind and rain so Danny felt we needed to cover more ground. Our hope was to get to Wrightsville Beach but every marina was booked so we chose Carolina Beach. In the course of going north, we need to have 2 swing bridges opened for us-Socatsee and Archie McLughlin. Also when we turned at Southport in the Cape Fear River, the current took us down to 4.1 MPH and it was wild to see it be so significant. Our stay in Carolina Beach allowed us to do some walking to a few places. We walked to Goodhops Brewery first because it was trivia night and wanted to avoid that event.  We had dinner at Havana’s (excellent!) and drinks at the #1 dive bar in NC and top 25 in US they say-The Fat Pelican! A Vietnam vet with 2 Purple Hearts is the owner and it is hilarious. They had everything you could want to drink- no food but a refrigerated 18 wheeler trailer attached to the building where you walk in and can select your beer or seltzer of choice, purchase and find a seat. Danny got a number of lagers and pilsners to take back to the boat. He had a pilsner from Dirt Bag Brewery. Lizzy the octopus on top of the outside area has speakers in it to play the music. You need to experience it!  Our evening wrapped up with a walk to Publix. 
      


           



I thought it was interesting when we arrived.  I asked to mail some items I had stamps on and the manager of the marina said in Carolina Beach you had to go to the post office to mail anything and pick up your mail.  I thought that was odd and he couldn't explain why it was that way.  When we walked through town, I saw plenty of mailboxes on the street. 
While traveling past Topsail Beach and Surf City, we saw some dolphins who swam with the boat for a few minutes and numerous oyster cages set up.  Tried very hard to put the video at the top of this blog segment but despite multiple attempts, it didn't happen.  If I see you in person, let me show it to you.




Next stop was Swansboro.   In order to get to Swansboro, we had to travel through Camp Lejeune.  We were warned there might be artillery fire but we would be told when we got there.  There was none but saw some interesting contraptions which Danny told me not to take pictures of for the blog.  There was a beautiful beach we saw and a swing bridge called Onslow Beach we had to have opened on the Marines property.  
Swansboro is across the bridge from Emerald Isle beach.  Another nice little town with a main street.  We had a wonderful meal with Sue and Mike,  a couple also looping from California.  We all enjoyed our meal at Il Cigno Italiano very much!                      
                                                                                   The Other Woman tied up in Swansboro, NC.







Then we left for Oriental.  This town which we experienced with the kids when they went to summer camp is known as the sailing capital.  When we arrived, a number of schools were participating in a sailing regatta.  I know NC State was here but their weather was terrible for the regatta and I was very glad we were tied down as the winds came in before the storm as you can see below! 
We did venture out the first night to the New Village Brewery with a group of about 10 loopers.  Country music playing and bring your food while enjoying the beer.  They have a small set up and invite other breweries to be a guest brewery every week.  Danny enjoyed the guest brewery beer better.  He talked to the manager when he went back the next afternoon to fill his growler talking to him about the business since they opened.  We went to the farmer's market which was tiny and got some seafood from the fish market to have for dinner the next few nights.  We got flounder and crabmeat.  I went to get a grape tootsie pop they had in a box and the guy said, make sure you don't go into the milk bone box.  They have this for people coming in with dogs.  I said do you have people who have done that?  He said yes, we have a woman who sails out of here and gets milk bone from us because it is the only thing that calms her stomach when the wind and waves are bad.  OMG- Danny and I just looked at each other with raised eyebrows! So I had to say goodbye to the resident cat- J Edgar Hoover.  The name was given to him because he investigates everything.  It would be hard to tell from this picture!

Interesting T-shirt I saw in Oriental

The storm passed during the evening and we were good to go to Belhaven, NC.  During the course of traveling to Belhaven we were essentially parallel to Ocracoke and Avon on the Outer Banks.  We could not see either town.  The other interesting event is we were boarded by the Coast Guard as a routine safety check.  When they pulled up to the side of us, it was an older officer with younger people.  I am assuming he was showing them the process and training.  Needless to say, Danny had everything in the right place with the right documentation.  

Belhaven is said to be the birthplace of the ICW.  In September of 1928, the Alligator River and Pungo River had a canal completed between the two to form the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (AICW) from Norfolk, Va to Miami, Fla totaling 1090 miles.  In 2013, in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the completion of the AICW, Belhaven was named the "Birthplace of the ICW."  The town has had several names.  Matcha Pungo was the name in the early 1800's which means river of many fish to the Indians.  Then it became Jack's Neck, Belle Porte and ultimately Belle Haven.
Belhaven's City Hall of 1910 which is now a Senior Center.
Beautiful sunset at Belhaven Marina

We pulled out of Belhaven this morning on the way to Alligator River Marina which is at the southern point of the Albemarle Sound.   The weather was to be decent after coming through the canal connecting  the Pungo and Alligator River; however, when we were in the open Alligator River it was a different story.
                             

This is the canal connecting the 2 sounds.  And this is baby, Nina, traveling the Loop with her Dad and grandfather as we passed them on the canal😊
There was 17 mile an hour winds with over 2 foot waves straight on to us.  Definitely the worse traveling weather that we have had in our journey. The bad weather coming will make us miss our stop in Edenton.  Our plan now is to go to Elizabeth City for tomorrow and then Wednesday travel and stay the night in the Dismal Swamp.  Then we will arrive in Norfolk on Thursday to stay until the following Thursday for a Looper program to start on Monday, May 1st. 


 Alligator River Swing Bridge was opened to get to our marina.  We were about 35 minutes west of  Manteo.

TOTAL MILES TRAVELLED   2474.50 miles
TOTAL DAYS 163











Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
                  The Mighty Mississippi...  October 11 - 18, 2023                       Danny on the banks of the Mississippi River from both the north and south. The Mississippi River runs 2340 miles from Minneapolis, Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico.  The river starts in Lake Ithaca, Minnesota where you can walk across stones.  The Ojibway people named the river meaning big river.  From a navigation standpoint, it is broke up into the upper Mississippi (Minnesota to Cairo, Illinois) and lower (Cairo, Illinois to New Orleans, Louisiana ).  We will travel the Mississippi until we get to Cairo and turn on to the Ohio River.  While the Mississippi River has flooded before, the worst being 1993, the river is exceptionally low this year.  Last year was low and this year is worse.  According to the data accumulated and released October 16th, the river is...
Read more
Image
The Ohio River to the Cumberland River to  Cross the Finishing Line at Grand Rivers! October 18 - 19,  2023 Our traveling down the last 7.7 miles of the Mississippi River were uneventful.  Clear skies remained with us throughout the day.  At Cairo, Illinois (pronounced Karo, like the syrup), we turned onto the Ohio River.  At this point seen in the picture, it is considered the lowest point in Illinois.  At one time, Fort Defiance stood here in the Civil War.  There was a great deal of activity on the water comparable almost to St Louis.  Barges coming, going, and loading.  Not that Danny isn't but, definitely had to be vigilant in what was going on in front and on the sides of your boat.  Above we are turning off the Mississippi on to the Ohio River. Saw another casino no longer operating just pushed up into the shore.   We made it to the Olmstead lock and dam and they lifted The Other Woman and Beach House up 30 feet.  Beach ...
Read more
Image
Clearwater and St Petersburg, Florida... January 9, 2023 We talked with our fellow loopers before we left to pick up words of wisdom before we were off to St Petersburg.  I would have liked to go on "the inside" or intercoastal waterway but we went on "the outside" or the Gulf of Mexico.  There were a few shallow areas that concerned Danny on the intercostal.  I'm sure I would have seen more birds and wildlife on the inside but we did see this couple checking their stone crab pots in the Gulf.       This beautiful pink structure is the Don Cesar Resort where I had gone to a conference years ago. Just prior to turning into Tampa Bay, we came across a HUGE cargo ship,  we stayed back until it passed.  I got pictures as it came between our boat and Egmont Key.  I will talk about this Key later.  Our view from our slip at the St Petersburg Municipal Marina.  On our arrival into our slip, we met 2 young guys to the left of us.  When...
Read more