Friday May 27
The boats were bouncing around in the marina last night. The winds and waves finally settled down around 9:00.
We left the dock at 7 a.m. this morning. The winds were light and the sunrise was beautiful on the Pungo River. I sat with the binoculars on the bow of the boat as we motored along the Alligator Pungo canal. We've seen bears here in the past, so I'm looking for one today. Carl spotted an eagle in a nest. We saw two deer at the water's edge. The tall grass reflected in the water looks like a painting. No bears today. The canal spills into the Alligator River. I was just beginning to think it was getting a little boring. We passed through the Alligator River Bridge and crossed the Albemarle Sound. The winds were 10-15 knots on our stern, but picked up in the first hour to 20 knots with a moderate chop abeam. The swells got bigger and bigger. It was a gnarly ride! There were crab pots everywhere! We would just get by one pot when a wave would catch us and push us into another. Both jobs were exhausting, to be on the helm or on crab pot watch. Four hours later we were across and heading up the Pasquotank River. We usually stop at the free dock in Elizabeth City, but this time we decided to check out the anchorage just past the Elizabeth City Bridge. It is 6:30 when we dropped anchor. We were able to put nearly 70 miles behind us. There was a beautiful sunset this evening. We are well protected here and are hoping for a quiet night.