Deep Creek Lock

May 10th
We arrived in Charleston in early evening after a boring and uneventful flight from Vancouver. Checked in at our hotel, we just had mother's day dinner at the nearby Fish House. Very nice.
May 11th.
Picked up a rental car and arrived back at the Charleston City Boatyard in Wando to find Estelle well and ready for the water. I checked out the systems that could be checked on land, all OK. A few more jobs and the unaccustomed heat forced us to quit early. Dinner that night on nearby Sullivan's Island at a restaurant called The Uncooperative Daughter. It was very nice and very popular. We were fortunate to find a table without a long wait.
May 12th
Arrived back at the boatyard to find Estelle afloat and well. Engine and genset checked OK, so all systems working... excellent! We did a major shopping expedition for groceries and lugged them to the boat and began the process of stowing everything. Since the refrigeration was not on until launch, we bought only non-perishables, but still filled two shopping carts, one devoted solely to wine. An excellent dinner at The Post House, a favorite restaurant of ours in Mt Pleasant.
May 13th
Today we managed to fill another shopping cart at the local Harris-Teeter, this time with perishables. So we had another major stowing project. I am sure we will never see half of what we have stowed in the last two days until we clean the boat out next. While waiting for the tide to turn, we got the main sail on. Then at one thirty pm we cast off, just as Jeannie injured her back. As we motored down the river, she just sat hunched in the cockpit in very visible pain, unable to move. And our arrival at the Charleston Maritime Center was a bit exciting. With Jeannie unable to even throw a line, and the dockmaster's lack of understanding of the use of a spring line, our landing was not pretty, but we got tied up without serious damage. Ashore, we immediately made for a drug store for some pain relievers.
May 14th
Jeannie's back dominated the day. By day's end, she had seen a doctor, been diagnosed with severe muscle spasms and perscribed with a host of medications that we picked up at the nearby pharmacy. The Charleston Maritime Center is a great location, close to downtown Charleston with groceries close by. But its docks are completely open to the fresh easterlies that were blowing, so we endured two jerky nights.
May 15th
By now, we realized that our plans for an offshore overnight hop to Beaufort NC were off. With Jeannie's back in ocean swells and on heavy medication, heading offshore was not in the cards. So we chugged up the ICW. Project number one was to get past the skinny area at Sullivan's Island. Last fall we were the only boat out of five to get through without grounding. Not quite so lucky today, we ran hard up on a bank but were able to back off and work our way through. By the time we got to the next trouble spot near McClellanville, the tide had risen enough to allow us to pass through without incident. By day's end we were settled in the warm evening with the anchor set in Minim Creek, a new anchorage for us. Dinner in the cockpit with warm winds blowing made a perfect night.
May 16th
From Minim Creek we set out and motored into Winya Bay. We were considering heading offshore from here until we spoke with a boat coming in from an overnight sail down. His description of no wind and swells on the beam quickly changed our minds and we headed up into the beautiful Waccamaw River. In the flat calm we motored up admiring the beauty of the moss draped live oaks and the lush vegetation. But at the top we headed in to the ICW where it passes through Myrtle Beach. Last year we came through this area on a holiday weekend and vowed we would never do it again. As we approached the Little River inlet in the late afternoon, we were met with literally hundreds of motorboats streaming in from a day's fishing. Although not as bad as last year, the traffic was enough that we were glad to see it end as we dropped the anchor in Calabash Creek. But life quickly quieted down and we enjoyed the anchorage with only one other boat.
May 17th
We have always found the run from Little River to Cape Fear River a nice outside hop, relieving the tedium of the ICW, and enjoyed a quiet run of 25 miles. Approaching the Cape Fear river with its strong outgoing currents opposing the onshore breeze, we had a few bouncy moments, but were soon motorsailing up the river. A slow job against the 3-4 knot current, we finally chugged through Snows Cut and by evening were anchored in Wrightsville Beach among a few other cruising boats.
May 18th
We had an early start to the day and set off through Masonborough Inlet for a long day's sail across Onslow Bay to Cape Lookout. We coasted in , anchored with two other boats in the beautiful anchorage, surrounded by san dunes, and had a quiet evening after a long day.
May 19th
After a leisurly breakfast, we motorsailed back 5 miles against the fresh southerlies to the entrance to Beaufort. Here we re-entered the ICW, motoring through Adams Creek to the Neuse River. Here we shut the engine down and drifted down the river until late afternoon thunderheads chased us in to the very comfortable River Dunes Marina. With our dock lines secured, we just closed things up and let the heavens open up above us. After ong hot showers in the marina restrooms, we had dinner in the restaurant watching yet another thunderstorm unleash its fury on us. We chatted with a few other cruisers. Unlike last time we came north in July, this year we are seeing more cruising boats. We are well behind the mass snowbird migration, but there are still a few laggards like us.
May 20th
Our plans for an early start didn't quite work out, but we did get away by 0900 hrs, for a day of motoring in absolutely flat seas. And by days end we found ourselves in Tucahoe Point, our least favorite anchorage on the ICW. With the anchor down the wind very kindly came up to give us a bumpy night, another non-fun night at Tucahoe Point.
May 21st
The forecast SE winds failed to read the forecast and stayed East with just enough north in them to make sailing down the Alligator River impossible, so we motor-sailed its 20 un-scenic miles. Out into Albemarle Sound, we bore off for the Pasquotank River, 15 miles away and had a great day sailing up to Elizabeth City. Through the bridge, we dropped anchor off Lambs Marina where we rowed in for a few supplies. Then up to Goat Island anchorage where we waited out today's thunderstorm, complete with dire warnings on the VHF of possible golf-ball sized hail and tornadoes. But all we got was some light rain, so we settled in for a quiet night, alone in a beautiful anchorage.
May 22nd

Dismal Swamp Canal

Today we headed up the Pasquotank to South Mills where we locked up and into the Dismal Swamp Canal, one of our favorite sections of the ICW. With no commercial traffic and a speed limit of 5 mph, it is a quiet and beautiful trip. At Deep Creek, we were locked down by Robert, the always welcoming lockmaster.

Jim & Robert at Deep Creek Lock

Down in Deep Creek, we headed for the Elizabeth River, the headwaters of Norfolk's busy harbour. Running down the harour, we approached the Gilmerton Bridge, the only opening bridge left in the harbour just as a tug and barge ran through. Commercial traffic has precedence over road traffic, so there is no waiting for them, and we quickly snuck in behind them, saving ourselves a good half hour wait for an opening. Pulling in to Tidewater Marina, we passed Mile 0 of the ICW. From Charleston to here, 460 statute miles.