Mike
06/08/2008, Belhaven, NC

June 4th... Long Creek to Belhaven

We left Long Creek at 7:30 with "Solitaire" and crossed the Bay River to the mouth of Gale Creek which shortly turned into a canal. We passed some moored shrimp boats at Hobucken and wished we could stop for some fresh shrimp.

It was a short day arriving in Belhaven before noon. We did have some trouble anchoring however. All boats have different anchoring techniques. On Sapphire, once we get into the anchorage we discuss possible sites and I go forward with Kathy at the helm. She brings the boat to a stop into the wind while I release the anchor. I let our about 50 feet of chain while slowly backs the boat down laying the chain in a straight line on the bottom. At fifty feet we let the chain snug up and then I let our another 50 feet of chain while Kathy shifts from reverse to neutral. With 100 feet of chain on the bottom, I attach our snubber, let out another 5 feet and then bring about 3 feet back in to put all pressure on the snubber. I cleat the snubber and Kathy puts the boat in reverse to take up all slack. She then increases the rpm in reverse while watching the GPS for movement. On the foredeck, I am also watching for drag. When we are convinced that we are staying in one spot, the engine is shut down and we're there for the night.

Yesterday, we backed down four times before we were able to get the anchor to set which is a pain because every time I bring the anchor up, I have to wash sticky, greasy mud off 100 feet of chain

Tomorrow I am going to switch anchors which I should have done weeks ago. Our Delta anchor works well in hard bottoms like the Abacos but not as well in the mud of the ICW. I'm not sure if I will switch to our Bruce anchor or a Danforth. We used the Bruce on the way south and didn't have any problems, but the Danforth is usually better in mud.

In the afternoon the four of us went to town and wandered the streets for a couple of hours. There isn't much to the old downtown area of Belhaven. Many of the stores are empty. There is a good hardware store that sells ice, snacks and beer as well as the regular stuff. There is a combination Book shop / Wine store/ Café that was interesting and a good Drug Store. We bought a used book and bag of ice and then hurried back to the boat in 93 degree heat.

We spent the remainder of the afternoon reading. Jim and Nancy motored for a short planning session and then we grilled some brats for dinner. By then it was time to listen to the Red Wings win the final game of the season.

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Mike
06/08/2008, Long Creek, NC

June 3rd... Town Creek, Beaufort NC to Long Creek

Happy Birthday Ellie!

We left Town Creek at 8am with "Solitaire" and had an uneventful day motoring up Adams Creek to the Neusse River. We passed Oriental and put up a sail as we worked our way down the Neusse to the Pamlico Sound. From there we turned west and headed for the Bell river.

We were planning on anchoring in Bear Creek but the wind direction was wrong so we worked our way through Bonner Bay and into Long Creek. It is one of the most remote anchorages that we've found. In the 10 miles of shore line visible I saw only two or three lights after sunset.

We called Ellie with birthday wishes as well as Robert Peek. Robert is the lockmaster at Deep Creek which is the northern end of the Dismal Swamp. We have read on one of the cruiser websites that the Dismal Swamp is too shallow for us this Spring but we wanted to verify this information with the expert. Robert said that the canal was in better shape than when we passed through last fall and that he had locked through sailboats with more draft that us within the last two days.

We are three days away from the point at which we have to make the decision but we are definitely leaning that way.

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Mike
06/02/2008, Beaufort, NC

June 1st... Mile Hammock to Beaufort, NC

We left a little after 7am to catch a bridge opening four miles away only to find it permanently open while under repair. The trip was uneventful except for the fact that we able to sail again for a few hours. We always keep the engine running because in places the ICW is quite narrow. Narrow enough that if something went wrong there isn't enough space to recover.

We arrived in Beaufort a little before the 1:30 bridge opening and anchored next to "Solitaire" in Town Creek. We ended up being too close. so after an hour or so we hauled the anchor and moved over a boat length to give us a little more swing room.

We had dinner at the Town Creek Marina with Jim and Nancy and made it back to the boat just as a thunder storm rolled in.

It was not ...just a thunderstorm. It was a series of thunderstorms that lasted well into the evening. I had the engine on in case the anchor let go ... but it didn't. Jim recorded a gust of about 50 and there was so much rain that visibility was measured in feet. Eventually things calmed down and the rest of the night consisted of mostly off and on rain.

June 2nd... Beaufort

Kathy wasn't feeling quite right this morning and seems to have been contracting a cold or something for the last few days, so I walked with Jim and Nancy to get a propane tank filled. It was good exercise after spending the better part of a week on the boat. Since we were anchored within about 100 yards of the gas dock, after taking care of the propane I made two trips in to top off our tanks.

By then is was time for a little lunch and then a trip to downtown Beaufort for a little shopping... my favorite thing... I did purchase a couple of shirts made of the same fabric as some of my shorts that dry in minutes ... while you're wearing them

Kathy bought some books and Jim and Nancy each made a couple of purchases... It was a very nice afternoon, even if we were shopping.

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