While we were in Cape Lookout we had exchanged emails with Jim and Debbie in an effort to try and meet them along the way for dinner. They recently left Charleston and are headed around the Great Loop via Hudson. Since the seas were not conducive for them to take a side trip to Cape Lookout, we arranged to meet in Oriental. After our brief stay in Beaufort we headed up the ICW to Oriental and it didn't take long to realize that we hadn't missed it. Granted it's a safe way to travel when the offshore conditions are inclimant however it can be very frustrating between motorboat traffic, shoals and bridges. Happily for us we only have 205 miles of ICW to complete instead of the 1050 we did last fall.

The main harbour in Oriental is small with limited anchoring; it has one small Marina and free town dockage for 4 boats. However, the services for transient boaters are fantastic; from free loaner bicycles, free pump out and a shuttle to and from the grocery store. There are numerous cruising boats based here so one never has to walk too far before being offered a ride.

We met up with Jim and Debbie who are travelling with the Atkins as they all head north, and along with our friends on 2 Outrageous we all enjoyed a great dinner on Driftaway. We decided to stay an extra day in Oriental before pushing on; there is lots to see and do plus we just can't get in the ICW rythm yet. Since we decided to stay Paul cooked up a huge pile of ribs and we had a great BBQ on the eve of our departure.

Today's picture is of a fisherman's campsite on Cape Lookout.