Passage from Ocracoke to Manteo

Got underway at 6:58 AM and followed the 7AM ferry out of Silver Lake. The forecast is for the winds to die off this afternoon. First I decided looking at all the weather sites it’s marginal and I decide a “no go”. I then hike over to the Sound and look first hand and it looks like very small waves and puffs oaf wind and decide to leave. The dock master agreed. The forecast was for the wind to subside this afternoon. It’s about a 10 hour run and because of the time change I had planned on leaving at 6AM before the 7AM ferry.

After we exit the Big Foot Slough channel from Ocracoke we turn northeast to face the wind and waves head on. I’m running the engine harder than normal. We are making a little over 6 knots. Our ETA at Manteo is calculated at 5:30PM. The sunset is 5:06PM. Our speed should improve, but right now we have waves splashing through the bow hawse pipes. It’s bouncy but not pounding.

See a few boats heading south on my AIS plotter. No one but us is heading north. Ha, when we rejoin the ICW tomorrow heading to Coinjock I’m pretty sure we will only be meeting boats heading south. Some will call us on the radio and ask have we lost our bearings and other jokes. The ICW parade of boats is to the south for warmer climes.

I’ve been typing this while underway still looking through the windshield. There’s not much to look out for since crab pots are not out in the middle of the Pamlico. You still have to be vigilant for other boats and maybe something floating ahead that you don’t want to hit. The wind hand waves have dropped as predicted. Our speed has improved to 6.6 knots.Our ETA has greatly improved to 3:50PM. Not sure how much improvement in our speed will be riding the Pamlico Sound low tide outflow to the Oregon Inlet.Once we are past the Oregon Inlet channel into the Roanoke Sound the current will be against us. So ETA's are just that ESTIMATED.

Today’s picture is Merit, the Dredge boat docking for the night in Ocracoke. Merit has been working daily at the Ocracoke inlet.