Day 10/11: Does NC ever end?
31 October 2011 | Carolina Beach, NC
Still 12 deg below normal (50s), light NE breeze to help us on some legs of the ICW

Nautical Miles Traveled: 54
Total Trip Miles: 627
So day 10 was more of the same...motoring down the narrow, shallow ICW. We traversed through more of NC, which we're beginning to think never ends and we finally landed at Joyner Marina in Carolina Beach, NC...what we hope will be our LAST night in NC. We thought about anchoring tonight rather than tying up at the marina, but after four failed attempts to get the hook stuck in the soft mud, we opted for a night of sleep vs. groundhogging (popping up through the port hole every half hour to make sure you're not drifting). Come to find out in the AM, the marina owner said it's near impossible to drop a hook in this area due to the holding.
Now, it's time to strap on a pair and head back to big blue... We can't take another day in the ICW, its making us soft. All kidding aside the ICW can be an arduous task. Every minute of active driving to prevernt grounding the boat is taxing. Waiting for bridges, passing other boats with proper etiquet, dealing with current against you one minute and with you the next...all of it makes for a relatively uneventful day filled with lots of minor tasks and planning. Oh, and the worst part, the sails are hardly ever up and the motors are always ripping. Its a sailboat, its meant to sail, so we are taking her back out through Cape Fear and heading "South." We cant pull in anywhere tonight due to the wind and wave direction, coupled with the tide. However the wind and waves are at our back or on our quarter all night (forecasted) and not supposed to exceed 25 knots. Cape fear is known for changing conditions and that why we have contemplated this all morning. With the continental shelf short and close by we will be trying to stay close but keep a safe distance from the shoreline. We will likely be out of cell range so we wanted to send this update out this morning. Hopefully the next broadcast will be from South Carolina (Charlestown if we go slow). However if conditions pick up and winds start to howl we may end up in Georgia in the am hours and sail on to Savannah. Neither of us are looking forward to another night glued to the GPS, Radar and night vision, but this move will make up time and get us sailing again. We have prepared the boat for battle and already suited up in our foul weather gear...yes temperatures are still in the 40's, not cool. The pelicans and dolphins are giving us a send off as we speak. Wish us luck!
p.s. to my buddies in CA, I just spotted a sick surf break for you off of Bald Head Island.