Rough waters and hospitality

Hello fellow cruisers,

First, thanks to Jeff for adding the last 3 picts. You can see that I've had some computer tutoring from Liz... it's effectiveness remains to be seen. :)

Since our last entry, we have left the beautiful River Dunes marina, about 10 miles north of Oriental, NC. River Dunes is a planned community of large homes--- most of which aren't built yet. But what is there is terrific: a pool, a marvelously decorated clubhouse and restaurant area, great wash, shower, and exercise facilities, and a very nice marina. On Mother's Day we fully enjoyed the Brunch in the 'club'... with Liz and Steve.

We stayed there waiting for just the right weather to finish our trek on the Neuse (think 'nuisance' ) River. We thought we had such a day, and left on Monday, following Shingebiss and Ninkasi (a sailing vessel with Donna and Dick from Portsmouth Va) towards the ICW. But the combination of swells and 2-3' waves on the bow was too much for us and we turned back into Burton Creek, where we anchored. With no cell, internet, or TV service, we had to rely solely on NOAA weather, and looking outside. Given that limited info, and noting that the winds were now less and from the south (a following sea, which is better for us) we headed out on Tuesday morning at 6:40a and traveled 65 somewhat rough miles down the Neuse River, the Bay River, and across Pamlico Sound to the midpoint of the Alligator/Pungo Rivers Canal for the night. Waiting for a better day certainly helped!

We anchored in a very small canal off the larger canal--- about 300' before it was blocked by a fallen limb. We dropped the anchors from the bow and tied the stern to a post on the shore... about 8' away. Jack took Dinah to the shore, but not knowing whether it was mud or sand, he went prepared in his boots. (It was sand.) While on shore he got some picts of the boat, showing the narrowness of the canal. We have been surprised that this portion of the NC coast is so undeveloped: there's very few people and almost no roads or towns; hence, we had no phone, cell, or TV. We fell asleep that night on top of the covers, but awoke to strong winds at 3am and cooler temps. From then on, we had repeated heavy rain until 8am. There was more than 4" of water in the dinghy waiting to be bailed before we could lift it onto the swim platform.

The wind had shifted (now NE) as we headed towards the Alligator River on Wednesday. Wind and water cooperated, and we had an uneventful trip to the Alligator River Marina, just on the edge of the Albemarle Sound-- a notoriously difficult crossing. In fact we did have brief phone contact with Shingebiss who were crossing the Albemarle as we spoke, and told of their most difficult water yet! (Check the Shingebiss blog to see video of their rocking and rolling!) So we were glad to tie up at Alligator Marina. This marina had wifi, so we could check wind and weather predictions, but still no cell phone. We did talk with other boaters who would lead us through the difficult channel that enters the Albemarle, and with predictions of slight winds, again from the SSW, we left at 5:55am, with anxiety, but also with the commitment to turn back if we needed to.

The Albemarle is at least 16 miles across to the Pasquotank River, which is no small body of water in and of itself! Thus, we had 35 miles from the Marina to Elizabeth City-- our next goal. We left just as the sun slid up and behind the clouds, so the water was grayish and the ever-present crab pots were everywhere and hard to see. The wind and waves and swells were there but cooperated and we pushed the engines to 10.5 mph and arrived in Elizabeth City in less than 4 hours. Record time for us, but more than that, we were across the dreaded Albemarle.

Elizabeth City has for years been known as a hospitality harbor, with at least 14 free slips along a wall on the city park. There is a crew of greeters, and sometimes there is even wine,cheese, and roses for cruisers! We arrived on Friday, just in time for Saturday's annual Potato Festival (?!). But the best part was that Shingebiss was there, resting from their previous rough day and keeping watch for us to arrive. The other slips filled up throughout the day, and by the next morning, booths and activities were being set up along the streets nearby.

Today we have explored the booths, heard the music, eaten the (free) French fries, as well as gyros and funnel cakes. We did not enter the potato peeling contest, but watched people who did, plus water games and the dunk tank. The temp here was in the 90s until mid afternoon, so we retreated to our boat to get all the breeze we could. And from there we had front row seats for the Coast Guard (they have a base just down the river) rescue demonstration right off our stern! Very impressive! Behind us, the crowd gathered along the rail. Following that, there was the (plastic) duck race (not the size of the one in the pict). But we couldn't figure out the rules or how the winner was determined. :)

Tomorrow we plan to attend church (8:30), just 4-5 blocks away, then head on towards the historic Dismal Swamp. By Monday night, we should be in the Portsmouth/Norfolk VA area... and at mile 0 of the AICW. From there we'll catch our breath and make some of the many choices for routes and sites to see along the Chesapeake! A whole new chapter!

Be safe, know God is with you, and keep in touch.

nan and jack