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November 03, 2005
N33.6 W78.0 Southport, North Carolina
Nestled in the mouth of the Cape Fear River is the town of Southport, North Carolina. A challenge to get to from the Atlantic Ocean from the north, because of the shallow Frying Pan Shoals that extend some 15 nautical miles out from Cape Fear (yes, of Hollywood fame). This was not a destination on our northbound journey because a fishing tournament consumed all the marinas, and there are no anchorages that can take our draft. Since we are not due to meet Toby in Charleston until November 10th, we decided to check it out.
We left Beaufort, North Carolina at 11am for our 24 hour sail. (Beaufort will receive the Tall Ships in 2006 and we highly recommend it as a place to see them – much more quaint than Halifax). Our departure was timed carefully with the tides, since the current that runs through Beaufort is strong, and there are two shallow parts in the river that are a bit scary for our keel. The gale warning that was 20 miles offshore, had moved inland, and we sailed quickly southwest toward the shoals. Cape Hatteras had taught us not to fear the gale.
Just before the wind died completely at 1:45am, we were visited by a wonderful pod (school?) of Atlantic bottlenose dolphins swimming around the boat. They don’t visit when the engine is running, so we tolerated the cranky sails and drifting speed to enjoy their frolicking. A little phosphorescence made their dance through the water visible in the dark.
After they had left, on with the donkey. Grrrr. Burrrble. Rummble.
We arrived at the marina around mid-day 23c sunny weather. We shed the layers of fleece and long underwear, and donned shorts and t-shirts. At last, we had returned to summer.
An elderly couple came into the marina in a 35-foot sailboat, and the dockmaster told them to park across the dock from us, between two motor yachts. It looked like there were 30 feet on the dock. Should we help? Should we stare?
They did a beautiful job. The skipper said to the dockmaster “if I knew I needed a shoehorn I would have brought one.” Chis and I giggled, then complimented him on his outstanding docking. Chis said “I would have just thrown the anchor on the dock.”
Then, the post-overnight, sleep deprivation induced, SNOOZE. I cherish these. I get 3 solid hours of deep sleep with lots of dreams, and awake, ready (almost) to conquer the world.
A couple of days of rest, exploration, reading and snoozing, and we will be ready for our trek to Charleston to meet Toby. Our last stop before Fort Lauderdale.
Posted by dave at November 3, 2005 09:36 AM