Georgetown to Oriental

 

 

 

On May 25, we left Georgetown at 7:45.  Elena had decided we would stay inside for this leg due to more wind outside than she wanted to deal with.  It was an uneventful day and we arrived at the Barefoot Marina in Myrtle Beach late afternoon, enjoyed a meal at the local restaurant and a bit of live music.   

Leaving the next morning, we continued to Southport, NC on the Cape Fear River.  Here we returned to one of our favorite restaurants, Joseph’s, with another non-descript exterior, but with terrific Italian food.  It was so good we went a second time while we stayed at Southport for three days waiting for a good offshore weather window.

We left Southport on May 30 for an overnight sail to Beaufort, NC.  By doing this we avoided a tough slough through the ICW in the Camp Lejeune area where we had touched bottom once and came close several other times on the southbound trip. Getting out of Southport required us to motor south for a couple of hours to get around Frying Pan shoals which extend out 10 miles offshore.  Wind was from south and when we turned north, astern of us, we sailed with the genoa only, and for the first time on this cruise, we poled it out with the whisker pole.  It was a pleasant slow overnight sail, and, sadly, our last overnight, offshore sail for this cruising season.

At 6am, the wind had died, forcing us to use the engine for the last six hours.  The entry to the marina was confusing, with the charts showing us one thing, and the marina telling us something different over the radio.  We followed the local guidance and pulled into Beaufort Docks, right in downtown Beaufort with its shops and restaurants, without running aground. 

 

We spent two days at Beaufort and traveled the 30 miles inland on the ICW to Oriental, a lovely village with a population of 900.  While going up the canal between Beaufort and Oriental, we were approach from astern by 3 boats travelling in a line abreast at a rapid speed.  They slowed as they approached us (to reduce the wake which would rock us violently) and came up in single file.  They turned out to be Special Warfare (SEALS) boats, probably returning to Little Creek VA from Camp Lejeune after exercises.

Download and watch the Special Warfare boats pass us

Oriental is sort of Sophia’s birthplace, in that it is where I found her, neglected and in need of some TLC.  The bottom was covered in an inch of marine growth, the woodwork topside had not been touched by varnish for many years, and the canvas was weather-beaten and in need of replacement.    But her interior was beautiful and she had a brand-new engine.  The rest I could deal with.  I fell in lover immediately. 

Sophia’s real birthplace of course is Taiwan and she was first commissioned in Annapolis.  (I once met the rigger who had installed the mast and boom when he was employed by Annapolis Spars and Rigging.)

While we were here, we also visited with Butch and Vickie, old friends from Herrington, who settled here after giving up their liveaboard lifestyle after many years.   They have always been heroes of mine, always taking on life on their own terms. 

From here, we will be covering familiar territory; this will be my third trip through the ICW in this part of North Carolina and Virginia.  Interim destinations are Belhaven, Coinjock, Norfolk, and perhaps Cape Charles. The destination for our next extended stop will be Deltaville, VA where we will have some repairs and maintenance work done.