Sheet Music in Coinjock; Bum's Rest in Elizabeth City

We left Bum's Rest this morning for a few days. They were going back through the Great Dismal Swamp and we were going through the Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal (Virginia Cut).

Photo: Bum's Rest leaving for the Dismal Swamp.

We got an e-mail update the other day that marker #8 was moved due to shoaling and to follow the marker, not the GPS and it's a good thing we did. We heard on the radio that Tally Ho, who was right behind us, went aground there.

We motorsailed at 2600 rpms with the full jib out. SOG was 6.2 knots. SOW was 6.0. Winds were 6.6 knots. There was a following sea, which was causing us to rock, so we pulled out the main sail.

We had a reservation at Coinjock Marina and Restaurant for the night. While we were underway, I called Waterside Marina in Norfolk and made a reservation for tomorrow night.

The seas were 2 ft. and coming over our port beam, so we were rocking and rolling along. As we left Albemarle Sound and went into the North River, the seas died down. We went through the North Carolina Cut to Coinjock and saw more crab traps in one area than I've ever seen!

We arrived at Coinjock Marina and Restaurant at 12:50 p.m. It's one long dock and there are 20 boats here tonight, so we're close together. We dumped the fuel from the jerry jugs into the diesel tank, then had the marina refill them. I threw a load of laundry in while it was easy access.

This photo was taken as we pulled in. Others boats soon joined us along the dock.

Dockage is $1.75/ft. plus $7 for electric. We need the air conditioning right now. It is high 80s and sweltering. I hope we bring this sunshine home with us!


Jazzy and I took a walk around the grounds. We met their mini-dachshund, Rudder. Their owners met Sailor when we were at Nipper's in the Abacos, but they didn't have Rudder with them. She was mild and didn't even want to be bothered. The owners said the bark collar doesn't stop her from barking when she wants to!

We bought a few souvenir shirts. We have quite a collection now! Chuck bought a pair of Crocs to try. They were on half-price clearance and he couldn't resist.

The restaurant here is known for its 32 oz. prime rib, but I ordered the 14-16 oz. and we'll enjoy the rest of it for lunch tomorrow. Chuck had fried chicken and he said it was delicious. They served hot, homemade potato chips with ranch dip instead of bread. Boy, was that delicious!

Tomorrow: Waterside Marina in Norfolk, Va. We were hoping to meet Dawne Smith for dinner, but she has to work. And her daughter, Felicia, is in labor tonight, so she has more important things to do right now! We may catch up with Neil and his fiance, Julie.

Dowry Creek to Alligator River; Tomorrow: Coinjock

Tuesday, May 4: At 6:45 a.m. we pulled the lines and cast off, leaving Oriental, NC, in light rain. We motored through the Neuse River, a larger body of water than we’ve seen in a while. There was no wind, so we pulled in the jib after giving it a try for a short time. We motored at 2800 rpms. SOG was 6.18 and SOG was 6.6 knots.

We arrived at Dowry Creek Marina in Belhaven around 1:45 p.m. Fuel was 11.9 gal. Dockage was $1.50 per foot, plus $4 for electric. After we settled in, Chuck lifted the dinghy onto the bow and deflated the pontoons to see if we could get more speed without the drag. I gave Jazzy a haircut.

It was my turn to cook: Shepherd’s Pie with a salad.





Wednesday, May 5: We were up at 5:45 a.m. and cast off at 6:40 a.m. It was to be another day with no wind at all. It was a foggy start, but by 8 a.m. the sun was out and the fog was long gone. Wayne saw six deer on the bank in the Alligator River-Pungo River Canal, but by the time Chuck realized what he was saying, we missed them.

The canal is 90 ft. wide and there’s stumps and debris, so you must stay in the center.

There were four sailboats and four trawlers in the canal. It was like going down the lazy river. The sun was hot, it was in the 80s. I took the wheel for a little while and I could have easily fallen asleep from the heat and relaxing ride. Of course, the trawlers are faster than us, so they passed us, one by one. We tried to motor sail around lunch time, but gave up because the wind was nowhere to be found.

We pulled into Miss Wanda’s Alligator River Marina, just past the bridge, around 1:45 p.m. We let the dogs play in the grass. There’s a nice, big lawn here where the dogs love to play.

Patti made dinner: baked ham, homemade mac and cheese and coleslaw. I LOVE her mac and cheese!

Tomorrow, we’re leaving Bum’s Rest for a few days…Sheet Music is going through the Virginia Cut to Coinjock. Bum’s Rest is going back through the Great Dismal Swamp and into Elizabeth City. We’ll meet up again in a few days, either at Little Creek or Norfolk.

Miss Wanda's Alligator River Marina

Happy Birthday, Jimmy Guenther! We're Still in Oriental, NC

Happy Birthday to our oldest grandson, Jimmy Guenther, who turns 22 today!

Winds kept us in Oriental, NC, another day. I walked Jazzy over to the office to pay for another day and over to the Marine Provisions store. They are getting low on some T-shirts and I inquired about the lack of stock. It seems that are holding off on ordering to decide if they're going to stay in business. How sad. It's a really neat store.

Chuck worked on a few projects around the boat. All-in-all, it was a frustrating day, stuck on the boat with high winds and lots of bouncing around.

Patti cooked dinner: chicken, parmesan noodles and carrots. Then Chuck and I went over to visit Bill and Sue Schadt on Nice 'n Easy. We left Jazzy on our boat. We had a drink and got a tour of their boat. They are selling their Island Packet 38 and moving to a trawler. I would LOVE to consider it, but it's a 5 ft. draft...won't work where we are!

And it's a lot of wood to keep up...lots of sanding and varnishing.

It was great to spend some time with them!

May 2: Beaufort, NC, to Oriental, NC

I walked up to the bathhouse, about two blocks up the boardwalk, and took a nice, hot shower. We pulled away from our slip at Beaufort City Docks at 8:40 a.m. and went over to pumpout. We then moved to the face dock behind pumpout to wait for Bum's Rest. I made breakfast while we waited.

At 9:10 a.m. we were underway to make the 9:30 a.m. Beaufort bridged opening. We were only going 20 miles to Oriental. The next stop is Dowry Creek, which is 50 miles from Oriental, but there's no good place to stay in-between.

Sea Tow was sitting at the RG marker and directed us to another channel to exit the harbor. That wasn't a good sign!

Wayne heard from MicMac while I was making lunch. We keeping missing each other!

We arrived at Oriental Harbor Marina, by the bridge, at 12:30 p.m. Oriental is the sailing capital of North Carolina.

As we were pulling into our slip, we heard Sue Schadt from Nice 'n Easy holler over to us. She and her husband, Bill, spent the winter in the Bahamas on their Island Packet 38. They invited us to a cruisers inpromptu lunch down the street, but we had housekeeping and laundry to do, so we didn't make it.

I later invited Bill and Sue to stop by Sheet Music for a drink so we could catch up. I made dinner: salad, salmon, baked potatoes and asparagus with strawberries and cool whip. Bill and Sue arrived with chocolates from Trader Joe's. They were yummy.

Ron Pence introduced us to the Schadts when we were in Annapolis in October. It was great to see them!

Next stop: Dowry Creek, Belhaven, NC.

May 1: Swansboro, NC, to Beaufort, NC

Saturday, May 1:  The current was racing at our stern at Dudley's Marina in Swansboro, NC, and we were behind Bum's Rest on the face dock. Wayne helped us out, then he could back out. Chuck used a spring line on the back, while Wayne helped us ease it back, then pushed off the bow.
Once we were underway, I made breakfast, then stayed downstairs and paid our bills online.

Winds were 10 knots, SOG was 5.9 and SOW was 7.4. The incoming tide was against us. Our son, Ryan, called and told us about a 16 ft. Newport sailboat he just got and had a few questions for dad. Then we motorsailed at 3200 rpms to catch up to Bum's Rest.

We arrived in Beaufort, NC, around 1:30 p.m. Dock with electric, water and cable was $72 for the night. I love the city marina...it's right in town and you can walk the boardwalk and in and out of the shops on the next street. They gave us tokens for free drinks at the Dock House restaurant, which we used later in the day.

The Beaufort Boatbuilding Challenge, part of the National Boatbuilding Challenge, was under a big tent, so we watched middle school, high school and community college two-man teams building wooden boats. At 4 p.m. they raced them.

We walked all through town and there was a classic boat show up and down the street. Chuck really enjoyed seeing all the old boats.

There was a tall ship docked near us and they were tying down the sails. I don't know how they can stand on lines way up there to work.

We went to dinner at Clawson's 1905 restaurant. It's a beautiful place and has a lot of history to the building. The food was excellent.

Tomorrow: Oriental, NC

Happy Birthday, Malcolm! April 28-30 Blog Updates

Wednesday, April 28:  Happy Birthday to our dear brother-in-law, Malcolm Leite, and Happy Anniversary to Wayne and Patti.

It was a beautiful sunny day. We got through the Barefoot Landing Bridge at 7 a.m. The next swing bridge, Little River, was waiting for a mechanic, so we pulled up to Dock Holidays Marina for a few hours to wait for it to get repaired. On the way there, we saw cable cars going over the waterway right in front of our boat.

About 10:30 a.m., the bridge was ready to open, so we pulled the lines and cast off. At 11 a.m., we crossed the South Carolina-North Carolina border. We were not going to make the 11 a.m. pontoon bridge opening, so Chuck pulled out the jib and sailed for a while.

I called my friend, Mike Loch, hoping to connect with he and his beautiful wife, Joan, for another visit on our way through, but he was in NJ. His dad fell and broke his hip. We were disappointed that we wouldn't see them, but decided to plug on and go to the Pipeline Canal anchorage in Southport.

At noon, we went through the Sunset pontoon bridge. They are building a 65 ft. bridge to replace the aging bridge.

There were too many boats bunched up and Chuck wanted to motorsail, so we lowered the rpms and stayed behind. They were dredging Lockwoods Folly Inlet MM320. It was shallow and the dredge was snaking back and forth between the temporary markers, so we called to make sure we could pass on the diamond side (diamonds are a girl’s best friend).

Around MM316 a new 65 ft. bridge is under construction.

We passed this big building with Sandy's on the roof. Since that's how our daughter's name was spelled before she became a rebellious teenager and changed it to Sandi, Chuck asked me to take a picture of it. It's still Sandy with a "Y" in his mind.

We heard from Bum’s Rest. They stopped at South Harbour Village Marina in Southport for fuel. It is right before the turn into the Pipeline Canal anchorage, which is where we planned to spend the night. It was only $1.35 a foot, so we pulled in there to join them.

I took Jazzy for a little walk. It was a nice complex with a couple of restaurants, a market/deli (which closed early in the day), laundry and showers. I threw a load of clothes in the washer.

It was Patti’s turn to cook, but it was their anniversary, so I offered to switch nights and cook instead: salad, flank steak, roasted potatoes and veggies. While I was cooking, Kathy from Shearer Adventure, stopped by to say hello. We met Kathy and Jim in Marathon, FL. They have a dachshund, Katie Bell (it's funny how cruisers with dogs remember who they are by their dogs). She saw Patti walking with Sailor and remembered we traveled together. It was great to see her. Sorry we didn't get to stop over yo boat, Kathy.

After dinner, we walked down the street to the park overlooking the anchorage. We saw 10 boats anchored there.

Thursday, April 29:  We left Southport at 6:40 a.m. The current was pushing us along, so we were motorsailing at 9.3 knots at 2800 rpms.

We entered Snow’s Cut at 8:35 a.m. and the current was going in the other direction leaving the Cape Fear River. Our speed was cut down to 4.9 knots over ground. Speed over Water was 6.8 knots. The bank is washing away from the strong current and the trees are falling down.

At 9:20 a.m., there was slack tide, so we were moving a little faster…SOG was 6.4 and SOW was 6.5. Today was a short traveling day, arriving at the anchorage in Wrightsville Beach at 10:45 a.m. We dropped anchor and put the motor in the dinghy. Chuck took me to the Dockside Restaurant dinghy dock so I wouldn’t have to walk across the bridge and I walked 10 minutes to the Harris Teeter grocery store.

I took a taxi back to the Dockside with all my groceries and called Chuck. He was in the middle of moving the boat and resetting the anchor because we were dragging and so were others around us. So I waited close to an hour with my groceries. I kept moving the bags to keep the cold stuff in the shade. Luckily, the frozen items kept the other items cold, so nothing spoiled.

Since there was a lot of current and wind, we opted to stay on Sheet Music and I made a light dinner.We'll note if we do this trip again to get a slip, not anchor, in Wrightsville Beach. We weren't the only one having problems. Even the taxi driver told me that his friend was towed off the bridge there twice!

Friday, April 30:  We were keeping an eye on our anchor drag alarm on the GPS below, but peeked outside at 11:30 p.m. to see a big trawler within 20 feet of us. They were moving and snaking around in different directions than us. So we had to do an anchor watch. While Chuck adjusted some lines, I slept midnight 'til 2:50 a.m. Then I relieved the captain and stayed up the rest of the night, knowing that I could sleep while we are underway. We pulled anchor at 6:30 a.m. to make the 7 a.m. Wrightsville Beach bridge opening. I made the skipper breakfast and went to bed.

I slept until 11:30 a.m. We were heading for Swan Point, but decided to continue to Swansboro instead. That way, we’ll arrive in Beaufort, NC, early tomorrow and will be able to spend some time in town. It’s a cute little town and I liked it there on the way down.

We went through Camp Lejeune and saw a helicopter taking off. It was pretty cool.

We're on a face dock and it's windy. All the fenders and batterboards are protecting the starboard side of the boat. Chuck threw an anchor over port side to pull us away from the dock.

Wayne and Patti took the courtesy car to the grocery store. Then we'll enjoy the homemade chicken soup that Patti made the other day with garlic bread.


Tomorrow:  Beaufort, NC (pronounced Bow-furt).

Happy 37th Anniversary, Wayne and Patti Bumm!

Happy Anniversary to Wayne and Patti Bumm, who celebrate 37 years of wedded bliss today.

We left Georgetown yesterday at 6:40 a.m. for North Myrtle Beach. It was cool. SOG was 7.5 knots. SOW was 6.6 knots at 3000 rpms. Winds were light, only 6 knots. It was sunny, but brisk. The air smelled awful from the paper mills.

We had reservations at Dock Holidays at $1.40/ft. plus $6 for electric. It is 6 miles north of Barefoot Landing.

We lucked out at Socastee Highway Bridge, which is suppoed to open at quarter of and quarter after the hour. We arrived at 10:55 a.m. and the bridge tender opened for us. But when we arrived at Barefoot Landing, our luck ran out. Because of high winds, the swing bridge wouldn't open. So we docked at Barefoot Landing Resort, across from Barefoot Landing, which was full. The marina only charged us $1 a foot, because there was a group of 50 trawlers there and that was the rate he gave them. Sweet.

We took the dogs for a walk around the marina. A little after three, Tom, who worked at the marina, took me to the Bi-Lo supermarket for eggs. I picked up bagels for Patti while I was there.

We need a lot of groceries, but he was kind enough to take me and was in a hurry, so I didn't want to take advantage of his good nature.

The four of us went in our dinghy across the waterway to Barefoot Landing and walked around the shops for a few hours. I bought a new pair of boat shoes at Burlington Shoes and then we went to dinner at Greg Norman's to celebrate Wayne and Patti's anniversary. Chuck and I both had prime rib. It was delicious and we have enough leftovers for lunch today.