Monday, October 14 through October 17.

We departed Beaufort North Carolina early in the morning and passed Morehead cCty and the warehouses and grain silos of their bulk cargo handling port and continued on South in the  intercoastal waterway, Other than a number of dolphin which we encountered in a heavy current which added some speed to our travel there was not much more remarkable.  This stretch of the waterway goes behind Atlantic Beach and Carolina Beach and other of the outer banks of North Carolina.

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Most are resort towns that heavily built condos summer rentals and resort style life. We traveled through narrow passages on the backs of these islands with our next destination to the Wrightsville Beach North Carolina which is pretty much at the southern end of the chain of our islands. There are still reminants of passing storms where boat are up in the woods on the sides of the ICW

We would not be able to make it today but not because of weather just because of distance and a limitation on a couple of bridges that had to open for us which only open on the hour and a half hour to get following current seven section company. The navigation was good navigator was getting better and better in the boat was performing the way it should. The sun and this is really not begun it was still work but these were transit days and 7 to 8 hours a day on the boat moving sometimes at the helm sometimes doing other things can get a little tired. Today was no exception is this is going to be a pretty long day. We decided that we would anchor this evening and use the dinghy to take Abby ashore for her afternoon walk.. A small bay known as Mile Hammock Bay directly behind To North Carolina was to be the destination. It was here many times in my Navy career and amphibious warfare landing craft as well as the brains amphibious would be launched and recovered for our exercises. The Marines don’t mind if the pleasure boats use it to anchor for the night but unless you are military or retired military carrying identification card without identification you’re not allowed to go ashore. We arrived at mile hammock Bay after passing through the Camp Lejeune swing bridge which itself was kind of interesting about 4 o’clock in the afternoon. When we arrived early and were the second boat there were nine boats anchored  by the end of the day. We were the only ones it took a dinghy ashore.

Today would be Abby’s first dinghy ride, and everybody was anticipating how this is going to settle with her. Well Larry launched the dinghy and made preparations to go in and he was ready with her left swing so once Larry got the boat tied up on the swim platform Aaron lowered her down on the swing to Larry put her in the dinghy.

She did not appear nervous she was interested in looking around almost as if she knew that she was going to be able to go and take a good long pee from being locked up in the boat the better part of the day. Sure enough we got over to the dock I tied up the dinghy and how she let there was a young couple fishing at the end of the dock she saw them and took off to go greet them and get some scratches. Abby is one of the best behaved and loving dog but still as nosy as you can imagine. When she sees somebody she thinks they are there to get her scratches and so it was this day. After appropriate about scratching we finally started off to look for a patch of grass led into her sniffing and take care of business.

When finished we returned to the boat where Erin had started dinner. We secured for the day and began about making preparations to enjoy a quiet evening aboard a well-deserved rest. We did not take me back that evening but the intention was to take her back first thing in the morning and let her have a morning walk. That action would make us leave a little later in most of the other boats who either had smaller animals and they had trained to be on the boat or they didn’t have animals at all. That night we had a beautiful sunset and moonrise it was a quiet night soft breeze and everybody slept through the night.

Tuesday morning October 15 Mile Hammock Bay to Wrightsville Beach, NC

we repeated the dinghy ride with success and hoisted the dinghy aboard to make our departure for Wrightsville Beach North Carolina. It was a pretty easy day we got in early anchoring in the banks channel there was a swing bridge in the way edit drawbridge both at specific times of opening we made one on time and had to wait 40 minutes in the channel for the other one to open once again we were along the back side of Sea Islands of coastal North Carolina. Navigating the narrow channel into the anchorage  was no problem as it was well marked. We made a little bit better time than we expected so we arrived early. Many years ago when I was in Wilmington North Carolina and Wrightsville Beach is nothing like it was now.  It has become a full-blown resort and has grown so large that it is merged boundaries with the city of Wilmington North Carolina. Previously when I was here there were two separate communities.

Once again we anchored 200 yards to the south of the bridge from bridge to Wrightsville Beach in good holding ground. There was a public boat landing and a free dinghy dock for the boaters which we would use several times to take Abby ashore for her walks as well as order out and pick up dinner at a local restaurant. Weather was predicted to be the nasty with a lot of wind and some possible thunderstorms that night and into the next day so while we were at anchor in a secure location we decided we would ride it out there instead of being on the waterway when the storms could possibly hit. The first night we rested and ate a nice dinner but Erin started to feel an intestinal issue developing. At the time we weren’t sure where there was some anxiety about her experience with the narrow waterways with other boats around us or whether it was actually a physical issue because she had previously had some intestinal issues prior to our departure. That night went okay and we did rest. And yes, we were there the next morning when the weather came through.

Wednesday, October 16 Still in Wrightsville Beach, NC at anchor

One of the things that we were able to get done is to visit an electronics repair shop because Aaron’s Samsung tablet accidentally fell when a discourteous large power boater zoomed past us and made a tremendous weight which rocked the boat. Tablet fell and landed on its side and went blank. This electronic shop was named “you drop it we repair it” was a small private business run by a couple of young men that would take in electronics equipment and would repair and in fact they were to do that for Erin’s tablet. We used the dinghy to get ashore then used Uber to get to the repair shop. We left Abby aboard while we were gone and everything was secure when we got back. I’m not very concerned about leaving the boat for short periods of time because we do lock it and other boaters who are traveling with us keep an eye out for each other. As with other times there was no problem this time and we’re very happy Erin’s tablet was fixed.

Chelsea the rest of the day except to take Abby ashore again and we ate leftovers. We watched a movie this evening and enjoyed it tremendously nice quiet night couple of glasses of wine and we went to bed Erin was still feeling a bit under the weather it was becoming concerned maybe her intestinal condition had returned.

Thursday, October 17, Wrightsville Beach to Holden Beach, NC

What a beautiful morning today could not have spent any better starting out. Stay at Wrightsville Beach had been a good one albeit there were periods of heavy rain. Several of the boats departed before daylight because they had intended to go further that day than us the final destination was for Georgetown South Carolina but we had decided that we would only do 40 to 45 miles each day. That meant that we would be stopping somewhere around Holden Beach North Carolina. The anchor came up smartly Erin washed the mud off the chain and anchor and we stood out the channel. Only along the section the waterway there were long piers that came out across vast expanse of marshes  According to the waterway guide there were two marinas in Holden Beach right by the Holden Beach swing bridge. I called both marinas but neither one of them had sufficient depth of water at low tide to accommodate Serendipity. The town of Holden Beach however advertised that they had city dock that could be reserved and was right on the water way. This was going to be one of the least expensive places other than the free dockage that we would ever pay; It was only $.65 a foot. The fact remained that we would be able to get Abby ashore without any problem so she could have the opportunity to walk around and some grass and do her thing.

some of them look like you couldn’t even see the house it was so far back from the face of the pier on the intercoastal waterway it was pretty amazing. There were some that were fairly short going out most of them ended with a covered dock s

ome had boat slips some used boat lifts but again it was a long straight narrow shot all the way down the waterway for the 45 miles that we plan for the day..

There wasn’t much else that took place we had a good run and now the goal was today to  tie up someplace so that we didn’t have to take the dinghy down to take Abby for a walk.

We arrived in the afternoon at about 4 o’clock was a little difficult to tie up as it was a floating peer and the cleats were very far down. Erin had to reach way down with her boat hook to get it caught on the cleat. It was definitely difficult but we got it done. To top it off, the current was pretty strong and the wind started to pick up a little bit. Never got severe it we got a letter over the side and got Abby ashore she was glad to have some room to move around.

The setting was pretty interesting.

The dock was along the intercoastal waterway but immediately on shore was a large picnic pavilion a playground with swings and slides in toddler type things to crawl on a pair of tennis courts a beautiful shower and bathroom and laundry room and directly next to her was the city police and the town hall.

It was in the town hall that I was to register serendipity for the night. After registration we were given the key to the shower rooms in the laundry. It was a nice to be able to take a continuous hot shower instead of a shower on the boat where you wet your body, use soap and rinse off. That is called a Navy shower the kind we took up in the shower room on the shore is known as a hotel shower in the Navy. Sometimes referred to as a Hollywood shower.

The hospitality here seemed really good and we felt very comfortable it was a no wake zone and so some of the bigger boats are usually caused awake and to slow down so it was quiet night even the sheriff’s department had a Beach sheriffs boat which patrol the waters around Holden Beach and especially around the bridge close to where we were tied up.

After being appropriately showered we walked about two blocks to a dockside restaurant and ordered a light meal and even then most of the we could indeed so we brought it back to the boat the evening was very pleasant with a nice breeze that settle down nicely and we were prepared to make the leap the next day to the Waccamaw River just north of Georgetown. I still didn’t think that we had the speed that would let us get all the way to Georgetown e so we planned on looking at an immediate stop.

Friday, October 18 to 20th On the Way to Georgetown SC

The destination as it turned out for our liking was a marina known as Osprey Marina.

It is about 30 miles north of Georgetown South Carolina deep in the Cyprus forests of the Fall River just south of Myrtle Beach South Carolina. The trip today was definitely interesting and different as we traveled through some very heavily traveled waters behind North Myrtle Beach, Little River Inlet, Myrtle Beach with all of its beautiful river homes

and piers condos and even casino ships.

Again there was no difficulty in the navigation other than the other boat traffic because for the most part it was a straight line most of the trip would be in natural cuts of water however the connecting leg between Myrtle Beach and the Waccamaw River was a man-made cut that once again was just a straight as an arrow. The pictures that I’m going to attach will sort of tell the journey and the many sites of the large expensive homes and waterfront facilities along the intercoastal waterway behind this well-known resort town.

Our choice of Osprey was expensive and. According to the waterway guide and most of the voters that we communicate with on a daily basis who have stayed there had nothing but fantastic comments about the service the facility and the attitude of the staff. They also had some of the cheapest fuel prices on the intercoastal waterway as well is only a dollar a foot for the peer space and electricity. Erin was still not feeling the best and her intestinal discomfort was growing a little more regular so it was important that we had a land based option and not be out at anchor in the event that she needed something more than what we had with us.

We communicated with the marina by radio prior to us arriving to be able to establish where we would be tying up as many votes and decided to shorten the trip to Georgetown and were also looking for place to date. The Osprey Marina appears to be everybody’s first choice. We arrived tied up incredibly friendly and helpful staff Ellie the marina manager was very accommodating the facilities were clean well-kept well-run and had every amenity could possibly hope for.  down and I rode it 2 1/2 miles to pick up the prescription the doctor had ordered to local pharmacy. The Electric bike was pretty cool. I could use just use the battery power or I could use pedal assist to save on the battery. On battery power it would do 15 miles an hour and I made the round-trip 5 miles with no sweat at all. The overall distance that the bike will do on battery power alone is 15 miles. The one disadvantage to the bike is it weighs 50 pounds. About 15 pounds of that is the battery itself but the rest of the bike itself is heavy. It is a 20 inch bike. Hoping that this prescription would help we settled in for the evening ate some leftovers and light dinner, walked Abby a couple of times, gathered our laundry for the next day to use the laundry and planned on staying there the next day so we could sleep late in the morning.

The amazing part is that it is completely center surrounded by cypress trees and large deciduous trees. It is totally hidden away and cannot be seen from the waterway because of the thick flora and fauna.

Once in we registered and Erin who is still not doing any better called her doctor’s office and they sent a prescription to the local pharmacy about 2 ½ miles away from the Marina. Unfortunately the one thing the marina does not have was a courtesy car so we got the electric bike. (No pics of the bike yet. )

The next two days 19 and 20 October were spent doing chores, Erin struggling and us meeting other boaters while Tropical Storm Nestor blew past. Mo wind to speak of but lots and lots of rain. Staying hunkered down paid-off.

Stay tuned for more.

Note to our followers: Sorry we are behind but after a long day it is tough to stay up late and do it daily. Will try to do one entry every 2 or 3 days.

Schedule:  In Charleston October 23 thru October 31. Depart Nov 1 for Beaufort SC. We may not spend more than one night there. Then off to Edisto Island, Hilton Head and eventually Savannah GA

Saturday, October 12  and Sunday 13 October

We were up early and off on a beautiful day towards Beaufort North Carolina the day was highlighted as with a beautiful sunrise, and for our good fortune an easy channel to navigate on our way to rejoin the ICW. Our trip today would take us across three rivers to Beaufort North Carolina. We cross the Pungo, The Neuse and Pamlico rivers then entered another man made cut to connect two more rivers and lead us to Beaufort. We had to secure the port main half the way on the trip as we got a low oil pressure alarm around noon. We immediately secured the engine. With Erin on the helm, on just the Starboard engine in open waters, Larry went to diagnose the issue. The engine was a full quart low on oil. This was a new development but we had been operating at a high RPM to make up some time so not sure if this was a cause or just a fact that this engine consumed oil faster than the other engine. We got the name of a professional Diesel Mechanic from members of the DeFever forum who would come to us on Sunday at a very reasonable price who had the tools and gauges to diagnose the oil consumption issue  on the port main engine.

The channel we took on the final leg was narrow into Beaufort. Our marina for the night was not the one we initially selected but with the parade of boats heading south and it was a holiday weekend  (Columbus Day)we took what we could get.

We made arrangements to moor overnight Beaufort town Docks. And were welcomed there by two line handlers who assisted in tying up and connecting electricity and water. This marina was right downtown in Beaufort North Carolina and the cost of docking here was very high. To give you an idea there were hundred foot long sailboats and mega-yachts in the marina but it was the only place to get that night on short. The technician that we had spoken with would be there on Sunday morning around 9 o’clock and we didn’t have to leave our slip until 11 or noon. We stayed at a quiet night and settle down by ordering dinner from a nearby restaurant and enjoying it on board the boat.

All in all the day seemed to pass quickly and now it was time to go retire and NOT get up early. We would be here for 2 days.

At 8:30 Sunday Morning the mechanic called and met with us at 9 a.m. After an hour he determined we had a bad ground in the oil pressure sending unity for the port engine. That caused he low pressure alarm to sound-off. Of course we secured the port main engine and traveled on one engine for half the of Friday to be sure that we did not do any damage to the port main. Thankfully it was not a major problem as the mechanic diagnosed and cleaned the contacts on the sending unit and once again we were fully functional.

Tomorrow to Mile hammock Bay at Camp Lejune Marine Corps Base in North Carolina………

We are anticipating arrival in Charleston SC on October 23, We will be in Charleston from October 23 till November 1.

Friday, 11 October day we were finally able to escape the alligator River Marina. I think this stay was good as it gave us the opportunity to meet these other people who were cruising down the waterway. Yes, it was good but everybody was itching to go. Once we confirm the opening at 730 everybody was out of the marina and all in line with the bridge for it to be a we were the second to the last boat to go through. We had to maneuver a little bit of the marina so I let boats with less mauverability go first but we easily made it. Bye bye Bridge!

We continue down the alligator River for about another 10 miles before we came to the alligator River and Pungo River Canal. This man-made canal as one of many of the man-made cuts connecting natural waterways that comprise the Atlantic intercoastal waterway. Along the way we observed many things, the first was huge expanses of wetlands with standing deadwood. It almost seemed appropriate a little scary, inasmuch as Halloween was on the horizon. Navigating the waterway challenges once you get inside one of these man-made cuts all you have to do is keep it in the middle. The Army Corps of Engineers keep these dredged to be doing 10 and 16 feet of water all the way down to Florida. Actually the trip down the canal was more interesting than the trip down the alligator River as we got closer look at some of the landscape. We also observed a mature Bald Eagle on  a tree top perch right in the

When we came out of the canal we had to the Congo River and continue to proceed south where we saw farmhouses, rows and rows and rows of corn and some playful dolphin that followed us for 

awhile.

Everybody kind of moves at their own speed based upon their boat. Serendipity likes to cruise comfortably at 6 to 6 ½ mph but occasionally we can do as much as 8. We bought this boat because it had a lot of the same characteristics that we enjoyed in a slow but yet very stable secure, power if we needed and VERY COMFORTABLE. There was time to do a lot of things on this trip especially now these long periods of just going from Day Mark to Day Mark. So we started doing some other analysis using data we collected from the engine controls off the gauges measuring temperatures pressures and electrical capacity. It certainly wise to record date so we can ensure we are  operating at our maximum efficiency. We were to learn later that evening that th Port Engine uses more oil than the Starboard engine. I don’t know why but I think will have it checked out when we get to a place that we can.

Came to realize that we were not going to make Beaufort North Carolina as some of the other faster boats did on this leg. So we picked a location about 40 miles from Beaufort along the Neuse River and proceeded on. When we arrived I did not like the Anchorage that I had selected because it while it was still windy it is and not provide enough attention from the win. We observed another sailboat entering a small creek call Slade Creek and call discussed it with. They were locals out of Washington North Carolina and recommended this Creek as an. Secure beautiful anchorage. There were absolutely no markings in the creek navigation but are chart plotter was perfectly clear and responding well so we decided to try. As we entered we realize how easy the navigation really was  as there was plenty of deep water for almost 2 ½ miles up to creek. We selected a Anchorage about 8 feet of water and settled down for the evening.

One of our concerns was Abby and desire to find an area sure well we took her ashore in the morning there wasn’t any problem she had a good constitutional and we felt pretty comfortable with waiting just a little longer and we would take care of her in the morning. We have been trying to get her to use the artificial dog potty  but she hasn’t taken to it yet but we really haven’t had a lot of opportunity since we been tied up most of the time. To start working on that and training your use a bark party, at least I hope she will. The bark party is a mixture of natural ingredients that offered the same sense as if the dog was walking out on the grass or in the words to entice them to experience the same feelings and urge them to go potty. This works apparently well for people who have puppies and have condos where there is no walking about but this is a 14-year-old beautiful standard poodle and changing her way of life is not going to be easy.

This could not have been a more perfect Anchorage for the night the surroundings were beautiful the smells of the fresh breeze is blowing through the trees the little bit of lapping water on the hull the soaring birds in the sky and the frequent splash of a fish jumping out of the water nearby. unfortunately there was no place to take Abby ashore. The night went well and we watched a beautiful moonrise and I got a great shot of the over shores of the creek. Slade Creek will go down in our log as a perfect anchorage with good holding ground and beautiful sites it was a quiet night as there was only one other boat here ourselves.

Wednesday, October 9 and Thursday, October 10 are spent at the Alligator River Marina. Probably the most exciting thing that happened was the fact that fellow butter who produces a navigational chart of the intercoastal waterway using Army Corps of Engineers data and from other sources as well as his own experience. He stopped-by and said if anybody wanted to hear about his experiences then he would certainly be happy to give a little presentation. Well it turns out that everybody had heard about it came to the briefing and he did a PowerPoint presentation on a chart system that you can use a tablet for that would give accurate information current deaths and wits in the channel all the way to Florida. That was exactly the kind of thing we needed to try and help us with our already well-planned trip so I do hope that what we are using Erin’s tablet is an assist to us. We came prepared always open to opportunities of new navigational systems to assess in the navigation and safety of the journey.

Following the very informative gathering we opted to give the “greasy-spoon” at the gas station a try for  lunch. It was sorta quaint. The counter inside the door continued on the left to a grill, and other galley things. The store had an assortment of stuff from scotch tape to some hardware and of course snacks, sodas and beer. We had the marina specialty, a nice thick hamburger with juicy tomatoes and lots of other traditional accouterments and just the right size bun, not too big not too small Erinhad her favorite sweet potato French fries and I had regular French fries and they were delicious. We decided to go back as we felt like now with that belly bomb we need to take a nap. For days we were hoping that we would get good news but in fact we were there three days waiting for the news. It finally came late on October 10 when they did a trial opening of the bridge with some temporary equipment. It did work and so the bridge engineer said that the North Carolina Department of Transportation had authorized an opening at 730 in the morning on Friday, 11 October to let all 16 of the boats go through the bridge. That was good news everybody anxiously prepared to go next morning. The day came to a conclusion with a pretty sunset.

Tuesday, October 8 2019 Anchorage North River to Allegator River.

Hello again today is October 8 Tuesday. I was right about my guess with the wind because we have had a quiet night at anchor as the wind shifted from the southerly to a northeasterly direction. We made the decision to go ahead and press on to the Allegheny River although the seas were running 4 to 6 feet in the Albemarle sound but, they were going with us. I knew we could use our fin stabilizers to keep the boat on an even keel so we would not be rocking and rolling. We are underway about 8 o’clock Erin had a fit with the mud that was on the chain so after she got the anchor up and cleaned, off we went..

Following the intercoastal waterway is reasonably easy and there are plenty of markers along the way to keep us in the channel coming down the river or thru the man-made cuts. It is reasonably narrow so having to keep up with it on the market by market basis or. Erin is very good at that so she has been the navigator this trip I’ve been the helmsman most of the way she relieves is me once in a while but just gets a little anxious  so there are lunches at the wheel. I know that will change as she gets more experience with steering. The trip has been uneventful until we learned about the Alligator River bridge was not functioning. The bridge engineer was sure when it was going to be able to be repaired. Apparantly an electrical problem and the system burned out so they were having to have it custom-made. This meant there was no notice as to when the bridge will be able to open. We went on anyway because there is a marina just before the Alligator River bridge. We called and they said they can accommodate us. As much as we prefer to anchor the wind was strong and there were no places to get in the lee of land.

It really wasn’t that difficult to cross the Albermarle Sound even with the very rough conditions the I’ll show you pictures nonetheless we made it across safely. The one exception was the very last hundred yards which put the rough seas on the starboard beam. We had to turn right into the marina and the seas on our side made it a real challenge even for an experienced seaman like Larry. We did get in and tied to port side to a long pier and were welcomed by the staff. This is not a large marina but would suffice for what we prisoners (of the broken bridge)would  need . There were 16 of us in the marina all seeking shelter of the marina because of the closure.

The marina is actually a gas station on the western side side of the bridge and had basic moorings for the watermen who work out of that part of North Carolina . There were more traditional moorings for the yachts. We found that if we looked beyond the basic marina status,it really was a pleasure to be here and we met immediately three other boaters who came over to assist with tying up. It was nice to know that we were in company of other cruisers. It is time for Erin and I to settle down down and plan what this delay will mean to our journey. We registered and wandered around thto get the lay of thre land and try the combinations of the marina heads and check and see what other facilities they had to offer.

We had arrived about 3 o’clock and so there wasn’t much of the day left although winds were blowing and the waves were rolling in we were comfortably dark edge of this tiny little marina just before the bridge and so it was after a very light dinner to  we watched the news checked the weather and were ready to go bed  when we heard the announcement over the Marine radio that the Alligator River bridge would not open tomorrow as was hoped. The engineer on the bridge said that they had actually have the new equipment built that there was no spare there was nothing on the shelf life due to the age of the equipment. We like, all the others said, oh well, welcome to North Carolina and the Alligator River.

Hi All.

Sorry for the break in the Blog entries. I will get is caught-up to date and tomorrow. It is Sunday October 13. We are in Beaufort, NC. Leaving tomorrow Morning. My goal is to try to do an entry every 2 days,

Erin has a Facebook page. Her account is    Erin Michaud (Erin Murphy)  you will know it is her page because there is a picture of Abby the black poodle (boat dog). Erin is keeping up with  "highlights"  of the journey, the blog will tell the whole picture.