GL: Sanderling - Cruise north - October 11, 2006 at Oriental, North Carolina

[Bob McLeran]

October 6, 2006 (Friday) - Dismal Swamp Canal
We're staying put for a couple of days. The weather system off the coast
is moving east, but another one is coming across the Appalachian
Mountains which is going to kick things up enough that we won't want to
venture out onto the Albermarle Sound to the south of Elizabeth City.
All the boaters from the Chesapeake through southern Virginia and
northern North Carolina are finding places to hold up for a few days
rather than cross Albermarle Sound.

Here's what Judy wrote in our ship's log:
We awakened to the wind and rain that was anticipated. We made the
decision to stay here until the storms have passed - this could be
Sunday or Monday! We donned foul weather gear and took the dingy to a
nearby shopping center [about a mile down the canal] to go to Food Lion.
It did rain, but we sponged the water from the dingy and made it back to
Sanderling without mishap. We invited our dock "neighbors" over to
Sanderling for happy hour about 1700. Guests included couples from the
trimaran Ishmael; the Marine Trader [trawler] The Suzanne; and the small
cruise ship Bonny Blue. We had a fun visit - many boating stories
shared. Earlier today, we had been invited aboard the Bonny Blue to ride
from inside the lock to the dock where she made-up between Sanderling
and Ishmael. A good day for visiting with friends - tied to a dock!

October 7, 2006 (Saturday) - Dismal Swamp Canal
We watched Bonny Blue take her 15 guests aboard then depart for
Elizabeth City about 0900 - in a light rain. All the guests were happy
and excited about their weekend voyage.

The three remaining couples walked to a Mexican restaurant for dinner.

October 8, 2006 (Sunday) - Dismal Swamp Canal
Bonny Blue was due back at 1500, and two of us needed to get water, so
we pulled forward on the dock to the water bib just before "Ishmael." We
were back in our original positions well before Bonny Blue returned -
guests departed, and all of us at the dock were invited aboard for a
"freezer party" - helping to eat up the remaining food - before the
cruise ship pulled out to get through the lock heading north at 1530.

The couple on Ishmael invited Judy and I and the couple from "The
Suzanne" to dinner aboard, then an evening of playing "Catch Phrase" - a
great after-dinner game! We ended the evening relatively early, as we
all planned to depart on Monday morning heading south.

October 9, 2006 - To Elizabeth City, North Carolina
All three boats at the north end of the Dismal Swamp Canal left the dock
a short while before the southbound boats locked through the northern
lock at 0900, in order to get through a low bridge a short distance from
the lock (the bridge we walked over to go to the Mexican Restaurant on
Saturday night). Ishmael and The Suzanne stopped at the North Carolina
welcome center about 18 miles through the canal, but Judy and I kept
going. We had to wait a little over an hour at the south end of the
canal for the 1400 opening, and then proceeded another 18 miles to
Elizabeth City. A short distance before Elizabeth City we hit a log in
the water which has evidently bent one of Sanderling's propellers - we
now have an annoying vibration.

We arrived in Elizabeth City just in time for the wine and cheese party
hosted by "The Rose Buddies" - a group that has been welcoming transient
boaters to Elizabeth City for a number of years. The free town docks
were full of boats waiting for the weather to clear up on Albermarle Sound.

We ate an early dinner aboard, then went to the local dinner-movie
theater to see the new Jack Nicholson movie "The Departed." Great movie
and a nice change of pace for us - we haven't seen a movie in over three
months!

October 10, 2006 - To the Pungo River, North Carolina
We departed Elizabeth City at 0700 and found the Albermarle Sound to be
quite manageable, with waves about 1 to 2 feet on the northern side and
a good solid 2 feet on the southern side and down the Alligator River.

We travelled down the Alligator River and through the Alligator
River-Pungo River Canal, and are now anchored in a small, quiet bay at
the entrance to the Pungo River about seven miles from Bellhaven, North
Carolina.

Tomorrow we'll cruise to Oriental, where I hope we can have our damaged
propeller repaired. We may end up there for a day or two for repairs,
but it is a nice city that we wanted to stop in anyway. After that, it's
Beaufort, North Carolina, and Bogue Sound!

October 11, 2006 - Oriental, North Carolina
We slept in this morning and didn't get underway until almost 0800! Only 
intended to get to Oriental, North Carolina, which was only about 50 
miles from where we anchored last night, so there wasn't any rush.

Weather was near perfect, although it was overcast most of the day, but 
very little wind on the Pamlico River and the Neuse River, both of which 
can get bad in a 15 knot wind.

We anchored in Smith Creek, just to the west of the town of Oriental, 
and rode the dingy to a free town dingy dock, then ate in one of the 
local restaurants near the dock - M&M's Cafe (so-so). Searched for 
anything serving ice cream cones, but the only place in town that 
advertised ice cream seemed to be closed by 1900 when we walked by. 
Guess the ice cream will have to wait.

Tomorrow we plan to get underway at first light, and get as far as we 
can through Beaufort, North Carolina, to Mile Hammock Bay at the 
southwestern end of Bogue Sound. Wind is forecast to be out of the 
west/northwest, so we'll be fairly well protected as we make our way 
westerly along the coast in the sound. We anticipate being in Mile 
Hammock Bay (a bay on the southern side of Camp Lejeune - a Marine Corps 
base) for several days as a cold front moves through with higher winds.

-- 
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><>Mozilla Thunderbird<><><><><><><><><><><><>
Bob McLeran and Judy Young                       M/V Sanderling
Hampton 35 Trawler                        Cruising the Atlantic Coast
Currently: Smith Creek, Oriental, North Carolina