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| Finally leaving the Chesapeake Bay Bridge behind us! |
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| But we can't seem to get out of the cold! |
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| Racing boats out of Annapolis...it was cool to watch but we stayed out of their way! |
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| The captain, happy to be on the way again. |
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| My bookshelf in the V-Berth with my pretty stained glass window scarf that serves as a curtain...thank you Scotty! |
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| Navy ships we passed in Norfolk Harbor |
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| More ships on the horizon...we also had a submarine surface about 100 feet off our bow but we were too scared to think to take a picture! |
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| Alderaan at anchor at "Hospital Point" in Portsmouth Virginia. We met up with friends of Bob and Diane's from Newport on their boat" Rejoice!" that evening. |
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| Our first experience going through a lock...south of Norfolk on the Virginia Cut |
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Did I mention we like sunsets? |
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| An evening conversation with one of the boys, and navigation homework to get ready to leave the next day |
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| Going down one of the many tree lined canals in North Carolina |
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| Ooops, another sunset...sorry. |
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| Look who we ran into in the Pungo River? Randall Williams, a friend from Bath! Marc worked on Randall's boat (a Cheoy Lee also) a few years back. He's headed south also, so we will probably run in to one another again. |
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| Our quiet anchorage off the shores of the quaint little town of Belhaven, NC |
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| Shrimp boats, seafood and fuel...love these North Carolina docks! |
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| My new slippers! My feet are so happy. Why, oh why, did I leave my fleece lined L.L. Bean slippers at home?!? |
Leaving Oriental Harbor, NC Look at those clouds!
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| Our new friend Anthony who helped save Alderaan when she dragged anchor in a 47 knot gust in Oriental. Great guy, kind gentleman. Wish we had pictures of the three other great guys who helped us that day. |
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| One of the many amazing homes we've seen along the ICW |
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| Our first palm trees! Morehead City, NC |
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| We celebrated palm trees by having our first dinner out since Virginia...fresh North Carolina shrimp! Rudy Duck, Morehead City, NC |
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| Working on the blog in the gazebo at Portside Marina...you can see Alderaan's masts in the background. |
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| Homework! Getting ready for the next day of crazy navigating in the shallow waters of the ICW. Our six foot draft is causing major headaches (and occasional groundings) We've had to use Tow Boat once, and got off ourselves twice. Not many days go by that we don't see at least one boat aground or "bump"...it's nerve-racking! Can't wait to get into some open ocean! |
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| Land ho! On either side of us....these channels are way too narrow for my comfort! |
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| Our wonderful host at Portside Marina. A retired teacher and football coach...He and Marc had lots to talk about. |
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| ...and Stephen, the most friendly helpful dock guy you'll find anywhere. |
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| Portside Marina owners felt so badly about the high winds and bouncy berth that night that they put us up in a hotel! Wow...now THAT'S customer service! We felt a little bit guilty, but boy did we enjoy a hot shower, a good (warm!).night's sleep and complimentary breakfast. Thank you Portside! Morehead City, NC |
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| Another cold morning...28 degrees, 5 layers of clothes. |
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| Anchorage....Mile Hammock Bay, NC |
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| If you scroll in, you can see the markings on the bridge piling...they show the height from the water line to the underside of the bridge so you know if you can go through or not...we need 60 ft for our mast to clear...most fixed bridges are 65. It's still unnerving if it reads 63! |
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| Mile markers on the ICW...we've come 260 miles since entering the ICW in Norfolk, VA. |
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| "Dance to the bridge" which only opens on the hour. Five other boats in front of us waiting to go through. |
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| Rainy day pancakes... |
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Our first General Delivery mail pick up. Wrightsville Beach, NC |
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| Where are you Santa? Wrightsville Beach, NC |
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| Foggy morning walk Wrightsville Beach |
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| Groceries for our Thanksgiving feast ! Our son Jon drove up from Savannah to be with us for a few days on the boat. |
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| Jon and Daddio Thanksgiving Day, Southport, NC |
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| You can't stop in Southport and NOT have a meal at the Fishy Fishy Cafe! |
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| Our Thanksgiving centerpiece (cut from a bush nearby after dark...shhhh) Kind of like how Nick snips our holly bushes every Christmas when we're not looking. |
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| Friendly pelicans swim around the boat every morning looking for scraps. |
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| One of the many moss covered trees that line the creeks and canals in South Carolina |
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| Finally in South Carolina! Harborwalk in Georgetown, a cute little town about 60 miles north of Charleston |
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and FINALLY...off with the socks and slippers!!! |
