Chugging north on the Carolina Coast – dodging Tornadoes

Chugging north on the Carolina Coast – dodging Tornadoes

 From Wilmington we flew back down the Cape Fear River – with the current and tide assistance – to Wrightsville Beach. This coastal town is less than 10 miles from Wilmington but more than 30 miles by boat.  We rested from our long journey by hanging out on the boat in the spacious anchorage in Mott’s Channel.  We were joined this time by many boats but the weather remained calm and mild for us as the tornados raged to the west.  The next stop was again behind Camp Lejeune where five sailboats glided in to spend the night with us.  The helicopters from Camp Lejeune were mercifully not flying nor were any live ordinance drills underway. Among the crowd was Felix the Catamaran who has completed the loop twice.  We chatted with them on the radio about their plans to buy a canal boat in France this summer, so like us they have put on hold their proposed down east loop. For some variety, we got pushed out of the channel by the incoming tidal current as we crossed Brown’s Creek early the next morning, but Andy, TowBoat US captain, had us back underway in less than an hour, so we arrived in Morehead City Portside Docks and were tied up before 1. This gave us an afternoon for shopping at Lowes Food Store a nice energetic bike ride from the marina, and a browse in the many antique shops here. There was also time for a stop at the Nina and Pinta replica ships moored just down the harbor from our home. We have been chasing these touring history museums so it was a treat to catch up and get a firsthand look at the life of early American explorers.  Dinner with fellow travelers Wayne and Anne on a Ranger Tug topped off our day. As always it is a special perk of boating to hear the stories of others and compare notes for future plans.  We hope to cross paths with Wee Tug either in the Bahamas or Fort Myers.