April 22-23, 2021 River Forest Marina, Belhaven

 Thursday, April 22, 2021. Day 137.

It was very cold and windy last night, and the anchor chain banged against the boat, sounding like fireworks to me; it was loud and, needless to say, interrupted my sleep.

As predicted, the morning was cold (39°), and Roland turned on the heat; I did yoga and we had coffee. We were anchored minutes from River Forest Marina in Belhaven, North Carolina, where we were to spend the next 2 days, so there was no rush in the morning.

Our plan was to dine in the evenings, at the two restaurants we had visited going south; one we ate outside, the other, we had takeout. Oysters outside and take out from Spoon River, known as the best restaurant on the AICW. We planned (all of us vaccinated), to dine in (they do not have out side space), as soon as they opened, when no one else was there. The tables were really far apart, and we reserved one tucked into a bay window slightly separated from the rest of the room. We were really looking forward to both those opportunities.

Although it was cold, the sun was strong and bright and we hoped it would warm up a bit during the day. Unfortunately, the boat was covered with teeny bugs; really unpleasant.

Roland made blueberry pancakes for all, our first breakfast altogether. They were great, a little uneven, as usual due to the electric stove top (sometimes I think Roland is serving uneven pancakes as a lobbying effort – he wants the a gas stove in lieu of the electric stove top). My sister said, if he is doing the cooking, he should have a replacement stove. Thank you, Gail; more nautical units! Unfortunately, she had a point.

We arrived at River Forest Marina at 12pm, and Henry, the dockmaster, was there waiting for us. It was really windy and we needed his strength and experience to help us tie up to minimize the movement of MM on the dock.

As usual, as soon as we docked: the laundry. Gail and I used the marina's free machines; they were large and made the task much simpler. And we were the only ones using the machines.

Henry arranged a tour of the turn of the century (the 19^th to 20^th), estate house that had fallen into ruin, and then, some years ago, restored by a group of local residents, several of them, skilled craftsmen. It was stunning in every way: the woodwork, the floors, the leaded glass windows, the plaster decorated ceilings; all of it was magnificent. The mansion is available for weddings, family reunions and other celebrations; along with the common areas, the 5-7 bedrooms are spacious, welcoming and worth the trip. Because of the pandemic, there had been no events since December 2020, but a wedding was scheduled for the first week in May, and everybody was sprucing it up and very excited. By the way the estate and the marina are for sale. There is a great area for a restaurant, bar and commercial kitchen, and the marina for fishing charters...... a good retirement project for the right folks!

We walked around Belhaven, and after finishing the laundry, got ready for our 5:30pm dinner. One of the fun parts about River Forest Marina is the golf carts we can use for transportation. Captain Roland loves driving the golf court around town and to the supermarket.

We had dinner at Spoon River in a private room with just the four of us (the owner, apologizing, had inadvertently seated the wrong four folks at our reserved table, but the private room was just fine). It was my first planned indoor dining experience and although it was fun, the owner was challenged. She couldn’t get the help she needed to properly operate her restaurant, and it showed in the quality of the food. The service was still excellent, although the bartender was extremely slow. Not being able to properly staff the restaurant was consistent with what we experienced in Beaufort, South Carolina and, the complaint we heard the following evening at the outside oyster bar. Workers, during the pandemic, are leaving small towns or making more on unemployment. Business was beginning to pick up; hopefully the workers will return.

 

Gail and Michael took the golf cart back, and Roland and I walked back to the boat. When we arrived, the boat was covered with the little black insects that Henry called “blind mosquitoes” because they don’t bite. The air was thick with them; it was overwhelming!

After dinner, the crew and the captain watched old Star Trek shows on television and I worked on my blog, happy to skip vintage TV.

Friday, April 23, 2021. Day 138.

It was cold again this morning but I enjoyed my 3 mile run around Belhaven. Roland and I had poached eggs for breakfast. Roland and Mike prepared to change the engine oil after trying to rid the boat of the insects. Henry lent Roland a big blower to blow them off first, before washing them off. I don’t think anything worked very well.

Changing the engine oil did not work out. One of the major reasons for staying in Belhaven for 2 days (other than the food), was to change the engine oil: it was time (the oil has to be changed every so many engine hours). Roland couldn't get the built-in pump to remove and replace the oil, to work. Not only was this a disappointment and a waste of time, but we were now talking additional nautical units ($$). The Captain now had to figure out how to fix or replace the pump, order the pump or parts, online, and find a place to install it and change the oil, which is something that really can’t wait too much longer, based on engine hours. It is highly likely that it would have to wait until we are back in Philadelphia.....and Mike won't be there to help....a loss!

We put our disappointment aside, and took a golf cart to Food Lion, which is a bit further than the center of Belhaven, going on the back roads. It was kind of crazy, but fun, and I was amazed that we were able to get all the groceries and the four of us on the golf cart.

I reached out to the Kadey Krogen Norfolk Harbor Host. Unfortunately they would not be around for the weekend when we arrived but they sent a detailed email with tons of suggestions and information. So cool.

At 5:30m, we took the golf cart the Tavern at Jack’s Neck, for oysters, shrimp, wings and ribs, topped off by apple pie with ice cream. The owner and her staff were terrific, we sampled a lot of her Bourbons and rum and had a great time. She was only serving outside; she had to defer the inside renovations until business picked up.

We were to leave Belhaven tomorrow, and Henry assured us he would be there early in the morning to help us off the dock.

April 20-21, 2021 Camp Lejeune, to Homer Smith's ( Beaufort, NC), to Belhaven NC.

 Tuesday, April 20, 2021. Day 135. My mothers birthday.

Everyone was up early, but the anchor was very muddy, so the 15 minutes it took to clean the anchor, caused a delay getting to the Onslow Beach Bridge (the USMC bridge). There was a barge with a crane that let us pass under first, and the tender opened the bridge even though it was between opening times, otherwise we would have had to wait 20 minutes for the 8am opening. The marine corp felt comfortable accommodating us under the circumstances (and thank you to the barge captain). It was our only request bridge of the day.

The water was a flat calm, an 180° opposite from yesterday afternoon with wind and the white caps (a/k/a “wavelets” lol, the Captain refers to them as wavelets.....they are whitecaps to me!).

I did a quick work out. Mornings were getting chilly as we cruised north, but the sun was warm. There were dolphins on the bow, and at 9:10 am, we passed Little Wing, from Annapolis,. A very hearty couple, in a very little, steel-hulled, 1970's, 30 foot sailboat. I so admired the young woman captain. We just love seeing them along the way, and always wish them the best. They far surpass our adventure bar!

We arrived at Homer Smith’s in Beaufort, North Carolina, at approximately 1pm. At first we anchored at the fuel dock, the wind, pushing us off the dock. Roland was docking from the flybridge and Matt, the marina the owner, had to pull us in with the spring line. With Matt's help and the bow thruster, we made it and tied up.

We asked Matt about the GFI issue (he is building several new docks and very clear about the issue). He explained the new regulations and the timing. We must jump on this issue asap, so Captain Roland agreed to call the expert from Vero Beach soon.

The forecast for tomorrow was for very heavy winds, so the question was: to leave tomorrow, or not to leave....I do not do well in heavy, choppy, seas! The decision went back and forth, but regardless, Matt asked us to move to a slip, which the Captain did beautifully, not withstanding the conditions, and we tied up.

We had lots of laundry to do and the marina washers and dryers were available, so I did laundry at the marina as well as on the boat, while Michael and Roland borrowed the marina courtesy car, and went to West Marine to pick up our replacement grille (thank you very much Gail and Michael for the treat). While I continued the laundry, Gail went with Michael and Roland, to do the food shopping.

Between running up and back to the marina laundry, I had a chance to speak to Nancy and Randy from “Bella Vita”, a couple from Denver who had bought their boat in Atlantic City (Farley Marina). It was their first boat (Randy was a former pilot and was loving the boating life). We exchanged boat cards and I went back to the marina to move the wash to the dry and take the dry back to the boat. When I got to the marina office, I found that everything had been locked up and Matt had gone home. We had been in such a rush to get our chores done that I had failed to get the code; I was locked out the laundry was locked in. I waited for someone to come by who knew the code; I called the food shoppers to find out if they knew the code; no luck. In desperation, I called Randy (I had his boat card and he had the code!). It felt very weird to call him 2 minutes after meeting him for the first time. He was very gracious.

There was a Kadey Ladies zoom at 7pm which I attended and asked about GFI and learned that almost all the other boats had already taken care of this problem. Again, I stressed about this issue and wondered why our surveyor hadn't addressed this issue, knowing the requirements. I was unhappy about the surveyor again!

At 8pm I had a TCPW zoom with three national White House correspondents which was really terrific.

The decision was made to leave early tomorrow to minimize the choppy seas. I hoped for the best.

Wednesday, April 21, 2021. Day 136.

We had planned to leave at 8am and I was ready at 7:50am, however, Roland and Mike had de-docked at 7:15 am. I was told Captain Roland did a beautiful job. I took a pill and put on the wrist bands; it was windy and rough. At 11:30am to 12:30pm we were in the Neuse River, and it was choppy. When we entered the canal connecting the two larger bodies of water, what a relief, it was calm. Short lived. Warning to me: The sound after the canal could get choppy again, and it did, but I managed (no computer, nor zooms, nor notetaking, nor reading....just watch the horizon and breathe deeply)....all was OK. I actually was able to use the time to handle some telephone calls for Wil and TIAW.

The original plan was to go to River Forest Marina in Belhaven, NC, but the winds being so heavy and in a very inauspicious direction, caused us to make a change. Captain Roland called Henry who was very understanding and agreed that we should spend the night “on the hook”, in a nearby protected area. So at 3:50pm, we anchored in Pungo Creek (bonus: we get to try our new grille for a steak redo), everybody was happy!

After we anchored, Captain Roland and Mike gave me some instructions as to lining up points on the shore to check the boat's position, from time to time, to make sure we were not drifting, while at anchor.

The steaks grilled on our new “secure on the staple” grille, were delicious, with wonderful sweet potatoes and string beans, and a nice red wine. We zoomed with Howard and Debbie (Gail's and my brother and sister-in-law in California ). And the captain who was tired after several early and long days, was looking forward to sleeping late tomorrow before we cruise over to the marina.

April 10, 2021 Beaufort SC Our First Harbor Hosts

 Saturday April 10, 2021. Day 125.

Up early to get ready to meet Vicki and Mack, and straighten up Magic Moments a bit, in case they wanted to step aboard. Vickie and Mack are the Kadey Krogen Harbor Hosts in Beaufort, South Carolina. They just recently sold their boat “Confetti”, and moved into their new house.

We were at the marina in Port Royal which, fortunately, was very close to their home. They picked us up at 9:30am, and we went to an outdoor farmers' market which was great fun. We had fresh South Carolina oysters shucked by the fisherman and put right on our plate, for breakfast, and we bought bread, vegetables, fruits and a dessert sampler, for later.

Vickie bought some plants for her landscaping project at their new home.

We dropped Roland at the supermarket, and I went back with Vicki and Mack to see their home which was just charming. The house included an outside porch door entrance that had peaked my curiosity in Charleston. Now I was able to see the purpose and advantage of the arrangement from the inside. In the center of the porch, there was a separate stairway to the second floor. Clever design; one can enter the second floor from the screened in porch and never go through the first floor of the house (a perfect air bnb arrangement, with a bathroom and 2 bedrooms upstairs).

The L-shaped screened-in porch area was large and comfortable; perfect for enjoying the outside, bug free. They have a two sided fireplace between the dining room and the living room; (nice!), and a small but very well organized kitchen with an amazing pantry area. They have done a great job with this adorable home. We wished them the very best of luck. May they use it in good health as my grandmother always said.

We picked up Roland and went on a walking tour of historic Beaufort which had many interesting antebellum houses and amazing Southern Live Oak trees. Vicki and Mack pointed out several homes and locations where films had been shot: Forrest Gump, The Big Chill, The Great Santini, and The Prince of Tides.

We tried a myriad of outside restaurants and bars, to have lunch on the waterfront, in both Beaufort and Port Royal, but although most of the restaurants had several empty tables, the wait was over an hour. Apparently they are all understaffed. We experienced a shortage of help problem in Belhaven NC, a few weeks later. The pandemic unemployment support has some serious negative effects in some geographic areas. Maybe a higher minimum wage is worth considering so that it makes sense for folks to work.

We finally decided on a takeout place that specialized in Gullah Tingz. food from a group of people who are descended from slaves, and still have their own community and dialect. According to Wikipedia:

“Because of a period of relative isolation from whites while working on large plantations in rural areas, the Africans, enslaved from a variety of Central and West African ethnic groups, developed a creole culture that has preserved much of their African linguistic and cultural heritage from various peoples; in addition, they absorbed new influences from the region. The Gullah people speak an English-based creole language containing many African loanwords and influenced by African languages in grammar and sentence structure. Sometimes referred to as "Sea Island Creole" by linguists and scholars, the Gullah language is sometimes likened to Bahamian Creole, Barbadian Creole, Guyanese Creole, Belizean Creole, Jamaican Patois and the Krio language of West Africa. Gullah crafts, farming and fishing traditions, folk beliefs, music, rice-based cuisine and story-telling traditions all exhibit strong influences from Central and West African cultures.”

We went back to Mack's and Vickie‘s home and ate all our fantastic Gullah takeout (wings, ribs, and Capt Crip's Gullah Boli), on their screened-in porch. It was an amazing day.

Vicki and Mack could not have been kinder and more generous and we could have never really gotten the flavor (no pun intended), and for Beaufort, South Carolina, without them.

It was great fun talking about many of the other wonderful Kadey Krogen owners we have met this winter and that they have known through their years of boating. And, there is the advise that they shared based on the five years they lived on “Confetti”.

This was our first Harbor Host experience; the bar has been started really high.

Thank you so much, Vicki and Mack.

April 8-9, 2021 Off shore St Augustine to Beaufort SC

 Thursday, April 8, 2021. Day 123.

At 1:30pm, we entered the ocean from the St. Augustine inlet, and cruised about 9 miles offshore on our way to Beaufort, South Carolina.

The day time offshore was OK, not necessarily fun, but OK. I was able to edit my blog for about an hour without any motion sickness. Off shore segments are long and to me, rather boring, but they have a purpose. Ocean passages eliminate several long days of intense steering in narrow ICW channels which is very wearing on the captain ( I’m not crazy about them either ). So, the ocean it was.

I was patched and “wristed”, and, actually was able to sleep well between my watches. On this trip, unfortunately, Captain Roland did not sleep very much or very well. He had to make a couple of course adjustments during my watch (I hated to awaken him, but no real choice), to avoid freighters, especially near Savannah (which had been the case going south so no surprise ). When I was on watch through the day and night, I listen to books and played solitaire on the phone and checked the radar and our speed and a few other dials. I was sorry to miss both the sunset and sunrise, both on Roland's watch, but happy to get some sleep.

Captains note: this is one of my favorite sunset photos. it has not been altered or enhanced at all, this was the actual colors, was amazing..

The crossing was calm (for the ocean); the wind maybe 10 to 15 knots

Friday, April 9, 2021. Day 124.

When I awakened, we were in Port Royal Sound on the way to Port Royal Island which is surrounded by the Broad River and the Coosa River. Beaufort is on the Beaufort River which winds through the penninsula. At 10:18am, we were back on the ICW. It was interesting in the morning to pass Hilton Head, and Parris Island. I’ve never been to Hilton Head nor Parris Island, (unlikely I will ever go to Parris Island).

It was not easy getting a slip in Beaufort but we did manage to get one at Safety Harbor in Port Royal. We had preferred the Beaufort marina but they were booked solid until September 2021!

Kadey Krogen owners have a group of current and former boaters who volunteer to be harbor hosts. They offer to help with information and, in some cases, even transportation in their areas. They invite Kadey Krogen owners and other boaters to reach out to them when the boaters are visiting their location. I reached out to the Harbor Hosts in Beaufort, South Carolina and in Charleston, South Carolina. This was the first time I tried reaching out to a Harbor Host and I didn’t know what to expect for sure. Vicki and Mac, from Beaufort responded and we discussed getting together. Mac has been fully vaccinated and Vicki was getting her second vaccination in a couple of days. We all agreed to wear masks and to keep the windows open in the car. They had a giant four person pick up truck.

We docked at Port Royal Marina at 11:45am and I was thrilled that the overnight was behind us. I showered and dressed and went for a walk and hoped to have lunch at the marina restaurant “Mark 244”. We heard they were serving soft shells, and we love soft shell crabs. The area in which the marina and the restaurant are located it is very cute; small neat homes, beautiful foliage, very cool but casual and accessible and very natural. When we approached Marker 244, we were told it was an hour wait and by the way they were out of soft shells. We made a reservation for 6pm (they said they were getting another three crates of soft shells for dinner) and we went back to the boat and had leftovers for lunch.

The restaurant was obviously a lunch place, there was an hour wait an it was packed at lunch. At dinner, not so much. We were one of the few occupied tables and learned that they serve soft shells, one way only: fried and on a bun – we had waited all this time for a sandwich! It was however the biggest soft shell Roland had ever seen. We had our traditional rose wine (the prices, interestingly enough, are high for a glass but quite reasonable for the whole bottle), so of course, we drank the whole bottle.

Dinner was a bit early so we walked to the supermarket about a mile away and bought a few things back to the boat. I confirmed arrangements for tomorrow with Vicki and Mac. They offered to pick us up at 9:30am to go to the local farmers market, take us to a supermarket or other stores for any provisioning and then, to tour Beaufort. They had recently sold their Kadey Krogen 39, “Confetti“, and bought a house. Keeping in touch with the Kadey Krogen family was important to them, and they knew our PO's (prior owners), and our boat. All of us were looking forward to Saturday, and our first Harbor Host experience.