Southbound ’17 – Travel Day 17: Beuafort, NC to Southport, NC

FROM: The Captain

Conditions: Sun and clouds.  Winds from the northwest 8 mph. Seas 3 – 4′ swells from the northeast, period 6-8 seconds

Distance traveled: 105 statute miles

Time underway: 8 hours 25 minutes

Average Speed: 12.4 mph

Max Speed: 21 mph

Fuel used: 150 gallons

 

It was still in the 40’s when we arose to say goodbye to our visiting crew and to Beaufort, NC.  Nuts, Beans and Lady hit the road just before 7am and we hit the high seas.  It was sad to say goodbye, for us and for Jasper, but we know they’ll be back.

It was one of those mornings when it was easy to forget what day of the week it was, partly because of the salt-water brains we’ve happily developed and partly because it’s what happens on a holiday weekend.  The channel leading to and through Beaufort inlet out to the Atlantic Ocean was having an early morning rush hour of sorts with a bunch of sailboats getting underway and a few fishing boats returning from sea.  

Surprisingly, once we were on our course, bound for Masonboro Inlet in Wrightsville Beach, NC, we didn’t encounter a single boat along the way until arriving at our last waypoint in the Atlantic.  We had some fairly big swells accompanying us today but the period was fairly long, meaning they were spread apart, and it was a relatively calm and easy run.  Because we were not eager to be out for nine + hours (nor was Jasper) we spent the first hour running faster than usual at about 19 mph and then brought the speed up periodically throughout the day.  There is most certainly enjoyment in days like today but running the ocean is a much different experience than the ICW.  So while cruising for us lately has been much more about the journey, today it was largely about getting from point A to point B and avoiding the stress of having to negotiate some of the problem areas of the ICW.

Once off the Ocean we traveled along the waterway through Wilmington and then Snow’s Cut which connects the ICW with the Cape Fear River, a big river which, thankfully, was tame today. We’ve been on it in less than ideal conditions in the past.

As you arrive in Southport you turn west back into the narrows of the ICW and just past the colorful waterside restaurants is the very welcoming, extremely well-kept Southport Marina.  It’s our second time here (first on the OLOH) and it is a favorite stop, for sure.  After taking on fuel, pumping out our holding tank – and Jasper – who was a terrific boat-dog on our long-haul today, we treated ourselves to an OLOH-Rita arrival cocktail, rinsed down the boat and settled in. 

We’ll spend our last night in North Carolina here and then it’s back out into the Atlantic to avoid a few more ICW problem areas, but it’s a much shorter travel day ahead as we make our way to Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, our seventh state so far.  See you there!