May 24th- Mile Hammock Bay to Cedar Creek NC

The flotilla set off today for points north. SV Rhiannon was able to order a new alternator and had scheduled a mechanic to install it in Beaufort NC. We pushed on further, with Autumn Bourne, to an anchorage in Cedar Creek. We have some heavy winds approaching and all skippers were trying to figure out where we were going to “hole up” until after the gale.

Shipping around Morehead City NC.

May 25th- Cedar Creek to Broad Creek NC

Cedar Creek might have worked out as a storm anchorage but we decided that Broad Creek would be much better if things get bad. Today was supposed to be the best travel day until Sunday. Another plus- Broad Creek is only 13 1/2 nautical miles away. No problem!

We departed from Cedar Creek, continued down Adams Creek, and headed out on the Neuse River. This is where the plan met reality. Autumn Bourne radioed back to us with the option to continue north on the river or turn back. We opted to continue on. At this point the water was rough but we sail in Buzzards Bay and have experienced worse. It got worse. The closer we got to our destination, the worse it got. The wind increased. We were motoring straight into the wind and choppy seas. The issue was the short, steep, waves. Evergreen would come off the top of a big wave and bury her bow in the next wave. We’d go from 4 knots to 1 knot instantly. Then the wind would catch the boat and turn us abeam. I had to shut down the autopilot and hand steer. I would come off a wave and spin the wheel to take the next wave on the forward quarter, then quickly spin the wheel the other way to stay on course. It had occurred to us to “just turn around”. We’d fly back to our previous anchorage with the wind and waves behind us. Only a few more miles to go! No turning back! We pressed onward.

Rough seas starting out.

Eventually two tired and wet sailboats turned up the much calmer waters of Broad Creek. We searched around the Creek and found a quiet spot near some cleared woods so I could get Ollie to shore. We dropped the hook. This will be our storm anchorage.

Sunset (sort of) at Broad Creek.

May 26th- Broad Creek NC

There is a Gale warning for the area. Sustained winds in the 20s to 30s with gusts to 40. So far it’s pretty calm here on the river. The tall pines on the banks block the worst of it. We have run out over 100′ of anchor rode. We have a second anchor ready to drop if needed. Every once in a while we hear a gust of wind whistling in the rigging but the water here is mostly flat. It looks like we will be sitting here until at least Sunday (28th).

Evergreen anchored on Broad Creek.

May 20th- Southport to Carolina Beach NC

The day before leaving Southport we had some discussions about the river currents, when to leave, and how to safely get off the dock. We were parked way down on the inside of a face dock and would have to wait for the correct tide to leave. That really didn’t work with our travel plan. Autumn Bourne came up with a plan to flip our boat, at the dock, so we were pointed in the right direction to escape the next morning. With help from the marina staff and the river current we pointed Evergreen in the right direction for an early morning departure.

We left Southport and caught the flood tide up the Cape Fear river. Shortly after we arrived at our destination, Carolina Beach (CB). We could have pushed on further but we enjoy visiting CB and planned on staying an extra day. Autumn Bourne was also going to linger for an extra day at Wrightsville Beach which is near by.

We made multiple visits to the North End Cafe for coffee, egg sandwiches, and other goodies. Of course we couldn’t leave without a stop at Blackburn Brothers Seafood. We had some delicious Halibut for dinner that night.

Evergreen moored in Carolina Beach.

May 22- Carolina Beach to Mile Hammock Bay/ Camp Lejeune NC

Today turned out to be a complicated day. We had multiple possible destinations for the day. We then received a message that SV Rhiannon was having an electrical problem and had lost all power in their boat. They had traveled a day ahead of us and were in Mile Hammock Bay which is part of the Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base. Autumn Bourne has a generator and would be able to provide power when they got there. We decided to also go for support. The only problem with the plan was the base doesn’t allow civilians to land and we need to get Ollie to shore. The captain of Autumn Bourne ( a Vietnam War veteran) informed me that the Marines are not going to care about an American with a dog landing at their base regardless of regulations. With that encouragement we anchored at Mile Hammock Bay.

May 23- Mile Hammock Bay/ Camp Lejeune NC

An extra day at the Marine Base. Rhiannon and Autumn Bourne are rafted up and Rhiannon is charged up. They need parts and need to wait for a day before transiting to Beaufort NC for repairs. We’re also here for an extra day. It’s looking like our northward progress is going to be stopped by weather anyway so waiting here an extra day isn’t a problem. In the morning we got to watch some amphibious assault training. We were informed earlier that the troops would be firing blanks. This was a great relief when machine gun fire erupted during the assault. The whole thing was exciting and very interesting to watch. Ollie has been to shore. Not during assault training!

Giant boat ramp for Marine training.

Rhiannon with Autumn Bourne providing electrical assistance.

Evergreen is currently docked at Southport NC. We are waiting out some bad weather and getting some needed rest.

May 11th and 12th- Isle of Hope/ Savannah GA to Beaufort SC

After leaving Savannah we traveled further north along the ICW to Beaufort. Port Royal Sound was a little rough when we crossed. We then headed up the river, passed Paris Island, and grabbed a mooring at the downtown Beaufort marina.

Our flotilla decided to spend an extra day in Beaufort. We did some shopping during the day and met up for dinner at Luther’s. Tomato pie, Nocellara olive oil, and Gumbo Sauce, were some of the culinary treasures we acquired in town.

Brought Ollie to town for a walk just before departure. All is quiet at dawn.

Evergreen moored at Beaufort, South Carolina

May 13th- Beaufort SC to Steamboat Creek/ Edisto Island SC

Today was a mixture of rivers, creeks, and canals. Our trio of boats split for the night. We decided to anchor on Steamboat Creek due to the convienient access to a boat ramp and dock. Rhiannon and Autumn Bourne pushed on a little further to another anchorage. We were the only boat anchored on Steamboat for the night.

Steamboat Ollie. The little white dot in the background is Evergreen.

May 14th- Steamboat Creek to Awendaw Creek SC

We were up before sunrise and off the anchor by 6:30 am. Ollie’s morning commando raid was in the dark. Our plan was to catch up with the flotilla who were another 10 miles up the ICW. We all needed to time our passage through Watts Cut, near Charleston, with slack tide. It was a long, busy, day for us. We caught up with them around 8:30am after fighting current all morning.

May 15th- Awendaw Creek to Thoroughfare Creek SC

We had a peaceful night at Awendaw Creek. The morning brought some wind and current issues. Getting the dinghy on deck and pulling the anchor was a workout. We passed the shallows around McClellanville. As usual, there was a boat stuck there. Next on to Winyah Bay. Georgetown is the usual stop for us but we decided to press on with a favorable current up the Waccamaw River.

We ended the day and anchored on Thorofare Creek. We hadn’t been there before but Autumn Bourne had stopped there and assured us it was a good spot to let Ollie get some exercise. It’s in the jungle off the Waccamaw River but the Creek has a large sand dune left over from an earlier age when this was ocean front property. The anchorage was deep and it is very scenic. We’ll stop here again.

The dune.

Happy Oliver.

Rhiannon and Autumn Bourne

Evergreen

Evergreen anchored on Thorofare Creek.

Sunset.

May 16th- Thorofare Creek SC to Bird Island NC

We were underway by 7:45 and back on the Waccamaw soon after. Ollie enjoyed his shore leave. The “Dune” is actually a park with trails to explore.

Sunrise.

Once out of the Waccamaw we were back in the big ditch. Most of the rest of the day was through a long, straight canal with varying levels of boat traffic. Rhiannon split off in Myrtle Beach to visit with family for a few days. We agreed we’d meet up in the near future. Evergreen and Autumn Bourne continued on.

We crossed into North Carolina. Autumn Bourne picked our anchorage for the night at Bird Island. It is a protected spot and the Island is a barrier beach. The only reason we haven’t stopped here before is because we know of at least two other boats that have grounded out going to the anchorage. Autumn Bourne knew the route in and we followed closely behind. The trick is lining up the G7 green marker off the stern and the big white water tower off the bow. Stay on the line, and you are in.

Some scenes from Bird Island. Ollie cleared all birds.

Autumn Bourne anchored.

Evergreen in the background.

May 17th- Bird Island to Southport NC

There is a lot of current running around Bird Island due to the five foot tides. We timed our departure with slack tide to make anchor retrieval easier.

Autumn Bourne had plans to dock in Southport for a day to visit with friends. Since we needed a rest, Evergreen decided to also get a dock. While in transit we learned the weather wasn’t going to be good for a couple of days. All boats extended our marina stays until Saturday to wait for the weather to clear out.

We ended the day at South Harbor Village Marina. The actual docking went well and the dock hands were very helpful.

May 18th- Southport NC

Today, we slept late and had eggs and bacon for breakfast. There is a park right up the road and Ollie has gotten some ball and frisbee exercise when it’s not raining. Eventually, I motivated myself to get Evergreen filled up with diesel fuel. Lynne’s getting a load of laundry done. The rain has mostly kept us around Evergreen. It’s been a relaxing day. Oh yeah, I was able to get caught up on this blog. Tonight we plan on eating at Joe’s Italian Bistro which is right near the dock.

Evergreen docked at Southport NC.

May 8th- Cumberland Island to Crescent River GA

The extra day we spent in Cumberland Island was very relaxing. We set off early for the Crescent River. Generally we have also stopped at Jekyll Island for a day or two. We decided to press on and anchor further north on the ICW. We also had plans on spending an extra day in Savannah.

Sunrise commute at Cumberland Island.

Kings Bay submarine base. A sub!

Our 3 boat flotilla.

We anchored Evergreen on the Crescent River out in the Georgia marsh. There is a little spot of beach to land Ollie at. The 8 foot tides make for a lot of current running in these rivers and sounds.

Evergreen anchored on the Crescent River.

May 9th- Crescent River to Isle of Hope/ Savannah GA

Georgia has some very shallow spots on the ICW. Yesterday we traversed The Little Mud River. Today, Hell gate. We were close to low tide through the Little Mud. It was nerve wracking.

We made reservations for the Isle of Hope Marina in the Savannah area. We’ve anchored around Savannah in the past but haven’t ventured into town. Rhiannon coerced us into docking and seeing some of the sites.

The marina is well run and is in a really nice neighborhood. Old houses, Live Oaks, water views, and boats made for a scenic backdrop for Ollie’s frequent walks. We try to give him some extra exercise when it’s convenient.

The first night we had dinner at The Sandfly Barbecue with Rhiannon. I’m not an expert on BBQ food but this was the best I’ve had. I will never forget the Brunswick Stew! Lynne and I also shared a plate of pulled pork, sausage, and brisket.

Isle of Hope.

May 10th- Isle of Hope/ Savannah GA

The day started off with boat chores. Lynne went on a quest for groceries. I cleaned Evergreen. It has been a long time since since the last big cleaning. One of the advantages of being on a dock is seemingly unlimited water.

The second half of the day we went to downtown Savannah to celebrate a birthday with Rhiannon. The downtown has many restaurants in a revitalized industrial area. I found the old buildings interesting.

We had another great meal. Both Lynne and I had crab stuffed flounder and shared fried green tomatoes and pimento cheese for an appetizer. A lot of good food around this city. We’ll be back!

Here is rundown of the last week. Evergreen is in travel mode.

May 1st- Vero Beach to Melbourne FL

Our last few days in Vero were characterized by unpredictable, stormy, weather blowing through. We’d have some sun then ominous black clouds on the horizon. We decided to stay in VB until this weather passed.

One day I woke to a weather warning on my phone. Sometimes the National Weather Service has one or two alerts posted. Today six.

Sunday was very windy then Monday the weather broke and we pointed north toward Melbourne. We had previously loaded up Evergreen with all the necessities to minimize our stops along the way.

Currently we are traveling with a small flotilla consisting of SV Rhiannon, SV Autumn Bourne, and us. We’ve been doing some rough planning together and generally have been staying within visual range of one another.

Evergreen anchored in Melbourne.

Melbourne Bridge at Sunrise.

May 2nd- Melbourne to Titusville FL

Tuesday we motored along to Titusville. Occasionally, we get some sail up but with the wind out of the northwest the diesel engine is doing most of the work. We took a mooring at the Titusville Marina to get Ollie to shore and grab a shower.

Evergreen moored at Titusville.

May 3rd- Titusville to Daytona FL

Wednesday. Up before sunrise. Ollie to shore. Dinghy hoisted on the fore deck. Engine on. Off the mooring by 7:30am. Coffee in hand.

The flotilla moved further north toward Daytona. We were able to sail for a bit in the morning but again the northwest wind was on the nose heading up Mosquito Bay. During that section of the passage we had some engine issues. Our RPMs were jumping up and down with the engine almost stalling. Autumn Bourne was behind us and stood by while I stared, angrily, at the engine. Eventually it started running normally. We are not sure if some air got in a fuel line or maybe the fuel filter is getting clogged. It ran well for the rest of the day. I’ll probably change the fuel filter when we are stopped for a while.

We ended the day in Daytona at the Bethune park anchorage. The park is big and Oliver got a lot of, off leash, exercise.

May 4th- Daytona Beach to St Augustine FL

Thursday. Up before sunrise, etc, etc…..

We are developing a travel routine. Normally we stop for a few days in St Augustine but we need to push north. The flotilla has agreed to keep moving along until Georgia.

We passed through the Bridge of Lions and anchored near the Vilano bridge. This anchorage was somewhat challenging due to current and giant wakes from passing motor boats. The boats would fly through the anchorage at full throttle to reach the near by boat ramp. On a positive note, dinner was grilled tuna steaks, fresh rolls (Thai) with peanut sauce, rice pilaf, and a bottle of Pino Grigio. We eat well!

May 5th- St Augustine to Sisters Creek/ Jacksonville FL

Friday. More motoring into the steady north wind. Will it ever come out of the south?

Today was mostly long, straight, canals. We ended the day at Sisters Creek and anchored for the night. It’s technically part of Jacksonville but is not near any populated area.

May 6th- Sisters Creek FL to Cumberland Island GA

Saturday. Today brought cloudy skies and rain. The captains of the flotilla had a discussion about what to do today. Rhiannon and Autumn Bourne both have full cockpit enclosures. Cockpit enclosures keep the helmsman out of inclement weather. Evergreen doesn’t have one. There was some concern about me being out in lousy weather all day. I assured everyone that I have decent foul weather gear and I’d be OK. We could push on. We also came to the conclusion that Evergreen needed more diesel fuel and water. During the day we’d stop at the Fernandina Beach fuel dock before pushing on to Georgia. Onward!

Somewhere on the Nassau River Rhiannon stopped and anchored. We found out their boat had lost all electrical charging under way and the batteries were almost dead. Big problem! Autumn Bourne and Evergreen stood by to see if this could be resolved. The captain was able to raise an electrician in Vero Beach. The electrician had previously done work on the boat and was familiar with the wiring. He was able to talk them through the problem and find the fault. We were all soon underway again. Next stop, Fernandina Beach. We loaded Evergreen up with fuel and water. Underway again, we crossed from Florida into Georgia and anchored at Cumberland Island.

May 7th- Cumberland Island GA

Sunday. A day off.

Cumberland Island is a national park. We all figured it would be a peaceful place to rest for a day. We enjoyed the Island on our 2019-2020 odyssey. Time for shore leave. Horses, Dungeness ruins, forest, and beaches were all on the agenda. After a breakfast of scrambled eggs and blueberry apple pancakes we dinghied in to the Island.

We spent a few hours wandering around the island. Ollie enjoys the extra exercise and is sleeping as I write this. We’ll be getting some extra sleep tonight also. Then, it’s up at dawn…. travel day.

Evergreen anchored at Cumberland Island.

Sunset.