November 2nd- Belhaven to R.E. Mayo Seafood/ Hobucken NC
Our last day in Belhaven was chilly. Outside temperature was 34 degrees F in the morning. Inside Evergreen it was 40 degrees. I quickly pulled on a heavy sweater, deployed the “Buddy” propane heater, and lit the wood stove. Soon the boat warmed up. We still have a bunch of firewood packed away so we ran the stove all day.
We were also waiting out a particularly windy day before making our exit from Belhaven. After a full day of 30 knot gusts we were thinking about going out to dinner somewhere. Evergreen’s anchor hadn’t budged all day but it picked this moment to slowly drag down the creek. We reset the hook and decided to stay onboard until the wind was done. The next morning the wind died out and it was a few degrees warmer.
We decided to leave a little later this morning and stopped at River Forest Marina for fuel. River Forest is now Grand Manor Marina with new owners. They are upgrading the docks and facilities. They also have loaner golf carts for shopping excursions. We filled our diesel tanks and put this marina on the list of possible future stops.
Today was just a short trip to R.E. Mayo Seafood in Hobucken. We are not sure if there is anything else in Hobucken. RE Mayo has fresh, flash frozen, vacuum sealed, seafood. It’s docks are for shrimp boats and are very rustic. Besides the great seafood, the other attraction is the dock price ( 40 cents a foot). We filled Evergreen’s cooler with shrimp and red snapper!
R.E. Mayo Seafood
November 3rd- R.E. Mayo to Morehead City NC
Evergreen had a great sail on the Neuse River. Last season we got beat up on the river but today made up for it. It was choppy but the wind was blowing us in the right direction.
We passed Beaufort (NC) and decided on anchoring at Morehead City. I had high hopes for this place but was disappointed. The well protected harbor was mostly full of permanent looking sail boats. When I finally thought I found a spot to anchor we went aground. Not a good spot. Luckily we were able to power through the muck to deeper water. We anchored outside of the harbor for the night. I was able to get Ollie in to shore but we were in a location that was exposed to wind and wakes from passing power boats.
At least there is a Sandy beach.
Evergreen anchored off of Morehead City.
November 4th- Morehead City to Topsail Sound NC
Today we pushed further south on the ICW to Topsail Sound and the “Sloop Point” anchorage. There was one other boat anchored. Not many use this spot but we like it. At night you can hear the surf pounding on the beach at Surf City.
Passing through Camp Lejeune.
November 5th- Topsail Sound to Carolina Beach NC
We tried to get a mooring in Carolina Beach but after several phone calls it wasn’t going to happen. The harbor master felt we’d have plenty of room to anchor so that’s what we did. We’ve had problems anchoring in here before but this time we got the perfect spot. The decision was made to stay here for a few days and get some shore leave in.
November 6th & 7th- Carolina Beach NC
Carolina Beach has a great beach (obviously) and Ollie is electric with excitement. He really enjoys this place and seems to remember it. We needed to get laundry done and stock up on the usual necessities ( food, fuel, and booze). The North End Cafe is near the dinghy dock and we stopped in for bacon and egg sandwiches along with good coffee. The owner recognized us from past years. Today we’ll head back over again to pick up some banana pudding for dessert. Then, on to the beach so Ollie can get some Frisbee action in. Maybe a trip to the local fish market. We’re still eating fish from RE Mayo but you can never have too much shrimp.
Some scenes from Carolina Beach.
First palm tree (maybe).
Dolphin tail. So hard to catch them on film.
Evergreen anchored in Carolina Beach.
You guys are making good progress! We are hoping to leave Mt Pleasant on Thursday – it’s looking like it’s merely an injector issue. Fingers crossed!
What is the material you are using to protect your settee from your wood stove? We’ve been considering getting a wood burner, but we weren’t sure how to deal with the settee. Looks like you guys have solved that issue.
That’s good news about your engine. I hope it all works out. I need to learn more about injectors!
Under the stove is a fire proof mat from Amazon. It looks like the one I have is no longer available but “fireproof mat” brings up a lot of choices on Amazon. Normally I don’t leave a bunch of stuff laying around the stove. We burn wood but also pick up charcoal briquettes from hardware stores.
We’re heading down to Bird Island next. Was thinking about going outside to Winyah Bay but it looks like the wind is going to switch to south. We’ll probably stay in the ICW.
Wow, I didn’t know you could use email on the blog. I just found it by accident. Well, I am sorry you are waking up to 30 degree temps. We had cold mornings last week – the 20’s. So far this week we are waking up to 45 degrees and right now (1PM) it is hitting 80. Let me know if you get this. Stay safe.
Got the message! It was cold. Weather is nice today. We’ll be ending the day in South Carolina. I got your email about Pop also. Hopefully he gets some new hearing aids soon. I think they just fall out and get lost.