Elizabeth City, NC to Aligator River Canal 11-22

Finally got underway heading south into Albemarle Sound. Had a great day sailing (enigne running well too) Winds NE at 15-20 made it choppy but nice to be sailing after so much motoring or motor sailing. Made very good time even with a quick stop for fuel and a pump out.
Elizabeth City had only one marina with a pump out and it was down for weeks. Being there for a week with the engine torn apart and a full holding tank made for some creative tactics. The early opening coffee shop down the block was a very popular spot in the morning for obvious reasons. We arrived after dark at the mouth of the Aligator River Canal thru a very narrow channel with depths outside it as low as a foot. The GPS is amazing, guided us in at night to an anchorage in 7 feet of water (that's the deep spot if you can believe it)

Monday 11-23 Aligator River Canal to Hobucken, NC
Finally a warm sunny day underway. The Aligator River canal is more like 200 feet wide (vs the dismal swap canal which is bearly 50 feet if that. Wide enough that huge 70 foot power boats were passing us some at full speed and close aboard, but most called on 16 and asked to pass so we could pull over. There are sounds between the Aligator River canal and the Pungo River canal, so we got to sail for few hours before motorging again. We decided to press on until dark and made it to Hobucken, NC and anchored in a very isolated spot with no cell phone reception.

Tuesday 11-24 Hobucken to Beaufort, NC
Sailing almost all day in Pemlico Sound and the Neuse Rivfer in a nice 10-15 knot westerly to the Adams Creek Canal. Very pretty here and wide enough for the shrimp boats to pass (which are everywhere, they filmed the shrimp boat segment of Forrest Gump here) The cold weather is still catching up to us especially at night so we are planning on making some miles once we jump offshore tomorrow.

Wednesday 11-25 to Thursday 11-26 Beaufort, NC to Georgetown, SC
Got an early start and as we cleared the channel the coast guard warned of a live fire excercise right on our course. There was a three mile excusion zone that we had to vector around, but no shots across our bow, so I guess we navigated correctly around it.
NW winds started filling in so we started motor sailing and then gave the engine a rest as the wind filled in on a fast reach. Only thing messing up a perfect day was rain, until the dinghy started filling up with water. Winds were forcast to be 5-10 for 2 days so we took a chance on towing the dinghy as it obscures vision on top of the cabin. As we were doing close to hull speed at 7 knots in winds around 15-18 the dinghy centerboard trunk had water jetting up against the poorly sealed cap in the heavy 4-6 foot chop. We had to slow down and pull the dingy along side and bail it and try to seal the centerboard trunk cap with duck tape. This was quite the challenge in those seas. I was on my knees in the dingy with the bailer but felt like I was riding a wild bull. I was properly harnessed into the mother ship at the time but my life still mannaged to flash before my eyes.
Well the best laid plans, as they say... the duct tape wasn't doing enough an with sunset an hour away we decided to take the dinghy aboard. So with the foreboom as a gin pole prevented fore and aft we rigged a 4 fold purchase and a bridle on the dink and hoised it aboard. This took some time to rig and was trying in the rough seas, however the prepartations paid off as it came aboard quite nicely.
We continued to sail until the wind died and motored thru the night around Cape Fear. At 25 miles offshore in the rain there was not much to see except the GPS clicking off the miles. The shoal off Cape Fear extends out over 10 miles and the lighted bouy we picked as our way point was not functioning. Not what you want as the only check on the GPS after 70 miles, we never saw it, but trusted our instruments and kept on trucking. We did 4 hour watches since the cold was bearable with a bunch of layers on and ski gloves.
The wind started filling in and I unfurled the jib from the cockpit at 5 am, and waited for the watch change to raise the other sails. By 8 AM the wind increased to a 10-15 knot westerly, so I decided to fly the fisherman (a sail on schooners which flies from the top of the main and foremast above the gaff. With everything flying we intended to make Charleston by 9 PM, but as the wind abating our arrival time got pushed back to close to midnight. Winds were forcast to gust to 25 by that time and be right on the nose so we reluctantly went to plan B and diverted to Georgetown. This put the wind on the nose, so no sooner than spending a good deal of time getting all the sails up and settleing in for a warm sunny day of sailing off shore we had to change course directly into the wind, and spent another bunch of time getting them down and furled.
This is much tougher in an inflatable life vest/harness tethered in to the jack lines in rough seas than on Lake Winnipesauke that I have become accustomed to.
We were rewarded for our efforts because. soon after we started motoring into Georgetown, a half a dozen dolphins started playing in our bow and stern wakes. This was incredible as they were only 3 feet away from the boat many times and the water was so clear you could see them under the water as well as above. I got some pictures that look pretty neat.
We were warned about how long it can take to get into Georgetown bacause of the curent and long way up river, but not only did we have the current with us but the wind started blowing from the southwest and with the jib unfurled again we were doing 7-8 knots over the ground heading in the channel.
If the winds stay up as they are as I write this (SW gusting to 25) we will stay inside to Charlestown. Lots of talk about the Ben Sawer bridge closing cutting off the ICW from the north, but the schedule keeps being pushed back so now we still have that option.