That Log Has Ears!

Belhaven to Coinjock  |  10.3 Hours  |  76.4 Miles  

The sun had appeared over the tree line when I went on deck to raise the anchor. As always, the thick, black Belhaven mud encased all 75-feet of chain and took a while to clean. What made today a little less miserable was the mild (mid-50s) temperature and low wind. Early morning clouds soon burned off. Sunshine and a bright blue sky greeted us as we entered the Alligator-Pungo Canal. The 21-mile long passage cuts through forests and wetlands. It is arrow-straight and there were no other boats close to us. It was easy to keep our eyes high in the trees. We were rewarded with several bald eagle sightings. The first two occurred close together.

A bit of time passed before the next one was spotted. Later we saw several large birds in a single tree -- uncharacteristic of eagles. Upon closer inspection it was a committee of turkey vultures. Their red heads glowed in the mid-day light. As we neared the end of the canal, our focus shifted down to water level. That's when we spotted an odd-looking log. Wait ... that log has ears. I grabbed my phone, headed to the bow, and discovered the "log" was actually a black bear swimming across the canal.  

Barry slowed Crossroads down to idle and let the bear swim in front of us. He reached the bank and scampered ashore. 

In previous trips we've seen deer and alligators cross our path. This was our first bear. The bear acted like this may have been its first trawler encounter.

Still excited from the bear, the trip down the Alligator River went by fast. Soon we were at the Alligator River Bridge. The bridge tender opened the span as we approached and we passed through without delay. Construction is progressing on the new high-rise bridge that will eventually replace this swing bridge. The project website reports that all 710 piles are in place and crews are ready to start installing columns, caps, and bridge decks. The new bridge is scheduled to open to traffic in the Fall of 2028. The crossing of Albemarle Sound was uneventful. The sun warmed the pilot house to 80-degrees. We bypassed our normal anchorage at Camden Point and decided to put a few more miles behind us. The warmth and the long day made us both drowzey. We tied up in Coinjock just before 6:00. Barry had his tastebuds set on the restaurant's famous prime rib so we took a little walk before stopping in for dinner. The talk of the town is of Monday's upcoming weather event. We'll make a few more miles tomorrow then hold up for a few days before arriving in Deltaville.

Shaking Off The Fog

Beaufort to Belhaven  |  8.8 Hours  |  58.4 Miles  

Today was moving day! We set an early alarm and quickly hit the deck to prepare for departure. During our time in Beaufort, we had utilized every fender and dock line possible to protect Crossroads from Mother Nature and the dock. It took a while to free her, but we cast off right at our target time of 7:30. The warm glow of sunrise still painted the Grayden Paul Bridge. Yesterday's storm was only a memory. Low wind meant glass-smooth water. Even the lower temperature was bearable with the absence of wind chill. 

Dozens of dolphin escorted us north and reminded us of all the wonderful days we've spent on the water. As we neared the mouth of Adams Creek a soft haze was spotted on the horizon. As we got closer, we realized it was fog. The cold air had settled over the warm water to form an unexpected barrier. We throttled down and ventured into the cloud with our navigation lights and radar on. Visibility was about 75 feet. Barry radioed ahead to communicate with oncoming boat traffic. We squeezed by a tug/barge combo that was "parked" on the bank. 

Thankfully the fog lifted within three miles and we were treated to a beautiful day after that. The ICW mile marker revealed that we had 60 miles remaining to reach our destination of Belhaven. We settled in and enjoyed the smooth ride and warm sunshine heating up the pilot house. Even Mom's guardian angel penguin enjoyed the ride in his new home on our helm. 

Our passage up the Neuse River was uneventful. Waves were low, but a little choppy. Our windshield took several good splashes of spray. Once we entered the Hobucken Canal, it was time to go out and clean the windshield. At the same time, I coiled up all the dock lines that were removed in the morning. As we neared our destination, I went out to hook up our anchor bridle. This seemingly easy task, took much longer than anticipated. I fully believe that some gremlin got into our Portuguese bridge locker and held a knot-tying class with the two ears of the bridle. Eventually, everything straightened out and we eased into the familiar anchorage at Belhaven. The sun set as Barry fixed dinner. After Jeopardy! we spent some time reviewing the weather and figuring out how to best avoid the next approaching storm. The long-range plans are still iffy, but tomorrow we will head to Coinjock.