A Tale Of Two Ospreys

Southport to Mile Hammock Bay  |  8.5 Hours  |  57 Miles  

Thunderstorms rolled over Southport, keeping Barry and I awake for a good stretch of the night. From 2:00 to 4:00 sleep was spotty. When the alarm sounded at 7:00, we were both looking for the snooze button. We, however, needed to get moving and get some chores done before departing. At the top of our list was getting a pumpout. With the weather forecast looking unfavorable for an offshore passage, it was of prime importance to get underway with an empty holding tank. With business and paperwork done we were off the dock and quickly into the Cape Fear River, heading north to Snows Cut. The scenery was quite different from yesterday. Houses took on many different styles, although massive retaining walls were still common. As we approached Wrightsville Beach at high tide, we saw a flag and artificial palm tree positioned on a sandbar. We could only imagine the local yacht club congregating on this spot during low tide. The Wrightsville Beach Bridge opened on the hour and we timed our arrival perfectly to minimize waiting. Today, Paradigm Shift and Crossroads were joined by David and Sue on Day Dreaming. Day Dreaming spends her winters in North Carolina and her summers down the dock from us at Stingray Point Marina.

Paradigm Shift followed two other vessels through the raised spans. Crossroads and Day Dreaming followed. Five miles later was the Figure Eight Swing Bridge. We once again did the math to determine the best speed to run to avoid a long wait. Timing was pretty good and we all gladly cleared our final bridge of the day.

Gray was the color of the day and I missed the bright blue sky from yesterday. Sky blended with water and even the white sand dunes failed to elicit excitement. Birds became the day's most interesting sight. Osprey occupied the tops of many daymarkers. Canada geese noisily made their presence known from the mudflats.

The sky darkened even more, and the wind picked up as we prepared to cross Alligator Bay. A wind-driven chop quickly formed. Rain appeared nearby on the radar, but we stayed dry. The "grand house at the end of road" stood precariously close to water level. A high rise bridge and water tower marked our entrance into Surf City. Paradigm Shift texted back that our intended anchorage in Mile Hammock Bay already had quite a few boats inside. All three of us were thankful to claim our own spots for the evening. This area is actually on the property of Camp Lejune. Boaters are forbidden to go to shore because it is an active Marine Corps base. As we set our anchor, two MV-22 Osprey circled around and landed just over the tree line. They have continued to circle for several hours while conducting training exercises. As I've mentioned before, Barry designed the avionics for the Osprey while working for Boeing many (many) years ago. Thanks to Glenda for capturing this photo of Barry's past and present lives merging into one moment in time.