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.