Captain's Blog

  TRAVEL DAY 41 - Elizabeth City to The Great Dismal Swamp May 2, 2023 2.37 Hours/14.9 Miles     We woke on Monday May 1, with the intention of getting to the Great Dismal Swamp. We did our weather check and although there was some wind it wouldn't effect us on this leg. The issue was 3 days from now when we exited the swamp. The wind was forecast to pick up and it would effect us there. Another thing to consider was that the AGLCA Rendezvous was going on and Norfolk would be inundated with Loopers. We decided to hold off one day and hopefully alleviate both issues. Lamb's Marina          On our bonus day we straightened up the boat some and prepped for tomorrows journey. We got a taxi and went back into Elizabeth City to tour the Museum of the Albemarle with the crew of Ineffable. The Uber back to the marina was crowded but we made it work. Who knew you needed to tell Uber how many passengers you have? 4 people crammed in 2 seats    I h...

  TRAVEL DAY 37 - Alligator River to Columbia April 25, 2023 7.0 Hours/57.6 Miles     There are a few other "Loops" inside the Loop. One is the Albemarle Loop . It is a series of 10 stops around Albemarle Sound. Many that offer free docking. We don't intend to visit all 10 cities but will try to do a couple on our way to The Great Dismal Swamp and our last few stops in North Carolina before transiting to Virginia. Scuppernong River Cypress     We knew the winds would pick up later in the day and the Albemarle Sound can be rough so we pulled anchor at a little before 7 am and motored into the larger portion of the Alligator River. It was a lot calmer today and we had high hopes for an easy transit west on the Albemarle Sound.   Alligator River Swing Bridge     As soon as we went thru the Alligator swing bridge is was clear that it was going to be a little "sporty". The wind was blowing in from the NE and the waves were hitting us on the starbo...

  TRAVEL DAY 36 - Belhaven to Alligator River April 24, 2023 5.22 Hours/36.4 Miles     We had run our fuel down to as low as I wanted to comfortably go. I am still trying to nail down our fuel burn. We left the municipal dock in Belhaven and proceeded to the fuel dock at Belhaven Marina. The dockmaster hadn't arrived yet so we tied up and waited 10 minutes. The fuel pump is a good 100' from where we were docked. They have long delivery hoses that extend to the end of the docks so they can fuel at virtually any spot in the marina. Beth went to the pump and using the handheld radio called out the gallons as they ticked by "...30, 31, 32...". This is a great way for me to get a handle on what I am putting in each tank. We put in 70 gallons of diesel even though our gauge showed near empty we still had 28 gallons left. I am pretty confident now that my fuel burn at our 2000 rpm's/8 mph is right at 1.9 gph. Clearing the Breakwater at Belhaven    It was slightly overc...

  TRAVEL DAY 35 - Oriental to Belhaven April 23, 2023 6 Hours/47.4 Miles     The interesting people we have met on this journey. The day we pulled into Oriental, a guy in a 32' sailboat nosed in to the slip beside us. He looked pretty rough and tired. We helped him with his port stern line. After he got settled we chatted some. He said "Do you like sailing books?", "Sure, I love boating books" I replied. He handed me a copy of his book, Sailing Into Oblivion . In 2017-18 this guy sailed his 32' sailboat "The Mighty Sparrow", solo, non-stop and circumnavigated the globe. 271 days at sea! I said "Dude, you're going to need to autograph that book for me!" Jerome Rand    We pulled out of our slip Sunday around 9 am with the intention of traveling 3 hours to an overnight dock. R.E. Mayo Seafood has a cheap ($30) overnight dock, the best inexpensive fresh seafood and best of all, the cheapest diesel. It was about noon when we got there, and...