We left Oriental after a final cup of coffee at “The Bean”
and headed on towards Beaufort, NC.
Along the way, we saw our first dolphins!
We also had some trouble with water depth along the way. The channels had been
shifted all over the place due to some bridge construction as well as shoaling
in a couple areas, and a shortcut didn’t quite work out. All in all, no damage
was done but we stirred up mud twice and had a close call where a good
Samaritan called us on the radio to tell us to stop “you are headed for a
shoal” and give us some local knowledge to really save the day.
The anchorage in Beaufort is beautiful but tricky with a
strong, reversing current , and it is crowded with some boats that have been
there quite a while…
We found a cozy spot right by the rachael carson wildlife
preserve. We were able to watch the wild horses during the evening from the
safety of our boat. A quick stroll on the island revealed there were burrs and
our chief of security got one tangled in her paw and had to be carried back to
the boat to prevent further boo boos.
Shortly after our arrival in the anchorage, we noticed the
smell of gasoline and an oil slick on the water. There were 3 sailboats
anchored up current of us, two of which looked pretty rough. I felt bad calling
the coasties on a WAFI but when a boat happened to show up within shouting
distance on a patrol, I had to call them over. They didn’t give it a second
look and said they already had a report about it. They drove away after giving
us dinner recommendations in town… Being the monkey-wrenching greenies we are,
we decided to take matters into our own hands. We set off in the dinghy with
plans to do….something!
We discovered it was not, in fact one of the 3 boats we
could see but in fact a fourth. That had sunk. The oil must have been bubbling
up from the fuel tanks on board. A pass with the side-scan confirmed our fears.
Later that evening we went into town to explore. We found the marine museum (or whatever it's called) right on the waterfront to be VERY cool with pirate treasure, fishing, and boat building displays. We also found good food and drinks. plural.
Late into the evening, a scheme was hatched to dive down to the offending boat
and stop up the hole. In a busy harbor. In murky water. Climbing inside a small
boat with who knows what for lines and wires and other ensnaring things. To get
covered in gasoline. And plug the leaky tank full of gas with….well… we didn’t
quite cover all the contingencies OK?
The next day, after
some water and coffee, it was decided this was not the best of plans and the
dive gear was left stowed. If anyone in the coast guard is reading this...I have exact coordinates for this vessel!
Your Uncle Wayne and I vacationed in Atlantic Beach, NC two years ago and Indian Beach, NC last year (both located on Bogue Banks and visited Beaufort while we were there. It was a great place to have a vacation. Beaufort is a cute little place. We took a "bus tour" of the town and who talked about the Civil War as being the war of northern aggression. That's an "interesting" perspective! Ha! If you go there again, you have to check out the cemetery. It's worth walking through. There are some great little restaurants in town as well. Happy journeys to the two of you.
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