Nov 4

We had a cool but absolutely beautiful day for leaving Beaufort.

There were two things which we tended to hold us up in our travels: tidal currents and bridges. The bridge schedules were sometimes pretty restrictive. Some would open on the hour only and some on the hour and the half hour. Anyone boating through should call 910 686 2018.before approaching the Figure 8 bridge and the Wrightsville bridge to confirm the schedule

It can be a real pain circling for significant periods in a strong current, in a narrow channel. The next day, after waiting for almost 30 minutes for the Figure 8 bridge to open near Wrightsville, we went aground just as the bridge was about to open and with a strong current pushing us further aground. Only quick action, turning the outboard to wiggle our keels allowed us to back free. Right after, a helpful soul in a small fishing boat came over to advise us that we were in dangerous grounds.

Maybe we were too distracted by the artificial palm tree on the artificial island. Who says that governments cannot be just as tacky as individuals?

After a long day, we stopped at an anchorage in Topsail Sound, North Carolina. Three monohulls followed us in. I think they were hoping that we would sound out the waters as the anchorage was unmarked. On the way in, we spied an old Piver plywood trimaran. Bob Williams, eat your heart out (not)!