The Great Dismal Swamp

We left Elizabeth City, NC, early on Monday morning (14 May) to make it through a bridge at 6:00 a.m. so that we could make the lock opening at South Mills Lock, about 20 miles away, at 8:30 a.m. It was a little foggy again, but clear enough to travel safely. There were five boats traveling together down the Dismal Swamp, with Irish Ayes in the lead.

The Dismal Swamp is narrow, about 50 feet wide, and warrants paying close attention to stay in the channel. Trees, logs, and other debris are commonly found in these waters, so it pays to go slow and pay attention to what is in front of you. That is hard to do though, because the tannin from vegetation makes the water look an awful lot like black coffee. You might be wondering why we would go this way, since the other route to Norfolk, the Virginia Cut, is wider, deeper, and more easily traveled. Well, it’s because the Great Dismal Swamp is just something we have heard so much about, and we just had to see and experience it for ourselves.

Four of the boats traveling together stopped at the Visitor’s Center free dock in North Carolina for the night. Four other boats joined us later and rafted off to other boats. The dock is long enough for only four boats, so rafting is the only way to fit everyone on the free dock. Interestingly, the Dismal Swamp Visitor’s Center is also a car and truck rest area for those traveling south on US Highway 17.

We arrived at the Visitor’s Center at about 9:30 a.m., and decided to spend the day and night tied to the free dock. Free is always good in the boating world, since there is so little of it.
We spent the day hiking the trails, visiting with other boaters, and just enjoying a spectacularly beautiful day.

The next morning, May 15, 2007, our little flotilla of about seven boats made our way north through the remainder (about 20 miles) of the Great Dismal Swamp. We were headed to Chesapeake, VA, and had at least two locks to traverse, as well as three bridge openings. Going through one of the locks was high adventure for one of the boats. Before I go into that, you have to understand that locks are not all the same, and the procedure for securing one’s boat to the lock wall as the water is pumped either in or out, depending on whether you are going up or down in the lock, is different in many locks. In this particular lock, the procedure is that the captain brings the boat to the wall, and the lockmaster takes your bow and stern line, wraps it around a stationary bollard on top of the lock, and hands you both ends of the line (that’s a rope). Then, as the boat rises or falls in the lock, you adjust your lines accordingly. When you get to the top or bottom of the lock, you can then just pull your lines back into the boat and motor out of the lock when the lockmaster opens the door.

The boat that had a bad day was about a 40 foot trawler, and was the last into the lock headed for a port-side tie up when he seemed to lose control of his boat. He turned sideways in the lock and his stern was headed for another boat, which I can tell you is never a good thing. He managed to get his boat straightened out just before he hit the wall, and got aligned with the lock wall. He was then told to go forward in the lock and tie up on his starboard side. As he got near the forward end of the lock, he seemed to lose control again and got sideways again, nearly hitting two boats, missing them by only inches. The lockmaster finally got him tied up properly (or so we thought), and the lock doors closed. As the water was being pumped out of the lock and the boats were falling with the water level, I looked over at the boat having all the trouble, and I was shocked to see that his boat was not falling. He had tied his lines tightly to his boat instead of feeding the lines out as the water. The result was that his boat didn’t descend in the lock with the water, which meant that his boat started going port-side down in the water. The lockmaster, seeing that he was about to have a disaster in his lock, ran over and either cut the lines, or found a way to quickly release them. The boat then fell back into the water and then banged very hard into the concrete wall of the lock. From our vantage point I couldn’t see how much damage was done to the boat, but I’m sure it wasn’t pretty.

The remainder of our trip to the Atlantic Yacht Basin was mostly uneventful. Our starboard engine began to get hotter than I like, so when we get to the marina I’ll check it out. As an anonymous wise man once said, cruising is the act of repairing your boat in new places. He or she was right. Stay tuned.

Elizabeth City, NC

We left Alligator River early on Friday, 12 May, and headed into Albermarle Sound. At this point we had a decision to make. Should we go right through the Virginia Cut or go left through the Dismal Swamp. We went left toward the Dismal Swamp Canal. It was overcast, and it rained for a short while, but then stopped and remained cloudy and overcast the rest of the day. We crossed Albermarle Sound and went up the Pasquotank River to Elizabeth City, and both were a little choppy but not uncomfortable. The dreaded crab pots were abundant along this leg of the trip. These things are such a nuisance, but it is a fact of life on the water. You just have to pay attention and hope that you don’t snag one that you can’t see.

We arrived at the Elizabeth City, NC Free Dock around 10:00 a.m. There were other “Loopers” already there, and before long the dock was full. We had the pleasure of meeting Fred Fearing, who is a legend in Elizabeth City. We have heard about Fred for years and were glad that we finally had the opportunity to meet him. Fred is 93 years old and is part of what is known as the “Rose Buddies.” Fred is the senior Rose Buddie with several assistants who help him to welcome boaters to the city.

Rose Buddies are known for their hospitality to the boating community. This tradition began 24 years ago, when Fred, and a friend, Joe Kramer, who is now deceased, decided to host an impromptu wine and cheese party for visiting boaters. Fred drives a golf cart and patrols the city dock to welcome boaters. He ensures that all the ladies get a rose from the rose bushes there at the dock. Every afternoon, weather permitting, Fred hosts all boaters at his house. He serves wine, beer, cheese, crackers, chips, and he enjoys sharing stories of his life, the community, and the Dismal Swamp canal. We, and the other boaters at the dock, joined Fred and a couple of his Rose Buddies on Saturday afternoon at Fred’s house and had an enjoyable time. Fred is quite a character and seems to truly enjoy meeting new people everyday.

While in Elizabeth City, we walked around the small town and toured the local museum. We had planned to leave on Sunday, but decided to stay one more day due to the WIND again. Fortunately, we are not on a schedule, so waiting out bad weather and windy days has not been a problem for us. Next stop is the Atlantic Yacht Basin in Chesapeake, VA

New Bern, NC to Elizabeth City, NC

After almost a week of strong winds and high seas, we were finally able to leave the marina in New Bern on Thursday, 10 May. It was a foggy morning, but the fog soon burned off, and it was a great day to be cruising.

We picked a good day to travel down the Neuse River. The Neuse is the widest river in the United States and can be pretty nasty when the winds and seas are not cooperating (so we were told and have read in the guide books. We also crossed the Pungo River (also in NC) on Thursday, and it was as smooth as glass. We traveled with Jim and Mary on ALTAIR until about 5:00 p.m. at which point they turned off and headed to Dowry Creek Marina.

We continued on for about another five miles and found an anchorage on the Pungo River. It was a nice, protected area, and several boats (a couple of them “Loopers”) were already there when we arrived. We arrived just in time for cocktails that were being provided by Dan and Kay on their boat ARIEL. Dan was going to all the boats in the anchorage as we were arriving, inviting everyone to cocktails. He was also acting as the “water taxi” for those who wanted to join them. We accepted the invitation and enjoyed meeting everyone from the other boats in the anchorage. This is part of what makes cruising so much fun.

We had a great night at anchor. The weather was perfect, the sky was full of stars, and it was quiet, with only the sounds of nature around us.

Friday morning (11 May) was VERY foggy, so we delayed leaving the anchorage until about 8:45. We eased our way out of the anchorage using our radar, chart plotter and our eyeballs, because it was still foggy in places, headed to the Alligator River - Pungo River Canal. As you enter the canal, it is rather narrow with trees and stumps sticking out of the water on either side. Drifting out of the channel through this area could be hazardous to your boat!

Early afternoon we got a radio call from Dan on MISS PRISS. He was right behind us on his boat headed to Annapolis for the summer! Dan keeps his boat at Patrick AFB during the winter and Annapolis for the summer. We met Dan in March in Lake Worth, FL, when he was traveling with the Provosts. All of us planned to make the crossing to the Bahamas, but as it turns out, we did not get to do that due to bad weather. Maybe it will work out that we can try again next year.

We made it a short day for traveling and anchored around 2:00 p.m. in Alligator River. Several other boats joined us during the day and early evening for another good night at anchor.

Myrtle Beach, SC, to New Bern, NC

Docked in front of us at Myrtle Beach was an old, steel trawler that was rather interesting. The gold looper flag was flying on the front of the boat, indicating that the owner(s) had completed the loop. The owner told us that it is an old army boat that had been purchased several years ago and converted to a trawler. The current owner, also named Mike, purchased Mi-T-Mo three years ago from the previous owner. In addition to the looper flag catching our eye, the small SUV that was on the front of the trawler got our attention. They are never without transportation, whether by water or land.

We departed Myrtle Beach at about 8 am, and arrived in Holden Beach, NC, around noon on Friday, 27 April. We were looking forward to spending some time with our old friends, Nick and Maggie Nicholson. Nick and Maggie have a beautiful home in SeaScape, and it is a place that we are considering moving to once we get this boat cruising out of our systems. After all, you have to live somewhere, right? We have known and been friends with the Nicholson’s for over 20 years, and we always enjoy spending time with them.

We stayed in a slip at SeaScape Marina thanks to friends of Nick and Maggie (and now us), who own a home in the SeaScape community, Jim and LaDonna, who graciously allowed us to put IRISH AYES in their slip for a few days.

On Sunday (29 April), we and the Nicholsons loaded the bicycles in their van and headed to Southport, NC. We took the ferry from Southport to Fort Fisher, located on Kure Beach, NC. While traveling on the ferry across to Fort Fisher, we watched passengers feed the birds from the bow of the boat. The birds would take the food right out of the hand of the guy feeding them. Fort Fisher was an important military fort during the Civil War, and is a very interesting place to visit. We toured the Aquarium located on the island, and then took a short bike ride to the Fort Fisher Civil War Museum.

On Monday evening we had dinner with Jim Dulaney, who is a member of our Yacht Club in Knoxville who now lives in Raleigh. He and his wife Lori and their two boys have a house on a canal in Holden Beach, and Jim gave us a tour of their house before going to dinner. They have a good view of the ICW and can watch the “snowbirds” come and go on the ICW. Unfortunately, Lori and the boys were not able to make it to Holden Beach, so we hope to see them, as well as Jim, the next time we are in the area.

On Tuesday, 1 May, we left SeaScape Marina at 7:20 a.m., with Nick and Maggie joining us on this leg of the trip. We had a beautiful day for cruising, but it was a long day, about 80 miles. Along the way, we kept hearing on the radio that military exercises were going to be conducted in the vicinity of Camp Lejeune, NC., a massive Marine Corps Base that straddles the ICW. The exercises were scheduled for the next several days, and the only time we would be able to pass through the exercise area would be from noon to 1:00pm, so we traveled as far as we could on Tuesday before anchoring for the night close enough to the exercise area that we could get through it before 8am in the morning when they closed down the ICW for the exercise.

We anchored at a place called Mile Hammock Bay, which is an anchorage in a harbor located within the military boundaries of the Marine Base, which made for an interesting night with Marines on amphibious war machines (that came and went right behind our boat), helicopters and other aircraft operating through the night. As usual, it was VERY windy while trying to anchor, plus the anchorage was almost full when we arrived about 4:30 p.m. Once we finally got the anchor set, an engine room check was conducted and Mike realized that we had a problem with the starboard engine water pump. Salt water was spewing from the water pump into the bilge, and that is NEVER a good thing. In addition to having salt water by the tens of gallons in the bilge, Mike discovered that the salt water had gotten on, and inside his tool box, so he removed all the tools and Nick and Maggie rinsed, cleaned and dried all the tools, and he has a bunch! Now are they good friends, or what !!

Now comes the fun, or exciting part. We were anchored in the back part of a small cove with a very narrow, and shallow, opening. Getting out of a crowded anchorage early in the morning is always a challenge, but trying to do it with one engine at idle speed is not an option. Why you ask, when at least half the boats in the world only have one engine and they do just fine? Well grasshopper, it has to do with the fact that twin engines on a boat are not in the center of the boat, as are single engines. They are offset, one on the port side and one on the starboard side, hence their names, port or starboard engine. Running a twin engine boat with only the port engine (that’s the one on the left side of the boat) makes the boat turn right-hand circles, and at idle speed the rudders won’t steer the boat, so you just go in circles. I won’t go into the physics of that, but, suffice it to say, we were not getting out of that anchorage with only the port engine. Well, after much thought, Mike and Nick came up with a temporary fix that would allow us to use both engines to exit the anchorage. Once in the ICW channel we could then shut down the starboard engine. And yes, it worked just fine.

Once out of the anchorage we made our way to Beaufort (pronounced Boofort), NC, about a 45 mile trip, on one engine. We cranked up the starboard engine just long enough to land the boat on the Beaufort Dock, and tied up for the night. Wouldn’t you believe it, of all the spare parts Mike has on the boat, he didn’t have the parts he needed to fix the water pump, so he called the local Caterpillar repair shop, and literally within 10 minutes the repairman was there to fix it. They overnight shipped the parts in, and the next morning the pump was fixed and we were on our way to New Bern, NC, by noon on Thursday, 3 May.

Brian and Frannie on ENDEAVOR and Tom and Paula on HOME AWEIGH were at Beaufort Docks while we there. Brian and Frannie joined us Wednesday evening for drinks and dinner in historic Beaufort. We had a delicious meal and an enjoyable evening.

We arrived at the Sheraton Sky Sail Marina, in New Bern, at about 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, 3 May. Nick and Maggie were heading to the airport to pick up a rental car they had prearranged, and we were hoping to see our friends Jim and Mary Milner, who were meeting us in New Bern on their boat, which is a “Sister Ship” to IRISH AYES, a 1986 Gulfstar 44 named ALTAIR. As we were tying up our boat, who should walk down the dock toward their boat? Yep, it was Jim and Mary, who had just returned from their home in Maryland. By coincidence, they had a rental car from Hertz that needed to be returned to the airport, and since Nick and Maggie were going to Hertz at the airport too, it all worked out just fine. So, we said goodbye to Nick and Maggie, and hello to Jim and Mary.

We didn’t intend to spend and entire week in New Bern, but after a couple of days here, the winds on the Atlantic Coast kicked up to dangerous velocities, over 80 knots off the NC coast and blowing over 50 knots here at the marina, we decided to stay put until the weather system blew itself out, which took about three days. We spent the time resting, visiting with Jim and Mary, and looking at homes in the area that are for sale. One of our objectives of this trip is to decide where we want to live in retirement, so looking at homes, and prices, in various places will give us a better perspective. New Bern is certainly a possibility. It’s a beautiful area, housing prices are pretty reasonable, and the people we have met are very friendly. We could live here. We have had a great time here, especially visiting with our friends Jim and Mary. Thursday (10 May), we move on up the coast toward the Chesapeake. Stay tuned.