In the morning, Kelly did some shopping at the couple of shops open on a Monday. And, spent the afternoon into the early evening cleaning the boat.Wishes had a lot of salt on her from water coming over the bow during travels. It was a long process to scrub her, but she looks much better. That evening we did 3 loads of free laundry. It was a late night but glad we got it done for our travels the next day.

We enjoyed Spoon River restaurant so much that we decided to go there for breakfast….and it is the only place open. The food was once again very good. We didn’t order the Bloody Mary because we know it won’t be as good as Stuffed Pig in Marathon!  Ha

After dinner, we walked around town even though most of it was closed and then relaxed in the gazebo at the marina. It was quiet with a nice breeze. We enjoyed being lazy so much that we forgot about dinner so walked over to the pub and had pizza.

The day before, a center console boat docked in a spot that would make it nearly impossible to get out of our slip. Mike and Kelly didn’t sleep well stressing about how to get out of the space in the morning because we wanted to leave early. We try to get out of slips early before Mike starts work. Luckily, someone was on the boat in the morning and agreed to move it for us. Kent and Katie on Silver Linings, helped us get out. Pulling the boat out of the slip is tricky to make sure your swim platform doesn’t swing into anything. Water was calm, like it usually is early in the morning, and we got out just fine.  Thank you, Katie and Kent!

Our trip was a welcoming cool weather. Sometimes it is nice to put on a sweatshirt! We had few bridges which Mike usually does.

We arrived at Belhaven Marina around 5 pm. It was a face dock (parallel parking) with no one there. We were easily pulled up and tied off. The marina is a cute marina. The owner is friendly and helpful. He provided good guidance on docking which doesn’t usually happen. The showers were decorated which is rare and had free towels, also rare.

We ate dinner at Spoon River which is said to be one of the best restaurants in North Carolina. Funny that it is in such a small town of only 1600 people. The was empty except for this restaurant. It was packed. The owner showed us to the wine room for us to pick our wine while we waited – nice touch. It was fun to see the bottles and look them up before we decided. The food was great, and the restaurant is nicely decorated.  On travel days, we don’t eat much so we were hungry for dinner!

While Mike worked, Kelly spent the day with Katie, Ruby and Violet on Silver Linings touring the town. We visited the local historic cemetery, and we rode on the double decker tour bus. We learned about the local history and architecture.  

Fun fact, houses that have a flat section on a peak roof with a railing around it is called a “widows walk”.  The wife would stand on the roof looking out to sea waiting for her sailor husband to return.

 After work, Mike and Kelly had lunch at Black Sheep next to the marina on the waterfront. We had a very good shrimp pizza. After, Mike went back to work for the afternoon and Kelly did some shopping.  It rained so she had to rush between stores. She bought some wooden blocks with the nautical lettering spelling “Beck”. Not sure where we will put it on the boat, but it is cool.

Our freezer hasn’t been holding its temperature lately. We defrosted it thinking it would help but it is getting worse. It is only at just above freezing so we are trying up to use the partially thawed food. We brought 2 pork tenderloins to Silver Linings and cooked them at their boat (their boat is bigger and can accommodate all of us). While it was cooking, the girls showed us some of their artwork. They are both talented. Violet has been making dog treats to save up some money to buy a henna kit. Kelly and Violet negotiated 2 bags of dog treats for $5….and the dogs love them! It was a great night just sitting around the table talking with great friends.

In the morning, we finally figured out the thug sound. We think it is the military base training.

At 7 am, we pulled the anchor up and headed on our way. We waved good bye to Sam on Tidbit and sent each other pictures of their boats. It is always nice to get a pic of your boat. As we got underway, we saw several paratroopers in the sky!! What a great treat.

It was an easy drive for Kelly to do while Mike worked. Kelly doesn’t drive as often but not having Jen aboard she has had to do it more.

We arrived in Beaufort, NC midday and getting into the slip was fairly easy. Current was calm which always helps. We met up with our friends on Silver Linings and used the marinas courtesy car to go to the grocery store. The car was old with a lot of miles on it, so it made for some good laughs. We sent a cute video to Michael, it is posted below. A side note all jokes aside, we are truly grateful for the free courtesy car.

That evening, we had dinner with 5 looper boats (including us) – Silver Linings, Kittiwake, Wright Chioce, and Tranquility Eh.  A new friend, “Tranquility Eh!” is from Texas! It was fun to share Texas stories and listen to their journey.  Few loopers leave from Texas and have stories about going through Louisiana and Mississippi. Kelly was craving beef after having so much seafood so we ate Ribeyes Steakhouse. It did not disappoint!

At 7 am, we pulled away from Southport Marina to Mile Hammock Anchorage.    

It is a nice anchorage. It is wide and deep enough for a lot of boats. We got to watch the military training landing helicopters….the sound of freedom. We anchored by “Tidbit” whom we have seen a few times but have not met.  

At night, we kept hearing a thud sound. It sounded like a log hitting the boat. We checked several times with a flashlight (pitch black dark there) and didn’t see anything.  Oh well, we went to bed.

Today, while Mike worked, Kelly did some planning. We are a little behind on the traditional looper schedule. We need to decide if we are finishing the loop this year or have a different plan. Inflation and the price of fuel is a factor. We also miss our son Michael and don’t get to see him as often as we would like to. Nothing has been decided so more to come.

Monday was a domestic day. Mike made burgers and Kelly did some dog grooming.  The dogs really need some grooming. Hopefully, we can get them an appointment in Norfolk. There aren’t any local groomers before then.

We woke at 6:00 am and saw a lot of fog. We decided to keep getting ready to leave the marina and see if the fog burns off. At 7:30 am, visibility looked good, and the dockhands arrived, so we pushed off. The waters were once again calm in the morning, and it was a relaxing, beautiful drive.  

At about 9:00 am, the fishing boats were on the move towards the inlets to the Atlantic Ocean. At 10:30 am, the family pleasure boats were heading to the beaches. The fishing boats make a small wake so they aren’t a problem. The pleasure boats may be small, but their wakes can be strong….and when they wake you, they smile and wave, not knowing what they’ve done. 

Arriving in Southport, NC was easier than we thought. All weather apps indicated strong winds and current. The marina had a wall to block some of the current and the winds died down so it was calm backing in. Mike did a great job getting us in….as usual. Kelly has been learning to throw the lines to the dockhands and did a good job. No second try this time.

A couple hours later, the AGLCA Harbor Host, Bob Creech knocked on our boat to welcome us to Southport. Bob is known for welcoming every AGLCA looper and inviting them to his front porch for great beverages and conversation.  t was Memorial Day weekend so we didn’t want to bother him and didn’t take him up on the offer.  

We spent the afternoon walking around the streets and looking at the historic homes.  We stopped at “The Tiki Tavern” for a beer and margarita. It is a bar for locals that play pool.

Mike and Kelly were a bit nervous pulling away from the dock with Jennifer. Not having her help caused us to feel out of sync. The inexperienced dockhand didn’t help either. A neighbor saw us leaving and came over to help. They trickly part about pulling away from a parallel space is not crushing the swim platform as you turn the bow out. The dockhand didn’t understand the risk but the neighbor boat did and he was able to push the stern. Whew!!  At 7 am, the water was very calm and we were the only ones there.  

Our new friends on Bacchawhoppa followed us till they reached their next marina, Osprey Marina. We planned on anchoring but didn’t like the 2 anchorage options. It seems there aren’t a lot less anchorage spots along this route. Instead, we started calling marinas.  

This was a nailbiter for us without Jen. We found a marina that looked like and easy in.  A 4 hour drive turned out to be 9 hours to get to Barefoot Marina. While the morning was quiet and easy, the afternoon was crazy. Many boaters were out celebrating the holiday weekend. This includes inexperienced boaters that don’t obey boating rules and etiquette. Boaters would drive by fast and create a large wake which pushed and rocked us. Mike had to make sure we stayed in the channel and not wake into another boat. He also needed to steer to compensate for all the waking to keep the stuff inside our “home” from shifting around. We do a good job securing everything, but a bad wake will cause a lot of problems.

Funny moment out of the water today…. There were a lot of young people on what appeared to be a rented pontoon boat. One boat was crowded with young women.  When they passed by, they lifted their bikini tops and flashed us! We were confused.  It was funny, but why a us? lol

At 4 pm, we arrived at Barefoot Marina in Myrtle Beach, SC. The current in the marina was surprisingly calm. There were 2 dockhands waiting to help. As Mike pulled the stern in, Kelly tossed the first rope… and missed. She tossed a second time and the dockhand caught it. Missing is a problem, because Mike had momentum pulling in. The first dockhand walked the stern line back, second dockhand easily took the mid-ship line and Kelly watched the swim platform. Then Kelly let Mike know he could turn the motors off. Whew!  

Afterwards, Kelly took a shower at the marina, and we watched the Coast Guard ticket crazy boaters. After navigating the boaters today, it was satisfying to watch some of them get ticketed.