Last days of our trip home to North Myrtle Beach

We arrived in Windsong at the Portnoy’s dock on Monday (July 14^th) around 11 AM and had a relaxing time until our hosts returned from appointments in the afternoon.  A great cocktail hour(s) with the Portnoys and the Fishers, catching up and reminiscing. 

We chose to stay on the boat that evening.  Mary Jane and Mel had appointments on Tuesday but left a car at our disposal.  We hoped to see some friends but it did not work out.  We drove to Oriental and had lunch at M & M’s.   Again don’t come back to an establishment years later and expect the dish to be prepared the way you remembered.  A short stop at the Marine Consignment store but found no goodies.  Another stop for a few supplies at the grocery store and back home in the rain.  It rained all afternoon.

The weather report forecasted storms with high winds so we were urged to sleep in the house.   There was lightening all night but no bad storms.  At first light Dave was up and anxious to get underway and across the Neuse River while the wind was NE and under 10 K.  It wasn’t bad and Adam’s Creek was flat.  One perplexing problem was the amount of steam coming from the exhaust.  Dave imagined all sorts of mechanical problems as the exhaust filled the cockpit with the wind behind us.  It persisted all day.

Bogue Sound was a wet rocky ride and then rain that allowed us to only see two boat lengths ahead of us at times.  Thank goodness for our track on the GPS.  Waves subsided as we got into the narrow ICW area but the rain persisted in waves.  We stopped for fuel in Swansboro and decided it was prudent to stay put after seeing the radar showing storms moving up the coast.  The other factor was firing on the range at Camp Lejeune may have blocked our passage through the area.

Dave used the time to check the engine and other mechanics.  He found nothing that should have caused the heavy steam.  Leaks were dried up.  We read most of the afternoon while it  rained.  After cocktails we went to The White Oak Bistro and had a nice dinner on our last night out.  A return to this establishment did not disappoint.  On return to the marina Dave spoke to the other couple on the dock.  They have done the Great Loop four times with their chocolate lab on a boat our size.  No, I can’t imagine that!

Another early start with 116 mile ahead of us.  It was a morning of a few blunders which I promised not to reveal.  The steam problem had dissipated, we surmise it was caused by the extreme humidity.  The Cape Fear River was rocky with waves pushing from behind.  Between Southport and the bridge we were boarded by the Coast Guard for a safety check.   They were very nice and allowed us to proceed during their check.  We passed; as I was a former Aux. Coast Guard Vessel Examiner I knew there would be no problem.

The rest of the trip was spent avoiding other vessels on the water who were enjoying  a great day.  As you can see in the photo, Dave relished arriving back in South Carolina.  As we got by our house our neighbor, Julian, was on his dock watching for us.  Derwin, another neighbor had been tracking us on “Find My Friends”.  They both knew we would need a ride home from the marina to get our car.

Docking time 3:00 P.M.,  50 days on the water and 1,283.1 miles traveled.  During the trip we visited with 5 couples in, Windsong, our old neighborhood.  Nine of the folks we saw were our friends from the Chesapeake Bay Tartan Sailing Association.  We saw our children and grandchildren and 5 members of our extended family.  It was also nice to spend time in the Harbor East Marina, where we kept Temptress all those years and find the same folks in the office.

A routine is setting in at 2600 Broome Terrace, Adrienne is here and has helped me catchup with the many loads of laundry and the yard work.  The boat is emptied; definitely sitting higher in the water.  Dave is back at what Dave does best……  Neighbors are welcoming us home and catching us up on events of the past weeks.

Thanks to all of you who have giving me favorable comments and enjoyed the blog.  Sorry about the notice on the updates, I am still working on getting my  e-mail server to recognize the computer updates.  So until our next trip enjoy the rest of your summer as I entertain my family here at the beach the next two weeks.