Manatee off our swim platform...Miami

Sunday, April 22, 2007

The "day before departure" has arrived. With clear blue skiies and warm temperatures, we ready the boat for her trip down the Cape Fear River to Carolina Beach where she will be hauled for final maintenance. The leaky injector pump was deemed to not be an issue thus all the Turkey needs during her final check-up is to fine tune the wheels and tighten up the throttle mechanism. After all is finished, we will head up the NC ICW towards Beaufort NC and our next destination, Oriental NC.


The past few days have been spent in relative quiet. The boat had a new coat of 3M Performance Wax applied to the upper decks and gunnel, the inside had another cleaning, various and sundry items were put back into their normal storage quarters and Sidney got his grooming for the week. One can always tell when that happens as there are little balls of hair floating all over the boat basin. Honestly, I can't figure out how he can lose so much hair and still have such a heavy coat left on him! And with the onset of warmer temperatures, he'll lose even more. Thank God for vaccum cleaners and specialized hair brushes for dogs!


This morning was an interesting morning as we saw our first alligator. Small though it was, it was confirmation that one really does need to keep the dog within sight at all times. The gator was sunbathing on the edge of the basin nearest our boat. By the time I got our camera, he was out of sight. So we headed off to the grocery store to provision for our next week without sight of fresh fruits or veggies.


Once we leave here, we'll travel about 50-60 miles a day which means we'll be in Oriental in about 3 days barring any unforeseen issues with mechanical issues or weather. We met a retiring Marine Corp officer in Miami Beach just before we left. John was taking his newly purchased Island Packet sailboat up to Oriental where he lives with his wife. We'll, hopefully, tie up to his dock and spend a couple of days checking out the area. Steve is not terribly fond of the heat and humidity of late spring and summer in this part of the country but I don't mind it at all. Oriental is on the Neuse River just west of the NC Outer Banks and just a short trip either north to Norfolk VA or south to Beaufort NC; both are easy trips to the ocean. And, there is great fishing so what's there not to like!


Once there, we will search for an open wifi connection but, if none is available, we'll talk when we can. Take care for now.