May 24, 2013
This is our 6th trip travelling on the coast, three times going south and now the third time travelling north. We are returning to places we have been before and seeing people we have met during our travels. The first couple of years of cruising everything was “the first time”. Every marina and anchorage provided a degree of uncertainty. Now as we travel on the waterway there is still a sense of “awe”, but there is a nice sense of familiarity. We have favorite anchorages and marinas. Being in familiar surroundings gives us a feeling of confidence as we return as well as providing opportunities to renew friendships along the way.
As always the weather dictates where and how long we stay in one place. Sometimes we want to stay longer, but if the weather provides an opportunity to travel, we have to take it.
Our first stop at a dock was in Oriental where half of the day was spent changing oil and fixing the fuel gauge. We also had dinner with friends we had met in Ocracoke last year, Jane & Paul and Jeff & Peggy. Early Mother’s Day morning, we were bound for Okracoke, one of our favorite places in the Outer Banks. Mike likes it because he can use his National Parks Senior Pass to get half off the dockage. We also have friends that live on the island. As was said before, there is nothing like familiar faces to make us feel at home.
Our next stop was Manteo, NC; it is also in the Outer Banks. John and Marlene who we shared the docks with in Ocracoke were also going to Manteo. They told us about the free dock in Manteo where we spent two days.
This is our 6th trip travelling on the coast, three times going south and now the third time travelling north. We are returning to places we have been before and seeing people we have met during our travels. The first couple of years of cruising everything was “the first time”. Every marina and anchorage provided a degree of uncertainty. Now as we travel on the waterway there is still a sense of “awe”, but there is a nice sense of familiarity. We have favorite anchorages and marinas. Being in familiar surroundings gives us a feeling of confidence as we return as well as providing opportunities to renew friendships along the way.
As always the weather dictates where and how long we stay in one place. Sometimes we want to stay longer, but if the weather provides an opportunity to travel, we have to take it.
Our first stop at a dock was in Oriental where half of the day was spent changing oil and fixing the fuel gauge. We also had dinner with friends we had met in Ocracoke last year, Jane & Paul and Jeff & Peggy. Early Mother’s Day morning, we were bound for Okracoke, one of our favorite places in the Outer Banks. Mike likes it because he can use his National Parks Senior Pass to get half off the dockage. We also have friends that live on the island. As was said before, there is nothing like familiar faces to make us feel at home.
Our next stop was Manteo, NC; it is also in the Outer Banks. John and Marlene who we shared the docks with in Ocracoke were also going to Manteo. They told us about the free dock in Manteo where we spent two days.
Art Fair at Oriental, NC
Bed & Breakfast in Manteo
Free dock in Manteo
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Outer Banks, NC
Cruising toward Manteo
Pier in Manteo
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We rented a car so we could go to the Wright Brothers National Monument in Kitty Hawk. The grounds are no longer sand and the hills have shifted due to the high winds in the area. The four stone markers showing the length of the first four flights on December 17, 1903 is barely as long as a runway in a small airport. It was fascinating to realize that there is only a 63 year span between the very first flight, which lasted 12 seconds and went 120 ft. and a spaceflight which put a man walking on the moon. The volunteer park ranger who gave the afternoon presentation was outstanding.
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That night John and Marlene came over with someone they had met who is a fiddler. John plays the mandolin. Anam Cara had her first blue grass festival!
Osprey make nests in almost all the channel markers.
The next morning during a lull between storms, John and Marlene were able to get their boat off the wall in Ocracoke and continue their journey. We chose to stay another night. The next night we met up again with them in Chesapeake, VA at a popular stop along the ICW called Great Bridge. Great Bridge is a free dock and is 12 miles from mile 0, the start of the ICW. Great Bridge is the location of the first land battle of the Revolutionary War in Virginia and America’s first victory. One section of the free dock is alongside a newly constructed park dedicated to this battle. This is a nice improvement over the previous swampy empty lot! Up to this point, we had been stalling our journey north in case we decided to make a trip back to the Midwest for Memorial Day. Once we knew that was not necessary, we were ready to head to the Chesapeake Bay.
Anam Cara on the wall at Great Bridge
Travelling through Norfolk
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Recreation of Great Bridge causeway.
Great Bridge today
Placque commemorating
Major Thomas Marshall who fought at Great Bridge,
along with his son
Lieutenant John Marshall, who eventually became the 4th Chief Justice of the United Stated
US Naval Hospital Ship
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