N Carolina – (Part 1) – Tim & Martha's trip around the Great Loop

Heading back to Southport via TVR–We drove from Marion, IN to Plumtree, NC. We spent 3 days at TVR setting up the camper, mowing, fixing tractor and many other jobs. While we were at camp about 150 campers (mostly families) had a retreat from Fri-Sun. It is very different being at camp when it’s almost at capacity. There are plans to expand the dinner/kitchen area, but until that happens the food line is very long and slow….but the food is always good which makes up for the time one has to wait.

Sunday morning we headed back to the boat in Bri’s car. Sunday afternoon Tim replaced the water pump so now we have water on the boat again. Monday the TVR single staff (Bri, Emma, Andrew, Silas, Ethan) arrived for the boat ride. (The group was enjoying a mini vacation together). Unfortunately the winds in this area were between 15-20 knots so not a good day to be out on the water. They settled for lunch on the boat, walk around Southport, ice cream and a cold swim in the marina pool. Then they headed back to Charlotte & TVR. Both Tim & I enjoyed getting to know these young people and also to be with Bri a little longer. What a great group!!!

Tuesday was laundry and planning day as well as a down day. Tomorrow we head to Wilmington.

Wilmington: The winds were subsiding so we ventured out onto the ICW with Wilmington as our destination. This city is 15 miles off the ICW but well worth the side trip. We passed a huge military ammunition depot and NC’s largest commercial harbor as we traveled to Wilmington proper. Wilmington is charming in it own way, much like Charleston but with a small town feel. We toured some of the historic district by horse drawn carriage. Fact: the city is restoring the streets in the Historic District by removing the pavement so the original bricks/cobblestones are revealed. We toured the battleship “North Carolina” for many hours. Lots of history from this boat and the people of North Carolina are very proud to have it showcased in Wilmington. We used a water taxi to get to the battleship. After visiting the battleship we took another boat tour of the harbor/downtown for more history. I was disappointed in this tour as there were many ships coming & going so we didn’t get to see as much as I had hoped.

We also toured the railroad museum near the waterfront. So much history. On our walk on the river walk we checked out the wooden boats that were being constructed by the students from the college. It surprised me that this art is still out there and young people are interested in learning this skill.

**Lots of good information and some very elaborate model railroad setups – which I neglected to take pictures of**

The marina we were docked at had some interesting “house boats”. Basically Airb&b’s on the water at $600/night. Yikes!!! Glad our slip wasn’t that much. Tim counted about 40 of these house boats. Hope this investments pays off for the marina.

Harbour Village: After two nights in Wilmington we headed out on the water again with an overnight stop at Harbour Village. This harbor is basically a residential area with a harbor at its center with maybe 2-3 transient slips available. We were docked on the fuel dock so not meant for long stays by any means. Also no restaurants close to this harbor, but a nice quiet night as there were only a few people on their boats. Not much to do here but walk the docks, so that is what we did and called it an early night.

**Our 37 is the one on the Left, another 32 was also stopping for the night**

Swansboro: Another stopover location on a skinny city dock. Tim did a fine job of getting our boat into our 14′ wide slip (our beam is 12’9″). Another small town with the historic area not far from our dock. We walked a couple of streets and looked in the small stores nearby. The highlight of our 2 night stay was a visit from Emma’s (Brianna’s roommate at TVR) parents–a tour of our boat and brunch at a local restaurant.

Our second day in Swansboro the winds really kicked up and our boat was rocking in the wind. I was very happy to be securely tied up to the dock and hoped that the next day the wind would decrease its intensity so we could travel comfortably.

**You see interesting things as you cruise the rivers, Things you will never see in a car on the highway. Here we crossed thru a Military Base**

**Also passed large Coast Guard station**

Beaufort: The wind did die down considerably making our next leg very comfortable and safe. We arrived in Beaufort, NC around 1pm to the city docks. The dockhands were very helpful in helping us get our lines tied up. We enjoyed a little walk around town and had lunch (Flounder Tacos) at a local restaurant. I’m working on my taste for seafood. After lunch we walked a little further into the historic district and back to the boat. The area around the city docks is very quaint with a small town feel.

**This qualifies as history too, and brings back memories**.

Observation of the ICW: The trek on the ICW in North Carolina has been very different from the low lands in Georgia and South Carolina. In Georgia & SC we meandered around the lowland areas whereas in NC the ICW has been mostly straight with only a few bends. Again, each area is so different and brings its own challenges.

Off to Oriental, NC