River Dunes

Log 21,858

Oriental, NC

We had just a hint of a cool morning yesterday after months of heat and humidity at home in Georgia. It was 67° degrees when I arose to prepare to get underway. In the coming week we are expecting even more of a drop in temperatures, which will be welcome.

We have arrived at our destination. It is a development centered around boating and sailing called River Dunes, close to Oriental, NC. It is a lovely spot with hundreds of boats tied up in a very protected harbor, but so far we have seen few people here. We had dinner in the clubhouse last night and only one other couple was there. It is very quiet.

Sunday, we ran up the Intracoastal Waterway from Myrtle Beach to Southport, NC. and then followed the Cape Fear River for several miles before leading through a land cut to Carolina Beach, where we spent Sunday night.  In Southport we passed the badly damaged Southport Marina. Hurricane Isaias hit the area August 4 and the Category One hurricane simply ripped all of the docks apart and piled up the boats on top of each other in the marina. The word in the area is that a dredging operation in the marina had sucked out too much mud around the pilings leaving them unable to support the docks in the wind. Now the damaged docks and boats have been cleared and it is simply an empty harbor.

Southport Marina after Hurricane Isaias

Southport Marina basin today with all of the damaged docks removed

Carolina Beach was a quick overnight Sunday night for us. The Lovely Laura Lee had purchased fresh crabmeat for us in Georgetown so we dined on crabcakes and salad.

We spent Monday night in Swansboro, NC, a quaint historic small town just south of Beaufort/Morehead City. We didn't get to see much of the town as we arrived late and left early, but we'll be back at some point. Yesterday we cruised mostly east crossing Bogue Sound, and then turned north at Morehead City to head up Adams Creek to the Neuse River. We arrived at our destination right at 4 pm.

We have had a great trip, but we are glad to now have a break from being on the go every day. We'll be here until next week, drive home for a couple of weeks, and head back up for more time in the area. I'll try to post a few pictures of this beautiful area.