Left Alligator River Marina by 8:30 after running engine for 20 minutes to be sure we were running as we needed to be. Windy and choppy on the Alligator River with winds from the west at 20 plus and gusting to 39. It was supposed to be a calm day. The wind direction was fairly constant on our aft quarter to starboard beam, and for the first time in history, First Mate pleaded for sails, but last evening's fuel gunk forced engine running throughout today for safety's sake later...I'm just saying, it would have been some AWESOME sailing...............
Reached the flatness of the Pungo Canal and throttled back from 2700 to 2200 RPMs, but still making 6.5 to 7.0 knots. While the Canal was broad and flat (galley wench made some delicious chicken quesedillas), the winds kept coming. This is supposed to be a treacherous place with plenty of debris, but even with recent rains it looked benign. (That is, if you stay in the middle of the channel, and don't hit any of the MANY stumps, snags trunk-size branches, and as long as no active barge traffic is coming, which today it was not) Reached the end of the Canal and the anchorage at the top of the Pungo River by 2:00, but the West wind and tree-less terrain, made spending a night there look like a bad idea. (First mate used stronger language) As a result, we continued another 9 miles down the Pungo to Bellhaven (apparently an ICW Cruiser hot spot). We skipped the town and marina facilities, and elected to anchor in Pungo Creek just in front of Vale Creek. Looks like a great spot. Wind stopped as soon as the anchor was down and its now bright and sunny. (And readable, as in, "it's so pleasant here I believe I can read without getting seasick"; which was, indeed, wonderful)
Charted a course "off the beaten path" of the ICW for tomorrow. Hope to head to Ocracoke Island which is part of the Outer Banks. There appears to be a great anchorage and a bit of Nantucket there. It's where Blackbeard was finally captured and hanged. Or shot. We'll find out and let you know.
Tomorrow, we head South....
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