2020: New Bern to Pungo River Anchorage NC

15 May 2020
Depart: Fairfield Harbour anchorage near New Bern, NC 10:20
Arrive: Pungo River, Crabtree Bay near Belhaven, NC 6:30
Distance: 67 nm

Clark must have been up early today. He got a sunrise picture for the blog! Then he went back to bed!

Sunrise in Fairfield Harbour, NC

We pulled up the anchor just after 9:00, but with one more chore to complete, we headed over to Ralph's house before getting underway for our trip.

Ralph's house and Mazel Tug

Clark rested Sunset Delight against the poles at Ralph's dock. After we had lines secured, we handed a water hose over to Ralph who connected it to his spigot and let us fill our water tanks. As the water ran, we had a bit more time to exchange stories. With some similar interests, Diane and I hit it off real well. We were sorry to have to leave.

Ralph and Diane

As we exited Fairfield Harbour, some boats caught Clark's attention.

Cute boat name ... Bear Feet

Metal sailboat ...

Named Silver Bullet from Cleveland, OH

After we got out on the open water, i.e. out of Fairfield Harbour, Clark set up the autopilot to follow a route on the chart plotter. Given that, we had little to do other than watch for obstacles and traffic. With not much traffic, I found myself studying the clouds in the sky. I want to learn how to paint fluffy clouds and today's sky was full of them in all sorts of shades of white and gray.

Layers of fluffy clouds today

White clouds and Dark clouds

Bright blue sky with assorted clouds

With the Nebo system, folks can track our whereabouts. Our friend Kenny on Daybreak must have noticed our position on the water as he contacted Clark and told him we should consider stopping for shrimp at R. E. Mayo Seafood. A short while later, we passed by without stopping as I have both fish and shrimp in  my freezer already.

We traveled the Pamlico and Pungo Rivers today to reach our anchorage for the night. Just before we arrived at the area where Clark had chosen to look for a place to drop anchor, we saw a barge coming the opposite direction on the waterway. It took a long time, but we finally passed him just before we made our turn off for the night.

On-coming traffic

There he goes; we can turn into the anchorage area now!

When we exited the ICW, we immediately found ourselves surrounded by crab pots. Given the quantity of traps, we had a very difficult time finding a place to drop anchor.  We needed sufficient swing room for the expected change in wind direction during the night. We finally managed to find a spot in Crabtree Bay where we felt comfortable dropping anchor.

Sunset on the Pungo River, NC

Sunset on the Pungo River, NC