Holed Up

We spent A LOT OF TIME last night checking out the marine weather forecast. There is a storm coming up the coast that is going to mess things up for a few days, so we decided to hole up here in Beaufort. We’ll leave Friday instead of today (Wed) as planned.

So in the last 5 days I lost three days. That’s a lot of time to make up. It’s important not to stick too rigidly to a schedule BUT the marina situation is really tight this year, and I don’t want to lose my reservations.

We’ll just have to cut short our stops at Carolina Beach and Isle of Palms.

I try not to second-guess my decisions, but I was pretty pissed off when today dawned beautifully. I learned, however, that it was quite rough outside (as predicted.) The charter captains who went out this morning said they would not go back this afternoon. I understand that the Beaufort Inlet is wide and well-marked, but it – like any inlet – can be treacherous. On the day we arrived, in fact, the Coast Guard asked everyone to stay off channel 16 (the hailing and distress channel), because they were conducting an active search. It seems that a 30′ Scout capsized n the inlet Tuesday morning. No survivors. No bodies recovered. YIKES!

Anyway, we used our day productively. I washed the boat and a load of clothes, and Guinness supervised from the berth:

Then we walked into town and saw lots more pretty boats and houses.

Many of the house have historical markers, and many are Revolutionary (1770’s)

These guys said I could join on the spot. No application form; no waiting period. They said I would fit right in!

I’m thinking about it.

BTW, we saw some fellows emptying seining nets today, and when I asked what the fish were, they said Jumpm Mackul, which I interpreted to mean Jumping Mackerel. These are the fish we saw jumping in Adam’s Creek, and this – I am told – is the season for it. They are not particularly good to eat BUT Captain Chris, one of the charter captains, filleted a King Mackerel this morning and offered me a nice portion. We’ll grill it tonight.

Tomorrow, we have to change marinas. I asked for a two-day weather extension, but they could only give me one day, because someone else is scheduled to come into my slip.. See? Crowded. We’re moving right next door. No biggie. Except that I expect it will be raining.