We spent 4 nights at Homer Smith Marina in Beaufort which were really lovely. It was refreshing to be back at dock, with all the amenities. After some boat cleaning, and showers we were feeling pretty good. We also went out for dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant which was quite a treat.
The next day we spent some time exploring Beaufort, got some ice cream, I got a much needed haircut, Theone and Aria did some shopping and then we all met up for another dinner out at the pub. That evening we took the courtesy car and visited the Piggly Wiggly (grocery store), which was also quite an experience after being in the Bahamas for 4 months. The shear amount of selection is something to behold, the amount of fresh fruit and vegetables, etc. It's almost overwhelming after being away for so long. We did a very large grocery shop (it was hard not to buy just about everything), and loaded up the van. We needed a cart to get everything back to the boat.
The following day we'd booked the courtesy car during the day, and did a run over to Morehead City where there are big box stores, and did some clothes and shoes shopping which was also much needed. Aria continues to grow. We also picked up some propane, and stocked up coffee beans from a local shop too. We then borrowed the car yet again to do one final run to pick up yet more groceries.
We decided to extend one more night because we needed a new footpump for our fresh water. Ours had started leaking, and I was hoping to get one in Morehead City, but I couldn't find one in stock, and ended up having to amazon order one to the marina. But that meant we needed to stay one more night, which was easy to say yes to. The pump came next day, and it was a quick and easy install, and no more leaking.
We went for lunch at Beaufort Grocery (which is actually a restaurant), which we had heard really good things about, and it lived up to the expectations. Really wonderful meal, and desert.
And with all of that done, it was time to be underway again. We left the docks and headed back out to the main channel, and then north through the ICW again. This is really the first part of the trip where we are going back through the way we came down, which has an interesting feel to it. Something familiar for a change. We even got a bit of sailing in going up the channel as the winds were favourable for it. It's always a bit challenging to sail the narrow channels as the wind is messy among the trees and bridges, but not much traffic and strong enough winds to keep us moving so it worked alright.
We had planned to stop in Oriental, and so we made our way there. The town docks were all taken though, and inner anchorage was small and very crowded, and the outer anchorage was very rolly with the winds. So we abandoned those plans and headed a little further along to go and anchor in Broad Creek. It was nice and secluded, but very shallow. We had about a foot under the keel, but good protection from the wind and waves. Feels good to be moving again, but we do miss the marina too. Homer Smith is probably one of the better marinas we've ever stayed at, super nice docks, great clean facilities, and free laundry and courtesy car. Outstanding! Also Beaufort is an amazingly beautiful town, I'm glad we made time to stop here.
