April, 2002  St. Johns River to Elizabeth City, NC

We are docked at Hospitality Harbor, the free dock in Elizabeth City sponsored by the Rose Buddies. Years ago, two local gentlemen developed a tradition of coming down to the waterfront with a rose from their personal garden for each of the ladies on visiting boats.

Continued today by a core of volunteers, the tradition lives on, including one of the originators, Mr. Fred Fearing. Each evening there are five or more boats in the harbor a nice wine and cheese party is held to welcome boating visitors to Elizabeth City and allow boaters to mingle. It is a great chance to meet the crew of boats which have been hop scotching north or south at the same pace as ours.

Esther and Rose Buddy Founder Fred Fearing

Elizabeth City is in extreme north North Carolina, at the foot of the Pasquotank River which leads north to the Dismal Swamp. While the name Dismal sounds unattractive it is really tremendously interesting as well as scenic. Surveyed by George Washington, it is among the oldest canals still operating in this country.

Dismal Swamp Canal

Sadie B at Free Eliz. City Dock

Two low locks lift or lower vessels over the 50 or so miles of the Canal, which is mostly straight as an arrow, with only one turn. Also located along the Canal is a North Carolina State Visitors Center on Highway 17 with another free dock where boaters often gather to be part of the local scenery. An old friend from the area refers to the Pasquotank as the "root beer river" due to the dark coloring from tannic acids from all the surrounding vegetation.

Our trip north started March 27 with a move out of our home in Kissimmee and to the boat about 100 miles north. A general cleanup, bottom paint job and several mechanical tasks took two days and we launched on a Saturday, first heading south on the St. Johns River.

This is a spectacular body of water, very large and lake-like in the northern half, but very wild, narrow and relatively undeveloped in the southern half. A short distance north of Orlando, Kissimmee neighbors met us for a day cruise in a really scenic section of the river, as well as fetched us a new dinghy we had just purchased in a private sale in Orlando. Thanks to the Bouchers for this favor!

We did a small day cruise with them through a very scenic and wild section of the River near Blue Springs State Park, where many manatees winter. With the warm winter, we only saw two manatees, but lots and lots of gaters.

St. Johns river gater

A few days later found us on the more northerly reaches of the St. Johns, where we ran into (figuratively) a Navigator 37 out an a charter cruise which was bought by TrawlerFest attendees in Solomons last year. We got to met the charterers, Elkin and Aileen Thomas of Pennsylvania. We toured their boat, as well as got together for dinner the next night at a local eatery. They are both musicians and generously gave us a CD of their work, mostly original lovely folk music.

Outstanding memories of our trip north to date are several. On the St. Mary's River just north of Fernandina, a large patrol boat bristling with firearms orders us out of the channel and to keep our stem to the channel and stay in the shallow water while a very large and nasty looking submarine was towed toward the sea.

St. Marys River submarine

The Sea Island and Sounds of Georgia are mostly still wild and undeveloped. In some areas it is nearly 100 miles between marinas or any services. We walked miles on Cumberland Island, former home to several Carnegie's and now mostly National Park, and home to a band of free roaming horses as well as lots of other wildlife. We scared up a herd of wild pigs while on our walk, as well as lots of birds of many species. Wild turkeys are also common on this island.

The Sounds are actually the mouths of large rivers which empty into the sea. Northbound, the names Cumberland, St. Andrew, St. Simon, Altamaha, Doboy, Sapelo, St. Catherine, Ossaba, Wassaw, Calibogue, Port Royal, and St. Helena roll off the tongue like a romance novel. Many are so undeveloped one could imagine it possible to see the pirate Blackbeard come around the next bend at any time, or come across William Bartram exploring for plants in the New World.

Cumberland Island oaks

Above Charleston, SC the waterway is mostly smaller tidal rivers and creeks with canals connecting them, and more widespread development. We stayed several days at a free dock at Barefoot Landing and were guests of the Moody's, old friends formerly from Cypress Cove. They live just across the street from the waterway and are always generous with their hospitality.

Wild horses, Cumberland I.

While there we bought a digital camera, something which has been on the "want" list for some time. A few days earlier another cruising boat had passed ours and took a few pictures. The next day they presented us with three large prints of the photos they took which were the best pictures of our boat I've ever seen. I was convinced. Now we need to climb the learning curve to find out how to store, sort, retrieve, and send them!

First digital image of Sadie B!

Just below Elizabeth City are the Neuse River, Pamlico Sound, and Albemarle Sound. They are often a challenge to cross, the trip usually taking three day for us as its about 150 miles. Beam seas often develop in these wide and shallow inland seas and this trip was no exception. Sure enough, the weather systems contrived to make at least one section an adventure.

We were headed up the Alligator River a long narrow body of water lying directly north and south, with heavy following seas of three to four feet. We wanted to enter a small creek headed into a National Wildlife Refuge off to the side. With the big seas, and little knowledge of the opening to the creek we proceeded as slowly as possible with the following seas. When we found a big bunch of branches in the creek opening we were undecided, until just then, we slid up and off a large cypress tree stump.

That was enough for us, on to a marina and a safe tie up for the night. The next day the winds calmed by late morning and we had a great cruise up the lower Pasquotank River to Elizabeth City.

We expect to be in Vermont by late May in time to fly to Poulsbo, WA for a Trawler Fest there. We will be spending an additional week there sightseeing. We look forward to seeing lots of you soon and hearing from the rest by phone or e-mail.

Esther and Dennis at a TrawlerFest

Dennis and Esther Bruckel

1984 Albin 27 Sadie B

Kissimmee, FL winters,