Calm After the Storm - Belhaven to Coinjock, NC

The storm I described in the previous article ended on Monday evening after a four day run.  We chose to stay at Dowry Creek Marina for two more days to enjoy this very special place and two days of lovely weather.

Guided Discovery on a stormy morning at Dowry Creek

On Sunday evening we were invited to a pot luck dinner at Dowry Creek's club room.  We met some very special people and were entertained by Paul's guitar and folks songs.  While the storm raged outside with winds gusting to 35 knots (and finally 40 knots on Sunday) we sat and chatted with fellow cruisers and liveaboards.

On Tuesday evening we had scheduled the courtesy car for a return trip to the Spoon River restaurant in Belhaven.  We were joined by two couples doing the Great Loop, Burke and Stel on Estrellita (Monk 42) and Capt Jon and Pat Pitney on Satisfaction (Carver 53 Voyager).  Burke and Stel had just started their journey, having left Charleston just days ago.  John and Pat started from St Louis, which makes the timing of their journey very similar to ours in 2010 when we started from Chicago.  We have met some wonderful people and had many great times sharing courtesy cars.  This was no exception.

Lester, Pat, Stel, Diana, Burke and John

The trip from Belhaven to Coinjock.

We left at 6:58 AM to cover the 73 nautical miles from Dowry Creek Marina to Coinjock Marina.  The weather was totally cooperative with clear skies and winds that started out light, built during the morning to 15 knots and the died down as the afternoon progressed.

Our route took us east along the Pungo River and then 30 plus miles northeast on the Alligator and Pungo River Canal.  After the canal we headed north along the Alligator River to the Alligator River Bridge, which had been closed off and on when winds approached 35 knots during the four day storm.

The bridge represented a serious obstacle to traffic moving north during the storm as there are no marinas between Dowry Creek and the bridge.  If it was closed when we got there we would have had to return 45 miles to dowry Creek (or said another way, we would have wasted a day and burned close to 80 gallons of fuel ($320 at $4.00/gallon).

Alligator River Swing Bridge

Once past the bridge we crossed Albermale Sound with waves under one foot and headed up the North River to the Coinjock Marina; arriving there at 4:00 PM.

Look at the photo below for the navigation aids at North Shoal Point.  This is one tricky piece of water just before you enter Albermale Sound.  I know this for a fact as I almost ran aground here in 2011.  Actually, look close (blow it up by clicking on it) and you will notice that the sailing line goes to the left of the red lighted buoy.  Follow the line and you run aground.  Active Captain shows this as hazard and give GOOD advice for negotiating it, which is run a straight line from G9 to G7.

Hazardous shoal just south of Albermale Sound

Statistics:

• Departure Time: 6:58 AM
• Arrival Time: 4:10 PM
• Distance Covered: 72.8 Nautical Miles
• Time Enroute: 9 hours and 12 minutes
• Average speed: 7.9 knots
• Average RPM: 1,400
• Fuel Consumption: 61.24 gallons
• Fuel Efficiency: 1.3 NMPH

We took on 62.4 gallons of fuel at a very reasonable $3.84 per gallon.  I generally do not take on fuel until I've burned at least 200 gallons.  However, today was different.  I wanted to verify the accuracy of the fuel burn data from the Cat engine monitors against the readings on the site gauges of the main fuel tanks.  As a result we departed Dowry Creek with full fuel and did not run the generators.

Explanatory Note: Sea Ray drove me crazy with dumbed down fuel gauges that showed considerably less fuel than we we actually had.  When my tanks showed empty I still had close to 100 gallons.  I spent considerable time developing correction factors for 16 points on the fuel gauge.  Outer Reef by contrast provides site gauges on the fuel tank that allow you to see exactly how much fuel is in the tank.  There are no dash mounted fuel gauges.

My quest today was to see if the fuel burn on the Cat engine monitors matched the fuel burn as determined from the site gauges.  The monitors showed port burn at 30.09 gallons with starboard at 31.15.  The site gauges showed approximately 30 gallons burned on each side.  I took on 30 gallons on the port side and 32.4 gallons to starboard.   This was a very favorable outcome.  I can trust both the site gauges and the engine monitors.  HURRAH!!!

We also made some new friends and further confirmed that the old cliche, "It's a small world," holds true. Well, it's especially true in the cruising community, which we have become part of.

Larry & Sue, Tim and Les (Diana took the photo)

Back to Dowry Creek for a moment. As I walked up the dock Tuesday evening I did a a double take when I saw an Ocean Alexander 50.  Could this be Darrell and Sue.  No way.  They were in Charleston doing repairs.  I looked real close and confirmed that it was a different OA 50.  This in itself is a big deal as there are very few OA 50s on the water.

The OA 50 was on the dock at Coinjock when we arrived.  The owner, Larry Iverson, inttroduced himself as I was securing the 63.  Turn out he knows Darrell and Sue, and had talked with them in the process of buying his OA 50 which was now enroute to its new home port in Norfolk.  I also met Tim, and experienced Captain who was helping Larry move the boat north.  We had a lovely dinner at the Coinjock Marina Restaurant and then adjourned to Guided Discovery for a late night tour.

All in all a very spectacular day.

Written by Les
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