After a peaceful night at Cape Lookout, we awoke to perfectly still water. So still we were able to see a couple of sea turtles swimming around the anchorage!
When raised, the anchor and chain came up caked with thick globs of mud. Fortunately, we had fixed our deckwash system while in Southport. The deckwash has two connections: one supplies seawater and the other supplies fresh water from our tanks. We were pleased to be able to spray many gallons of seawater over the chain and anchor as they came up, rinsing the mud away. When all was done, a quick rinse with fresh water to get rid of the salt we had sprayed finished the job. With the anchor up, clean and stowed, we headed towards the Neuse River.
We spent the morning and early afternoon motoring. However, when we got to the Neuse River, we were delighted to see that the conditions were perfect for some sailing! We had a great time sailing towards our anchorage. When conditions are right, Tilia sails much faster than she can motor. We hit 9.7 kts at one point and were regularly exceeding 8 kts. 9.7 kts is about 11 mph — slow for a car, but a delightful rush when sailing!
Now we’re tucked into an anchorage on the South River and relaxing after another great day.
