Illusion covered the coast of South Carolina in just two full days of offshore sailing, and had conditions been a little more favorable, we could have probably made the trip in less time. In contrast, it took us a couple weeks to cover the coastline of North Carolina on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW). Partly due to a short visit with my family and some coastal exploration of small towns along the way and partly due to weather, we made slow progress up the coast of North Carolina.

Compared to our offshore travel, the ICW seemed slow and tense, especially in the southern portion. There were many boats to watch out for, shallow water to avoid, and the most crowded anchorages that I’ve experienced. With that said, there was also much to see along the way and beautiful scenery. We motored nearly the entire way, pulling out the jib whenever possible to gain an extra knot and speed up our pace. I think next time we will try the offshore route around North Carolina, with one stop at Beaufort, NC, to explore Cape Lookout and Shackleford Banks, which we were sorry to have missed on account of poor weather.

We stopped to explore several towns along the way. In Wilmington, we docked for one night at the public docks to recharge our batteries and fill up the jerricans with fuel and water. The town is in the middle of revitalization efforts, but it was a cute riverside location and the docks were located right in the center of everything. We grabbed some pizza, checked out a few art galleries, and just wandered for a while. When we reached Swansboro two days later, we anchored in front of the bridge. My uncle came to pick us up, and we visited with his family at the beach for Memorial Day Weekend. I was excited to hang out with them at their house for a few days, and Brian was happy to get in a few surf sessions. The ICW was a zoo of motor boats over the holiday weekend, so we were happy to avoid the crowded waterway. We did experience some of the madness when we left on Monday, but things had started to slow down by the time we reached Beaufort.

The anchorage in front of Beaufort town (Taylor Creek) was quite crowded our first night, and I was amazed to see so many cruisers in one spot (obviously, I haven’t been cruising for very long). I liked this anchorage because it provided easy access to the town and was right beside the Rachel Carson National Estuarine Sanctuary, which had wild horses on it! It was a popular spot because of its proximity and easy access to the ocean and its proximity to several other cool anchorages (Cape Lookout and Shackleford Banks). Beaufort had many cruiser amenities (even an entire bookstore devoted to cruising books), and I particularly enjoyed the North Carolina Maritime Museum. North Carolina has such an interesting and unique maritime history; I remember visiting Bald Head Island as a kid and being fascinated by the Frying Pan Shoals and the stories of pirates like Black Beard and Stede Bonnet who occasionally took sanctuary on the island.

We left Beaufort for Oriental several days later, hoping to visit the marine consignment store there. The sleepy town reminded me of childhood and carefree days of summer in a bygone decade; it was beautiful, quiet, and quaint – the perfect location for a bed and breakfast. Houses kept manicured lawns with flowers and vegetable gardens galore and sidewalks that made it easily walkable. Apparently the marine consignment shop doesn’t operate on Wednesday and Thursday (we arrived on Thursday), so we missed out as we continued north for Virginia the next day. In the early hours of daylight during our departure from Oriental, we happily wasted (enjoyed) a few hours of time sailing on the Pamlico Sound. It was one of the most relaxing parts of our trip up the ICW – no engine noise, just wind and waves.

The wildlife and stretches of deserted waterway in the northern portion of the state provided a refreshing change of scenery after the crowded waterways of the south. I think my favorite stretch above the Pamlico Sound was the Alligator River, which I kept scanning for alligators and snakes (I never saw any). Although the water was brown, the banks were verdant, lush with vegetation and the occasional cypress tree. Butterflies fluttered around Illusion as we passed through the Pungo River Alligator River Canal, and I saw a fox running through the trees along the shoreline.

We made the mistake of avoiding the Great Dismal Swamp route and Elizabeth City, because of a misperception that it was too shallow for our 5′9 draft (we will definitely take it if we have the option again), but we ended up spending a beautiful night on the North River, which we discovered was a freshwater river. Excitement ensued when we anchored and, shortly thereafter, jumped in the water with our shampoo and soap for a little swim and a scrub. It was the first night since the Cape Fear River that we spent anchored alone (unless you count the hundreds of crab pots that surrounded us and the frogs with their croaking nighttime chorus). We were one with the natural scenery and felt rewarded with an unbelievable sunset. It was a peaceful and beautiful night even despite the disconcerting appearance of two tugs pushing barges up the narrow, serpentine river after dark – an indication perhaps of what was to come.

On our last leg of the North Carolina ICW, we achieved several hours of sailing in the Currituck Sound surrounded by hunting ospreys and nests full of their half-grown offspring; it was a beautiful last stretch of waterway to contrast the hubbub that awaited us in Virginia.