Beaufort, NC

Kiawah, in Beaufort harbor

Within minutes of dropping the anchor in beautiful Beaufort Harbor Riley announced, "My kid detector is going crazy!"  She was up on deck with a pair of binoculars scanning the boats in the marina across the way.  Sure enough, kids were spotted.  She gives a humorous and wonderfully detailed description in her blog of our encounter with Silhouette, a family from England with twin 13 year old daughters.  "Kid boats", as the girls call them, are few and far between now that we are focusing more on moving than playing.  The girls were absolutely starved for kid time.  Of course they hit it off instantly, as only kids can do, and we ended up staying a bit longer than intended in Beaufort so they could have a chance to connect.  Scott and I also enjoyed the company of their parents, who were avid sailors with a two-year (pre-twins) world circumnavigation under their belts. They made the trans-Atlantic crossing from England sound like a canoe trip on Boyden lake.

Beaufort is a picturesque and historic seaside town known for its large year-round boating community and boat building history.  

and ice cream!

Just had to put that song in your head.  The "fleet" of Hungry Town Bike Tours.  They specialize in culinary bike tours

The stockade in front of the old jail house.

If only it had been a double-wide, Scott and I would've had the afternoon to ourselves.

Scooter "sharing" two miles to the grocery store...

and schlepping groceries two miles back to the boat.

Beaufort is across the river from a complex of small  islands that comprise the Rachel Carson Reserve.  During the 1940's Rachel Carson, esteemed naturalist, writer, and environmentalist, conducted research on this reserve that is now named in her honor.  The islands are home to countless native species, as well as two  population of feral horses; one, of Spanish decent, and the other, introduced by a local physician during the 1940's.  The herds are managed to control their population and ensure they don't degrade the fragile coastal ecosystems on the islands.  It was fun watching them grazing on salt-marsh hay from the boat.

Ri, Wren, Robyn, and Kerry, on a mission.

Oyster beds.  Unfortunately, not safe to eat.

Checking out...

a fiddler crab.  The male is the one who plays the "fiddle."

Ri and Kerry humming to the mud snails to get them to come out.  It works!

Something very, very interesting.  I can't remember what.

Beaufort also had a terrific Maritime Museum.  We learned all about the town's  boat building history, as well as local fisheries (oyster, menhaden, and crab).  

Scott, Ri and Kerry score a ride in the museum's gaff rig sailboat

We especially liked the exhibit which chronicled the rise and fall of Blackbeard and one of his pirate ships, Queen Anne's Revenge.  Blackbeard reportedly sank QAR just off of Beaufort inlet as a last ditch effort to "downsize" his fleet and escape capture.  He was eventually caught and killed, his head ending up adorning the bow of his captor's ship.  A grizzly warning to other pirates.   The wreck was being excavated and artifacts were on display at the museum.

With the assurance that Blackbeard was no longer around to hassle us, we said goodbye to Beaufort and headed north up the ICW.  We were in good company, as Silhouette was doing the same.  We shared anchorages with them for two nights (one very buggy one) until our paths parted.  We'd decided to take an alternate route that would bring us through Elizabeth City and down the shallow and narrow Dismal Swamp canal.  Their 8' draft would not allow such a passage. We made plans to catch up with them again in Hampton, VA.

Gnat hatch!  Luckily, non-biting.  They sure did make a mess of the boat though.

See you in Virginia, Silhouette!