Before I get to the challenging part, I will start this report with the tail end of our stay in the lovely town of Beaufort.

The wind blew up. Bushranger rocked and rolled most of the night, slapping against the dock. It was good to know we were safe and secure. The evening was punctuated by military jets buzzing overhead. Beaufort is the nearest town to the Marine Corp training base, a large Army hospital and an Airforce training base. Trifecta! This morning a huge transport carrier flew low, with everyone in the street stopping to stare. Mark and I watched it from the swing seat, located in the waterfront park.

We borrowed the courtesy car and visited the National Cemetery. Beautiful manicured lawns dotted with giant oaks gently billowing with Spanish moss, provides a peaceful final home for these brave men and women. This cemetery is home to both Confederate and Union soldiers, as well as military personnel who served and were wounded in later wars. There were quite a few “Unnamed Soldiers”. It was incredibly moving when a lone bugler played The Last Post. I watched the USA flag being folded with precision. I can honestly say I shed a few tears. A very moving experience.

On to the challenging part. Our sail plan for the day saw us sail from Beaufort to Mosquito River, about 4 hours. Tonight, we are tied up to a dock belonging to a seafood wholesaler. And yes, we have purchased suitable fresh supplies for tonight. The challenging part was the very shallow channels we sailed through. We saw depths of only 5 feet. And when we draw 4 feet… What made it nerve-racking was the charts did not align. Mark went with the Army Corp of Engineers, but even they were not up to date. Spring tides are 9-10 feet and tidal stream runs at 1.5 knots, so I am very happy to be safely tied up.

Still we made it through without touching bottom… but tense, it was!

We live to sail another day!

Such is Life!