In June last year we crossed the Bermuda Triangle to Beaufort North Carolina. We found a lovely marina 40 miles north at New Bern on the river Neuse. We left Blue Spurr there and bought a V.W. van to tour the States. We did 15,000 miles from North Carolina to Edmonton in Canada via all the usual tourist attractions like Mt. Rushmore, and Yellowstone. We returned to the boat in December and had a wonderful Christmas and New Year with friends that we had met at the marina.

Blue Spurr was hauled out in February and the barnacles were 6 inches thick, it took us 3 days of scraping to get them off. Finally she was in the water and loaded ready to leave. At Christmas, which is also Sarah's birthday, we enlarged our crew with oakum the kitten, a decision which has since given us lots of pleasure, and made the boat more of a home. We were later leaving to go south than we planned and all along the waterway we were greeted by boats telling us that we were going the wrong way. Monday 10th March found us anchored at Beaufort and preparing to leave next day for Swansboro, 25 miles south on the intercoastal waterway.

Monday 10th March. We lifted the anchor at 09.30 and set off, it is a beautiful day. There is not much water on this part of the waterway, about 9ft in midchannel. It is very low lying flooded marshland and although there is a great expanse of water, you must keep strictly to the channel, as it shoals to 2ft on either side. The channel is marked by red numbered triangles and green numbered squares, mounted on pilings. The bouyage is reverse to English, so we always had to remember Red to the Right except at river inlets where the bouyage runs from seawards to confuse us poor yachtsmen.. Just before we reached Swansboro we crossed the river inlet and ran aground, luckily the tide was rising and we pulled ourselves off with the headsail and engine. We anchored in Swansboro harbour at 16.30hrs and were relieved to turn the engine off. We can't imagine another 1000 miles of motoring.

Tuesday 11th March. It was very foggy this morning and it didn't lift until 11.30. The next anchorage is 35 miles away so we decided to stay here instead of traveling the waterway in the dark.

Wednesday 12th March. We set off at 8.00am for Sloop point, a recommended anchorage in the waterway guide, there was supposed to be plenty of water right up to the bank, but when we anchored about 80ft off we went aground. Dave went out in the dinghy to lay the kedge, but we had to put out a third anchor to hold us out of the channel when the tide came in at midnight. There is a lot of barge traffic on the waterway at night.

Thursday 13th March. After a night of anchor watching we motored 30 miles to Wrightsville and went into a marina for a good nights sleep. I thought the waterway would be easy with a good nights sleep every night, but it is very tiring with the engine running all the time, and constantly watching the markers to keep in the channel. It is much nicer out at sea.

Friday 14th March. There was a terrible storm last night, and it poured with rain. The marina master woke us early to say that the dinghy was sinking because of all the water in it. He also advised us not to move as the weather forecast was bad. We didn't take much persuading. We had to move to a finger pontoon at right angles to the river for the night. Dave and I went shopping leaving Sarah and the kitten to listen to loud music during our absence. When we returned Sarah said that the boat had flooded above the cabin sole and she had to put the bilge pump on. We lifted up the floor and found the fresh water tank full of salt water, and everything wet. Dave traced the water to the bilge pump outlet, which is normally above water, but with being at right angles to the waves the water had built up against the hull and siphoned in. It is lucky Sarah was on board, and had the sense to put the pump on. Dave spent the rest of the day fitting a stopcock on the bilge outlet.

Saturday 15th March. We left at 10.30am and had a good trip to the Cape Fear River. We worked the tides right and made good time to Southport marina. It was low water when we arrived and they only have 6ft of water inside, we just touched the bottom as we went in. We spent the evening reading the waterway guide. It is 430 miles to Jacksonville Florida, down the waterway, but only 270 miles by sea. The reason is that the waterway follows a lot of winding rivers through Georgia and we would have to work the tides really well to reach an anchorage each night. We decided to take the easy way and go out here at the Cape Fear inlet and re-enter the waterway at Mayport, the sea inlet for Jacksonville.

Sunday 16th March. We left Southport and headed out of the Cape Fear inlet with the first of the ebb. It is very calm, and we have to motor again! Still we don't have to stick to a channel here in the open sea.

Monday 17th March. It is another lovely day. The wind finally came and we hoisted sail and stopped the engine. Hurrah!! We are surrounded by dolphins, giving us a private show. Dave and Sarah took photos of them..

Tuesday 18th March Dave woke me at 07.15, he caught a fish. The first ever since leaving England. It is a tuna about 8 lbs. He let the line out and another one immediately. The cat is licking her lips; she thinks it is her birthday. I roasted one of the tuna. It was delicious. The weather has started to get worse and the wind has gone S.W. so we are having to tack.

Wednesday 19th March. The wind is really strong now, about force 6 and we are beating into it. We just heard a small craft warning on the radio. We all feel a little sick, even Oakum the cat. As we neared the Mayport entrance we could see the large breakwaters which mark the entrance. They looked horrific, large boulders with waves breaking over them, but it looks nice and calm further inside. As we approached the entrance the heavens opened up and the rain was so heavy that we couldn't see more than a few feet ahead, so Dave turned out to sea once more until the rain stopped. Finally we got to Mayport harbour just before dark, there is no anchorage and we couldn't find marina, but a local fisherman directed us to a fuel dock, where we could tie up for the night.

Thursday 20th March. The weather is terrible, with big breaking waves and strong winds. We moved to a marina on the intercoastal waterway for the night. There are tornado warnings in effect for this area.

Friday 21st March. There is a small craft warning in effect for this part of the waterway today, so we decided to stay put. The marina owners invited us to a barbecue tonight. They said they enjoy meeting all the transients who come through.

Saturday 22nd March. Still here! A tornado struck 5 miles away and the weather is terrible.

Sunday 23rd March. We had to wait until 12 noon for the tide but finally set off down the waterway again. Florida is very pretty; the channel is deeper too, 12ft and more. It makes going much easier. We decided to anchor 25 miles south in the Tolomato river. It is a beautiful anchorage with several other boats here. The evening has an unreal quality about it, the water is still and the birds in the swamps are all calling their mournful cries. It's a really peaceful this evening; this is what cruising is all about.

Monday 24th March. We set off for St. Augustine at 09.00hrs and arrived at noon. But we had to motor in circles until the bridge opened at 12.30. It is the first restricted bridge that we have come to. We finally got through the bridge and anchored off the marina. St. Augustine is a lovely town, very Spanish, with an old Spanish fort, and several old buildings. It is a bit like being back in Europe.

Tuesday 25th March. We spent the day sight seeing and taking things easy. The weather is much better, and we are all getting brown again.

Wednesday 26th March. We set off before 09.00hrs. It was a lively trip, although it looked tough on the chart. All the channel markers have bird's nests on them. It is really fun; the birds all watch us go past with disinterested expressions on their faces. We arrived at marine land marina at 11.30 and had a tour of marine land. It was very pleasant to see all the fish that we have become so acquainted with, whilst we have been sailing and snorkeling. It has whetted our appetites for the Bahamas.

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