On 11/11/14, leaving the Cape Fear River in NC, and the
wonderful Cape Fear Marina, we passed dolphins at the mouth of the river and
headed south. Since we left Wilmington
late in the day, our first stop was a nice quiet anchorage, Dutchman Creek Park,
still in NC. At 5:30, we anchored in the last available spot just before dark.
It was a cloudy afternoon, dark came early.
We had a simple dinner and were in bed by 7:30.
 |
| In the Cape Fear River |
The next day (11/12/14) we crossed the state line to SC and
headed for Lightkeepers Marina, in Coquina Harbor, North Myrtle Beach, to visit
with our boating friends, Roger and Jane Bonner. We know Roger and Jane from
Baldwin Yacht Club. We had spent a great day together at Block Island a few
summers ago, when they had Salah, their foreign exchange student, visiting from
Yemen. For the rest of us, it was a hot day and we were stripping off whatever
clothing we could get away with, but Salah had not yet acclimated to New
England summer weather. He was wearing a heavy winter coat and was still freezing.
 |
| Jane Bonner, Rob Beaulieu, Brooke Martin, Salah in his winter coat, Block Island, Sept 2013 |
Roger and Jane are fellow sailors, so when we arrived in North Mrytle Beach, they knew exactly what we needed! We checked into the marina early
in the afternoon, and soon afterward, they stopped by in their car. First we visited West
Marine, where we got a new “Lucy” solar light, and some fishing lures. We
wanted to get a hand-held depth finder (for identifying good anchorages from
the dingy) but they didn’t have any in stock. We also wanted to get a water
filter, but Jane said, “I have one for you, in the garage! We don’t need it in
this house because we have one on the refrigerator.”
 |
| Roger and Jane |
 |
| The Bonner's home in N. Mrytle Beach, SC |
We drove to their lovely house on a golf course, in a gated
community. They made us a wonderful dinner of crab cakes, green veggies, Asian
cabbage salad, potatoes and key lime pie. Have I mentioned that crab cakes and
key lime pie are among some of my favorite dishes?
 |
Roger and Jane, preparing dinner
|
 |
| Sign in the Bonner’s kitchen |
We had a great time chatting and laughing over dinner. They
gave us our mail – a package of LED lights that we had ordered for the boat
interior and had sent to their address. And they gave us a Britta pitcher-style
water filter and some extra filters, enough to last 10 months!
 |
| Our new Britta water filter |
A water filter is a terrific thing to have on a boat, maybe
even an essential thing! We carry 150 gallons of water in our fresh water
tanks. Most of it, about 100 gallons, is refreshed about once a week. Tank
water is fine for showering and washing dishes. It’s fine for making coffee.
It’s fine to include in soups and other cooked or baked dishes. But to drink it
plain, it tastes terrible! I thought that once we were living on the boat and
refreshing it frequently, it would taste ok, but it really doesn’t. We tried
refilling bottles directly from dock hoses, rather than running it through the
tanks, but even that didn’t help. So I found myself avoiding it. Now I’m in
heaven with the water filter! We just run the tank water, from the faucet,
through the water filter before drinking it plain or in ice tea. And we were
able to get rid of the clutter of extra water bottles in the boat.
The next morning, (11/13/14), after our brief but much
appreciated visit with the Bonners, we were on our way again, off to explore
South Carolina.
 |
| Little River Swing Bridge, immediately south of N. Mrytle Beach |
Sandy & Chuck
on s/v Summer Wind
No comments:
Post a Comment