Harbor of Hospitality

Day #64: We were underway by 6am this morning with the hope of clearing Arbemarle Sound before the afternoon winds piped up. The Sound is big and shallow, not a place to be in a blow. For the most part the strategy worked. The winds did build but were astern and merely pushed us along. Surfing down the little waves Nellie would accelerate from her cruising speed of 7.2 knots to just under 8.6 knots. All in all a comfortable ride.

Elizabeth City, NC advertises itself as the 'The Harbor of Hospitality'. It's hard to disagree. Not only are the docks free but so are the wine and cheese parties held in the crews' honor. Today's picture shows Nellie over the rose bushes that were once the source of the flowers given to every visiting yachtswoman. While walking through town this afternoon a car pulled over to us and its driver asked if we were off a yacht. After confirming we were he asked if there was anything we needed or anywhere he could take us. That's southern hospitality Elizabeth City style.

The littoral is a small. We're reminded of that every time we cross wakes with cruisers we've met before. In the harbor tonight is Ibis who we met last month in Vero Beach, FL and Carolyn Ann who we haven't seen for two years. Such is cruising, we float in and out of each other's lives.

It was a fast 46nm cruise to Elizabeth City today and that ups our total to 1410nm. DBH