The south coast of North Carolina

Sunshine, t-shirts and palm trees…this is what we signed up for! Leaving Beaufort we cruised the 5 hours to Harbour Village Marina near Topsail Island, North Carolina. The day was warm and sunny, and the pace was a bit slower. This part of the ICW is flanked by low sand banks on the east and a populated coastline on the west. The water has been very high so many of the sand bars were invisible and the private piers were awash, a minimal wake would wash away the lawn chairs and grills so we often slowed way down when we pass by, as a courtesy to the locals. Some fellow travelers are not so conscientious, we have dubbed these boaters “passholes”.

Village Harbor Marina is a nice spot for a night, but without any adjacent town to explore, we set off the next day for Southport, NC, about 5 hours away. We are seeing more traffic on the ICW now, and the weather is looking good for the next week, so we are getting a little more organized and making marina reservations 2 or 3 days in advance.

Southport Marina was wiped out by hurricane Isaias in 2020 and their rebuilding is still underway. We heard that the marina took a direct hit and hundreds of boats and all the floats wound in a big heap in the parking lot. There appears to be a full time construction crew along with a dock staff that are helpful and friendly. The new docks are wide and solid underfoot and they have room for one or two mega yachts at the T Head fuel dock. The 116 footer, that came in after us, had taken on 1,800 gallons of diesel and was still adding more when we decided to check out the town.

A late day walk convinced us that it would be nice to spend more time here, so we extended our reservation and spent the next day touring the maritime &  local history museum, while checking out the shops, restaurants and architecture. The homes in this town have the best porches we have ever seen, although we are now in the south where they are referred to as “piazzas”. First floor piazzas, second floor piazzas, third floor piazzas topped with widow walks. This place was built to enjoy outdoor living in a wonderfully mild climate.

A lot of the buildings date back to the early 1900’s, when the railroad connected Southport to the rest of the world. Walking the streets take you back to a slower time and you expect to see men in broad brim fedoras and ladies with parasols strolling through town. While there are lots of places to get food and liquor, there is no place to buy fresh vegetables, I’m OK with that, Kathy not so much.

The climate here attracts northerners during the colder months and Floridians during the warmer months. Since it’s always tourist season, they are used to accommodating visitors. Southport is worth a longer visit on the way back and we look forward to returning.

Better know where you’re going…this sign was our cue to turn into Osprey Marina.

Shrimp boats, Pelicans and Seagulls, Oh My!