We have visited NC number of times over the years. It is one of the most interesting and historic states. Many times we heard the locals in smaller towns refer to the Civil War as "that unfortunate period in our history", but in many ways it is still remembered quite willingly and clearly. The people In NC are incredibly friendly and hospitable.

In 1996 we sailed the ICW from South Carolina through North Carolina, visiting many interesting towns, I think Beaufort was our favourite. We also hired a car and for 10 days we toured the interior of North & South Carolina, 2 years later we again toured through North Carolina but this time in in our motorhome, and then only the interior and not the coast.

Some of the highlights of our 1996 boat trip were our visits to Wilmington, Bald Head Island, Wrightsville Beach, Sneads Ferry, Beaufort, Oriental Beach, Belhaven, Alligator River marina, then meeting the Rose-buddies at Elizabeth City. After Elizabeth City we travelled on the Dismal Swamp on our way to Norfolk, Virginia.

Wilmington is North Carolina’s deep-water port situated on the Cape Fear River, near its mouth in the Atlantic Ocean. There is a major movie studio here, also of interest is the Burgwin-Wright house, which served as the headquarters of the British General Charles Cornwallis during the 1781 American Revolution. Another attraction is the USS North Carolina, a World War II battleship, which is moored in the Cape Fear River near the revamped waterfront and dockside area, which is really worth visiting.

We decided to sail to Bald Head Island, which is situated at the mouth of the Cape Fear River – and during that trip it became clear where the river got its name, a strong wind and opposing incoming current made the trip quite unpleasant in very choppy conditions. The trip was worth it – the island is a wonderful place to visit. There are no motor cars or trucks allowed on the island, all transport is by bicycle or by electric golf carts. Dotted around the island are re-charge points for the golf carts! We toured the island by bicycle and were fascinated by the very large houses, all with golf carts in their driveways. Later we climbed the many steps to the top of the Bald Head Lighthouse, from where we had a wonderful view out to the Atlantic ocean and inland to Wilmington. The island is a popular destination for honeymoon couples, who can stay in one of the many up-market B & B’s on the island. We witnessed a wedding party of around 100 arrive on the island on a large boat, the Royal Queen. Later that night the guests left with the boat while the newly married couple stayed at the B & B directly behind the marina in which we were moored.

On our way to Beaufort ( pronounced Bo-fort, this time) we lost one of our propellers near Top Sail island, luckily we were near Sneads Ferry marina which had a full service workshop. After a few telephone calls we obtained a new prop from California, a new “spinner” from Florida and within 2 days we were back in business. The new propeller was fitted at around 19:00 at night by a diver who had a flashlight taped to his baseball cap, which he wore underwater! Later, talking with him on the jetty, his comment regarding the speed at which some of the really big powerboats could achieve really amused us. “Hey man, those boats can really stand up and boogie” he declared in his strong southern drawl. We even experience our first tornado watch at Sneads ferry.

Our entry into Beaufort from Moorhead City was tricky. We had decided to take a shorter route although we knew it was likely to be shallower, and we did run aground a few times. A crab fisherman came to our rescue by showing us the route through the shallow water to Town Creek, where we anchored.

Beaufort is a charming old town and is full of 200-year-old homes, many of which have been used as movie locations. A few of the houses have even been moved from one location in town to another. We paid a visit to an old house whose kitchen is used for a TV cooking series – the owner, Martha is well known for the spices she and her husband mix. We bought a bottle of their Satin’s Breath Cajun spice, which was super on prawns and fish.

The North Carolina Maritime Museum is worth a visit, it depicts the maritime history of the area, and shows the importance of this town’s nautical heritage. One can visit a fully operational factory opposite the museum that manufactures classic wooden boats using traditional tools and methods.

Sitting at one of the many waterfront seafood restaurants one overlooks an island that is inhabited by wild horses. These horses are descendants of horses that were “shipwrecked” here in the 18th century when a Spanish ship ran aground. The island is now a reserve.

Beaufort boasts a red open topped London double-decker bus, on which one can tour the town and all the historic buildings. The tour guide, resplendent in her period costume never let us forget the Civil War, referring to it as, “that unfortunate period of Northern aggression” on a number of occasions. Many of the staff in the shops wore period costumes and this really added to the atmosphere that Beaufort is so famous for.

Oriental in North Carolina has a town dock that can accommodate 6 medium sized boats, it is free for 48 hours and for a small fee one can use the showers at the hotel that owns the dock. We had dinner at the hotel restaurant so we were able to use the showers without any charge. We rode bikes in and around this small town, where a sign advertising the “cheapest burgers in the world” caught our eye – for 25c each we got reasonably sized tasty burgers!
Bellhaven, further north, and across the Pamlico Sound, has a very good marina run by a retired US Coast Guard Captain and his son. We spent a few days here as Thetis’ Peugeot motor had blown a head gasket. A German couple we met earlier on our trip owned Thetis.

At Bellhaven Marina we were lent two golf carts in order to travel the 5 miles to the food store, it was quite strange driving at 10 mph amongst the normal traffic – no one even took a second glance. The ICW cruising guide strongly recommended a smorgasbord meal at the Forest Inn Hotel, which was a few hundred yards from the marina. In their words, “it was worth waiting for, then one could die happy”. The night we went it would have been better to die first rather than eat the dried out prawns, overcooked (yes, cooked) deep-fried oysters. Without doubt our worst meal ever in the USA! TIP - don't eat there.

We then headed up the Alligator River, which at times was more than seven miles wide. On our way we had a violent storm so instead of heading for our original destination we went into the Alligator River marina, which is located just beyond the 8 mile long Alligator Bridge which connects Manteo to the mainland. We stayed at this marina and waited for the storm to blow itself out. This marina is roughly twelve miles away from Kill Devil Hills in Kitty Hawk. This is the field from which Orville Wright first flew their 750 pound Flyer 1 airplane on December 17, 1903. Flyer 1 was powered by a 12hp motor, the flight lasted 12 seconds, covered 120 feet at an altitude of 9.9 feet and at a speed of 30 mph. Today this field is called the Wright Brothers National Memorial and is administered by the National Parks Service. Our visit to this historic site was really worth the effort of getting there. Our prolonged stay at Alligator marina was not wasted, we took the time to plan the next major part of our trip, and it was here that we decided to go to Elizabeth City in North Carolina, and then through the Dismal Swamp to Norfolk in Virginia.

Elizabeth City was a really great place to visit. We had heard so many tales about a guy there called Fred Fearing and his Rose-Buddies, so a trip there was a must. When we arrived we moored at the town dock which was free for 48 hours. Later that day Fred approached us and invited us to a free cheese and wine party for all everyone on board. Together with this invitation Yvonne & Monika were given a freshly-picked rose each. This invitation was extended to all the visiting boats in the harbour. Sure enough. later that afternoon everyone gathered on the jetty in front of a restaurant and we were treated to a super party, all laid on by Fred & his rose-buddies.  For the full story about Fred, click here.

In 1997 we once again visited North Carolina. This time however we stayed inland. We got onto the Blue Ridge Parkway from exit 2 off the I26. This was after stopping at Hendersonville to buy a new RV battery at Wal-Mart, we also bought a Weber Smokey-Joe BBQ. I changed the battery in the car park of Wal-Mart, but no one seemed to take any notice at all.

As soon as we got to the B.R. Parkway we started going up hills, down hills and then up again. It was quite ‘smokey’ and rained heavily on and off. We went through many tunnels and stopped at quite a few look out areas, which were very scenic. TIP - fill up with gas before getting onto the Blue Ridge Parkway - gas was $1.39 gal. whereas at Hendersonville it was only $1.04. The 40 miles we travelled felt more like 100’s of miles, twisty and steep inclines and declines. It was most tiring, but as it was getting late and there are no camps on the parkway we just had to continue. Eventually, we got to the end, turned left for a mile or so and arrived in Cherokee, a little Indian village.

Cherokee is a little town with plenty souvenir shops, they were quite interesting but all sell the same things so it gets a bit boring after a while. We saw our first black bear, but it was in a cage. There were Bear zoos all over the place but we didn’t go in as we thought the condition of the bears was not that good. Lots of Red Indian chiefs sat outside the many tepees, one had to tip them for a photo with them.