We went ashore in Beaufort to take a walk around and to look for a place that might sell butter. Most waterfronts have a convenience store or two, but few sell dairy products. Beaufort is a very history little town, very Southern in architecture with wide porches and gated yards. Very charming. It was Sunday morning, so very little was open, but we did eventually find a small bodega that actually sold several brands of butter. The wind picked up as we were headed back to the boat but luckily it didn’t start sprinkling until we were on our way south again. We had a fairly uneventful cruise following the parade of boats, and most of us ended up in Mile Hammock Bay, a large protected anchorage in Camp LeJeune. Last time we were here (spring of 2016) the marines were playing war games all night and we listened to their gunfire. This time, all was quiet and we had a beautiful sunset. 
Mile Hammock Bay, Camp LeJeune
Monday we just followed the crowd to Carolina Beach, where we all dispersed into marinas or into the anchorage. Tuesday we again left after the crowd in the morning, this time because we wanted to make a lunch stop in Southport at one of our favorite little restaurants, Fishy Fish. We called ahead for takeout and I ran ashore to collect it while Dan was tying up. I came back before he was finished securing the last line, so he just started untying and we were back on the water within ten minutes of pulling in to the restaurant dock. Shrimp and grits for him, portabello sandwich and fries for me. Yum!
We crossed into South Carolina mid afternoon and found a small anchorage in Calabash Creek not long afterward, joining many of the boats who’d shared the Carolina Beach anchorage with us.
Today (Weds Nov 16) was sunny, but it was still chilly. A cold front is taking over the east coast; we hear there’s snow back home in some parts of Maine. Nevertheless, we decided to brave the flying bridge helm - bundled up in watch caps and long pants - and we enjoyed the cypress-lined waterway through the wilder parts of Myrtle Beach. 
Cypress Trees along the ICW
We toyed we going to Georgetown for a marina - we needed to do laundry - but decided to make an earlier day of it and took a slip in Osprey Marina, a little hole-in-the-wall marina right off the ICW in Myrtle Beach. The entrance looks dauntingly narrow, but it's deep and the dockhands were waiting to catch our lines, everyone very friendly. We'll save Georgetown for tomorrow.
Entrance to Osprey Marina
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