The Dog Days are Over!

The weather has been a big part of the days of our lives lately.  Hermine and Matthew became close friends of ours, and have now left us with a few lessons on life aboard.  Thankfully, we have had a hurricane plan since we arrived in New Bern, and were able to follow through and keep both us and the Tatiana safe.  In between, we spent the better part of September working on the boat, getting it ready for the trip south.  We are now sporting a brand new dodger, or windshield.   We have stripped and re-varnished various teak parts around the boat, and tracked down some whirring maintenance with the propeller.  Matthew also allowed us the opportunity for some haul out maintenance on the boat, including some new bottom paint and renewed shine to the hull.

In the boatyard before re-launch....

Tatiana is sporting her new dodger!

Following Matthew, the weather cooled dramatically, and our wandering toes are getting itchy.  Thankfully, it was not a case of athlete's feet.  We instead set our sights on Ocracoke, NC.  A couple of nights anchoring in the South River and then in Silver Lake at Ocracoke were just what we needed to renew our focus in cruising and getting ready to head south.  Unfortunately, Matthew left many others in less fortunate situation that ours, and our path ahead is full of uncertainty.  So, we are taking our time before we head off, so we can make sure there are no new navigational hazards in our path. 

At Ocracoke, we were able to head to the beach and check out the local lighthouse. 

A view from the anchorage of the lighthouse...

This called too smooth sailing, also known as motoring

Enjoying some OBX beach time!

For now, we are back in New Bern.  We have just a few final projects and a few final goodbyes to all our new friends.  It has been a great summer here in NC, and we look forward to coming back one day.  But, you know, summer's over, so it's time to head south again!