Ocracoke on the Outer Banks

After being in New Bern or Saline for almost the entire month of May we started our trek north yesterday.  After a relatively early start the wind filled in late morning so we were able to sail.  The wind started light and pretty much straight ahead so we had a leisurely beat or close reach out/down the Neuse River.  Later in the afternoon the wind really started to build - high 20s - but by then it was behind us so we had a nice sail.  It was so windy we had trouble getting the anchor to hold, but after the second try, and dumping out a lot of chain we got it to set.  Fortunately the anchorage was fairly wide so it didn't matter that we dragged over a tenth of a mile before the anchor finally set.  The wind actually felt pretty good blowing through the boat after the high 90 degree temps yesterday.  After midnight the winds finally settled down.

This morning we motored to Ocracoke.  On the way we saw a couple of rays mating - sorry, no pictures - and a couple of good sized jelly fish.  An enterprising farmer who got tired of raising tobacco came up with an idea for another cash crop.  His idea way to cross pollinate ocra with coke, thus coming up with another addictive vegetable.  It didn't really catch on since no one really likes ocra in any form, but it did provide a catchy name for the island.  As you might have noticed from the SPOT position the only way to get here is by boat, or maybe by plane.

This afternoon we are watching the anchorage fill up.  Tomorrow we'll dink ashore to check things out.