Highlights in North Carolina

We didn't stay on the ICW all the way through NC. Being on the ICW is like driving on the highway - it's kind of boring! We decided to take the Pamlico Sound route so we could explore some of the Outer Banks towns. It very much felt like the right decision when we arrived in Manteo, NC and the dockmaster at the marina immediately asked us if we like tuna. When we said yes (of course!), we brought out a huge bag of fresh tuna filets that a fisherman at the marina had caught that morning. He invited Ian to grab one of the huge filets - which he eagerly did. Sushi time! After the day's passage we were already hungry and thankfully had rice, some sweet onion, sesame seeds, soy sauce, and furikake on the boat. I seared about half the tuna (I froze the rest of the 3lb filet) just slightly and it was the best meal of the trip so far.

After Manteo we visited Ocracoke Island on the recommendation of our friends Rachel and Sarah. This island is only accessible by boat and the residents have an accent unique to Ocracoke - a linguistic oddity. The architecture and vibe is much more Cape Cod than Outer Banks and we really enjoyed walking around and seeing the town, the lighthouse, a nature trail, and of course, the brewery complete with an adorable brewery cat, who Ian practically had to forcibly stop me from taking home.

Shhh...this might be the site of Blackbeard's pirate hideout

Next stop was Beaufort, NC (pronounced BO-fort, unlike the SC Beaufort), which like Ocracoke was part of Blackbeard's stomping grounds.

We saw his house and did a ghost tour but unfortunately saw no signs of supernatural activity. Maybe we had too much tequila beforehand to reach beyond the veil!

We got our first real beach weather of the trip and good thing we did - there are ponies on the beach here! We anchored right near them and could dinghy to the beach.

There is a lot to do in Beaufort including a whale research center called the Bonehenge Whale Center, where we were given a private tour. We learned a lot about their research in tracking whales and preserving their remains.