Saturday 5/3 – Friday 5/9
Elizabeth City is very boater friendly and tradition prevailing, all of the visiting boaters are greeted with roses and invited to a dock party from the “Rose Buddies”. Having explored the town, the Museum of the Albemarle and reprovisioned, we depart Sunday morning and continue north on the now narrow and winding Pasquotank River, heading on the 18 mile scenic route to South Mills Lock (Mile 33) where Puffin is raised 8 feet to the Great Dismal Swamp Canal. We raft up at the Welcome Center dock (Mile 28) for the evening to tour the Dismal Swamp Visitor Center and have fun meeting the other cruisers at an improptu dock party. Next morning as we make way for the other end of the Dismal Canal (22 miles in total length) at Deep Creek Lock (Mile 10.5), we leave North Carolina and cross into Virginia. The lock lowers Puffin the 8 feet into Deep Creek leading into the Elizabeth River and soon the scenery makes a dramatic change as we approach Norfolk, VA., mile 0 and the “official” beginning of the 1,243 mile-long Atlantic ICW to Key West, Florida. Passing by an array of merchant and Navy vessels, we arrive at Ocean Marine Yacht Center where we find moorage and our looper friends onboard Transition and Honga. We spend the next few days exploring this fascinating maritime hub, especially enjoying Nauticus, the National Marine Center and home of the battleship Wisconsin. With a forecast predicting deteriorating conditions, we decide to move on and as opposed to the past, the ICW route is officially ended and is no longer shown on the GPS as a magenta line. With our future route up the Chesapeake Bay dictated by us, we create waypoints for a course up the York River to arrive for our late afternoon anchorage up Sarah Creek. The next morning we move to York River Yacht Haven, the marina at Sarah Creek where the staff furnishes transportation to Yorktown Victory Center. From here, we catch a shuttle to Jamestown exploring the historic grounds of James Fort, the site of the first permanent English settlement in North America. After visiting the very interesting and historically educational museums at Jamestown, we return to the marina where the staff allows us to borrow the courtesy car for the rest of the day. We take the opportunity to make a whirlwind tour of the many historic homes and sites of Yorktown, the locale of the victorious Revolutionary War battle leading to our independence. The following day, our heads once again spin with history as we visit the extensive grounds of Williamsburg.



Royce at Rose Buddies Party

Albermarle Museum

Shad Boat

Pasquotank River

South Mills Lock

Dismal Swamp Canal

Rafted Up at Welcome Center

Dismal Party

Norfolk Waterfront

Battleship Wisconsin

Jamestown

James Fort










Yorktown Victory Monument

Governor & General Nelson House in Yorktown

Williamsburg Governor's Palace

Virginia's Capital Building

Williamsburg Episcopal Church