Having read much about the ICW, I either missed it or it hasn't been
mentioned.What I am talking about is the stretch between Norfolk, VA and New
Bern, NC.

I just completed that stretch and man is it ever desolate!!! It also
contains the only
Lock until you get to Florida.

Doing the Lock for the first time wasn't bad at all!  Piece of cake really,
especially with the help of the fine people running it. If you question how
to do it, all you have to do is mention it to them and they will take care
of you.

Passing the lock headed South, there is a little marina that if don't watch
out or you blink, you will miss. I did and lived to regret it!

Less than twenty miles from the closest Marina after that, I ran out of gas.
My boat holds 110 gallons in each saddle tank and I had topped off in
Hampton, VA. Needless to say, where I ran out happened to be the most
desolate area of the whole stretch! There was no mobile phone reception and
UHF wasn't able to contact any one except for one boat going North.

The heck of it was that we had passed a dozen boats earlier in the day
headed North.
Dropping anchor in mid channel, we spent a good amount of time trying to
raise anyone!
Finally a bass boat came flying by and we waved him down. He had a
Blackberry that
just barely had reception and it took four calls and being cut off to get
across to Boat US on their 800 number that we needed help. Finally they
understood and said they would send someone.

Several hours later, we received a radio call that someone from Tow Boat US
was preparing to bring us gas.  Later on they did, 30 gallons in 5 gal
containers and another 30 gallons in a gas caddy.

After filling the tanks and getting the engines started, we found that the
anchor had not held and we had drifted into the under water stumps. Hooking
up to a forward tow harness on the bow, the Tow Boat US was able to get us
back in the middle of the channel. Engaging the engines indicated that our
boat could move under her own power
and the Tow Boat followed us for awhile to make sure all was ok. It was and
the Tow Boat left us to travel on in to the Marina.

Had I known about the nature of this stretch of the Alligator/Pungo Canal, I
would have
topped off right after the Lock.

Although embarrassing to me, I wanted to let everyone be aware of the
stretch of the canal so that they might avoid what we went through!

Rich
Day Dreams - 43' Carver

Hi Rich...not trying to put you down here, but you should have known what lay
ahead. Trip planning includes planning for your fuel needs. Seriously consider
getting a guide book at your next stop. If you have a computer onboard check
out Active Captain, it's free and has all the fuel stops and anchorages you'll
need. You have a long trip ahead, you owe it to yourself to have the needed
info onboard to avoid running out of gas and enjoy yourself. Good luck on the
rest of your trip.

Warren
----- Original Message -----
From: R. A. McCallmailto:mccallr@gmail.com
To: great-loop@lists.samurai.commailto:great-loop@lists.samurai.com
Sent: Sunday, August 16, 2009 10:54 PM
Subject: GL: Desolate Stretch of ICW

Having read much about the ICW, I either missed it or it hasn't been
mentioned.What I am talking about is the stretch between Norfolk, VA and
New
Bern, NC.

I just completed that stretch and man is it ever desolate!!! It also
contains the only
Lock until you get to Florida.

Doing the Lock for the first time wasn't bad at all!  Piece of cake really,
especially with the help of the fine people running it. If you question how
to do it, all you have to do is mention it to them and they will take care
of you.

Passing the lock headed South, there is a little marina that if don't watch
out or you blink, you will miss. I did and lived to regret it!

Less than twenty miles from the closest Marina after that, I ran out of
gas.
My boat holds 110 gallons in each saddle tank and I had topped off in
Hampton, VA. Needless to say, where I ran out happened to be the most
desolate area of the whole stretch! There was no mobile phone reception and
UHF wasn't able to contact any one except for one boat going North.

The heck of it was that we had passed a dozen boats earlier in the day
headed North.
Dropping anchor in mid channel, we spent a good amount of time trying to
raise anyone!
Finally a bass boat came flying by and we waved him down. He had a
Blackberry that
just barely had reception and it took four calls and being cut off to get
across to Boat US on their 800 number that we needed help. Finally they
understood and said they would send someone.

Several hours later, we received a radio call that someone from Tow Boat US
was preparing to bring us gas.  Later on they did, 30 gallons in 5 gal
containers and another 30 gallons in a gas caddy.

After filling the tanks and getting the engines started, we found that the
anchor had not held and we had drifted into the under water stumps. Hooking
up to a forward tow harness on the bow, the Tow Boat US was able to get us
back in the middle of the channel. Engaging the engines indicated that our
boat could move under her own power
and the Tow Boat followed us for awhile to make sure all was ok. It was and
the Tow Boat left us to travel on in to the Marina.

Had I known about the nature of this stretch of the Alligator/Pungo Canal,
I
would have
topped off right after the Lock.

Although embarrassing to me, I wanted to let everyone be aware of the
stretch of the canal so that they might avoid what we went through!

Rich
Day Dreams - 43' Carver

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