Day 214 - A Horse With No Name — Captain Father John

Miles cruised 0, fuel purchased $0, slip fee $135, daily high temperature 71°f

The temperature was perfect for a brisk morning walk. I walked on the Beaufort City boardwalk past the marina and along the river. Across the river on Carrot Island I saw a wild horse on the beach. He was eating sea oats in the marsh.

It is much quieter here today. Sunday was a busy tourist day on the waterfront. Sunday Service who we met in Key West was here on Sunday and gone this morning. We had met in the laundry room at the Galleon. She had several large bags of laundry as one group was leaving and another group coming on board that day. It turns out all the guests are customers of her husbands business. He charges all the boat fuel to his business expenses.

Priscilla and I took the National Park Service ferry to Shackleford Bank. This 9 mile Long Island is home to a herd of 110 wild horses. Their ancestors survived Spanish shipwrecks 400 years ago. They swam ashore and have prospered there for four centuries. The shell collecting on the beach on the Atlantic side was excellent.

The horses are in small herds with a stallion, mares and colts.

We walked inland through the desert and found a horse with no name. In the desert you can remember your name. ‘Cause their ain’t no one to give you no pain.

We will say farewell to Beaufort, NC – Beaufort ( boh-fərt) Established in 1709, Beaufort is the third-oldest town in North Carolina (after Bath and Edenton). On February 1, 2012, Beaufort was ranked as “America’s Coolest Small Town” by readers of Budget Travel Magazine. The population was 4,039. It is sometimes confused with a city of the same name in South Carolina; the two are distinguished by different pronunciations.

On Tuesday we will cruise 65 miles to Belhaven. We will spend one night in each marina until we reach Norfolk, Virginia.

Bonus photo

Suzy Kassem (born December 1, 1975) is an American author, film director, philosopher, short story writer, essayist, and poet.