Our final day. I have a lot of mixed emotions about today. We have had such an awesome incredibly life changing trip full of growth and learning. And fun!! I’m really really sad to see it come to an end but I’m so sick that I just can’t wait to be home. I feel as if our sickness has really overshadowed the last two days as we both just want to get home and be able to rest.
![20160509_100245[1]](https://iwannadriftaway.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/20160509_1002451-1024x576.jpg "20160509_100245[1]")
This trip was much more mentally and physically draining than either of us realized. Since we went at least 50 miles each day, it was hours of boating, reading charts, maneuvering around other boats and nightly planning for the next day. In the future we will definitely leave more time to explore each place we go to. I feel really accomplished having done this trip with just the three of us.
Two things about our trip really surprised me. First, we had no boat issues. Zero. It’s a 20 year old boat and constantly gives us trouble at the lake. Maybe it just likes getting run? Maybe it’s the saltwater? Either way, I still can’t believe how well it ran. We kept saying to ourselves ” whose boat is this?” The second thing that surprised me was the communication between Philip and I. It is something we can sometimes struggle with and adding a confined space could have been a recipe for a “heated” discussion. However, I think since we had to work together with all the planning, navigating and docking we really grew as a couple. Plus now we can say this was something we did together and did it well. And did it with an 18month old! I constantly worried about being judged for having a baby with us but everyone we met had only positive things to say and that we were “raising her right”. She proved everyone right by adapting to every situation and I can truly say she had a great time (Elmo helped a little!) she still says “boat” all the time!
Anyone who has ever even thought about doing an ICW trip I would highly encourage you to do it! I can’t articulate how cool it was to see the world from a different viewpoint. This will definitely go in the books as one of our best trips! But where will we go next?
| Date | Monday, May 9, 2016 |
| Depart | Harbour Village Marina, Hampstead, NC [map] |
| Arrive | The Boathouse at Front Street Village, Beaufort, NC [map] |
| Weather Hampstead, NC |
Clear High 91, Low 63 Winds SSW 6, Gusts to 20 Visibility: 10 Miles |
| Weather Beaufort, NC |
Clear High 79, Low 64 Winds S 7, Gusts to 15 Visibility: 10 Miles |
| Miles Traveled | 68.21SM / 59.27NM |
| Fuel Purchased | 0 |
| GPX Route | ICW NB – Topsail Island, NC to Beaufort, NC |
Some tools we used:
On the Water Chart Guide (Kindle)
Waterway Guide 2015 Atlantic ICW
Intracoastal Waterway Chartbook Norfolk to Miami, 6th Edition
Lowrance Hook 5 GPS Chart Plotter
Navionics Boating App
www.BoaterKids.com