We left Beaufort with a misty rain and quite a breeze to head up the Newport River to Core Creek and into the narrow dredged Core Creek Channel.
The landscape has become more pine flats with an occasional tidal marsh where a creek enters the main waterway. The original homes in the area were developed around fish camps, but now newer homes are being built interspersed between the older ones.
The Core Creek Channel ends at Adam’s Creek which widens out to meet the Neuse River. To get to Oriental, NC where we plan to anchor for the night, we had to cross the river.
Oriental, NC started a a fishing, farming and lumbering town with a sawmill and a train stop. I the 1950’s the mill closed and the train stop was cancelled. Sailors discovered the area in the 1960’s and now Oriental is a haven for boaters who enjoy sailing Neuse and Pamlico Rivers. In fact, with over 3000 sailboats, there are three times more sailboats than there are residents in Oriental.
The sun came out and the breeze died down so we took the dinghy into Oriental and walked around the small town. Had great restaurants and neat old homes dating from 1890-1910, lots of marinas, two nice shops featuring local artists.
