Reminder- its Bow-fert in North Carolina! Monday morning traveling means light traffic after a busy weekend- and it is CHILLY- and the WIND is starting to kick up.
Best of all, we finally had dolphins swimming along the boat long enough to get some great video and pictures.
Tonight’s marina of choice is Homer Smith Marina and Seafood. I was a little nervous to read the reviews- Nice bathroom and free laundry, but you walk across the seafood processing floor to get to them! Odd layout, but they make it work.
TRIP MUST DO LIST
Visiting Beaufort allowed us to check a couple items off our wish list:
- Visit a Maritime museum
- See Wild Horses on the beach
- Visit the Olde Burying Ground
- Watch Shrimpers unload the days catch
SHRIMPING CATCH OF THE DAY
Homer Smith Marina is a busy shrimping and seaport operation, they expanded the business to include renting slips as a marina. It is a great place to watch the shrimp boats come in and get a close look at how they receive the days catch.
The captain of the shrimp boat was watchful as they unloaded and weighed the catch, and happy to talk about his catch. The best shrimp you’ll ever find”
Unloading the shrimp is very manual= tub by tub is shoveled out of the ships hold, then dumped into the bin with the conveyer belt for sorting and weighing. 
The crew is ready at the “board” to remove the heads of the shrimp. Some guys are quicker than others! A flick of the thumb and off goes the head! 
The shrimp boats are loaded with ice when they go out. The ice house is full of cubed ice (free if you want to load your cooler). The ice is loaded into a auger with a chute that directs the ice into the large containers on each boat for the fresh catch. 
Dave got a couple dozen on day one, they were so delicious, we went back for 3 more pounds in the morning!
SELF GUIDED TOUR THROUGH TOWN
It’s a few blocks across the island to “downtown” Beaufort. We could see Carrot Island across the bay, and sure enough a couple wild ponies were grazing along the waters edge. Several islands along the barrier reef are home to the wild horses- each island seems to have a distinct lineage of horses. Some are thought to be descendants of the 1700 Spanish ships that were ship wrecked along the coast.
MARITIME WILD PONIES 
MARITIME MUSEUM
We missed the weekend festival for wooden boats, but took at a peak in the boat building barn before heading over to the museum.
The museum is an eclectic mix of the area maritime history. Are you interested in fishing? How about surfing, boat building, sea-life, or even pirates? You are at the right place. We learned a lot about Blackbeard and his ship the Queen Anne- pilfering along the coast 300 years ago. His ship sank just outside the harbor of Beaufort and was discovered in 1996!! 
OLD BURYING GROUND
Under a canopy of oak trees, the old headstones are cracked and faded- the wrought iron gates surround the various family plots. A walking tour guide provides the stories that go with about 28 of the various “more interesting” plots.
Notable memorials – a Union soldier buried in full uniform standing up so he could be buried in his boots. A child in a whiskey barrel- passed on the crossing and her parents didn’t want her buried at sea so hid her in a whiskey barrel. Barely identifiable old headstones! Many with flags or flowers that indicate they have not been forgotten.
Signs of spring are blooming around town making for a colorful walk, So many sights and a day full of laughs and meeting new people in town and along the docks. We are still meeting more loopers with the AGLCA burgee on their boats. This time of year everyone is moving north on the ICW.
The friendly town people, shop owners and boaters are truly taking this trip to the next level! Who has more fun than boaters? Thanks for reading.
Filed under: A year on a boat, America’s Great Loop Adventure, Atlantic ICW, Moon Shadow Log Tagged: aglca, Beaufort, cemeteries, loopers, north carolina ICW, shrimping 
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