THE VOYAGES AND ADVENTURES OF M/Y INCOGNITO! : Beaufort and Manteo, NC

We pulled into Beaufort, North Carolina (last week..As my blog updates are behind) and found ourselves amidst a quaint little seaside town. Tropical storm Ana didn't bear down while we were here thank goodness!

Connie, Linda & I departed the docks on foot to rustle up some treasures

in the local shops. Everyone was sweet as southern sugar.

The maritime flags were flying in the middle of the harbor which lent a festive vibe.

Can you believe this is the gas pump?

It looks so archaic and ticks along verrrry slowly.

A few hours and we'll have our tanks full. One drop at a time.

This is your typical old southern town filled with mom & pop stores which is nice to see.

Nothing too commercial is the best part.

Our view from the boat. It's nice to walk off an be in the center of town.

Below, is a local boat builder honing his craft.

As luck would have it, we ran into our friend Phil from back home. We had a drink on his boat and enjoyed catching up. We got the grand tour of his 94' beautiful yacht. He was on his way to Norfolk, VA to drop his boat off there until he & his wife have their next adventure. Their boat is on the east coast permanently.

A lot of friends we know like keeping their boats on the east coast

as there's SO much to do & FUN to be had. We now know why!

Underway, en route to Manteo.

Hard to believe that this beach house is only used a few

months of the year when the weather is good.

It's hard to tell in this photo, but we navigated many shallow areas of the ICW. Once in a while our depth meter would go to zero & we could feel the props being polished on the sandy bottom. Ruh ro!

An aerial view of the Roanoke Sound that I pulled off my GPS Map.

Little islands abound & you can visually see the shallows.

Here we are heading into the narrow marina of Manteo, NC.

Manteo is pronounced with the "t" being silent, so you'd pronounce it as "Man-ee-oh."

The have a "show pony" stage all ready for your epic catch!

And this was to be our slip. Boy, was it narrow!! Why is our slip full of pillars? That's due to the hurricane factor in these parts. Docks end up getting ripped up in hurricanes, so they use these pillars instead. Makes for a dubious docking experience.

However, Brad doesn't sweat these things and docks our vessel effortlessly

via remote control as he backs into our slip.

The lighthouse in Manteo.

The boys enjoying an artisinal beer as Brad's sisters & I took a quick shopping break.

Downtown Manteo. A very cute (albeit small) seaside town.

The girls and I perused every shop in town, and I found this clever merchandising trick to be effective...Perfect for the south!

Then we found the markers for the early settlers of this city.

And let's not forget dear Virgina Dare.

The town is named for an American Indian named Manteo, who was of the Croatans tribe of American Indians. Manteo had been "civilized" by the English during a trip to London in 1584 where he and another Indian, Wanchese, learned to become the liaisons between the Roanoke Colony settlers and the Indians, and had favorable interaction with British colonist John White. In fact, Manteo was christened and given the name Lord of Roanoke, making him the first American Indian to receive a title of nobility. Eventually, John White's daughter Eleanor married Ananias Dare, and they had the first American-born English child, Virginia Dare. In 1587, Manteo was friendly to White when he returned to find what the final stage of the Roanoke Colony became. When the colonists disappeared after supplies from England were delayed for three years, the ongoing mystery of "The Lost Colony" began.

The "Lost" colony was established by Richard Grenville, who brought back two Indians, one of them Manteo. Manteo was named the seat of government for Dare County in 1870, and was incorporated in 1899. Dare County is named for Virginia Dare.

Andy Griffith was a long-time resident of Manteo prior to his death in 2012.