Clams, New Batteries, and a Few More Miles South

The weather was bad the second night we stayed in Southport, NC, but not as bad as I expected. Biggest issue was cold. We met up with some friends who had to bang the ice off of their hatches just so they could get out of the boat. We just slept in an extra hour, and let the sun burn off "some" of the ice. But it was a cold day to travel. There were very few boats on the waterway, just the odd crazy Canadian.

We had heard from our friend Fred, of a great anchorage where we could pick clams at low tide. Never having picked clams, or even eaten them, we figured that might be a neat spot to try for a couple of days. It was great anchorage, and we had a great time there. Even if it was a little chilly in the cabin the first day we woke up.

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. Time 5:54am, Temperature in the cabin, 6.5 deg C., Temperature in the fridge, 0.3 deg C. Apparently the outside temperature was 23 deg F., which is somewhere around -3 deg C.

I got a chance to try casting my new casting net for shrimp. Apparently there are shrimp in this creek sometimes, but I didn't find any. I was more interested in actually learning how to throw it than catching anything. I got pretty good at it after I figured out how to actually do it. Next time we find a creek with some shrimp in it, Daddy's gonna eat good.

Low tide happened around lunch, so we dinghied to the beach to try our hand at clamming. I had read somewhere that if you walk along the mud, you scare them and they spit out water. It works, and in a very short time we had a bag full.

Serena had a feeling that she should wear her rain pants, just in case. Good call. And yes I did leave her stranded while I took the picture, but I helped her up afterward.

Our bounty.

But then they had to be set in the water, in a net, overnight. Rinsed with fresh water for a couple of hours, then scrubbed clean with a brush. Then steamed. We ended up setting all but 6 free, as they seemed so big, that we couldn't possibly eat all of them. Yeah sure, in the shell they are huge, steamed and out of the shell they are the size of quarters.

Ready to eat, but I was folding laundry, and by the time I got back they were cold. We tried a little bit, but cold clams, are yucky. Next time we'll include them with a meal. Unfortunately I don't think this qualifies as having eaten clams, so we are still clam eating virgins.

Yesterday we made the short trip to the marina where we had arranged to pick up our new batteries. The gentlemen had asked that I not tell anyone about the transaction, because he gave us the batteries at wholesale, so no details, but holy crap were they cheap. We really lucked out on that one. And, low and behold, this morning the batteries are still showing a strong voltage.

We took the opportunity to stock up on everything. It had been 9 days since we had been to a grocery store. Fuel, a pump out, water, showers, laundry, everything. We'll be good for a week at least.

Saw this on the way. While we were at the anchorage, this bad boy would make the trip out to the ocean for a few hours, and then make its way back in. Portable casino, I can think of a few people I know who would love this.

Today we head further south. I looked at the map, and we are well over half way now, but there is still a long way to go before we hit the crystal clear waters of the Bahamas.