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Yachting/Routes through Pamlico Sound

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Expert: Capt Lou - 10/7/2009


Question
What is the fastest way from Norfolk south to Oriental NC and vicinity? Is it through Oregon Inlet and Pamlico Sound, or one of the other inlets? If so, are these routes safe for yachts with a 60+ mast and 6' keel? Are the routes well-marked for transients (i.e., not requiring local knowledge)?

Answer
Ahoy Bernie,

Thanks for your email.

I assume by "fastest" you mean "shortest." The ICW is the shortest route to Oriental from Norfolk.

Also you say your mast is 60+ feet tall. The "plus" is important because the fixed bridges over the ICW are 65 feet in height from the mean high water mark.

From downtown Norfolk, I would stay on the ICW until you reached the Pamlico Sound. Then I would avoid the Alligator Pungo Canal and sail the Pamlico Sound to Oriental. You also avoid Oregon Inlet by staying on the ICW and into the Pamlico Sound. It has been told to me that "the best way to see the Outer Banks is from the inside." The last time I went outside around Cape Hatteras, it was not very pleasant.

No local knowledge is required. The ICW is well marked. Follow each marker on a chart and navigate the markers as if you were towing a boat behind you, making sure you give wide turns for your "tow" to pass the marker. The Pamlico Sound is a wide body of water and not as well marked as the ICW, but ordinary navigational skills will get you through it. A GPS and/or chartplotter,of course, helps a lot.

I hope I have answered your question.

Capt Lou


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* Winner of Mass/Rhode Island Associated Press "BEST TALK SHOW"
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Capt Lou

Expertise

I can answer questions about boat buying, crusing destinations along the East Coast from Maine to the Florida Keys, powerboat operation, powerboat accessories, yacht club membership, commercial fishing, boating laws, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and the history of Boston Harbor Islands National Park.

Experience

Hosted "Nautical Talk Radio" for 14 years, a weekly, hour long program on WATD 95.9FM in Massachusetts and host of "Nautical Talk" on WPRO 630AM for 2 years. Have cruised from Maine to the Florida Keys and have owned outboard and inboard powerboats since 1976.

Organizations
Metropolitan Yacht Club 1980 - Present (1992 Commodore)
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 1204 1980 - 2004
Save The Harbor Save The Bay (Boston)
Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council
Quincy Bay Race Week
Mass Boating and Yacht Club Association
Commodores Club of America
Boat Writers International
Boat U/S
Mass Striped Bass Association
Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association

Awards and Honors
Articles about "Nautical Talk Radio" have appeared in National Fisherman Magazine, Power and Motoryacht Magazine, Yachting Magazine, Soundings Boating Newspaper, Offshore Magazine, and the Coast Guard's N'Oreaster Magazine.

Winner of The Best Interview Of The Year Award (1995) in Boston radio presented by Achievement In Radio (A.I.R.) and sponsored by Ford Motor Company and the March of Dimes. Finalist in 1996 and 1999 for Best Interview of The Year Award presented by A.I.R. Finalist for Boston's Best Locally Produced Public Affairs Radio Program (1997) presented by A.I.R.
WINNER OF MASSACHUSETTS/RHODE ISLAND ASSOCIATED PRESS ?BEST TALK SHOW? - 2003 RECIPIENT OF THE AMERICAN LIGHTHOUSE FOUNDATION?S LEN HADLEY PRESERVATION AWARD - 2002 RECIPIENT OF JOSHUA JAMES LIFESAVER MEDAL FROM PT ALLERTON COAST GUARD COMMANDER - 2003

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