Looking for advice: The last time I made this trip I went inside. While I am not in a particular hurry I am considering going outside in my 20+ knots boat. (I really want to avoid the Alligator river!) But, I see only one viable inlet in the event I need to duck in - Oregon Inlet. Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks, Joe

I should have added that we will be in a 56 foot motor yacht with 5 foot draft. From: joroy40@hotmail.com To: great-loop@lists.trawlering.com Subject: Morehead City to Norfolk Date: Thu, 17 Apr 2014 12:32:59 -0500 Looking for advice: The last time I made this trip I went inside. While I am not in a particular hurry I am considering going outside in my 20+ knots boat. (I really want to avoid the Alligator river!) But, I see only one viable inlet in the event I need to duck in - Oregon Inlet. Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks, Joe

We decided Oregon Inlet was impassable for us with a 6' draft, so we opted to take the Pamlico Sound route. That will bypass the Alligator river but you'll still need to do parts of the ICW further south. PM me if you need more details or waypoints. In our 8-knot boat we had to anchor one night on the sound, but you can avoid that at your speeds. -Sean m/y Vector lying Stuart, FL http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com On 04/17/2014 01:32 PM, Joe wrote: > Looking for advice: The last time I made this trip I went inside. While I am not in a particular hurry I am considering going outside in my 20+ knots boat. (I really want to avoid the Alligator river!) But, I see only one viable inlet in the event I need to duck in - Oregon Inlet. Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks, > > Joe > > > > _______________________________________________ > http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/listinfo/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com > > To modify your Great-Loop subscription options (change email address, > unsubscribe, etc.) go to: http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/options/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com

Oregon Inlet is home to a significant charter fleet that surely draws 5+ ft (50-70ft custom sport fish, etc). Inlet is tricky with ever shifting shoals. Dredging goes on there all the time to maintain minimum depth for fleet. I would personally worry more about the probability of rough ride offshore than the inlet. BTW, next option north is Rudee Inlet, about 5-10 miles south of inlet to Chesapeake Bay. Chris Reikersdorfer Cell: 608-575-2035 Email: creik1965@gmail.com Sent from my iPhone > On Apr 17, 2014, at 14:46, Sean Welsh <slwelsh+trawlers@gmail.com> wrote: > > We decided Oregon Inlet was impassable for us with a 6' draft, so we opted to take the Pamlico Sound route. That will bypass the Alligator river but you'll still need to do parts of the ICW further south. PM me if you need more details or waypoints. In our 8-knot boat we had to anchor one night on the sound, but you can avoid that at your speeds. > > -Sean > m/y Vector > lying Stuart, FL > http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com > > >> On 04/17/2014 01:32 PM, Joe wrote: >> Looking for advice: The last time I made this trip I went inside. While I am not in a particular hurry I am considering going outside in my 20+ knots boat. (I really want to avoid the Alligator river!) But, I see only one viable inlet in the event I need to duck in - Oregon Inlet. Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks, >> Joe >> >> _______________________________________________ >> http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/listinfo/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com >> >> To modify your Great-Loop subscription options (change email address, >> unsubscribe, etc.) go to: http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/options/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com > > > _______________________________________________ > http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/listinfo/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com > > To modify your Great-Loop subscription options (change email address, > unsubscribe, etc.) go to: http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/options/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com

On 04/17/2014 04:00 PM, Chris Reikersdorfer wrote: > Oregon Inlet is home to a significant charter fleet that surely draws 5+ ft (50-70ft custom sport fish, etc). Inlet is tricky with ever shifting shoals. Dredging goes on there all the time to maintain minimum depth for fleet. Really? The ACoE just announced depths are 2' and they can't dredge: http://outerbanksvoice.com/2014/04/14/now-only-2-feet-deep-oregon-inlet-is-too-shallow-to-dredge/ When we passed by there last fall, the reported depths at the inlet were 5' at best and local knowledge was required. As I said, we draw 6, so we'd be lucky to make it in dead calm on a favorable tide. That said, the OP was asking about a safety valve, in case he needed to seek refuge. Even when the channel is maintained, if it gets so snotty outside that you are seeking safe harbor, the Oregon Inlet bar would be a very dicey proposition indeed. You'd be better off taking the beating off shore and making for Hampton Roads, IMO. > I would personally worry more about the probability of rough ride offshore than the inlet. BTW, next option north is Rudee Inlet, about 5-10 miles south of inlet to Chesapeake Bay. Rudee is a looong way if you are coming north from Morehead City.... Again, if it's rough outside, and you're already that close to HR, why risk a tricky inlet rather than continue to the ship channel? FWIW. -Sean