And as we cruised up the ICW, we saw the usual variety of housing, but I think these cute docks were the reason I took this photo.
Once again, we saw Osprey nests on the majority of channel markers. I can't believe these birds will ever have a population problem.
This next photo, purple martin houses on poles, is one we saw throughout the Carolinas without knowing what they really were. I read that the Indians used to put out gourds for the martins to nest in and now, anywhere East of the Mississippi, they are completely dependent on humans for their nesting sites. And they are especially popular in coastal areas because martins love to dine on insects, especially mosquitoes. So, no bug zappers here--they just put up martin houses along their docks.
Another common sight on this leg of the journey (actually on most of the trip since leaving Florida) were the crabbers seting out their traps. I guess this guy stored his equipment on the banks of the waterway. Once these guys get all their traps out, it can be an obstacle course for us to navigate through without getting one caught in the propeller. So far, so good.
Then, before we knew it, we were out of the wilds and back into civilization heading into Beaufort, N.C. This is a shot of one of the phosphorus shipping operations along the waterway into town.
And I guess those phosphorus shipping titans were not such good pilots--just look at the damage they did to the bridge pilings right next to their operation. It is always a little unnerving to cruise by a sight where someone else bashed in their boat.
Even though this was a major shipping/industrial area, we cruised only a few miles past and into Beaufort, a charming seaside village with a rich history. That will be my next post.
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