Oriental North Carolina
Launching Grit: Storms Delay the Start of Our Shackleford Banks Voyage
Thunder storms, downpours and a tornado. Whew. Today was the day Julia and I were going to launch our sailboat Grit in the Neuse River and head toward Shackleford Banks. Only that didn’t happen on account of the, er, bumpy weather.
How Julia and I Got Hitched at the Town Dock
Sixteen years ago I sailed back in to Oriental, NC after spending 5 years sailing alone around the world. Hours after tying up a mooring line’s length from the town dock, a reporter asked me, “what do you fear most”. I said, “growing old alone on a sailboat”.
Flash forward to last Saturday, February 23. I stood on the same town dock with my fiancee Julia. My dear friend Keith Smith,… Continue reading
Join Julia and Me as we get Hitched!
Julia and I are getting married this weekend and you’re invited. The hitchin’ is at 11am at the Oriental Town Dock in Oriental, NC. The Town Dock has served as jumping off point for quite a few of my adventures, from sailing alone around the world to walking across America with a mule. Of course dogs and mules are welcome. ‘be great if… Continue reading
Covered Wagon Done — Now Let’s Tow a Sailboat with a Mule
The concept was simple. Build a two-wheeled cart. Build a two-wheeled covered wagon. Hitch the wagon to the cart and pull the rig through the Canadian Maritimes. I built the cart. I built the wagon.
So far, so good for 5 weeks of work.
Over Under Over: Splicing Lead Ropes on the Atlantic to Pacific Ride
One of the finer things in life is splicing fresh rope.
Ross Pease back in Oriental, NC showed me how to splice twenty-five feet of 3/8″ anchor chain to Sea Bird’s anchor rode.
I promptly forgot how to do it and spent the next four and a half years sailing around the world trying to remember — was it “over under over” or “under over under?” And… Continue reading
The Idea Germinated in a Gale: How Woody and I Came to Be
The idea of riding a mule across North Carolina germinated in a gale. I was off Madagascar in my sailboat Sea Bird, the sailboat that I sailed alone around the world. That night things blew up so nasty the mast hit the broken ocean and the portholes swirled with brine. I thought “Next time I’m home I’ll stick to the dry a while.”
I Did Not Look Back: I Just Rode My Mule West
This is the first post ever published on RiverEarth.com. Keith Smith and I got the site running just after midnight on March 17, 2004, the night before I rode my mule Woody out of Oriental, North Carolina. What started as a ride across one state turned into 13 months, 3,500 miles, and a journey that is still unfolding.
Woody’s long mule ears bobbed in front of me as I rode away from the town dock in Oriental. Voices drifted up… Continue reading
