You've heard of the Great Loop and probably even the DelMarVa loop, but have you ever heard of the Albemarle Loop? If not, read on because you're going to want to put this loop on your cruising to-do list.
Many of us have cruised the Chesapeake, some to the far reaches north and south. Fewer of us have gotten out of the Bay, perhaps tasting the waters of Long Island Sound and New England or traveling down the ICW to points south.
If you have made it to the bottom of the Bay, there is an opportunity to cruise the North Carolina Sounds, the Albemarle and the Pamlico, that will put a smile on your face. The Albemarle is first up and a circumnavigation to some of the small towns on the Sound can be done in a week or so. The Pamlico is a bit further south. It includes the towns of Oriental (the sailing capital of North Carolina), Belhaven, and New Bern; all charming stops.
The Albemarle Sound runs west to east about 50 miles. You inevitably cross the Sound on ICW treks, but often without stopping in any of the small towns off the ICW routes. This is a shame because those towns offer some great cruising experiences, and quite often, free dockage. To see them all or pick and choose you may want to consider completing the Albemarle Loop.
In June, a small fleet from the Annapolis Yacht Club made the trip down the Bay with stops along the way, culminating in Norfolk. After a lay day to explore Norfolk, part of the fleet pointed the boats north for home, with stops in Cape Charles and Onancock, before returning to Annapolis.
A subset of five boats moved on to Coinjock, NC, and then into the Albemarle to do the Loop. Our first stop was Hertford.
Hertford is a very small town. There is still ice cream, etc., available at a remnant of an old-fashioned soda fountain counter in the town’s small drug store. We visited an eclectic tap room and bought dinner from a fundraiser fish fry at a church next door. There were no restaurants open for dinner. Like the rest of the Loop stops, the town slips are free as they beckon visitors and Loopers. There is a low bridge before the town dock. You must call the bridge tender an hour before your arrival since they don’t staff the bridge regularly.
Next up was Edenton, a bigger small town. We arrived on a Saturday and enjoyed a music festival in the park adjacent to the town docks. The benefit of size gets you shops and restaurants, both a treat. The town dock slips are nice, but visitors should monitor the weather and wind direction. Winds of substance from the SW to SE can add a different “rock and roll” feature to your visit.
After our own rocky overnight experience in Edenton, the collected crews took a closer look at our next planned destination, the Albemarle Plantation. The Plantation slips are also exposed to wind and waves out of the south and that was the forecast on our arrival date. So, we looked for an alternative.
The small town of Columbia, NC, was nearby. The town dock slips looked very protected and included space for the five boats in our fleet. Contact with anyone “official” in the town to confirm online details was not happening on a weekend day. Fortunately, there is a nearby nature trail staffed on the weekend. A phone call to them confirmed for us the availability of slips.
Columbia falls somewhere between our first two stops of Hertford and Edenton. It is a small town, with a population of less than 700, but there are a couple of restaurants and a coffee shop. Sadly, none of the restaurants were open for dinner on a Sunday. We made it to town in time to buy some take-out from Stick Burning BBQ company (great ribs) and added some sides and potluck choices from the boats. The gazebo in the town park adjacent to the town dock proved to be perfect for our make-do evening group meal.
Before I go on with this travelogue, I should share a word about crab pots in the Albemarle. There are a ton of them. It seems that the entire Albermarle is the perfect depth for crab pots and dodging them will keep the designated driver on their toes. Based on the number of crab floats, one could assume that the crabbing in the Albemarle is very productive. Conversely, it could be that each crab has its own pot. Asking around, we got inconclusive answers to the crab population question. The quest for knowledge continues.
Anyway, with the weather easing up, the little fleet made its way from Columbia to the Albemarle Plantation, a day later than planned. The Plantation is a resort, not a town. It is a jewel of a stop none the less. There is a nice golf course (a Dan Maples design), 166 slip marina, and the cheapest diesel anywhere on the ICW. The marina docks are wide enough for golf carts and one comes with the slip. You will want one.
Our crews made a beeline to the free laundry. Having been out 10 days already, it was time for fresh clothing options. Adjacent to the laundry were marina showers and a café. The café proved to be the right spot to wait out the laundry cycles. It also hosted a group dinner that did not disappoint.
Our shortened stay at the Plantation, one day instead of two, was bittersweet. We were happy to have experienced the feel of a resort stop but missed the relaxation of a lay day to really explore the pleasures of a resort. Next time!
The fleet had three days planned in Manteo, another jewel on the Sound, or should I say Sounds? Geographers and map makers may debate it, but it looks to me as if Manteo lives at the intersection of the two Sounds, with the Albemarle to the north and the Pamlico to the south of town. Anyway, we were off the docks at the Albemarle Plantation fairly early for the 40-mile run, mostly east across the Sound, to Manteo.
Manteo is located on Roanoke Island just inside the North Carolina Outer Banks. The island is also home to the fishing village of Wanchese, which virtually guarantees fresh seafood menu choices at the Manteo restaurants.
Manteo may be the “big” town on the Albemarle Sound. With a full-time population of around 1600, and room for more seasonally, it is a captivating stop on any Albemarle circumnavigation. Our crew arrived for a planned three-day stay, giving us time to experience it all.
In town there may be a dozen or more eateries, all walkable from the town marina. Two dolphin tour boats operate from the docks and across the way is a state park that includes a replica of the ship that brought the first English settlers to Roanoke Island in 1587.
If you remember your history lessons, you will recall that Manteo is home to the “Lost Colony,” the English settlement that essentially disappeared by 1590. There is a seasonal production of the play, “The Lost Colony,” that will add to your historical knowledge but not solve the enduring mystery of what happened to those colonists.
Also in town is a small single screen theater showing first run and retro films. We arrived in time to catch “Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning.” It turned out to be a perfect evening diversion on a particularly hot day during our multi-day layover. There is nothing like a cool movie theater on a hot summer evening.
If you want to experience the Albemarle Loop, be flexible and watch the weather. The short steep chop that builds with higher winds and the stops with marinas that may be exposed to those higher winds are worth managing around. Fortunately, nothing is too far away on the Albemarle, encouraging that flexibility and adding to the fun.
By Mike Pitchford