Camp Swampy

We delayed several days for weather in Beaufort NC. The wind howled and it poured and then poured and finally poured more. Beaufort is a great stop. Wild horses roam the banks, there is lots of bird life and dolphins play nearby. Also there are several wine stores, great bars and restaurants. We enjoyed but were anxious to keep moving . Cold is a good motivator for heading South. The winds were still up around 25 knots but these waters are fairly protected running inside the banks and along rivers and swamps. Eventually the ICW passes into marine territory around Camp Lejeune . We niticed flashing red lights on shore along with big red flags fkying from the observation towers. Just in case we were poorly informed, there was a small grey boat with NAVY GUARD BOAT emblazoned on the side. They thought we would not want to interfere with the marines storming Onslo Beach, especially since they were using live fire during these exercises. With logic like that what can you do? We threw out the hook and waited a couple of hours. There were at least 10 helicopters big and small , other than that we heard gun fire and large booms from ahead. We proceeded cautiously when they said it was ok to continue. Mile hammock a protected dredged pond was lively with night exercises but still a protected and good anchorage.