It’s about a 42 mile journey from Grand Dunes Marina in Myrtle Beach area to Southport which is on the banks of the Cape Fear River. The overnight temps have been in the upper 40’s so it’s still a little cool when we leave the marina in the morning but quickly warms up during the day with the sun. Today we have 9 fixed bridges and 2 swing bridges to go through. Both the swing bridges open on demand, so it should be a fairly easy day today.

As we approached the Southport marina we had a bit of a flood tide that would push us sideways as we turned to enter the marina and as we approached the slip. Once we entered the marina area off the ICW the effect of the current was much less and we were able to get into our slip without any issues. Once we got settled another boat was heading into the marina and it was a Mainship 390 with green canvas and at first glance we thought it might be our friends aboard Calypso. As the boat neared we determined it was a different boat and was not Calypso. However, we met the people aboard and helped them tie up as they approached. They are people who are on vacation and local to the area and traveling on their boat for about a week or so. However, they are looking to do the Great Loop so we chatted about the route and shared information and some laughs.

Mark and I explored Southport since this is the first time we have been here. On our way south we didn’t stop in Southport so this is all new for us. There are some cool historic homes in town and we always love looking and admiring the local architecture.

We decided to get a bite to eat and walked over to a restaurant called The Frying Pan. This restaurant is located on the waters edge overlooking the Cape Fear River. The views from their dining room was spectacular!

When we left Southport to keep heading north, we were able to snap a photo of The Frying Pan from the water.

We are spending a couple of days in Southport since we have some boat chores to take care of. One was laundry and we quickly got that task out of the way. We were also in need of some additional provisions, so a trip to the grocery store was in order. Earlier in our walking tour of town, we noticed the Southport Market which appeared to be a small boutique kind of market/grocery store. However, it was closed when we walked by yesterday evening. So I had it in mind to walk through and do some shopping. Once I entered the door it became clear rather quickly that it wasn’t a grocery store but a variety/touristy store. So back the boat I went empty handed in the grocery department. I got online to search for grocery stores near me and found that there was really nothing within walking distance and I needed to get an Uber to take me to the nearest grocery store. Generally Mark and I go to the store together however this time I made the trip alone since Mark was busy doing some boat projects. He was working on getting a few coats of varnish on our toe rail before all the varnish was gone and it would really need to be redone.

Here are some photos from around the marina as we walked around later after our jobs were done.

Tomorrow morning we are headed to Carolina Beach.