Passing by a pound net in Albemarle Sound

Good sized body of tea-colored water in northeastern North Carolina. Great expanses of cypress swamps and their tannin-loaded needles give the water its unique hue.

Brackish, the sound almost totally enclosed, just a few outlets to the sea, with lots of rivers bringing in fresh water from the Carolina plateau.

We hauled Nellie Lankford there last week to meet spring.  Offloaded at a ramp in the Pelican Marina, Pasquotank River in Elizabeth City.

Edentown, at the westward end of the sound, with its classic nineteenth- century houses from the era of cotton and tobacco.

A swing bridge in Hertford named in honor of legendary major league baseball pitcher Catfish Hunter.

And at the southeastern end of the sound, inside the outer banks, Roanoke Island studded by historic Manteo at its northern end and boatbuilding Wanchese to the suthard. Lots of interesting ports of call around the sound.

We motored toward Manteo from Albemarle Plantation Marina on a warm afternoon last week when we passed several pound nets not yet deployed for the new season. The continent was warming to the west during the spring's first pleasantly warm week.

The afternoon heat brought up a sea breeze out of the southeast.  A lee along the sound's southern shore helped us for a while but when we began crossing the broad reach of the southward-seeking Croatan Sound, a long fetch built the seas and we pounded into them for about an hour before we rounded the northern tip of Roanoke Island into Roanoke Sound.  The next day a waterman would tell us he places little faith in a southeast wind.  Probably because of the fickle nature of a sea breeze. But the same sea breeze that beat us up heading out the sound on Wednesday afternoon gave us sweet sailing on Thursday afternoon when we headed across and to the north.

More to tell about Albemarle Sound but that will have to wait for another day.

Thanks for joining me.