Cruising the NE Cape Fear River Above Wilmington, NC
Well, we cannot really comment intelligently on the upstream reaches of the NE Cape Fear River, upstream of SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR, Bennett Brothers Yachts – Cape Fear Marina, as none of us have ever cruised that far upstream before. Hope to remedy that oversight in the future. In the meantime, anyone else who had explored these rather obscure waters, please let us hear from you!
We did go about 50 miles up the NE branch the next day – got within 2 miles of the head of navigation (bridge) when we were warned of underwater logs ahead. We had already seen a 4.5 ft depth, so we turned back. Spent the night at anchorage and returned down river and got to Carolina Beach the next day. The NE branch is a beautiful river and very doable with depths of 8-15 ft most of the way, as long as one stays in the outside curves and follows normal precautions in running rivers. Lots of snags on the sides. I could go into more detail if you wish -let me know. This is a real cruising adventure. Our draft is 3.5 ft.
Jean Thomason
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