Oriental Harbor, NC off Intercoastal Now Clear

[Summergirl]

There was a thread awhile back generating alot of attention passing around rumours that Oriental Harbor was congested with derelicts. That was never entirely true; it was flagrantly polticized and no more than 3 sailboats were ever semi-anchored in the harbor. None but a boat owned by a French couple were ever an issue in navigating or getting into the harbor, and was because the engine died. Boat is now gone. A second boat owned by a local is now anchored elsewhere.

The third boat is now also gone. A pink sailboat owned by a friend of mine who was, as he claimed, a disabled vet on limited income and too proud to beg, treated none too well by certain members of the town. Brad passed away after rowing to and fro from his boat one night last year, he had an aortic aneurisym that ruptured and bled out. He was a liveaboard. RIP my friend Brad. He was a good and gentle soul that deserved better, imo.

Since then the Harbor has been mostly dead since then, the bad and mostly undeserved rep did its damage. But for those that have not heard the news of Brad's passing and dont realize why the harborage is no longer an issue; feel free to stop in. There are no derelicts (and never were) and now there are no liveaboards either to affect your passage or hinder your temporary anchorage in Oriental, NC.

[Jcolman]

If anyone is interested in reading or seeing more about Oriental, there is a terrific website here:

TownDock.net | Oriental NC News, Weather, Photos

[boatman61]

Well worth a stopover.. nice folks in my experience... and the occasional diamond..

[Greenhand]

Are you sure the harbor isn't empty just because it is d@mn cold?

[rwidman]

The harbor cam and other cams are pretty neat. We stopped in Oriental for a couple days last spring. It's worth a stop.

[cheoah]

Originally Posted by Summergirl

There was a thread awhile back generating alot of attention passing around rumours that Oriental Harbor was congested with derelicts. That was never entirely true; it was flagrantly polticized and no more than 3 sailboats were ever semi-anchored in the harbor. None but a boat owned by a French couple were ever an issue in navigating or getting into the harbor, and was because the engine died. Boat is now gone. A second boat owned by a local is now anchored elsewhere.



The third boat is now also gone. A pink sailboat owned by a friend of mine who was, as he claimed, a disabled vet on limited income and too proud to beg, treated none too well by certain members of the town. Brad passed away after rowing to and fro from his boat one night last year, he had an aortic aneurisym that ruptured and bled out. He was a liveaboard. RIP my friend Brad. He was a good and gentle soul that deserved better, imo.



Since then the Harbor has been mostly dead since then, the bad and mostly undeserved rep did its damage. But for those that have not heard the news of Brad's passing and dont realize why the harborage is no longer an issue; feel free to stop in. There are no derelicts (and never were) and now there are no liveaboards either to affect your passage or hinder your temporary anchorage in Oriental, NC.

Sorry to hear about brad. He wasn't positioned to live a long and healthy life and I don't hold anyone else accountable for his passing. He died living how he wanted, but if longevity was the goal, he was in the wrong place.

The harbor will most certainly be used when it is warm again.

Thx for update. I personally would not be comfortable hogging prime real estate in a small harbor. Just doesn't make sense.

Cheers

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF,Summergirl.

[FollowingCs]

these guys did a nice little video on their Oriental stop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSdHQmWXheA

- Ray
~ Following Cs ~

[DDabs]

Spent a few months living in Oriental while doing work to the boat at Sailcraft Service, which is an excellent yard if you need to haul out and get anything done. The town itself is very quiet and relaxing. If you are heading down the coast it is a great place to stop. The Oriental Inn and Marina which is home to the Toucan Grill is a great place to eat and grab a drink, as well as Silo's, which is on the edge of town heading inland. I miss the slow, lazy days spent in Oriental and the nice people I met who lived there.


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Tom.B]

I disagree... I watch the webcams almost daily and this cruising season, thanks to the clearing of the worst offenders, has been one of the busiest I have seen in a while. (unscientific opinion)

The French boat was a hot mess. It got what it deserved. It's owner's were irresponsible at best and criminal at worst. They insisted on stern anchoring and unfairly ate up a large chunk of the anchorage. Your friend Brad made his own bed by bringing his argument out in public. He felt entitled by his position as a vet and abused the title. He insisted that he had the RIGHT to stay as long as he wanted and, whatever side you come down on the issue, made the mistake of airing his dirty laundry in the public domain. Long forum arguments and even a letter-war on the Town Dock's own page brought the eyes of the entire community onto his big pink boat. In all fairness, it was probably made FAR worse by the unfortunate timing of being there at the same time as the French boat. Otherwise, I would bet there would have been far less scrutiny place on him.

If there is a good side to this, the entire event caused the town of Oriental to really take a look at their waterfront management. In the future, you can sleep well knowing that Brad's legacy will be that he had a little to do with the improvement of the relationship between the town and water-based visitors.

[Amapola]

We have always been treated warmly by the residents of Oriental. We almost always bet offers for rides to and from the grocery and marine stores. We usually anchor west of the bridge and dink to the public dock.