Belhaven Harbor

Marinas near Belhaven Harbor

Introduction:

Belhaven is located off the Pungo River south of the Alligator River-Pungo River Canal at Intracoastal Waterway Mile Marker 135 about 55 miles south of Coinjock and 60 miles north of Beaufort (as the bird flies). Belhaven is an important stop on the Intracoastal Waterway, as it is located at a spot that is in the middle of a day’s run from Beaufort to the south and the Alligator River entrance to the north (five-knot boat).

With that in mind, Belhaven has set itself up well to deal with transient boaters. There are two primary marinas here and each is dedicated to taking care of visiting boaters. In addition to transient facilities, both marinas have 40-ton lifts and extensive repair facilities for haul-outs and refits. If you need to stock up the galley, you will need to arrange for a courtesy car or golf cart with one of the marinas; the nearest grocery is two miles away.

Local Notices to Mariners:

Local Notices to Mariners are available online from the U.S. Coast Guard.

Helpful Links:

Town of Belhaven

Belhaven Community Chamber of Commerce

Navigating the Water:

Use NOAA Chart 11553.

From the Pungo River heading south, be sure to first honor quick flashing red “10,” which marks a shoal extending northward from Durants Point. Once you have cleared the shoal, set a course for flashing green “1BC” about one mile east of the twin jetties at the opening to Pantego Creek at Belhaven. From here, follow in red daybeacon “2BC,” green daybeacon “3,” red daybeacon “4,” and then flashing green “5” and flashing red “6” at the south and north jetties to Pantego Creek, respectively. The entrance channel has a controlling depth of nine feet.

Inside the harbor, the channel hugs the shoreline up to the 13-foot fixed vertical clearance bridge. Anchorage is available just to the west of the channel when you enter and the holding here is good, but do expect wave and wake traffic from the Pungo River to mix things up a bit.