boatinglifestyle A String of Pearls in OYSTER HARBOUR Cape Lookout Yacht Club Edenton Makes Waves Sound Adventures in New Blood in Historic New Bern

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1 Cover6_Mar05 3/9/05 1:24 AM Page 1 NC March 2005 boatinglifestyle The Lifestyle Magazine For Every North Carolina Powerboat Owner A String of Pearls in OYSTER HARBOUR Cape Lookout Yacht Club Makes Waves Sound Adventures in Edenton New Blood in Historic New Bern ncboatinglifestyle.com

2 OysterHarbor_Advertorial_Mar05 3/8/05 11:37 PM Page 1 Oyster Harbour Plantation at Holden Beach Special to NCboatinglifestyle BY MONICA YOUNG Cathy Ellico plans to trade one coast for another when she retires. Currently living in Laguna Niguel, California, a trip to see her sister in Raleigh and see the new lot she had just purchased in Oyster Harbour Plantation spurred Cathy to purchase two waterfront lots of her own. She plans to hold one for an investment and build on the other, even though retirement is over a decade away. She was attracted by the area s natural beauty, so much so that she shared her excitement with a colleague in California who also became an Oyster Harbour land owner. Martha Lee of Martha Lee Realty in Holden Beach attributes the three-year-old community s success to the way that Waterfront Properties developed the 700 homesite property. It sits in the heart of a live oak forest with huge trees that are centuries old and have been preserved. Roads were constructed to twist and turn through dogwoods, holly trees and the gracious live oaks dripping with Spanish moss. The community is framed by the borders of the Little Shallotte River and the Intracoastal Waterway. Prepare to fall in love when you see it, says Martha Lee. It s a gorgeous piece of waterfront land with the herons, the ibis, the egrets, oyster catchers and nesting ospreys using it as a bird sanctuary. There are deer and other animals who reside in Oyster Harbour. While the gated community is large enough to have the virtues and amenities of larger complexes, the design detail and development keep it feeling smaller and intimate. Oyster Harbour Plantation has its own pier, private gazebo and boat launching area. Another appreciated feature is a boat storage area for residents to keep their boats and trailers in a gated, secure location. In the clubhouse area, there is a pool as well as tennis courts. The clubhouse is well-appointed and a popular gathering spot for neighbors to enjoy the sense of community that Oyster Harbour fosters. Cary resident Cliff Oryszak built their vacation home at Oyster Harbour Plantation to have a place to gather their children and grandchildren. I like the idea of a place where we can get out and go boating. It s a very tight community and not overbuilt. It s a place where you can get to know your neighbors, says Cliff. The location of Oyster Harbour Plantation is 12 :: NCboatinglifestyle The clubhouse at Oyster Harbour Plantation serves as a popular gathering spot for neighbors. Some of the community amenities include tennis courts. Holden Beach sits directly across from the Oyster Harbour waterfront park on the Intracoastal Waterway. The waterfront park includes a gazebo, pier, boating launch area and day docks. Residents of all ages enjoy the serene Oyster Harbour pool. one of its greatest attributes. Directly across from Holden Beach and ten minutes away from the Shallotte Inlet, you can hit the big water and be catching king mackerel in little time. Wilmington is 40 minutes to the north while Myrtle Beach, the mecca for all things bright, glittery and neon on the beach, is 40 minutes to the south. A new mall is only seven miles away as is a new state-of-the-art medical facility. For golfers, there are 30 golf courses within 30 minutes of the community. For those looking for more variety, there are hundreds of spots between Wilmington and Myrtle Beach. Oyster Harbour Plantation is situated for an easy drive to any of them. It s the last frontier. That s why Brunswick County is so hot right now, says Martha, a realtor by trade, a boater by nature. This is a great place if you enjoy dinner by boat or skiing, crabbing or digging for clams. I love to take people who are interested in our area in my boat (a 19-foot McKee Craft) and show them how beautiful this area is from the water. Oyster Harbour Plantation is offered at incredible price points. The large lots range from the mid $70,000s for interior homesites to marsh lots starting at $150,000. Riverfront and waterfront lots begin at $250,000. Many of the homesites are over an acre; and amazingly, some homesite elevations are 25-feet above sea level. Those familiar with Brunswick County real estate realize that these price points are rare for true waterfront communities. If you can envision a place that has been unaffected by time s passage, add waterfront beauty and the most beautiful sunsets in the world, this is Oyster Harbour Plantation. This is what dreams are made of. We re in the business of selling dreams come true, says Martha Lee. Martha Lee Realty 2869 Holden Beach Road Holden Beach, NC

3 HoldenBeach_Mar05 3/8/05 11:30 PM Page 1 Joe Hutchens: Hooked on Holden Beach BY MONICA YOUNG PHOTOGRAPHY BY SCOTT TAYLOR Joe Hutchens and Martha Lee Realty colleague George Whitley check out Oyster Harbour Plantation by boat. Joe Hutchens grew up in High Point and entered the family business once he was an adult. His grandfather started Food World in the 1930s during the middle of the Depression. In 1985, Harris Teeter purchased Food World; and Joe worked for them until itching to have a house, a job and a boat on the coast. Two years ago he joined Martha Lee Realty in Holden Beach and continued his varied investment interests on the side. He purchases large lots on and around the beach, finds a builder and builds spec houses on each. He lived in Isle of Palms, South Carolina for eight years before moving up to Holden Beach. This new career allows Joe to fund his favorite hobby, offshore fishing. He has fished for over 20 years and traveled extensively to pursue it. He has a 25-foot Contender that he bought in Georgetown, South Carolina last year. The Contender stays docked behind his house on a canal Joe Hutchens, George Whitley and Martha Lee share the same profession and profess the same love for the water. that leads to the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW). Fittingly, Joe s street is named Marlin Drive. I m an avid boater. My son and I do a lot of SKA (Southern Kingfish Association) fishing tournaments. I taught him in kindergarten how to drive a boat. He s probably a better driver at 16 than I am now, says Joe. His son Chris is a sixfoot-one, 16-year old high school student in Matthews. He lives on Lake Wylie with his mother during the year and spends most fall and spring weekends with his father in Holden Beach. He devotes winters to playing forward on his basketball team, but summers are reserved for living at Holden Beach and fishing 8 :: NCboatinglifestyle ncboatinglifestyle.com

4 HoldenBeach_Mar05 3/8/05 11:31 PM Page 2 with his father. Chris s sister attends Meredith College in Raleigh. We used to live in Charleston so we started going out when I was really young, around three or four, says Chris, who is already adept at trailering a boat and driving with it behind a vehicle. Some of the boats that the Hutchens have owned have included Boston Whalers in 15, 17 and 22-foot versions. They have had a McKee Craft 18-foot center console. This is Joe s second Contender; his first was a 23-foot model. I have twin 200 Yamahas on this Contender. It s a great boat in heavy seas. We were out on New Year s 75 miles off of Wilmington. We headed out of the inlet with the sunrise, says Joe. He and Chris have quite a few tales about their fishing adventures. They average between tournaments a year, but last year only participated in 10. It s getting more difficult to get him out of school, says Joe. Chris is a junior in high school. When we re out there fishing together, it s nice to get away from everything. It s a way to be doing something we really enjoy doing together. Dad s a realtor and is busy working, and I m hanging out with friends or working so when we go out fishing, it s just him and me, says Chris. The largest fish that Chris ever caught was a 300-pound bluefin tuna off of the Morehead City area. He was only 12-years-old, and he and his dad were fishing for fun that day. The tuna come running down from the northeast during the winter months, and it s a lot of fun to fish for them. I caught three or four about the same size that we released. We kept the big one, recalls Chris. It was fun because it took so long to get it in. He estimates that it took about an hour with pounds of drag on the fish before they even saw what they had on the line. It was taking line off of the reel like it was nothing. I was in full harness hooked up to the rod and leaning back. If the line had broken, I would have gone flying backwards. You really have to use your leg muscles, says Chris. Both Joe and Chris recount that their most dramatic fishing was done in an SKA tournament outside of Biloxi, Mississippi in On the first day, Joe snagged a 40-pound king mackerel which put them in 10th place. The tournaments use a combined weight so to win, a tournament participant has to catch a decent-sized fish on the first day and then another on the sec- One of Joe's bedrooms marries warm colors and relaxed but elegant furnishings. Joe's Holden Beach house sits on a canal from easy ICW access. The great room faces the dock and Joe's Contender. ncboatinglifestyle.com NCboatinglifestyle :: 9

5 HoldenBeach_Mar05 3/8/05 11:32 PM Page 3 Taking her out for a spin. Friends and family gather to enjoy Joe's boating life. ond. Joe and Chris arrived on the second day ready to repeat or improve their performance from the previous day. The day began with nice weather so Joe and Chris decided to head toward the West Delta area, about 100 miles one way from the tournament start. The area is known to be rich with king mackerel. It was a 110 mile run crossing the Delta, says Joe. A cold front turned the elements to rage against the father-son pair. Waves reached eight to 10 feet. By the time the duo arrived where they wanted to fish, they only had 30 minutes. They trolled around, and Joe hooked one. My dad was up front fighting the fish. Waves kept knocking him down. He usually lets me fight it, but this time he did, says Chris. The fish weighted about 35 pounds, and they hustled to return to the tournament. They made it with only minutes to spare before the weigh-in and only one engine because they were so low on fuel. In fact, they had to move weight to the bow to make it. Their efforts placed them in third place for the tournament, and they won $10,000. We probably didn t make anything because of the hotel, gas and food. We burned 240 gallons of gas, says Chris, who says that the experience was one of the most fun that they have had. With fishing a real pleasure for Joe Hutchens, the flexible schedule of real estate suits him. Brunswick County is currently leading in real estate sales for North Carolina. Joe says that it is a great place to be a realtor. The unspoiled waterfront that sits between Wilmington and Myrtle Beach is capturing national attention. For Joe Hutchens, it s a great place to live, fish and work in that order. Martha Lee Realty When Martha Lee, owner of Martha Lee Realty, wants to show clients properties by boat, it might be with an ulterior motive. She might just want a chance to hop in her 2004 McKee Craft and feel the wind in her face while hitting the waters around the Brunswick County area. I think I have saltwater instead of blood in my veins, she says. Martha Lee grew up clamming, crabbing and boating in the Wrightsville Beach area. Passionate about all things coastal, it was a natural move for her to become a realtor 32 years ago. When a company asked her to become their broker-in-charge four years ago, friends and family encouraged her to venture out on her own. The leap of faith into owning a business might have been a natural progression of a successful career, but it was still a little daunting. Her first office was out of her home and out of her SUV. She graduated to an office of 1,100 square feet and then to 2,200 square feet and then to 3,300 square feet. In case you see a pattern, yes, they are expanding again. Fifteen agents now comprise the team at Martha Lee Realty; and they very much are a team, the owner is quick to note. Her name may be on the masthead, but everyone at Martha Lee Realty works together to drive the results that they have enjoyed this past year. In 2004 Martha Lee Realty had $98 million in sales volume. The lovely thing is that everyone who works there is a saltwater baby. There is a type of reverence for our area, says Martha. Although the real estate company specializes in waterfront or waterview properties, they are not limited to one area of Brunswick County. They also handle inland real estate sales. It s very gratifying to help people making a decision to follow their dreams of owning coastal property. We re selling a lifestyle. We re selling dreams, not real estate, says Martha in what has become her professional mantra. Martha says that anyone can take a parcel of land and turn it into a golf community. You can t manufacture coastal property, only God can do that. We have people coming down from the north amazed at our prices. You just can t buy vacant homesites up on the northeast coast like you can here, says Martha. I m glad I m in Brunswick County. I love what I do. Martha Lee Realty Company 2869 Holden Beach Rd. Holden Beach, NC :: NCboatinglifestyle ncboatinglifestyle.com