Dorothea Dix Sunflowers 2019

Sunday, Sandy and I took Alex for a hike to the see the sunflower field at Dorothea Dix Park in Raleigh.  We parked by the Farmers Market and hiked Centennial Bikeway Connector, part of the Capital Area Greenway.  We took Blair Drive into the park and walked around the sunflower field.  They definitely weren't blooming as much as last year - probably the hot and dry weather we've had lately.

But there were still plenty of sunflowers blooming.  Alex begrudgingly let us get a photo of him in the sunflowers.

And there were lots of bees gathering nectar.

By 830 in the morning, it was already hot so we didn't stay too long.  Alex and Sandy and headed back, while I continued hiking on the greenway.  I went as far as the Wetland Overlook near Rock Quarry Road and then turned back.

It was quite hot by this time and very humid.  The tunnels provided some relief from the sun.

I made it back to the car just before noon and stayed in air conditioning for the rest of the day.

Lake James & Mayo River

It had rained quite a bit overnight, but stopped by day break.  Alex was thirsty from not drinking water after dinner the night before.  I woke up to him licking condensation from the tent and let him out to get his water bowl.  We packed up camp and then headed down the mountain.  Our first stop was Lake James State Park.  It was a lot hotter down here than up in the Black Mountains.  We parked at the visitor center and first thing was getting Alex's passport stamped.

Then we hiked along Paddy Creek Trail following the lake shore.  There were a couple spots to go out for a nice view.

At the end, we crossed the road and hiked the Holly Discovery Trail.  A spur led down to a nice spot on Paddy Creek.

Finishing up the short loop, we got back on Paddy Creek Trail and took another spur down to the lake.

On the way back, we made a detour on Homestead Trail and then finished up our hike.

It was pretty hot by now and the air conditioning felt good.  Leaving the park, we made a quick stop at the Linville Gorge Overlook.

Shortoff Mountain was visible at the south end of the gorge.  From here, we headed east on I-40 towards home, but wanted to get another park.  In the Triad, we went to Mayo River State Park near Mayodan to get Alex's passport stamped.

Then we hiked the short loop from Mayo Mountain access area.

It's a double-loop with the inner about a half-mile and the outer about 2 miles.

It was quite hot at this point, so kind of a relief for a short hike.

After finishing up, we made the rest of the drive home.

Black Mountain Crest

Saturday morning, we woke up and had breakfast at camp then headed to the visitor center at Mount Mitchell State Park to get Alex's passport stamped.

Then we drove to the top of the mountain.  First, we hiked the Summit Trail up to the top of Mount Mitchell, highest point in the eastern United States at 6,684 feet above sea level.

It was too cloudy up here for much of a view though.

Then we hiked back down and got on the Deep Gap/Black Mountain Crest Trail.  This trail follows the crest of the Black Mountains north through the park and continues through Pisgah National Forest.  There's a lot of up-and-down, but the trail mostly stays above 6000 feet.  It was really cloudy so no sweeping views, but the fog gave the spruce-fir forest an ethereal feel.

There were some cliff saxifrage along rocky sections.

And we saw lots of red elderberries.

As we got to Mount Craig, it started to rain.  It was a pretty steady rain for the entire hike.  We went as far as Cattail Peak, at which point it lessened to a light drizzle.

By the time we got back to the car, the rain had mostly dissipated.  For dinner, we stopped at the restaurant and got take-out and ate it back up at the summit.  The clouds had cleared and there were nice views now.

I took a short hike around the Balsam Nature Trail.

Then we headed back to camp.  After building a fire, we got Alex's dinner ready, but he wanted to lay down in the tent.  Being a stubborn husky, he really wanted to go in the tent, but we repeatedly told him he needed to eat dinner first.  Finally, he relented and scarfed his dinner down and as promised we let him in the tent.  I offered some water, but there was no getting between him and the tent.

I went for one last hike in the cool weather to Camp Alice Trail.

We enjoyed the fire for a while as it was a beautiful night.

Right after we got in the tent, it started to rain and continued through most of the night.

Grassy Creek Falls

Friday morning, we woke up early to catch one more Outer Banks sunrise before leaving.  A few other people had the same idea but we mostly had the beach to ourselves.

We hiked north a half-mile or so until the sun just poked above the horizon.

There was a nice spot to sit down and enjoy the beach while the sun rose.

We dipped our feet in the ocean, then headed back to pack up.  It was about four hours back to Raleigh to pick up Alex and then we headed to the mountains for some camping.  Our first stop was just off the Blue Ridge Parkway near Little Switzerland.  Grassy Creek Falls is on private property but the landowners are nice enough to allow public access.  Parking at the top of Grassy Creek Road, we hiked down the gravel road.  In about a half-mile, there was a signed turn onto a more overgrown road that was chained.  This road approached Grassy Creek and then followed it downstream to the falls.  It's a real nice waterfall with several sections.

We first climbed down to the base of the upper section, a nice veil.  Just a little further down the trail was another spot to climb down to view more of the waterfall.

It looked like I could have gone down even further, but it had started to rain, so we headed back.

The rain let up as we got back to the car and we took off on the parkway heading southbound.  We made a quick stop at Singecat Ridge Overlook to see clouds in the valley below.

Just past here, the on-and-off rain and made a beautiful rainbow down the escarpment.  We pulled off at Curtis Valley Overlook for a better view.

Then we continued to Mount Mitchell State Park, our home for the weekend.  Parking at the campground, we set up camp and then I went on a short hike up to the top.  Unfortunately, clouds had rolled in so not much of a sunset view.  I hiked back to camp and Sandy had built a fire.  Alex enjoyed the fire with us for a while, but once it got dark, he was ready for the tent.

Sandy and I enjoyed the fire for a bit longer and then went to bed as well.

Independence Day in Corolla

Thursday morning, I woke up early and headed down to the beach before sunrise.  The beach was just beautiful in the early twilight and I started hiking north.

The sun rose just as I crossed the fence to where beach driving is allowed.

Not too many vehicles and few people this early in the morning.

I went north several miles, past the homes and followed a sandy path into Currituck National Wildlife Refuge.  I was hoping to spot some wild horses but no such luck.

By 730, it was already hot and humid and the flies were bad in here, so I started hiking back.  Crossing back to where beach driving is prohibited, there were a bunch of pelicans and cormorants on the posts out in the water.

The beach was really getting crowded now, but it was just another mile to Corolla Light.

I got back to the house and rested in the air conditioning for a little while and then we all headed to the beach to play in the waves.  There were some boogie boards at the house to borrow and pretty good surf to ride the waves.  After playing in the water a bit, Sandy and I had lunch and took a dip in the pool.  We grilled burgers for dinner, then I went back down to Historic Corolla Park to watch the sunset over the sound.  Too many clouds for much of a sunset, but clear enough for fireworks.  After the fireworks, we went to bed.

Outer Banks National Parks

Wednesday morning, we had breakfast in Corolla at First Light and drove south to visit some of the national parks on the Outer Banks.  We originally planned to do this on Independence Day, but were concerned about the traffic.  Driving into Kill Devil Hills, our first stop was at Wright Brothers National Memorial.  After paying admission, we parked and headed into the visitor center.  The little museum has a lot of history about the development of aviation and the challenges the brothers faced in being first in flight.  There was also a replica of the Wright flyer; the original is in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.

Outside, it was a beautiful sunny day, though hot in the sun.

Heading to the Flight Line, we decided to hit this on the way back.

The paved walkway headed to Big Kill Devil Hill, with the Wright Brothers Monument at the top.  There were some trumpet creeper flowering along the way up.

We stopped for a bit at the monument to check it out and enjoy the views over the Outer Banks.

It was open, but not much inside and it was quite hot.  Then we headed back down and walked down the Flight Line.  A rock was placed the distance that the brothers' first four flights went in December 1903.  The first flight went 120 feet.

The second flight went about 12 seconds for a distance of 175 feet.

Orville flew the third flight for about 200 feet.

And Wilbur flew the fourth flight, lasting 59 seconds and going 852 feet.

Walking along the Flight Line put the distance flown in perspective.  It was getting pretty hot out in the sun and no shade at all, so it was time to take off.

Our next stop was Fort Raleigh National Historical Site on Roanoke Island.  This site is commemorates the Roanoke Colony, the first English attempt at permanent settlement of the New World.  Known as the Lost Colony, the colonists disappeared between 1587 and 1590 and their fate is still a mystery.  We toured around the visitor center to learn more about the Lost Colony then hiked around the grounds.  The 1896 Monument just outside the visitor center marks the beginning of efforts to preserve the site.

Near here was a reconstructed earthen fort, based on the one constructed by the first explorers in 1585.

The original had eroded into almost nothing, but archaeologists were able to approximate its dimensions based on soil disturbances.  The grounds of the historic site were really pretty with many live oaks.

Next, we hiked the Thomas Hariot Trail.

There was an access to a small beach here next to the Lost Colony Theater overlooking Roanoke Sound.

The evergreen maritime forest was very scenic.

Storm clouds were rolling in, but since we were here, we headed to the Elizabethan Gardens, hoping the rains would hold off.  The gardens were very scenic.

Crepe myrtle were in bloom throughout.

There was a statue of Queen Elizabeth I.

The gardens were designed like English gardens during the Elizabethan period.  There was also a statue of Virginia Dare, the first baby born to English parents in the Americas.

Who knows if she ever reached adulthood.  As we got to the Overlook Terrace near the sound, we spotted a small flock of American white ibises.

Just past here was the Sunken Garden.

It was really beautiful - geometric and symmetric.

A lot of hydrangeas were also blooming this time of year.

Next, we came to the Great Lawn, an open area with huge trees.

One live oak here was estimated to have been alive when the Lost Colony colonists arrived in the 1580s.

We continued on past the Great Lawn towards the entrance.

Some beautiful Carolina lilies were blooming.

Then we took off, managing to avoid the rain.

But it sure did rain shortly after we finished.  Our next stop was the Bodie Island Lighthouse at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.  Unfortunately, the lighthouse was closed due to thunderstorms, so we just got our passport stamped here.

I did get a picture of the lighthouse before we headed back north.  In Duck, we had a late lunch at Sunset Grille and then returned to Corolla.  I went for a hike up to Currituck Banks Reserve.  I first took the boardwalk trail through a maritime forest.

The trail ends at an overlook of Currituck Sound.

The evening views were really beautiful.

Then, I hiked the Maritime Forest Trail that also led out to the sound through a beautiful maritime forest of live oaks.

The view at the sound is overgrown and not the great, but the hike through the forest is well worth the walk.  I hiked back to the beach house and we had dinner, then Sandy and I went for a short walk to Historic Corolla Park to catch the sunset.  Walking over, the sun illuminated the sky in a beautiful shade of pink.

At the boat dock near the Whalehead Club, there was a great view of the sunset over the sound.

After some pictures, we started heading back.  The park and lighthouse were beautiful in the twilight.

But it had been a long day and I wanted to catch sunrise, so went to bed soon after returning.