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.

Bears and Crabs

Tuesday after work, we headed to the beach to visit Sandy's family in Corolla.  We left Raleigh around 430 and headed east.  We were passing through Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge right before sunset so made a quick detour on the Wildlife Drive.  And sure enough, just a mile in and there were several cars pulled over.  We stopped to see a mother bear and her three cubs foraging just off the road.

They were mostly hidden in the bushes but the mama bear kept poking her head up to keep an eye on all the people taking photos.

The sunset view was really pretty here.

Then we continued on to the northern Outer Banks.  The in-law's beach house this year was in Corolla Light, very close to the beach.  After we got settled in, Sandy and I got our headlamps and went for a night walk on the beach.  There were a lot of ghost crabs scurrying around at the edge of the surf.

Most ran off when we got close, but a couple were preoccupied and we could get close enough to shine a light on them.  Several of them were eating mole crabs.

I'm not sure if they're scavenging for dead mole crabs or hunting live ones, but several of the ghost crabs were eating them.

It was a very dark and clear evening and we had great views of the stars above.  After a bit, we headed back and went to bed.

Raven Rock Hike

Sandy had Saturday off, so we took Alex to Raven Rock State Park for a day hike.  First, we stopped at the visitor center to get his passport stamped.

Then we started hiking the Campbell Creek Loop Trail.  The trail descends to the creek, crossing on a bridge.  We went right to hike the loop counterclockwise.  The trail follows the creek down to the confluence with Cape Fear River.

The river was way up today.  Continuing on, we took the Lanier Falls Trail to its namesake.  But high water prevented us from getting down to the falls.

We took a short break at a bench near the top.  I climbed down to see the river and falls, but there was a lot of foliage in the way.

After our break, we continued along the loop.  There was an interesting rock with water dripping down - too small a tributary for a waterfall, but scenic with the little overhang.

We finished up the loop back to the visitor center.  It was still early so we took the Raven Rock Loop Trail.  Fish Traps would be underwater so we didn't go down there.  Along the main loop, we took another break at the overlook at the top of Raven Rock.

The river was definitely high but we could see Northington Lock and Dams way upstream.  Shortly after the overlook, the stairs led down to the base of Raven Rock.  We found a cool spot under the rock to take a little break and have a snack.

Then we climbed back up the stairs.  Alex was getting a little hot, so we took a short detour on Little Creek Trail and let him get his feet wet.  Then we finished up our hike back at the car.

On the way home, we stopped at Aviator in Fuquay for a late lunch and drinks.

Charles River Reservation

I had to go up to Cambridge Massachusetts for work this week.  I flew up Sunday and stayed at the Royal Sonesta.  I work up early Monday morning, but didn't have to be to work for a while.  So I went for a hike along the Dr. Paul Dudley White Bike Path in the Charles River Reservation.  It's a really nice greenway trail along both sides of the Charles River.

The views of the river were really scenic.  And early morning sun was very pretty.

The entire trail is about a 17 mile loop, but that's a little long to hike.  Fortunately, there are a number of bridges that provide pedestrian access across the river to make a short loop.  At one spot, a number of large number of daisies were blooming.

I could see the white patches from all the way on the other side of the river.  There were also a lot of Canada geese and their goslings.

The weather was very nice, a lot cooler than back in Raleigh.  I went for another walk after work and enjoyed the New England weather.  There were a lot of birds in and along the river.  Besides the geese, I saw ducks, gulls, cormorants and even a night heron.

It was nice to able to be able to walk everywhere for a few days.