Exploring the Outer Banks of North Carolina

Sunrise at Oregon Inlet on Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Of the 130 miles of barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina, only a portion of Route 12 is one able to travel upon Cape Hatteras National Seashore today.

Sunrise at the Outer Banks

One of the barrier islands was severely flooded out by Hurricane Irene thus closing the main stretch of road to the south. Mosquitoes are ever so ferocious and abundant in the marshy areas now due to stagnant waters. Lots of debris piles left by the hurricane now line the roadsides everywhere. 

It was surprising to see so much commercial and residential development in the northern region of the Outer Banks. In addition to miles of coastal beaches there are lots of other tourist attractions to enjoy.

 

At Kitty Hawk the Wright Brothers National Memorial Monument and field, where the first air powered flights occurred on December 17, 1903, is worth a visit. A small piece of wood and cloth off the wings of the original Wright Brothers plane is on display. These samples flew with Armstrong when the Eagle landed on the moon.

Fort Raleigh on Roanoke Island, the very first English settlement in the New World during 1587 before Plymouth, Massachusetts or Jamestown, Virginia were ever settled, is interesting.

 It tells of the mystery about the Lost Colony’s total disappearance on the island. Even in 2010 the use of newly developed technology - radar tomography- that locates geophysical anomalies has found no evidence of early English skeletal remains on the site Roanoke Island Festival Park has lots of living history to see.

Roanoke Island Indian Village Reconstruction and Dance circle

1587 English settlement shelter

Blacksmith making nails

Fishing for blue crabs off Roanoke Lighthouse Pier

A bucket full of blue crabs

Aerial view of Bodie Lighthouse on Cape Hatteras

The most fun on the Outer Banks was running our Jeep in four wheel drive out on the beach over twenty miles of sand and dunes searching for the Wild Horses of Corolla which roam free there.

Off to find the wild horses of Corolla

Corolla Beach entrance... where the payment meets the sand

Whoopie... gotta love driving on the beach

Numerous beach houses sit on the outer dunes off unpaved roads

 Unfortunately the allure of sighting these descendants of Spanish mustangs was all that materialized for us during the adventure.











Sunrise photos during an early morning sand dune hike

Yorktown Battlefield in Virginia

Victory for George Washington’s Continental Army against General Cornwallis and the British troops at Yorktown in 1781 became the decisive turning point in the American Revolutionary War for winning our independence as a nation. Today Yorktown still stands as the small community it originally was, yet its history is larger than life. The stories of citizens and soldiers who shaped a new nation really come to life at the Yorktown Victory Center. 

1781 Napoleon cannon overlooks York River

Redoubts were defense mounts made by the British

 The timeline and gallery exhibits chronicle America’s struggle for independence from the beginnings of unrest to the adoption of the Constitution. The outdoor historical interpreters engaged folks to muster with the troops and learn about a soldier’s life at a re-created Continental Army’s encampment.

 French allies aided the Americans during the Siege of Yorktown

Molly Pitcher helped carry water in the Revolution

Redoubt 9 was one of 13 defenses on the Yorktown Battlefield

There was a chance to learn the true story what happened during the Siege of Yorktown verses the sparse information told in textbooks, to drive the battlefield and encampment roads, to visit the Moore House where surrender negotiations took place, 






to see the site of the British surrender, and catch a glimpse of artifacts included in tents used by George Washington. Yorktown was like witnessing the History Channel brought to life.

Generals George Washington and Marquis de Lafayette  

A 1780 working farm in Yorktown 

Victory Monument today

Historic Yorktown houses

Visiting Colonial Williamsburg

This is definitely the place to be to experience America’s oldest and largest interactive history experience. It brings Virginia’s 18th-century capital city to life. We listened to many of the founding fathers debate the issues of the day, stepped into shoppes and taverns where Thomas Jefferson,Patrick Henry, and others conceived the ideals of liberty, independence, and personal freedom,

George Washington rides the Palace Green on Blueskin to inspect the troops

Patriots whisper "Liberty is on the horizon."

Benedict Arnold and his British brigade seize Williamsburg

Jefferson reads the Declaration of Independence

 watched dynamic Revolutionary City events unfold, heard the newly written Declaration of Independence read to the citizens by Jefferson, engaged ourselves in several personal conversations with the likes of Patrick Henry and Jefferson,and marched from the Capitol to the Courthouse as Washington and his troops began theirjourney toward Yorktown and Victory. It was so much fun in Williamsburg that we actually extended our stay for several days.

Raleigh Tavern is a busy place to hear the news of the day

News spreads amongst the Williamsburg capital that many citizens are upset over the closing of Boaston Harbor by the British

Dressmakers never used patterns

Carriages everywhere in the city

Fife and Drum Corps on the march

Historic Jamestown Settlement

Captain John Smith Monument 

Four hundred years ago, this pristine riverbank was a cauldron of commerce, culture, and crisis. Historic Jamestown is the 1607 site where America’s birthplace and story began to unfold as English explorers and merchants from the Virginia Company established the first permanent settlement in the New World. Threading lightly on the quiet bank along the James River, the story holding her secrets in the hallowed ground is gradually being uncovered in the archeological digs unearthing its ruins and artifacts.

An innovative archaearium above the foundation of the first state house showcases the amazing artifacts excavated from these archeological diggings at the historic site.

In 1607, 13 years before the Pilgrims landed in Massachusetts, a group of 104 English men and boys began a settlement here on the banks of Virginia's James River. They were sponsored by the Virginia Company of London, whose stockholders hoped to make a profit from the resources of the New World. The community suffered terrible hardships in its early years, but managed to endure, earning the distinction of being America's first permanent English colony.

First Anglican Church in the New World still stands after 400 yearsThe original 17th century red brick church tower is the only above ground structure survived over the years. There are monuments honoring the first English settlers, Captain John Smith, Pocahontas, and Reverend Hunt. 

Recreated frame shelter overlooking James River

Three miles away off James Island rests Jamestown Settlement. We strolled through a Powhatan Indian village which lies not far from an English re-created fort interpreting the settlement during 1610-14, reflecting its predominantly military and commercial character. 

Inside the triangular wooden palisade were wattle-and-daub structures topped with thatch roofs depicting dwellings, an Anglican church, a court of guard, a storehouse, a cape merchant’s office and a governor’s house.  

Jamestown Settlement prospered over time as more settlers came to the colony

Susan Constant

The re-creations of three ships that brought English colonists to Virginia in 1607 are moored at Jamestown Settlement’s pier for visitors to explore. JR found it hard to pull himself away from the vessels. By late afternoon Jamestown Settlement was nearly vacated providing us several good photo opportunities.

Shipmate aboard the Discovery

 It was also a chance to board the ships, try on an English armor chest plate and helmet, carry a water bucket,  and chat with the English villagers.

Sir, would you mind fixing my thatched roof ?

Beats lifting weights