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| 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.
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| 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.
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| Roanoke Island Indian Village Reconstruction and Dance circle |
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| 1587 English settlement shelter |
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| Blacksmith making nails |
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| Fishing for blue crabs off Roanoke Lighthouse Pier |
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| A bucket full of blue crabs |
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| 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.
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| Off to find the wild horses of Corolla |
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| Corolla Beach entrance... where the payment meets the sand |
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| Whoopie... gotta love driving on the beach |
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| 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
