23 Jun - Harker's Island and Cape Lookout Lighthouse; Beach Walk

 

We booked a ferry ride yesterday that would take us from Harker's Island  to the Cape Lookout Lighthouse.  The ferry was to depart at 0945 hrs and we had to be there 30 minutes in advance.  The drive was over an hour, so bottom line we bugged out about 0700 hrs northbound.  

We had a nice drive up to Harker's Island.  We brought Liberty with us due to the length of the drive and the ferry ride.  Unfortunately as soon as we arrived we received a call from the ferry company advising due to the high winds and rough water the ferry could not operate today.  The good news is the lighthouse was visible in the distance, however small and the visitor center had the lighthouse stamp for Doreen's Lighthouse Passport book.  Score! 

Zoomed in, the lighthouse in the distance and the choppy water in the foreground

I would not have wanted to be out on the water on this oversized pontoon boat today!

We loitered for a bit and then the visitor center opened.  Doreen got her passport stamped and then we strolled about, literally, with Little Miss Liberty in her stroller, and looked over the history and information about Cape Lookout.  

The area called the "Outer Banks"

What the lighthouse would look like had we been able to ride the ferry today

The original lighthouse was built in 1812 but was only 96 ft tall and generally ineffective.  It was replaced with the current one in 1859 which is 163 ft tall .  The checkerboard pattern was added in 1873.  There are 207 steps to the top, but it is closed to climbing at the present time.  

Interesting that there are wild horses on the island

We finished up in the visitor center and then headed back to Onslow Beach.  After lunch I did my normal "day before departure" routine of dumping the tanks and stowing the hoses.  We washed down the entrance mat (9'x12') as it was coated with sand and dirt with all the rain we've had.  

While it dried we did a final beach walk here and Doreen immediately scored some more shark's teeth.  I never did find one.  I equate that to looking for morel mushrooms at home.  Some people can see them and some look right past them.  The Atlantic was really rolling but there were a few folks who ventured out in it.  We just walked the beach and Doreen picked up a few treasures.  

I could not pick shark's teeth out of all of this!

Doreen's haul for an hour on the beach

While we were out there were a couple Marine aircraft flying over.  One was an Osprey and one was a larger helicopter.  I love staying on military facilities!!

An Osprey flyover

Helicopter over the beach

This morning we lost a dear friend, Vernon Conradi.  Vernon and his wife Lois were very good friends with Doreen's parents and with Doreen and her sister Debbie.  Vernon was a Veteran of the US Army.  They were always there at holidays with our kids.  Lois and Vernon lived in Reinbeck Iowa and Vernon had been ill for a while.  Our thoughts and prayers are with Lois as we grieve the loss of a wonderful person.  

Tomorrow we wave goodbye to Onslow Beach and move north to Virginia Beach, VA.