OBX

Everybody around here has their "OBX" stickers on their cars. It's the #1 vacation spot. Not that Virginia Beach isn't a great vacation spot, because it is! But when you live in/around VB, you vacation in the Outer Banks.

Which is one place that this girl who grew up in NC had never been before (at least, that I have memories of)! It was a nice alternative to the backpacking in Shenandoah that we had hoped to do (Burke's ankle and belly are doing much better, but not really in good hiking shape yet). 

We stayed in a small "cottage" on Nags Head, but we tried to do all of the cheaper touristy things we could. Cape Hatteras lighthouse was so worth the trip down there. It was a beautiful drive and I was so grateful to finally be visiting this major symbol of North Carolina! 

*Fun fact: Cape Hatteras "protects" ships from the 12 mile sandbar, the Diamond Shoals. This area is called the "Graveyard of the Atlantic."

*Fun fact: It is the tallest brick lighthouse in the US and is 210 feet tall. 

*Fun fact: Due to beach erosion, in 1999 the lighthouse was moved 2,900 feet. They picked it up and put it on railroad tracks and pushed it! 

We rode the ferry down to Ocracoke Island. We didn't stay long, but it seemed pretty lovely!

We also learned all about the Wright brothers and the beginning of flight. 

We went to Jockey Ridge State Park. It's a huge sand dune.

Then, inspired by the people at Jockey Ridge and the excessive wind, we bought a kite to fly out on the beach.

I just have to say, if you haven't flown a kite in a while, you probably should. What fun and joy! ...And, what sadness when someone (who will remain nameless) accidentally lets go and the kite flies miles out to sea! (He was really very heartbroken.)

Throw in a trip to Fort Raleigh (the site of the Lost Colony) and a visit to the NC Aquarium, and basically we did all of the stuff that the fifth grade field trippers get to do when they go to the Outer Banks. (My 5th grade class went to DC instead.) And it was a blast! In addition, because our trip coincided with "Bike Week," we saw and fell in love with the following,

we spent a lot of quality time together,

and we thoroughly enjoyed visiting a beautiful place.