At Home in the OBX

Thursday, April 21

The weather forecasters were mostly wrong today.  There was no sign of the thunderstorms that they said would plague us all day.  Instead, we woke up to a pale sunrise that turned into blue skies with filmy white clouds.  At 7:00a, the temperature was 71F (21.5C).  Nice!  We debated exploring another part of the OBX, but that thought lasted just a few seconds.  In the end, we stayed home (for most of the day) and enjoyed our mobile beach house.

After breakfast, we went for a 2.5-mile (4 km) stroll on the beach fronting the campground.  There was barely a hint of breeze when we started out towards the Rodanthe Pier.  I was surprised at how few people were out on the beach at 8:30a … their loss.

Mui and a Laughing Gull have the same idea … to enjoy a gorgeous morning.

Left: I practice my “shooting into the sun skills.”
Right: Ephemeral footprints … it takes just one wave to wash them away.

A touch of color.

A deserted beach is my favorite kind of beach.

A willet roams the beach in search of something to nibble on.

Rodanthe Pier ... $10 to fish; $1 to walk ... we enjoyed it from a distance.

gifts from the sea … Mermaid’s Purse and Shells.
(A mermaid’s purse, also called devil’s purse, is a casing that surrounds the fertilized
eggs of some sharks, skates, and chimaeras.  The casings that wash up on beaches are
usually empty, the young fish having already hatched out.)

It took a minute or two for territorial rights to be established, but now these
laughing gulls are playing nice.

No, Mui's not practicing his ballet moves; he's returning the fish that the waves
crashing ashore deposited at our feet back to the ocean.
[look to the immediate right of the fish inset if you need proof]

By the time we returned to the campground, the wind had picked up and there was a definite drop in the temperature.  Mui had chores to do outside … namely, organizing the basement; I had chores to do inside … namely, doing a couple of loads of laundry.  (This trip has presented me with the first opportunity to use the washer and dryer in the coach.  Sure, it means less closet space in the bedroom, but I love, love, love the convenience.  I’m so glad the former owners of the coach exercised the option to have them installed.)

Mui’s having way too much fun with his basement chores.

After the chores were finished, Mui settled down to do some web browsing.  For me, it was time to bundle up against the wind and make myself comfortable outside with a good book.  Who cares if the wind was blowing hard, or the temperature was continuing to drop, or the rain clouds were gathering … not me.

There’s just enough sunshine to ward off the chill.

Around 3:00p, we gathered our cameras and hopped in the car to drive the mile or so to the Chicamacomico (try saying that three times fast) Life-Saving Station.  It started to sprinkle rain while we were exploring the collection of buildings at the historic site/museum, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying ourselves.  (As with the other places we explored on this trip, I will post separately about this most-interesting site.)

You might say that the life-saving service was the forerunner of the Coast Guard.

It was past 5:00p when we returned to the coach.  Our plans for another long stroll on the beach were shelved in the face of cooler temps … 56F (13C).  On its own, the temperature would not have bothered us, but the strong wind that cut through our layers was a different matter.  Chilled to the bone, we changed into comfort-attire, cranked up the heat, and called it a day.

These windsurfers are enjoying the strong winds. 

Not sure what we’ll be doing tomorrow.  The forecast is for a mostly cloudy, chilly day.  Staying home under those circumstances is awfully compelling.  On the other hand, tomorrow is our last day to explore the OBX before we break camp Saturday.  We’ll sleep on it tonight and come up with a plan tomorrow.