The Outer Banks (OBX) of North Carolina is changing — changing to the point I am not as interested in making a weekend round trip as I once was. Maybe it’s really age talking for me, but the changing sands have resulted in a somewhat different traffic pattern and the loss of many homes over time.
I once enjoyed making a three-day trip of the OBX. It would begin on Friday with Nags Head as the first destination. The trip was usually made this time of year — in the fall or winter months — just to miss all the summer tourists. Dinner and an overnight stay and on the road the next day heading south on the strand was the next goal. There would usually be a tour of the Hatteras Lighthouse before dinner near the Ferry Terminal and an overnight sleep.
The next morning I’d load my truck onto the ferry headed for Ocracoke, about an hour’s ride in calm waters, a little longer if the water was rough. After browsing and eating in Ocracoke, I’d take the Ocracoke to Cedar Island ferry back to the mainland. Prepare for a better-than-two-hour ferry ride, the actual time dependent on the weather. From Cedar Island, the drive for home would take another two and a half or three hours. I used to enjoy the trip.