 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Outer Banks 2006, �The final Chapter� |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
This story is about what has become our annual pilgrimage to the Outer banks of North Carolina. It seems we just can�t get enough of those tropical storms, mosquitoes, enormous head winds and national disasters (see our Outer Banks trips 1,2,and 3). This time though we are going to do it different, (Oh know, I�m sure the wind, rain and pestilence will all be the same, only the route will be different). We are going to ride inland for a few days before crossing the Albemarle Sound to Edenton, NC. There we will meet up with the Carolina Tailwinds Bike Touring Co. that we will be touring with on the northern end of the Outer Banks. Oh yeah, we are biking to our biking vacation. Sometimes I even wonder if we take this a little too far. |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
These are our bags for 10 days. That includes clothes for a couple of fancy meals too. If you don't think Susan didn't struggled with this packing list! |
|
|
|
|
|
This is the route. The red push pins and yellow highlite is our route without the Carolina Tailwinds group. The purple highlite and push pins is the route with the Carolina Tailwinds group. The area between the two purple routes are shuttles. We started at Cedar Island, the red pin before Beaufort. Total miles was three hundred something. |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Wednesday, Cedar Island
The drive up to Cedar Island was pleasant enough for an eight hour drive (ugh). We stopped in Beaufort (Bow-Ford) to find a B&B for the next night since we would be biking back to Beaufort the next day. We of course were able to include a little shopping as well as purchasing as we looked for a place to stay. With the shops closing by 5:00 and our B&B picked for the next day we finally started for Cedar Island around 5:30. Our room for this night was at the Driftwood Inn.
The Driftwood Inn was still as I remembered it; old, dank, and the only place on the island to stay. This, of course, made it the best place to stay on the island and that was exactly what I kept telling Susan as she stood in the doorway with the look of person that had just stumbled over a dead body. The Driftwood reminds you of the motels that Mulder and Scully on the "X-Files" would stay at when they were investigating weird happenings in the middle of nowhere. And Cedar Island is in the middle of nowhere. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Outside the Driftwood Inn waiting to start out. |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
Thursday: Beaufort, 45 mi
The next morning we were up and on our way by 8:00. Today we were heading south and we had a NW wind. This gave us a few tailwinds and at worst a cross wind, so with the sun shining, it was going to be a beautiful biking day. Our only obstacle today was the bridge crossing the inter-coastal waterway. It was a high bridge, but the traffic was light and the ride down the other side made the climb worth it. We rode the 45 miles back to Beaufort in plenty of time to beat the lunch crowd to the �No Name Pizza Place�. Maybe if we had been a little slower it would have saved me from a really bad pizza. As it was, I was glad I had them cut it into only 4 pieces instead of the normal 6 because I could not have eaten the other 2 pieces. |
|
|
|
|
|
A view from the top of the intercoastal waterway. Why is there always a cross wind? |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
A good day to be biking and not buying gas! |
|
|
|
|
|
We made it to the Delamar Inn and unloaded our stuff in our room. Susan again hit the stores and shops while I went to the library to check email and update everyone on our whereabouts. We met back up after an hour or so but with Susan still in competition shopping mode I went to Clawson�s to have a few beers with the locals. It turned out to be a nice place and we ended up eating supper there too. We walked back to the Delamar Inn after eating and so ended a really nice biking day. |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
The front of the Delamar Inn |
|
The garden along the side |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
HOME |
|