Well, here we go again. We are getting toward the end of our summer and preparing to head out for new adventures. Our summer on OBX has been very interesting – warm and windy, but interesting.
We finally made it to Hatteras Point, where the warm and cool currents meet. The actual point was fenced off until later in the summer because it was being used as a seabird nesting area, but we could get close. Pretty cool sight!
Last month we went up to Richmond for my annual VA physical. As we try to do in many cities we took Uber into the city for dinner at a great NC barbecue restaurant and walked around the Riverwalk area. They are trying to revive the downtown area like so many cities are doing lately, combining modern shops and restaurants with some of Richmond’s history. All along the walk they displayed historical references to the once thriving canal trade and the slave trail. This has been a recurring theme for us, all through the South. This was an era that is thankfully in our past but needs to be remembered.
The next day we went to Petersburg, staying a a small hotel in an area of the city that also is in the throes of renovation. It is still very much a work in progress but the city’s nightlife is starting to return. Mary and I were able to walk a short distance to an Italian restaurant that had seating in an outdoor courtyard. There we had a nice, quiet, romantic dinner, afterward walking around as the nightlife started to come alive.
When we first came to OBX we crossed a long bridge that passed through the northern end of Roanoke island. We have gone back to Roanoke several times, the first time to have lunch and walk around the quaint downtown of Manteo. On our return visit a few weeks later, we stopped at the Fort Raleigh National Historical Site. This site tells the story of the Lost Colony of Roanoke, the inhabitants of which mysteriously disappeared without a trace sometime between 1587 & 1590. There are plays depicting the mystery and much of the town of Manteo refers to it.
Our 3rd trip to Roanoke took us to the southern end of the island to the fishing village of Wanchese. It is a very small village with not too much in the way of a “downtown” but the drive was scenic and we had about the best seafood lunch yet at a place called Oneal’s. As a side note, Manteo and Wanchese were names of 2 native leaders who made the trip back to England and were greeted by Sir Walter Raleigh, thus being the first immigrants from the New World.
We are scheduled to leave Hatteras at the end of this month for our next trip. For about 5 weeks we will travel to Atlanta, Cleveland, TN, Chicago, Mitchell, SD, Albuquerque, NM, Boulder City, NV, finally stopping for the winter in southern California. Our anticipated plan is to stay out west for a year or so, seeing California, Oregon, Washington, and parts of western Canada. We can hardly wait!