Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Corolla North Carolina - OBX Day 3 Manteo

We continued the trend of late rising and didn't show our faces until 8:30 this morning. The wind was still howling and the surf was still up. Some parts of the Outer Banks were reporting power outages and The Weather Channel told us that Maria had strengthened overnight and had regained Cat 1 status. On the plus side, it was still going to be moving away from us.

The surf was still up this morning

Breakfast was biscuits, gravy and Chorizo eggs. My dietary restrictions didn't stand a chance down here so I would just have to rededicate myself after we get back on the road. I finished yesterday's blog post and then Sandy and I called the utility companies back in Sudbury to cancel the accounts for her mother's house, because the sale closes on Friday.

One update on yesterday. Someone found the one missing jigsaw puzzle piece on the floor so it was actually 1,000 pieces, but the puzzle was already dismantled in the box.

At 11:30, Billy Bob, Linda, Sandy and I climbed into their trusty Subaru Legacy and headed south towards Manteo (pronounced MAN-ee-oh). It took us an hour to get there and, once we got to US 158 (where we got onto the island) the laid back two-lane road gave way to a main four-lane thoroughfare lined with commercial ventures all the way along. It reminded me of the difference between St. Pete's Beach and Pass-a-Grille in Florida.

The Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills was closed today, probably due to the high winds.

After driving further south on US 158, we turned right and crossed Roanoke Sound on a causeway/bridge to Roanoke Island and parked at Roanoke Island Festival Park, itself a small island.

Manteo waterfront

Elizabeth II

Bridge to Festival Park

Over the bridge, we walked along the boardwalk past some interesting boats until we got to the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse Area area.








They use Robertson screws here, too




A mark on the tower showed the high water mark (7' 11" above mean sea level) from Hurricane Irene in 2011. That would have flooded the entire town.

The tower

Sandy's eyes would have been above water




Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse






This was screwed down into the floor of the bay to support the lighthouse

Looking across Roanoke Sound at Nags Head



Queen Elizabeth Avenue - Manteo North Carolina


Edith Ann and friends

Currents running

On the way out of Manteo, we stopped at Big Al's for lunch. This retro diner was a shrine dedicated to the worship of all things Coca-Cola. My mushroom/Swiss burger (with bun and fries) was very good, even if it was a bit pricey.

When we came outside around 2:30, the skies had cleared and the sun wash shining.






The older lady in the right photo was the model in the left




No one had the courage to try this

Back on the OBX, we made another stop at Jeanette's Pier. The wind was howling out of the north and we got sandblasted just getting from the parking lot to the building. We paid $2.00 each to go out on the pier (the ticket was good until midnight). The wind was blowing a sustained 40 MPH with gusts to 55 and the seas were breaking a fair way offshore.

I am sure a visit to the pier on a calm day would be nice but this was memorable.







It's hard to convey the force of the wind

Looking east at Maria


I like the shark fin

Linda shooting video

The waves are bigger than they look

Billy Bob

Sandy is leaning into the wind


That whole pile is sea foam

Weather at Jeanette's Pier

Under the pier exhibit

History of Jeanette's Pier

Sandy guarding against blowing sand

We got back up to the house at 4:25. Before supper, Sandy and Linda joined the ladies in the hot tub while I sorted photos and transcribed notes. Supper had a Mexican theme with tortillas and fixings for fajitas, including beef and chicken from last night. There were also chicken enchiladas that had a little bit of bite to them. After supper, some of us played a game called Left Center Right. Each player started with $3.00 and I ended up with $9.00. Then we played Deer In The Headlights. These folks were big on games, which was not a bad thing. Conviviality was enhanced by Eric's bar tending skills. Who knew a raspberry margarita would taste that good.

It was about 11:00 PM when we finally decided to call it a night.

Poseidon guards the front door of our house

Today's Route (67 Subaru miles):

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