Day 2 (16 May). Outer Banks and Ferry Rides.

From: Elizabeth City, NC

To: Myrtle Beach, SC

Miles today: 342

Total miles: 631

I rose early because I was a bit behind and had some scheduled ferry boats to catch; I was on the road by 7:30.  I took US 158 east to the barrier islands and Kitty Hawk.  I stopped by the Wright Brother’s memorial, but it wasn’t open that early in the morning.

First in Flight!

After Nags Head I headed south down the two lane road that connects to Hatteras Island.  Much is wildlife preserve now, but there are some towns.  On the surface they seemed very similar to those beach towns in Maryland and Delaware, but it seemed like there was an additional level of money here.  Everyone I talked to was either a tourist (like me), there from somewhere else, or working there and from the mainland.  I did stop in one of the camping beaches to look around.  Despite the morning chill, every camping space was occupied. 

I saw the famous lighthouse at Cape Hatteras from a fair distance away.  It turns out you can climb it, for a small fee.  I am pleased to say I managed the 250+ steps, although I was bringing up the rear.  The views were spectacular; the Park Rangers were talking about how unusually clear and calm it was today.

Cape Hatteras (the actual point) as seen from the lighthouse.

From there I rode to the ferry terminal, and successfully made the boat.  The trip took an hour to go from Hatteras to Ocracoke Island, in large part because the ferry had to take an indirect route across Pamlico Sound (the second biggest estuary in the US, after the Chesapeake Bay) to avoid shoals.  A 13-mile ride to the other end of the island took me to the second ferry, this one to Cedar Island (actually on the mainland).  This one took about 2.5 hours.  It was bigger and actually had places to sit.   

The outer banks (other than Nags Head) are hard to get to.  The ferry rides are long and fairly Spartan, and the drive is even longer.  I think this is one of the main differences between these places and those on other barrier islands on the east coast, from the Jersey Shore to Florida.  Isolation. 

On the other end, I drove 20 miles before seeing so much as a gas station¸ until I picked up US 70 near its eastern terminus.  Then, suddenly, some surprisingly big cities.  Moorhead City is a working port and seems to have some industry as well; I must have driven 30 miles of non-stop strip malls, hotels, and traffic lights.  I cut off on NC 24 along the southeastern edge of Croatan National Forest, expecting a more rural route, but it was five lanes (center turn lane) all the way to Jacksonville, NC.  This is the nearest big town to the enormous Camp Lejeune Army base, so lots of tattoo parlors and the like.  Finally I got onto US 17 and headed for Wilmington, where I was planning on spending the night.  US 17 here is essentially Interstate, albeit with somewhat less traffic and occasional stop lights.   

Wilmington, a decent sized city with 50 or so hotels, was completely booked!  (This was not the first time I have seen an entire city “sold out,” but it always surprises me.  Something about a kid’s soccer tournament?  Anyway, I had no choice but to push on to Myrtle Beach, SC, in the dark, some 70 miles away. 

South Carolina is in the Deep South (as opposed to Virginia and North Carolina, which are simply in The South), and Myrtle Beach is in South Carolina.  Thus I was a bit surprised to find the town to be very bright and very loud; billboards for strip clubs, and Harleys roaring all night down the main drag.  Most of the license plates were local; I guess even South Carolinians need a Las Vegas equivalent.  The one concession that I observed to the locality was that Fox News was on the TV in the hotel’s breakfast bar.