Ginny & Dean's Excellent Adventures: Key West 12/03

Dean & Ginny's excellent adventures... Main Adventure Page

Key West--12/03: Part 1 Part 2 >> Part 3 >> Part 4 >> Part 5 >>

Kitty Hawk Monument

We decided that it would be fun to celebrate our first anniversary (Jan. 2) in Key West... We headed down the back roads and headed toward the Outer banks in North Carolina. Kitty Hawk was our first major stop.

<< A "2001, a Space Odyssey" moment in Kitty Hawk, NC.

On December 17th, to celebrate 100 years of flying, just a few days before we arrived. They tried to reproduce the Wrights' flight. There are new monuments and memorials around the area. Dean's piloting experience made this particularly interesting.

Click here for more info.

This climb-aboard, life-sized model shows the moment when Wilbur gave the craft a little push to get it going.

We continued down the barrier islands to Cape Hatteras. Isabel, the hurricane in fall '03, devastated the area south of the Hatteras Light. Beach erosion caused the collapse of houses and hotels - it looked like a war zone. But the light, which was recently moved 1/2 mile inland, and the surrounding area did present some picturesque opportunities.

Click this link for a live shot from the lighthouse: http://www.nps.gov/caha/livecam.htm

We continued south and boarded the Ocracoke ferry.

We stopped by the house Ginny's parents built on Ocracoke. >>

They summered there for many years and retired there for a while. We caught the owners just coming back from a trip - they were the ones who originally bought it in '85 - Bill & Barb Jemison. They were very hospitable and invited us in to show us the additions and improvements they've made over the years. It was weird for Ginny to see it after all this time.

It was dawn as we left Ocracoke on the Cedar Island Ferry. The Ocracoke lighthouse was still working in the early light. Half way to Cedar Island, thousands of black ducks in migration flew past us. The ferry interrupted their flight pattern. Amazing!

Sunrise on Cedar Is. Ferry

<< Charleston sunset. On Cedar Island we stopped to take note of the Cape Lookout Lighthouse's history.

Then we continued south and rejoined Rt. 17. Great route until we got to Myrtle Beach, when the traffic got thicker.

We stopped in Charleston, SC for sunset. Walked around a bit before continuing south on 17. When we rejoined 95 south of town, the traffic was really thick - the disadvantage of traveling between Christmas and New Year's. >>

We stopped in Jacksonville to visit with Ginny's Aunt Caroline and cousin Kathy, then on to Patrick AFB near Cape Canaveral.

<< Dean had some hopeful onlookers while he did a little fishing there...

On to Key West >>

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