Tuesday, October 12, 2021

Bodie Light, Surf, Sound, and other things OBX – Rodanthe NC [Fall 2021]

 

Bodie light on a misty day

It has been 19 months since our last blog post, and here we are on the Outer Banks of North Carolina!

 

Bodie lighthouse sits next to a freshwater marsh

Today we went to visit the Bodie Lighthouse, North of Oregon Inlet and Hatteras Island, where we are staying.  The Bodie Light has distinctive horizontal black and white markings and a light that can be seen 19 miles out to sea.  It warns southbound ships that are riding the Labrador Current that they need to move further out to sea to avoid the constantly changing shoals off these barrier islands, and also avoid the area (a few miles South) where the Labrador Current and the Gulf Stream intersect.  The more famous Hatteras Light similarly warns northbound ships.  This area is known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic for good reason.

 

Sadly, we didn't get to climb to the top

We arrived at the lighthouse just in time for a Ranger Talk about the light, but (sadly) the day after the lighthouse was closed for climbing.  This is actually the third lighthouse built in this area.  The first one developed a prominent lean and had to be taken down.  The second one was destroyed by the Confederate soldiers who were concerned it might fall into Union hands.  This one was built in 1872, and still uses its original 1st-order Fresnel lens.  It was originally fueled with pig lard, then kerosene, then electricity.

 

Calm September sunrise
Easy swimming

We came to  Rodanthe/Waves/Salvo in mid-September for our first adventure on our own since the world changed in March 2020.  We liked it so much, we returned in mid-October, the next time our schedules permitted.  The tri-village area is much less developed, and therefore less crowded, than the towns further north. It hosts 5 campgrounds – 3 along the ocean.  September was our third trip to this area since we started traveling, and we stayed at our third campground, Camp Hatteras.  All of the campgrounds are very nice.  Camp Hatteras has campsites on both the ocean side of Hwy 12 and the “Sound” side.  It has a boat launch into the Pamlico Sound for our kayaks.  So we are back here again in October.

 

Angry October seas

When we were here in September, the weather was bright and hot.  We swam in a calm ocean and walked along the beach.  We had several kayak paddles in the Sound, surprising pelicans and admiring the vast expanses of calm, shallow water.  You can’t see the other shoreline of the Sound from here.  In October, we have encountered high winds, and often torrential rain.  On calmer days, it feels like we are sitting inside of a low cloud with moisture leaking out of the mists.  You can't really call it rain...  The ocean has been magnificent in its fury, though our beach walks are certainly shorter.  We’ve played cards, read books, watched movies, taken naps.  Experiences just as lovely as the swimming, kayaking and biking of our September visit.

 

We met a crab...

... and some pelicans


Where have we been the past 19 months?  Home, mostly.  We’ve taken the motorhome to Tennessee a few times and more recently to Minnesota to see family members.  It is easy to keep socially distant when you carry your own kitchen, bedroom and bath with you.  We’ve missed being out on the road, and we’ve been told that some of you miss hearing from us in our blogs.  Is it time to start both up again…?



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