North Beach Sun Fall 2018

fall 2018 saving lives with u.s. coast guard rescue swimmers mission surf aims to build a solid future for groms

Melanie Westheiden of swell ceramics

126

volume

Free! @NORTHBEACHSUN

1

FALL

IS THE SEASON FOR If you’re going to indulge, why not indulge in the very best the Outer Banks has to offer? At Big Buck’s Homemade Ice Cream Shop they use the finest, freshest ingredients to handcraft small batches of creamy caramel-dipped pretzels, chocolate covered Oreos, mouthwatering pecan caramel turtles and—everyone’s favorite!—peanut butter cups. Or tempt your taste buds with one of Big Buck’s 57 signature ice cream flavors made fresh daily in one of their hand-dipped cones, topped with caramel made from fresh cream or homemade chocolate fudge.

Having a birthday? Let Big Buck’s Homemade Ice Cream Shop handle the cake! Choose your favorite ice cream and add crushed Oreos or chocolate chips, fresh whipped cream, Belgian chocolates, M&Ms, sprinkles, strawberries or cherries to customize your dream dessert.

Want to send friends and family a sweet treat they’re sure to love? Shop for their chocolates online – they ship ANYWHERE in the USA! Friends, clients, neighbors… everyone loves getting creamy, smooth and utterly delicious Belgian chocolate from Big Buck’s Homemade Ice Cream Shop! Don't forget to book your date for a Distinct Delights Chocolate Station for the upcoming holidays. Always the highlight of any party.

WINNER!

best ICE CREAm SHOP 2014, 2015,

2016

best chocolate shop 2017

Waterfront Shops Manteo 252-423-3118

Buccaneer’s Walk MP 4.5, Kitty Hawk 252-715-0779

Timbuck II Corolla 252-453-3188

106A Sir Walter Raleigh St. Manteo 252-423-3400

bigbucksicecream.com • distinctdelights.com

ORDER ONLINE!

Like us on Facebook for updates, store hours, specials and more.

2016 Best European Cafe

European Flavors on the Manteo Waterfront H

and-crafted sandwiches, fresh-baked French baguettes, imported cheeses – if it weren’t for the breathtaking view of the Manteo waterfront and the Elizabeth II, you’d swear you were in Paris!

From the gelaterias in Venice to the cafés in Marseilles, owners Belinda and Juraj Pleva traveled the Old World in a quest to bring the perfect European café to the Outer Banks.

St

Q ue

igh

en E

dle

Bu

For organic, clean and simple options in Manteo, the Hungry Pirate prepares gluten-free dishes, fresh salads and locally made baked goods.

eth lizab

er alt St r Weigh i S al R

St

MANTEO

NT

O WATERFR

Serving breakfast Saturday mornings and lunch seven days a week throughout the fall, the Hungry Pirate is the perfect place to grab a quick fresh bite before exploring Manteo’s many historic and cultural sights.

There’s no assembly line at the Hungry Pirate, no hidden kitchen, and no processed foods. Just about everything – from the salad dressings to the sangria – is made in-house. It’s everything from the Old World made new – that’s the Hungry Pirate way.

waterfront café & european deli

CALL AHEAD FOR TO-GO ORDERS! 2

Located on the Manteo waterfront • 207 Queen Elizabeth Avenue, Manteo • 252-423-3133 • hungrypiratecafe.com NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

Catering brunches, lunches and holiday parties in the restaurant.

Just Over the Bridge in Harbinger

Traditional Southern Fare HA

RBINGER, NC

(252) 491-8100 | 8627 CARATOKE HWY., HARBINGER | SIMPLYSOUTHERNKITCHEN.COM

Beer, Bourbon

Barbeque

NAGS HEAD: (252) 449-6465 | 3919 S. VIRGINIA DARE TRAIL, MP 12.5 COROLLA: (252) 453-4423 | 807 OCEAN TRAIL | SOOEYSBBQ.COM

LOCAL NEIGHBORHOOD TAVERN WITH

southern hospitality

(252) 261-2243 | 300 W. ECKNER ST., MP 2.5 | KITTY HAWK | SANDTRAPTAVERN.COM @NORTHBEACHSUN

3

4

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

@NORTHBEACHSUN

5

27

18 16

Fall 2018 8

FROM THE PUBLISHER

11 BUT FIRST...

34

LOOK BACK

12 FALL EVENTS CALENDAR

30 AN ISLAND OF SHELLS

19th-century man-made outpost Shell Castle Island

FOLKS

FOOD & BEVERAGE

16 BIRDS OF A FEATHER

Delicate, carved birds by an unlikely artisan 18 LIFE IS SWELL

Melanie Westheiden of Swell Ceramics

LIFESTYLE 22 FOUR IF BY SEA

How to retain your man

REAL ESTATE OUTDOORS

32 SWEET STUFF

Apple and sweet potato shortcake by

Sweater Box Confections

FEATURE 34 TO THE RESCUE

On call with U.S. Coast Guard rescue swimmers

THE LOCAL LIFE 40 LESLIE VEGAS

Coastal specialist and environmentalist

23 SHORE SCIENCE

The green below

ABOUT THE COVER: Swell Ceramics founder, Melanie Westheiden, holds up one of her Outer Banks-inspired wave mugs. Photo by Elizabeth Neal.

24 ONE PIECE AT A TIME

Sweeping the beach with OBX Five Minute Beach Cleanup

THIS PAGE: Photos clockwise from top left courtesy of Ryan Moser, Elizabeth Neal, and Cory Godwin (center right and lower right).

27 UNDER THE SUN

Mission Surf aims to build a solid future for groms 6

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

INTRODUCING CAMBRIDGE COVE RESERVE Resort style living in the heart of Kill Devil Hills at Bermuda Bay

A TA S TE OF

ON THE BEACH

Decorated model NOW OPEN. Call to schedule your tour today - 252.441.9003 Perfect for year-round residence, second home or investment property. Short distance to beach and Wright Brothers Memorial.

Priced from $299,000 • Maintenance Free living • 1600 to 2000 sq. ft.

Spacious, open concept design • Gourmet kitchens • 2 & 3 bedroom plans Recreation rooms • Attached garages • Private, covered porches Resort style amenities include clubhouse, fitness room, pool, lazy river & splash park.

Community pier and kayak launch coming soon!

HomesBySAGA.com

252.441.9003 LUNCH • DINNER • TO-GO PARTY TRAYS

Artistic renderings are conceptual only. Square footages are approximate. Certain amenities may not be available until future phases. Pricing, availability and features subject to change at any time and without notice.

Waterfront dining at the Wright Memorial Bridge 252-863-3001 • MasalaBayGrill.com

DINE, RELAX, REWIND...

Local Options, Open Daily to the Public

1461 Duck Road, Duck, NC 27949 l Phone 877.734.5792 l www.sanderling-resort.com @NORTHBEACHSUN

7

FROM THE PUBLISHER

STAFF PUBLISHERS

Adam & Cathy Baldwin EDITOR

Amelia Boldaji ART DIRECTOR

Dave Rollins GRAPHIC DESIGNERS

"You are here to make a difference, to either improve the world or worsen it. And whether or not you consciously choose to, you will accomplish one or the other."

– Richelle E. Goodrich, Making Wishes THERE IS NOTHING MORE HOT OR EXHAUSTING than the walk from the beach chair to the car in the middle of summer. This is a fact. No one wants to carry anything, no one can find their flip flops, and everything is suddenly SO. MUCH. HEAVIER. And so with this in mind, I’m sure that on occasion – in spite of my best efforts to leave behind nothing but footprints – the wayward water bottle cap or kid’s toy shovel has unintentionally gotten left behind. I say this because I think we always point the finger at someone else when it comes to littering. But the truth is that we all fall short from time to time, even if it’s just by accident.

No big deal, right? Except it is. Little actions – or inactions – add up.

We happen to have some of the cleanest, most beautiful beaches on the entire East Coast.

That’s not just my opinion; Outer Banks beaches are famously some of the very best in the country – in fact, two stretches of Outer Banks coastline made Dr. Beach’s coveted “2018 Top 10 Beaches” list.

That being said, I was initially torn about publishing the photo spread on page 24 of artfullyarranged beach debris. After all, our slogan is “Good news for the Outer Banks,” and litter is anything but good news.

But there’s always a bright side. OBX Five Minute Beach Cleanup, a grassroots initiative that brings together volunteers and local businesses to clean up the beach, proves that even a small group of people can make a big difference in a short amount of time. That’s the good news.

In this issue of the North Beach Sun, we explore a number of stories in which people come together to make things better – both on a small and large scale. We spent a week in June with Mission Surf camp founders, Mark Peer and Bret Fogle. They hope to change the future of Outer Banks surfing by mentoring young competitive surfers on how to master surf contests and giving them the foundations to one day go pro. We met with some of the folks behind the Corolla Village Market, an artists’ cooperative that gives local creatives the opportunity to market themselves and engage with the community. And, lastly, we picked up trash with a crew of locals and Leslie Vegas, the founder and force behind the twice-weekly OBX Five Minute Beach Cleanup sessions. Leslie’s cleanups serve as a reminder that there’s still a lot of good in the world, and there are always people willing to lend a hand.

Together we can accomplish so much. And that’s the best news of all.

Happy fall, and, as always, enjoy the issue!

-Cathy Baldwin 8

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

Adam Baldwin Dylan Bush WRITERS

Cathy Baldwin • Amelia Boldaji Brian Boutin • Steve Hanf Katrina Mae Leuzinger Fran Marler • Amanda McDanel PHOTOGRAPHERS

Cory Godwin • Brooke Mayo Ryan Moser • Elizabeth Neal Outer Banks History Center Kati Wilkins SALES MANAGER

Helen Furr ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Sue Goodrich Tori Peters DISTRIBUTOR

Bob Baldwin

The North Beach Sun is published quarterly by Access Media Group. All works contained herein are the property of the North Beach Sun and/or its contributors. Opinions, responses, and inquiries are always welcome.

NORTH BEACH SUN 115 West Meadowlark St. Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948 252.449.4444 editor@northbeachsun.com

Home Accents • L amps • Wall Art

20 % Off HOME DÉCOR & ACCENTS Limited exclusions may apply. Excludes CRP Furniture.

Regular priced merchandise only.

VARIETIES

OVER

MP 4.5

3809 N. CROATAN HWY

FREE SAMPLES

HOT SAUCES

OF

KITTY HAWK, NC

WE SHIP TO YOUR DOOR LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED VISIT OUR WEBSITE

OBXJERKY.COM

Present This Ad For

10% OFF!

Not valid with any other offers.

Some restrictions apply.

CARTS, VW BUGGIES, CARS, WE RENT GOLF 4X4 JEEPS & SUBURBANS Call now for reservation s!

islandcruisers.com 252-987-2097 @NORTHBEACHSUN

9

TE ACHI NG T HE W ORL D TO F LY S I NCE 1974

HANG GLIDING

KI T T Y H AWK. C O M 1.8 77.F LY.T H IS

$5 OF F

KAYAK & SUP

WITH $30 PURCHASE AT ANY KITTY HAWK KITES

Must present coupon at time of purchase. One coupon per person. Cannot be combined with any other offer. Some exceptions apply.

025430

COROLLA • DUCK • NAGS HEAD • MANTEO • WAVES • AVON • HATTERAS • OCRACOKE • BEAUFORT • ATLANTIC BEACH • VIRGINIA BEACH

A CELEBRATION OF FLIGHT AND BEER

O CT 2 7

NAGS HEAD, NC BENEFITTING THE ROGALLO FOUNDATION

KEG FLYING COMPETITION • CRAFT BEER GARDEN • LIVE MUSIC KIDS ZONE • LOCAL FOOD VENDORS ...AND MORE! PRESENTED BY: 10 NORTH BEACH SUN

FALL 2018

CREATE A TEAM!

DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO MAKE A KEG FLY? LEARN MORE AT OBXBREWTAG.COM

BUT FIRST...

Longtime Colington Island resident Larry Hansen specializes in building ships in bottles, and as Kip Tabb reported three years ago in an online article for the North Beach Sun, Larry sent three of his creations out to sea at Oregon Inlet during the summer of 2015 – with notes asking anyone who found them to please contact him.

Photo by Ryan Moser.

As it happens, Duck resident David Cole was beachcombing on Pea Island this past March when he found one of Larry’s bottles in the dune line. David immediately reached out to Larry, who not only insisted that David keep the one he found (pictured above), but also gifted David with one of his larger replicas of the Downeast Rover, a topsail schooner that docks at the Manteo waterfront.

“There’s still two bottles out there though,” says David. “So I’m still looking!”

SHINING A LIGHT REELIN' IN THE YEARS The Outer Banks has always been an angler's paradise. Over the years we've been home to numerous record-setting catches. Here are just a few of the North Carolina state saltwater records and their respective years. Maybe this will be the year you land the big one!

1961 Hammerhead Shark 710 lb.

Jennette's Pier

1972 Bluefish

31 lb. 12 oz.

Cape Hatteras

1984 Red Drum

94 lb. 2 oz.*

Hatteras Island

1987 Spanish Mackerel

13 lb.*

Ocracoke Inlet

1994 Wahoo

150 lb.

Ocracoke

1999 Sheepshead

19 lb. 4 oz.

Off Oregon Inlet

2006 Cobia

116 lb. 8 oz.

Oregon Inlet

2008 Blue Marlin

1,228 lb. 8 oz. Off Oregon Inlet

*World All Tackle Record Information courtesy of the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries.

After the first Cape Hatteras Lighthouse proved unsatisfactory over the decades following its completion in 1803, the second (and current) one was constructed and lit in 1870 – but its stability was threatened by beach erosion almost from the start. Things had become so precarious by the early 1900s that the lighthouse was finally decommissioned in 1935, and a steel beacon was erected to take its place slightly farther away from the shoreline.

Known as the Buxton Woods Tower, or simply the “skeleton tower,” its beam was visible up to about 18 miles out to sea, and it stayed in service for the next 15 years – until continued attempts at erosion control throughout World War II allowed for the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse to be reactivated in 1950.

Photo courtesy of the National Park Service. @NORTHBEACHSUN

11

FALL 2018

events

ONGOING GHOST TOURS OF THE OUTER BANKS Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays

Choose one of three haunted tours in downtown Manteo for a night of spooky fun. ghosttoursoftheouterbanks.com DINOSAUR EXHIBIT May 26 – September 4

For a limited time, the aquarium’s nature trail transforms into a Jurassic (and Cretaceous and Triassic) jungle populated by legendary reptiles of the past, transporting guests to a world lost in time. ncaquariums.com MAGNOLIA MARKET CRAFT FAIR Tuesdays through September 25

Enjoy the open-air market, and shop for quality handmade items ranging from local art to baked goods. townofmanteo.com

September 9

This event is guaranteed to be a tummy-tempting, toe-tapping good time as food trucks, breweries and local performers show off their stuff at The Soundside Event Site in Nags Head. soundsideevents.com DAY AT THE DOCKS September 14 – 15

Celebrate the heritage and living traditions of Hatteras watermen with seafood cooking demos, live music, contests, games and more in Hatteras Village. hatterasonmymind.com 2018 KAYAK FISHING TOURNAMENT

WHALEHEAD WEDNESDAYS Wednesdays through September 26

Sample local wines and listen to live music on the lawn of the Historic Corolla Park. visitcurrituck.com ACOUSTIC SUNSETS

Thursday evenings in September

Sip local wine and listen to great acoustic bands on the north lawn of the Cotton Gin in Jarvisburg. sanctuaryvineyards.com FARMERS’ MARKET

June – October (second Thursday of every month)

Stop by Dowdy Park in Nags Head each month for fresh fruits and veggies.

FIRST FRIDAY

September 7, October 5, November 2

Downtown Manteo comes alive on the first Friday of each month from 6 to 8 p.m.

MANTEO FARMERS’ MARKET Saturdays through October 13

Buy fresh, local fruits and veggies at this farmers’ market every Saturday in downtown Manteo.

SEPTEMBER

September 15

Cast a line in this photo catch-and-release style tournament presented by Kitty Hawk Surf Co. kittyhawk.com THROWDOWN SURF CLASSIC September 15

This annual “family-style” surf contest benefits a local person in need. This year’s recipient is Louie Rodriguez, a single father and Kill Devil Hills firefighter battling thyroid papillary cancer. throwdownsurf.com CURRITUCK HERITAGE FESTIVAL September 15

Celebrate Currituck heritage at the Currituck County Rural Center complete with a barbeque competition and professional bull riding. visitcurrituck.com OUTER BANKS TRIATHLON September 15 – 16

This USAT-sanctioned event in Manteo features Olympic distance, half distance and sprint distance. outerbankstriathlon.com ESA EASTERNS SURFING CHAMPIONSHIPS

OBX ARTS AND CRAFTS FESTIVAL

OUTER BANKS STUNT KITE COMPETITION

Browse the works of 25 local artisans whose specialties include painting, pottery, jewelry, photography, textiles and more at the Hilton Garden Inn. Some of the proceeds go to local charities, NEST and Friends of Youth. facebook.com/obxartfestival

Learn to fly stunt and power kites, watch live demos and enjoy a kite show synchronized to music at Jockey’s Ridge in Nags Head. kittyhawk.com

September 5 – 6

OUTER BANKS FOOD TRUCK SHOWDOWN

September 8 – 10

September 16 – 22

Surfers compete in the ESA’s “grand finale” at Jennette’s Pier. surfesa.org SURFALORUS FILM FESTIVAL September 20 – 22

This three-day celebration of coastal marine culture showcases the year’s hottest surf films and ocean documentaries. surfalorus.com

OUTER BANKS PRIDEFEST September 21 – 23

This three-day LGBTQ pride festival features a sunset cruise, concert, parties, drag show and much more in this all-inclusive event. obxpridefest.com DARE COUNTY MOTORCYCLE TOY RUN September 22

Local bikers come together to raise money and donate toys to help children in need. facebook.com/groups/DCMTR THE JOHN BROWN GROOVE SHOP BAND September 22

This 13-piece funk / rhythm and blues music group will rock the house at First Flight High School in Kill Devil Hills. outerbanksforum.org CRABDADDY SEAFOOD AND WINE FESTIVAL September 22

Enjoy all-you-can-eat steamed crabs while sipping local wine at this annual festival. sanctuaryvineyards.com FULL MOON CLIMB September 24

Climb to the top of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse by the light of the moon. Children must be at least 42 inches to climb. nps.gov THE LOST COLONY WINE & CULINARY FESTIVAL September 28 – 29

Enjoy a vintner’s dinner Friday night at 108 Budleigh in Manteo or sample wines from around the world on Saturday at the Grand Tasting held on the grounds of The Lost Colony’s historic Waterside Theatre. tlcwinefest.com OUTER BANKS CYCLE EVENT September 29

Put your pedal to the medal in this cycle race with several distances to choose from. obxse.org JIM MULFORD RED DRUM TOURNAMENT September 29

This annual fishing tournament is fun for all ages. ncaquariums.com

OCTOBER BRYAN CULTURAL SERIES 2018 INVITATIONAL FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY SHOW October 2 – 27

Bluegrass stars from all over the country will be on hand for this four-day outdoor jam at Roanoke Island Festival Park in Manteo featuring Rhonda Vincent, The Steeldrivers and more. bluegrassisland.com

ISLAND FARM’S PUMPKIN PATCH

PARADE OF HOMES

Take a wagon hayride to the pumpkin patch to find your perfect pumpkin. Kids can play games, pet the farm animals, participate in scarecrow stuffing and more. theislandfarm.com NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

October 3 – 6

Outer Banks photographers will have their works on display at the Glenn Eure Ghost Fleet Gallery in Nags Head during this art show. bryanculturalseries.org

Saturdays in October

12

OUTER BANKS BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL

October 4 – 7

Tour a select group of new, remodeled and green homes all along the Outer Banks. obhomebuilders.org

Save Date! the

Thursday, Dec. 13, 2018 6:00-9:30 p.m.

Duck Woods Country Club Southern Shores

Tickets go on sale October 1 st at

BeachFoodPantry.org 252-261-2756 Each ticket includes appetizers, Chefs’ Creations and open bar

Tables of 8

call for pricing

WE CLAWED OUR WAY TO THE TOP

BEER IS GOOD, BUT BEERS ARE BETTER.

WORLD FAMOUS SEAFOOD BUFFET

— Online Reviews

CAPTAINGEORGES.COM KILL DEVIL HILLS AT MP 8.5

OUTER BANKS | VIRGINIA BEACH | WILLIAMSBURG | MYRTLE BEACH

Discover What’s New

cottongin.com

Find cottongin.com Something for Everyone Four Convenient Locations Cotton Gin & Sanctuary Vineyards Cotton Gin

6957 Caratoke Hwy. Jarvisburg, NC (winery at 7005 Caratoke Hwy.) • 252-491-2387

789 Sunset Blvd.

Corolla, NC 252-453-4446

AMERICA’S FIRST WIND POWERED BREW PUB Cotton Gin

1185 Duck Rd. Duck, NC 252-261-2387

Cotton Gin

5151 S. Croatan Hwy. Nags Head, NC 252-449-2387

Two Great Events, One Grape Location!

CRABDADDY

The Big CURRI-SHUCK

FESTIVAL

Crabs, Crabs, Wine, Beer & Crabs!

Live Music + Fun & Games Sept. 22nd 12-6pm

Free Tastings • Free Tours

Award-Winning Wines

AYCE Oysters, Crabs & BBQ (While it lasts) Country Music Throwdown Nov. 24th 12-6pm

ENJOY LIVE MUSIC WITH AWARD-WINNING CRAFT BEERS AND FOOD IN OUR OUTDOOR BEER GARDEN.

252-449-BREW OBBREWING.COM MILEPOST 8.5, KILL DEVIL HILLS

Buy Tickets at SanctuaryVineyards.com or Any Cotton Gin Location @NORTHBEACHSUN

13

FALL 2018

OUTER BANKS BREWTAG

BAYOU BALL

OINK & OYSTER ROAST

Watch teams launch handcrafted keg-driven flying machines from a flight deck while enjoying live music and sampling local and regional beers at The Soundside Event Site in Nags Head. obxbrewtag.com

This costumed spectacular at Pirate’s Cove Pavilion is a music and culinary event hosted by the Dare County Arts Council with live music by Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience. darearts.org

events

October 27

FALL RESTAURANT WEEK October 19 – 27

October 6

First Flight Rotary sponsors this oyster roast at Longboards Restaurant in Kitty Hawk. Proceeds benefit nonprofit organizations in Dare County. oinkandoyster.org 12TH ANNUAL DUCK JAZZ FESTIVAL October 6 – 7

This free, all-day event features national, regional and local acts at the Duck Town Park. duckjazz.com MANX ON THE BANX October 8 – 14

This week-long event is the premier East Coast fiberglass dune buggy gathering. manxonthebanx.com STARS OF THE GRAND OLE OPRY PRESENTED BY OZARK JUBILEE October 9

The all-star cast of the Jubilee will perform the music of Patsy Cline, George Jones, Merle Haggard and more at Roanoke Island Festival Park in Manteo. roanokeisland.com 3RD ANNUAL OYSTOBERFEST October 13

Enjoy all-you-can-eat North Carolina oysters, a cooking competition featuring local chefs, and beverages from eight N.C. breweries at this event to benefit the N.C. Coastal Federation’s oyster reef restoration projects. coastalprovisionsobx.com MUSTANG ROCK & ROAST October 13 – 14

Jam the weekend away listening to 12 live bands on two stages while enjoying an oyster roast and a barbeque cook off at Mike Dianna’s Grill Room in Corolla’s Timbuck II Shopping Village. Proceeds benefit the Corolla Wild Horse Fund and the Mustang Outreach Program. mustangmusicfestival.com WINGS OVER WATER WILDLIFE FESTIVAL October 16 – 21; December 7 – 9

This several day event features nearly 100 programs on subjects ranging from wildlife photography, natural history, kayaking and more. wingsoverwater.org

Enjoy three-course lunch or dinner menus at participating restaurants all over the beach during this foodie-friendly week. outerbanksrestaurantweek.com OUTER BANKS SEAFOOD FESTIVAL October 20

Enjoy fresh, local seafood, cooking demos, live music and more at this family friendly event at The Soundside Event Site in Nags Head. outerbanksseafoodfestival.org

HARVEST HAYDAY October 27

Try the hay bale maze or take a hayride through The Elizabethan Gardens during this family friendly, harvest-themed afternoon. elizabethangardens.org

October 22 – 24

This tournament, held at Jennette’s Pier and hosted by several local Lions Clubs, is the largest visually impaired fishing tournament in the world. ncaquariums.com HALLOWEEN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL October 25 – 27

View scary films from all over the world and meet the filmmakers at RC Theatres in Kill Devil Hills at this third annual event. obxentertainment.com BLACKBEARD’S PIRATE JAMBOREE – 300TH ANNIVERSARY October 25 – 28

This three-day event celebrates the 300th anniversary of Blackbeard’s historic final battle with pirate storytelling, sword fighting, historical demonstrations and a three-ship pirate battle on Silver Lake on Ocracoke Island. visitocracokenc.com ROANOKE ISLAND MARITIME MUSEUM’S ANNUAL WOODEN BOAT SHOW October 27

This boat show is open to all wooden boats, new or restored. townofmanteo.com

October 28

This family friendly event features trick-or-treat stations, a costume contest, great prizes and more. obxentertainment.com

October 31

Take a spooky tour of the maritime museum on Halloween night. townofmanteo.com

October 20

35TH ANNUAL N.C. VIP FISHING TOURNAMENT

5TH ANNUAL OUTER BANKS PARADE OF COSTUMES

ROANOKE ISLAND MARITIME MUSEUM HAUNTED HOUSE

5TH ANNUAL CENTURY OBX RIDE FOR LIFE

This bike race features full-century, metric, half-century and 30-mile rides through Dare and Currituck counties. Proceeds from the ride benefit autism research and provide bikes for children at Christmas. outerbankstrisports.com

October 27

NOVEMBER EVENING LANTERN TOURS: DRAPED IN BLACK; VICTORIAN DEATH RITUALS

TOWNEBANK OUTER BANKS MARATHON AND SOUTHERN FRIED HALF-MARATHON

Take this haunting tour into the home of a grieving widow during Victorian times at the Island Farm. theislandfarm.com

This three-day event over Veteran’s Day weekend includes a marathon, half-marathon, 8K, 5K and a family fun run. outerbanksmarathon.com

November 2 – 3; 9 – 10

OUTER BANKS VETERANS’ WEEK November 3 – 10

This annual event celebrates veterans through the arts and includes the Outer Banks Veterans’ Writing Project and free outdoor live music in downtown Manteo. darearts.org 9TH ANNUAL OUTER BANKS SHRIMP COOK-OFF November 4

Local restaurants compete for the best shrimp dish in this tasty cook-off at Ocean Boulevard to benefit the Outer Banks Center for Dolphin Research. obxdolphins.org

November 9 – 11

THE BIG CURRI-SHUCK November 24

Feast on all-can-eat steamed oysters, crabs and barbeque and sample local wine while jamming out to live music at Sanctuary Vineyards in Jarvisburg. sanctuaryvineyards.com SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY November 24

Support local businesses and visit the boutiques, galleries and shops of downtown Manteo. townofmanteo.com

DECEMBER WINTERLIGHTS PRESENTED BY SOUTHERN BANK December – January (select dates)

Stroll through an illuminated winter wonderland at The Elizabethan Gardens this holiday season.

Check the website for dates and times. elizabethangardens.org

5TH ANNUAL BEACH FOOD PANTRY HOLIDAY CHEFS CHALLENGE December 13

Vote for your favorite local chef at the Duck Woods Country Club at this fun event with tasty appetizers, raffles and more to benefit the Beach Food Pantry. beachfoodpantry.org

Fabulous and Fun Fall Fashions!

Fashion for the Fun of It!

eat in or take out 252.255.0375 wavepizzacafe.com 1190 duck rd. nc 14

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

Open 10-6 Mon.-Sat. 252-261-6810 • Like us!

The HOT PINK building at the 4.5 milepost on the bypass in Kitty Hawk

ROANOKE ISLAND HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION PRESENTS a benefit for The Lost Colony

It’s Back!

Food Truck Showdown Food Trucks · Bands · Breweries

SUNDAY, SEPT. 9 11am-5pm FREE ADMISSION & FREE PARKING

The Outer Banks

®

VISITORS BUREAU

T LC Wi ne Fe st .c om

|

2 5 2 . 47 3 . 21 2 7

Live Music Great Food & Drink Relaxing Spa Epic Views

SoundSideEvents.com

MONDAY

bu rger nig ht TUESDAY

tapas & win e nig ht

te s i r o v a f l l fa at b e rn i e’s

252-261-1008 BAREFOOTBERNIES.COM AT THE SOUTH END OF THE DUCK BOARDWALK 1174 DUCK ROAD • AQUAOBX.COM • 252.261.9700

20+ TVs! ALL THE GAMES!

WEDNESDAY

go urm et tac o nig ht THURSDAY

sus hi wi th mil o

3730 N. CROATAN HWY KITTY HAWK, MILE POST 4 1/2

16 BEERS ON TAP

DRAFT BEER “TAP TAKEOVER” EVERY OTHER FRIDAY! @NORTHBEACHSUN

15

FOLKS

Birds

Feather OF A

Photos by Cory Godwin / Story by Amelia Boldaji

“I DON’T IDLE WELL,” says Dave thoughtfully as he runs a thumb along an arch on one of his delicate, handcrafted birds. “I don’t know how I do them, or why beyond that. It’s a challenge, but you’ve got to do something with your time.”

After growing up just northwest of Elizabeth City in Gates County, Dave (who prefers to go only by his first name) spent almost three decades out west working a variety of jobs from mining and ranching to insurance and financial services before he returned to the East Coast in 2006 and landed on the Outer Banks. He’s not a man of very many words, but the way he tells it, he makes it sound as though each life change inevitably led to the next – or if they didn’t, it doesn’t much matter.

“Sometimes you’ve just got to leave stuff behind, and move on,” he says with a shrug.

Now self-employed, and, according to him, “as close to retired” as he wants to be, Dave is a true jack-of-all-trades – doing everything from marine boat work and maintenance to courier services, and sometimes even lending a hand with carpentry and fish hauling. During the busy summer season he usually starts his day around five a.m., and he generally doesn’t wrap things up until well past nightfall.

The only thing he’ll admit to slowing him down is a hurricane. And that’s when he works on his birds.

“Back in Colorado I worked at a gypsum mill, and I used to make little doves with scrap wood, a hacksaw blade and a file,” he says. “I used to make ducks, too, but everybody does that. There’s no future in ducks.”

With too much free time on his hands after Hurricane Irene hit in 2011, Dave collected some wood from a dumpster and simply got to work.

“At first I tried hummingbirds, but I threw them away,” he says. “I don’t know where I got the idea to do Arctic Terns. They don’t frequent this area, and I’ve never even seen them up close before. But they’re always migrating, and no one else was doing them.”

Although he claims that he still doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing, he’s taught himself bits of a process over the years with a lot of trial and error, oftentimes having to improvise and manufacture his own tools in order to achieve a certain effect or correct a mistake.

“You can’t do this out of one piece of wood, because that’ll crack,” he explains, pointing to several details in one of the bird’s wings. “So you stack up a lot of pieces of wood with their grains crossing – that strengthens

16

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

Dave with his largest handcrafted piece of two terns fighting over a fish (above).

One of Dave's four single birds, mid-flight (left).

things – drill them, and pin them together with dowels. Then you just keep taking wood away until you get it where you want.

“It’s a whole lot easier to make wood chips,” he adds ruefully.

So far, Dave’s made five pieces that he calls “presentable” but not necessarily complete, including a larger one of two terns fighting over a fish that he’s been working on for seven years. That one in particular started with about 30 pounds of wood and now weighs around three pounds – though he eventually wants it to be half that weight so that when they’re hanging the birds will gracefully twirl counterclockwise in the breeze.

Each piece also represents hundreds, if not thousands, of hours of painstaking labor undertaken over the years – it took him more than 20 hours alone to put the duo’s glass eyes in with a dental pick. And while he does add a little bit of glue at times, he has to be careful because glue doesn’t take stain well, and that’s all he uses to detail the birds because he doesn’t want to mask the wood grain.

When he’s not working on them bit by bit during periods of bad weather, the birds hang from the ceiling of The Saltbox Café on Colington Road, which is owned by his close friends Randolph and Amanda Sprinkle. But although people regularly ask if they can buy them there, Dave is emphatic about one thing in particular: They’re not for sale.

“If I start doing this for the money, then it’s about the money,” he says firmly. “Some things have to be sacred, and I don’t want any urgency. It all depends on the weather anyway – and I’ve got the rest of my life to finish them.

“But I’ve said I might sell when I’ve got 10 of them done,” he adds with a laugh. “As you can see, I’m rolling right along.”

COFFEE COLD BREW BEANS TEA KOMBUCHA ONTAP

SEAFOOD • RIBS • CHICKEN

Come enjoy scratch biscuits, breakfast sandwiches, omelettes, açaí bowls, granola, and daily specials. All prepared daily with fresh, organic, seasonal, and mostly local ingredients from our delicious and addictive Rope Ladder Biscuit Kitchen!

Fresh Produce From Our Secret Garden Open 7 Days In Season • Daily 5:00 p.m. • Wine List • Full Bar • WiFi Milepost 9 Bypass, Kill Devil Hills, NC • 252-441-9555 • jksrestaurant.com

Scarborough Faire Shopping Village • Duck treehousecoffeenc.com • 252-722-3606

@NORTHBEACHSUN

17

FOLKS Melanie Westheiden with one of her most popular mug designs.

melanie westheiden has learned how to build a business, one lump of clay at a time.

Swell photos by elizabeth neal

story by katrina mae leuzinger

life is M

elanie Westheiden’s art isn’t meant to be hung up and admired from a distance. As a trained potter, she shapes each piece into life, creating something that’s ultimately meant to be handled. But while her striking mugs, plates and bowls are functional, they’re also a testament to her skill, artistry and inspiration.

Now 23 years old, Melanie graduated from Manteo High School and initially attended the University of North Carolina in Wilmington for photography. The plan was to come back to the Outer Banks and become a wedding photographer – but instead she took a ceramics class

during her sophomore year in 2014 that turned her career trajectory upside down.

“I was always interested in ceramics, but I never had the opportunity to try it before that,” Melanie says. “After my first class, I thought, ‘That’s it, I’m hooked. This is what I want to do.’”

From the start, Melanie sold her pieces – mainly to supportive family members and friends at first – in order to raise the funds for her own equipment. And only three years later, in 2017, she officially launched her own company: Swell Ceramics.

The name comes from an original illustration of a wave at sunset that Melanie developed while she was working on her degree. It’s the same distinctive image that adorns her

business cards and is hand painted on some of her most popular mugs.

“That was directly inspired by the beach right here on the Outer Banks,” Melanie explains, while adding that the final design was also influenced by a number of artistic styles. “I’m mostly inspired by nature.”

Her love of nature is evident in the names of her glazes as well – names such as Sea Foam, Ocean Drip and Blue Waters. Other images she routinely hand carves onto the sides of her mugs include sea turtles and cactuses.

“I went to Utah two years ago, and I have a southwestern line that came from that trip,” Melanie says. “You can be out there and think, ‘How does this place even exist?’” I felt very small there, and it was one of those things that put

continued on page 20 18

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

S U P ER SA LE

30% off

STOREWIDE everything over $10.00

Leaves are Falling... and so are the Prices!

Come Rake in the Savings!

One of a Kind Treasures ... and Plenty of BLING!

Celebrating American imagination and creativity Whimsical, sophisticated, traditional and contemporary fine American craft.

Artisan jewelry, pottery, wood, glass, metal, fiber and local art.

252.261.4224 • seadragongallery.com

LIKE us on Facebook!

1187 Duck Road • Loblolly Pines • 252.715.3177 allduckedout.biz • allduckedoutnc

Yellowhouse Gallery Fine Art Photography and American Craft Gallery Handmade Jewelry • Local Stained Glass • Fun and Functional Pottery Outer Banks Decorative & Antique Maps

252.441.6928 • yellowhousegallery.com

TWO GALLERIES in one location connected by our one-of-a-kind archway!

Located in the Waterfront Shops in Duck 1240 Duck Road • On the Duck Boardwalk @NORTHBEACHSUN

19

“The best way to learn is to fail.

It makes you keep trying.” everything in perspective. The design that trip inspired is made by mixing two clays together to match the striations in sandstone. And I don’t glaze them so they also mimic that texture.”

When she does add color with her glazes, however, Melanie favors shades of blues and purples, and an almost iridescent white that looks remarkably like the sea foam she named it after.

“That’s glaze magic,” Melanie explains good-naturedly. “There’s a lot of science behind glaze. The minerals in various kinds of clays, or in the glaze, can all react differently to each other. Some of that I learned in school, and some of it I learned by experimenting on my own.

“The best way to learn is to fail,” she adds with a laugh. “It makes you keep trying.”

Prior to those finishing touches, each piece comes together in a process that’s one part science and two parts art – or, as Melanie likes to put it, “a very precise guessing game.” It begins with a lump of clay that Melanie throws on the pottery wheel she keeps in a small workshop she shares with her dad and his woodworking tools. After shaping the mug, plate or bowl, it’s left to dry, and then it gets fired in her nearly 2,200 degree electric kiln.

20

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

It’s a procedure that’s surprisingly fraught with potential for disaster at every turn. Any given piece can come apart when she removes it from the wheel. Or if it’s not completely dry when it goes into the kiln, it can explode, taking all the other pieces in the kiln down with it.

“Those are sad, sad days,” says Melanie.

After one of her pieces is glazed and/or hand stenciled, it goes back into the kiln once again – and then the business end of things comes into play.

Melanie currently displays her pieces at a few local galleries and at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum. She’s also active on Etsy and social media, and she spends a lot of time at art shows and festivals, sometimes even doing up to three shows in a week. Someday soon, she plans to start renting a studio space of her own, where she’ll have more room to mix her glazes, get a bigger kiln, and ramp up production.

“Right now, I typically run out of space before I run out of energy,” Melanie says.

Melanie credits her parents, both entrepreneurs and fond of artistic pursuits themselves, with a lot of her creativity and drive.

If you dream it, we rent it.

2001 South Croatan Highway Milepost 9.75 Kill Devil Hills OARevent.com 252.441.7272 888.627.3836

OBX

O R I G I N A L S

A variety of Melanie's work, including details of her wave mugs, her sea foam glaze and the cactuses featured in her southwestern-inspired line of ceramics.

“They say, ‘I don’t know where you got this artistic stuff from.’ I’m like, ‘Right here. From you guys!’” says Melanie. “They really fostered my creativity from a young age.”

And perhaps most impressively, Melanie was able to quit her day job and devote herself to Swell full time as of this past spring.

“I thought it was going to take awhile to figure that part out, but I’m already there,” Melanie says gratefully. “Even I don’t know how that happened! It’s a lot of work, but it’s a different kind of work. It’s rewarding.”

Certain things in particular remind her how much that’s true. Although she doesn’t normally take on custom work, she made an exception last year for a special order mug and plate set featuring an image of Colorado’s Pikes Peak Mountain.

“The woman who commissioned it sent me this email about how she hiked that mountain after overcoming an illness, and how it was a symbol of her triumph over sickness,” Melanie says with a smile. “She said that every time she uses the set I made, she gets that feeling of empowerment again – and I thought, ‘Wow, it’s amazing that my pottery can do that for people.’”

CUSTOM APPAREL

LOCAL ART

HANDMADE GIFTS

An eclectic mix, sure to satisfy every Outer Banks lover!

With works from over 70 local artists currently featured!

Home of the only in-house glass blowing studio on the OBX!

SUPPORT LOCAL ART + WEAR LOCAL ART 4622 N VA Dare Trail - Kitty Hawk, NC 27949 - MP 2.5 on the beach road • Next to Art’s Place (252) 564-2038 - www.museoriginals.com

@MuseOBX @NORTHBEACHSUN

21

FOUR IF BY SEA

HOW TO

Retain YOUR MAN

BY AMANDA MCDANEL

I

f you follow me on social media, you probably consider me an oversharer. Lots of pictures of my children, most of which will require years of therapy down the road. Ridiculous family dance party videos. Post after post about my love of the Instant Pot. In short, I try to show a version of life that most people shy away from on social media – the real nitty-gritty that goes along with having two girls, a traveling husband, a live-in mother, a backward-walking dog, a home with sand in every nook and cranny and a never-ending pile of laundry. I put it out there in hopes that it helps soothe someone else’s concerns and expectations that come from living in a seemingly Pinterest-perfect world.

That said, I think I’m about to belly flop into the pool of extreme embarrassment with this one.

Most couples can reflect back on their relationship and recall defining times. The electricity of young love, some comfort in a time of darkness, the intense joy of growing a family, or the moment when you both looked at each other and said, “Okay, so this is how our relationship is going to go” – and then either cried, stepped away or held each other while laughing hysterically.

For me, the moment that cemented my relationship with my future husband went a little like this…

Johnny and I had been dating for several months – he was living in a house with his two dogs, while I was living in what I fondly called “The Brothel,” which was employee housing for six girls in a three-bedroom unit. To say that I preferred to spend more time in a place with fewer hormones, more room and an actual bathtub was obvious, but since the relationship was still young there were certain activities that were reserved for when I was in my own space. Watching The Bachelor. Painting my nails. Eating pizza with orange juice in my decade-old tattered pajamas. And, most importantly, wearing my retainer at night.

I had a long and tedious relationship with my orthodontist beginning around sixth grade. I met his friend the oral surgeon more than once. I spent years with wire and coordinated rainbow rubber bands in my mouth and said 22

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

goodbye to 10 extra teeth. The least I could do to honor my piece stretched across her sweet little canine teeth. (As if parents’ heavy monthly payment plan was wear my retainer to say, “See mom! I can have straight teeth just like you!”) at night. (In actuality, I’m not sure how long you’re supposed When it wasn’t there, I checked her throat as she struggled to wear a retainer, but I was shamed into wearing it 10 plus and gagged. Then I moved to the larger male dog. About the years later, even if it was only a few nights a week.) time I was prying his jaw open, Johnny blinked blindly at the But like threadbare comfy pajamas, you just don’t bring a light and looked over to see me examining the boy dog’s wire mouthpiece to a romantic sleepover. As the frequency teeth with an expression of terror on my face. of the sleepovers increased however, my dental luck began “What the hell are you doing?” Johnny asked. to expire, and the final straw was when I I burst into tears and noticed a hint of my diastema peering back quickly shouted, “I wear a at me in the mirror. As I packed my overnight retainer at night and I didn’t bag the next day, I nestled my retainer case in want to tell you and I waited Like threadbare between a stack of clothes and plotted ways until you were asleep and put to sneakily insert it at bedtime. it in and it’s not there now and comfy pajamas, you That night, after dinner and a movie, I’m pretty sure one of the dogs just don’t bring a Johnny and I gathered up the dogs and ate it and is going to die and went to bed. I waited until I heard the steady then you’ll break up with me wire mouthpiece to a rhythm of his breathing before I rolled over [sob, sob, sob]…” romantic sleepover. and slipped the retainer into my mouth – and And there it was: The soon fell asleep satisfied I was protecting my moment that sealed our fate parents’ investment. as a couple. Johnny’s look I’m not exactly sure what woke me in the of complete confusion was middle of the night, but I suddenly sat up and realized that promptly followed by uncontrollable, rolling laughter at my retainer was not in my mouth. Without turning on the two a.m. A minute later, my tears of alarm turned into tears lights, I frantically checked the pillow, the sheets, under- of hysterical, belly-aching, side-clutching, can’t-breathe neath and on top of the comforter, but I could not find that laughter, too. damned piece of plastic and metal.

When we found the retainer on the floor the next Suddenly a completely irrational, yet believable, thought morning, (I had apparently removed it and flung it across came into my head: What if the dogs had eaten it? What if the room in my sleep because I wasn’t used to wearing it they were about to choke and die? anymore) the hilarity of the incident hit us again…and it set In a state of utter panic, I jumped out of bed, threw on the stage for the next 16 years filled with the two things that the overhead light, and bent down in front of the girl dog’s have defined our relationship the most: bewilderment and face, pulling her lips back and fully expecting to see a wire lots and lots of laughter.

Amanda McDanel has lived on the Outer Banks for more than 15 years, is married, has two beautiful daughters and a dog that walks backwards. A collector of the unique and different, she has an M.S. in Child and Family Development, teaches cooking classes and is a successful entrepreneur.

SHORE SCIENCE

Green

istock.com/inusuke

The

Below

The 3 SAVs

BY BRIAN BO UTI N, PH.D.

SEAGRASS. AQUATIC WEEDS. BAY GRASS. The underwater plants that grow along the creeks, bays, canals and sounds of the Outer Banks go by many names, but they’re officially known as submerged aquatic vegetation (or SAV) in the scientific community – and these grass-like plants are actually not grasses at all, but rather are more closely related to flowering plants that you see on land.

Like their land-locked relatives, submerged aquatic vegetation need abundant light to grow; have roots, stems and leaves; and they produce flowers and seeds. They anchor themselves in shallow areas of estuaries with an extensive network of roots and rhizomes, sometimes growing so densely together that they form contiguous beds or meadows.

North Carolina has more than 138,000 acres of submerged aquatic vegetation, which exceeds every other state on the Atlantic Coast except Florida. Ninety-nine percent of that acreage is found in the Albemarle, Pamlico, Core and Currituck sounds – a fact that’s not lost on the hordes of fishermen and hunters that flock to this area each year.

So why are these types of vegetation important to our ecosystem, especially if they’ve ever clogged your boat’s lower unit or gotten tangled up in your fishing lines?

There are a couple of things to bear in mind. First, submerged aquatic vegetation are ecosystem engineers, building highly productive, complex habitats that many commercially and recreationally important fish, shellfish and waterfowl depend upon. For example, submerged aquatic vegetation serves as a critical nursery habitat for blue crabs, supporting a nearly $30 million fishery, while the extensive grass beds in the Currituck Sound feed a world-renowned waterfowl population. Large beds of submerged aquatic vegetation also absorb moderate wave energy, helping to reduce shoreline erosion, stabilize sediments and improve water clarity. Finally, one acre of submerged aquatic vegetation meadow

captures and stores 740 pounds of carbon per year – the same amount of carbon emitted by traveling 3,860 miles in your car!

Unfortunately, not all is well for our underwater grassy friends.

It has been estimated that as much as 50 percent of the historic extent of submerged aquatic vegetation in North Carolina has been lost. Storm water runoff, leaky septic tanks, propeller scarring from boats, dredge and fill activities, and shoreline stabilization have all combined to either directly or indirectly degrade their habitat. Non-native species like Eurasia milfoil and Hydrilla have also invaded certain waterways, choking out native grasses and aggressively clogging canals. Even natural occurrences such as large waves produced by hurricanes and nor’easters can uproot and disturb the vegetation.

Despite these losses, numerous state, federal, and non-governmental partners are working collaboratively to map, protect and restore submerged aquatic vegetation in North Carolina.

Actions are being taken to address pollution in our waterways, and protections are already in place that limit dredging, trawling and development in areas known to contain submerged aquatic vegetation. The state’s Aquatic Weed Control Program is also partnering with local towns such as Kill Devil Hills to address the spread of non-native invasive species by applying aquatic herbicide and developing signage for boat ramps in order to warn boaters about the danger of spreading noxious weeds.

So the next time you’re puttering through Kitty Hawk Bay trying to not overheat your outboard, know that you are doing your part to keep our fisheries healthy and our shorelines intact…not to mention sparing yourself an expensive marine mechanic’s bill.

There are at least 15 species of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) that call our estuaries home. These species make up three distinct types of SAV communities: High salinity or saltwater grasses such as those found near Hatteras Island Brackish grasses characteristic of the Roanoke Sound and Kitty Hawk Bay Freshwater grasses that are commonly found in the Currituck Sound

Brian Boutin is a coastal scientist who lives and works in Kill Devil Hills along with his wife, two kids and a 18-month-old Plott hound. He’s also an avid surfer and fisherman who enjoys all of the natural beauty found on the Outer Banks.

@NORTHBEACHSUN

23

ONE PIECE AT BOXER SHORTS

SHOTGUN SHELL 2

4 CERAMIC DISH

MYLAR BALLOONS

CLOTHING TAGS FISHING LINE 6

PH OTO BY RYAN MOSER STO RY BY A M ELIA BO LDA J I

24

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

A

lthough the Outer Banks is regularly recognized as having some of the most beautiful (and cleanest) coastlines in the country, waste can accumulate – particularly on busy summer days when the number

of beachgoers skyrockets. But our community is nothing if not proactive, and a new grassroots initiative called OBX Five Minute Beach Cleanup has started addressing this issue on a local level…with impressive results.

A TIME

OUTDOORS

1 3

ZIP TIES

2

3

HAIR TIES

4

5 DOG TOY

6

5

7 1

Over the course of this past summer, twiceweekly beach cleanups were organized that paired local business sponsors with volunteers for as little as five minutes at a time. Drawing anywhere from a handful

to several dozen people per event, these cleanups proved how quickly small actions can add up – and demonstrated how we can all ultimately play a large part in keeping our shorelines clear and clean.

PLEASE PICK UP YOUR BUTTS! By far, the item that was collected most often during the past season was cigarette butts. More than 100 butts were retrieved during any given cleanup, and what many people don’t realize is that they’re made with non-biodegradable acetate (a type of plastic) – making them the most common form of plastic pollution worldwide.

PLASTIC BY ANY OTHER NAME…IS STILL PLASTIC. In addition to cigarette butts, a number of items commonly left behind on our beaches are things that people don’t immediately think of as containing environmentally damaging plastic materials – including food and beverage containers, spent fireworks, clothing fibers and tags, and glossy BPA-coated receipts.

TAKE COVER – BUT DON’T FORGET TO TAKE IT DOWN. The image to the left was styled using items found during a single June cleanup after a busy summer weekend, and it was arranged on a large canopy cover that was also collected at the same the time. While it might seem convenient, leaving tents up overnight is illegal on many local beaches…not least of all because they can disrupt nesting sea turtles.

MAKE THE ENVIRONMENT A HABIT. It can

be easy to get overwhelmed by statistics when it comes to coastal litter, but the truth is that many single-use items found on our beaches (such as plastic bags and straws) aren’t necessities – and it’s not hard to swap them out for reusable options that are readily available at a number of local retailers.

CELEBRATE SAFELY. One of the top five things

found on our beaches most recently were balloons and/or balloon strings. That’s problematic because a balloon that’s released close to the shore doesn’t get very far before it deflates and winds up in the ocean – almost inevitably getting tangled up in seaweed that many marine animals use as a critical food source.

SPEAKING OF FUN. Kids’ toys such as buckets and shovels were also routinely collected this summer, many of which were still in pristine condition. Although it’s not always feasible to store and reuse toys between annual vacations, a great solution to this problem is to generously donate them to other families as you make your way off the beach.

ACT SMALL; THINK BIG. Trash wasn’t the only

thing collected this past season. Local volunteers tallied every item recovered in order to send that valuable data to both the Ocean Conservancy and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – two organizations that can help translate small actions into big changes by influencing policies that will protect our nation’s coastlines well into the future.

For more information about OBX Five Minute Beach Cleanup, see page 40. To see a schedule of upcoming cleanups, visit them on Instagram or Facebook. @NORTHBEACHSUN

25

NEED MORE? The Outer Banks Family YMCA is here for you

Add more fun for everyone with over 75 different group exercise classes, an indoor pool open year round, two outdoor pools and complimentary two-hour child care while you’re at the Y.

Day and week passes available.

Call (252) 449-8897 for more information or visit www.obxymca.org to join us!

OUTER BANKS FAMILY YMCA 3000 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head, NC 27959 P (252) 449-8897 W obxymca.org

Compassionate Care The Hallmark of The Outer Banks Hospital It’s what you can expect of your community hospital. Understanding and support for every person during every experience.

Compassionate care. Right here.

The Waterfront Shops • Duck

252-255-0600

THE OUTER BANKS HOSPITAL Part of Vidant Health and Chesapeake Regional Healthcare

Nags Head | 252-449-4500 | TheOBH.com

26

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

UNDER THE SUN

Mission Surf co-founder Bret Fogle leads the kids through a variety of strength training exercises (top). Camp surfers head out for a mock-heat surf competition (bottom).

Strength in Numbers Mission Surf aims to change the future of competitive surfing for local youth Photos by Ryan Moser Story by Fran Marler

“IT WAS DIFFERENT WHEN WE WERE KIDS,” says Kill Devil Hills resident and competitive surfer Mark Peer as he reflects on growing up in his native Hawaii.

It’s a statement that resonates all too well with me. Growing up in South Carolina as a female surfer, my support network was slim. More often than not, my mom would either cheer me on from the beach or she’d drop me off and leave me to my own devices. Which usually meant that my afternoons were spent struggling through the shore break and cartwheeling down the face of each wave as boys paddled by mockingly.

“Not to mention that when we got out of the water,” Mark adds, “we’d often go somewhere to drink.”

Even though it was common for kids to encourage one another to imbibe (not to mention smoke cigarettes) back in the day, those two activities are completely counter-intuitive to a healthy and strong surfing experience.

Which begs the question: What if there had been a network of experienced surfers, ready at our beck and call to help train us mentally, physically and otherwise? One might say that the answer is evident in large groups of today’s healthy, motivated and wildly successful crop of young surfers.

“In Hawaii,” says Mark, “the big surf companies are now hiring coaches to train their team riders in groups.

It’s better for them to surf together – they push each other and learn from each other and build synergy. I want to see that sort of community for the young surfers here.”

continued>

@NORTHBEACHSUN

27

During a typical day of Mission Surf camp, the kids participated in a variety of activities from surfing to strength training – and also received instructional coaching advice during video reviews led by co-founder Mark Peer (pictured top right).

“Surf to win; that’s what we teach them.”

-Mark Peer, Mission Surf co-founder

28

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

Also a United States Coast Guard rescue swimmer and a nationally registered emergency technician, Mark partnered with his Coast Guard buddy Bret Fogle to establish Mission Surf – a surf camp specifically designed for experienced young surfers who are interested in developing their skills further. While Bret himself is not a surfer, he has multiple certifications in the fields of strength and conditioning, so the two of them together are able to offer the kind of framework that can allow driven young surfers to thrive and potentially move on to successful surfing careers.

This past summer Mark and Bret hosted their first camp, and to say it went well would be a humble statement. “We actually only became a business this past spring,” laughs Mark, “but during our first five-day camp we hosted 15 surfers between the ages of eight and 16 with a good mix of boys and girls. We were blessed with a great dynamic.”

The only stipulation for participating in a Mission Surf camp is that the kids have to have surfed in at least one competition beforehand. And since the camp runs for less than a week, Mark and Bret see to it that every day is jam packed with information that will encourage and nurture each kid’s love and talent for surfing.

A typical camp day begins bright and early at eight a.m. with a video review of the mock-heats (15-minute judged and filmed surf sessions) from the previous day. “The goal,” says Mark, “is to teach the kids to establish what they want to do before each heat, and then they can actually see afterwards how that translated in the water and evaluate what their strengths and weaknesses are.” Following the heat review, they watch World Surf League heats in order to compare their strategies with pros surfing beach breaks similar to ours.

Next comes a beach warm-up, and the kids’ favorite part: a surf session.

In the afternoon, following lunch, the group gathers for a strength training session.

“That’s Bret’s area of expertise,” Mark explains about the mobility and movement patterns that Bret designed to make each person a stronger surfer. And to wrap it all up, they close the day with a group huddle. “That’s when we go over our foundational

Learn more about the Wild Horses of the Outer Banks

520B Old Stoney Road, Corolla • corollawildhorses.org • 252-453-8002 Wild Horse Tours • Gift Shop • Fun & Educational Events • Open Year Round

The Corolla Wild Horse Fund is a registered 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charity. All donations are tax deductible as allowed by IRS regulations.

principles,” Mark adds. “Mindset, sleep, recovery, breathing, nutrition, hydration and movement.”

Seem like a lot? It is. But so is winning surf contests – which is the ultimate goal of the camp.

“Surf to win; that’s what we teach them,” says Mark. “And it’s so cool to see. One day in particular we surfed all day long because the waves were absolutely pumping.

The kids were charging, and they ended up getting some of the best waves they had ever ridden.”

With the support and conditioning available through Mission Surf, it’s clear that the sky is the limit when it comes to young local surfers. “We want to help make these kids better, and it’s amazing to see the positive effect it has,” says Mark.

It doesn’t end there either. Mark and Bret have already met up with a number of their students at a few surf contests to coach them on their strategies and answer any questions they might have, and they have plans to get the kids together at least once a month to surf as a group. Next summer they hope to hold multiple camps.

“The most challenging part is maintaining the high-end things we need like our water camera and our editing equipment,” says Mark. “To offset the costs associated with such items we plan to get more sponsors.”

Above all, Mark and Bret look forward to seeing their business grow organically and on a local level.

“Competitive surfing is like nothing else,” Mark says with a smile. “It allows you to make friends from places you might not know otherwise, and it opens a lot of doors.”

A native of South Carolina, Fran Marler earned a B.A. in English from Coastal Carolina University. With a love of travel and all things water related, she and her husband have been residents of Kill Devil Hills for the past 12 years. Always keen for a good story, Fran is sure to be found wherever she is with a pen in hand, sharing her passion for writing.

CELEBRATING 5 YEARS IN DUCK! The Island Attic #Islandattic

TheIslandAttic.com (252) 261-0422

Look deeper.

insider info • obx music + events calendar @NORTHBEACHSUN

29

LOOK BACK

At the beginning of the 19th century, Ocracoke Inlet was the home of Outer Banks commerce – and one particular man-made island.

T

By Amelia Boldaji

hese days it’s little more than a speck on a map located slightly northwest of Portsmouth Island in the mouth of Ocracoke Inlet, which is why it might be hard to believe that this narrow strip of oyster beds was once famously known as Shell Castle Island – and for about two decades it was home to one of the most important port towns on the entire East Coast.

A lot of the circumstances surrounding the creation of Shell Castle Island can be chalked up to timing…and two very enterprising businessmen. After the American Revolution ended in 1783, Ocracoke and Portsmouth were two of the largest communities on the Outer Banks. While most northern Bankers were primarily farmers at the time, the southern tip of the islands was thriving due to its proximity to Ocracoke Inlet, which was then the main point of entry for maritime traders in North Carolina.

There was a catch to that point of entry though. Shifting shoals and shallow banks made navigating the inlet a tricky prospect – and locals who knew the waterways well made a pretty profit “lightering,” or transferring cargo to smaller vessels that could be more easily piloted into the Pamlico Sound.

Recognizing the potential there, two ambitious men – John Wallace of Portsmouth Island and John Gray Blount of inland Washington, N.C. – secured state grants Above: A 19th-century navigational map denotes Shell Castle Island in relation to Cedar Island and Ocracoke Island (left side of map). Image courtesy of the Outer Banks History Center. Right: In the early 1800s, John Gray Blount commissioned pitchers to promote the island. Featuring an illustration of life on the island and the wooden lighthouse (far right), this is a rare example of one that is still intact. Photo courtesy of the N.C. Museum of History.

30

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

An Island of Shells in 1789 for five islands strategically located in Ocracoke Inlet near a deep passageway that would become known as Wallace’s Channel. Two of the islands were mostly comprised of sand and marshland, while the other three were made up of rock and oyster shells: the 40-acre plot known as Long Dry Rock, the 25-acre Old Rock and the 15-acre Remus’ Rock.

Blount (who was mostly a silent partner) and Wallace, who styled himself the “Governor” of the land, almost

immediately began to transform Old Rock into a center for trade – renaming it Shell Castle Island in the process.

They started with a few residences, wharves, a warehouse, a small store, a gristmill and a windmill for pumping water, and they began providing small boats that could be used as lighters – effectively cornering the piloting trade both in and out of the inlet.

The island, which was described by one contemporary visitor as being nothing more than “a rock of oyster shells, half a mile in length and about 60 feet in width,” proved surprisingly hardy as well. After Shell Castle sustained virtually no damage during a severe hurricane in 1795, the partners celebrated by expanding in a big way. Over the course of the next six years they added new wharves, a larger store, more warehouses, a lumberyard, a ship chandlery, a porpoise fishery and a tavern.

During that period of rapid expansion, the island also became home to the first lighthouse on the Outer Banks. Although the federal government authorized the construction of two Outer Banks lighthouses in 1794, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse wasn’t completed until about 1803 – making the wooden Shell Castle Lighthouse the area’s first when it was lit in 1798.

It was a prosperous time for such a small spot of land, and although many of the men that worked for Blount and Wallace lived on Portsmouth Island, an 1800 census reported that 25 people also resided on Shell Castle – jumping to 40 by the time a second census was conducted in 1810.

That was the beginning of the end for Shell Castle, however. Wallace, who had always overseen the daily operations, died a year later in 1811, and Wallace’s Channel began to shoal up not long afterwards. For all intents and purposes, Shell Castle Island had ceased to exist for decades by the time the American Civil War came and went, after which point almost all the maritime traffic had switched from Ocracoke to Hatteras Inlet anyway.

But while Shell Castle’s final chapter was less than impressive, its stratospheric rise was spectacular while it lasted – and it’s yet another example of how the history of this area can so often lie somewhere just below the surface.

LOCAL FISH • CRAB STUFFED SHRIMP SEA SCALLOPS • CRAB CAKES WOOD ROASTED CHICKEN HAND ROLLED RAVIOLI • STEAKS STUFFED PORK CHOPS OLD WORLD WOOD FIRED PIZZA 10 Craft Beers On Tap Weekly Changing Wines by the Glass

Located in North Duck across from the Sanderling Resort 1564 Duck Road - Duck, NC | 252-715-2220 | papercanoeobx.com Reservations Suggested

The Outer Banks’ Only Oceanfront Restaurant Serving Breakfast • Lunch • Dinner • Appetizers • Seafood

Killer ocean view!

Coldest dra fts on the beach!

Over 30 b eers on ta p including locally crafted NC beers

Full ABC Permits

9 TVs Sports Central entals Bait & Tackle • Tackle R Live Music Nightly

at the

MP 11.5 on the beach road in Nags Head 252.441.4200 (Restaurant) NagsHeadPier.com • 252.441.5141 (Pier) @NORTHBEACHSUN

31

FOOD & BEVERAGE

Sweet Stuff Photos by Brooke Mayo Compiled by Amelia Boldaji

“WHEN

YOU

THINK

SHORTCAKE,

YOU

says local baker Chris Carroll with a laugh. “But there are really just three components to a shortcake – the cake, a fruit and a creamy topping. There can be endless variations on that.”

Owner of Sweater Box Confections, Chris’ signature baked goods – from her Lemon-Lavender cookies to her Chocolate Chess pies – can be found at a number of locations on the Outer Banks. But when we asked her to come up with an original dessert recipe for our fall issue, she was immediately up for the challenge.

“I started thinking seasonally and regionally,” Chris (at right) explains. “A fall shortcake with spices and flavors you might find in a Thanksgiving dinner just made sense.”

She was initially inspired to put a twist on sweet potato biscuits – an unsurprising state specialty considering the fact that North Carolina is the country’s top producer of sweet potatoes by a landslide. From there she experimented with adding warm spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg, and she finished up by infusing the citrusy zip of oranges to all the components in order to tie everything together.

“The flavors are all very complementary,” Chris says. “And it proves that sweet potato biscuits aren’t only for ham!”

PROBABLY

32

THINK

STRAWBERRY,”

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

There’s always something going on at APPLE & SWEET POTATO SHORTCAKE CRÈME FRAÎCHE 1 cup whipping cream 2 tablespoons buttermilk Combine 1 cup whipping cream and 2 tablespoons buttermilk in a glass container. Cover and let stand at room temperature 8 to 24 hours, or until very thick, and then stir well. Flavor with 1 teaspoon orange zest and sweeten with a tablespoon of maple syrup (optional). Can be covered and refrigerated for up to 10 days.

POACHED APPLES 1 cup sugar 2 cups water 1 cinnamon stick 2 strips of orange peel, 1-inch length 4 to 6 tart apples such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored and sliced Combine all ingredients except apples and bring water to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, add apples, and cook 10 to 15 minutes until tender. Take care to not overcook apples; they should be just soft enough that a knife can easily pierce them.

Lunch & Dinner Daily • Sunday Brunch MONDAY Pasta night! Build your own pasta & 1/2 price wine bottles TACO TUESDAY Tacos, pupusas, burritos, margaritas & more!

WEDNESDAY Pizza night! Family fun with handcrafted artisan personal pizzas THURSDAY Tapas! Food from around the world (starts Oct. 24) FRIDAY Gourmet burger night! Half-pound USDA certified Hereford ground chuck SURF & TURF SATURDAY Selections from land & sea that are sure to please!

SUNDAY Brunch! Voted “BEST brunch on the beach” by The Virginian-Pilot

$7.99 Lunch Specials Daily!

Happy Hour from 3-6 daily $5 APPS • WING, SHRIMP, CRAB LEGS & DRINK SPECIALS

MP 5.5, Bypass, Kill Devil Hills • 252-441-8081•chilli-peppers.com

Chilli Peppers Catering

Great Food for Great Events

CATERINGS FOR ANY EVENT business breakfasts • personal chef service family style takeout

Remove apples and let syrup cool. The apples can be returned to the syrup and stored for 1 to 2 days in the fridge.

SWEET POTATO BISCUITS (Adapted from a recipe created by Salli LaGrone that originally appeared in Martha Stewart Living.)

2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ¾ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon ground ginger 3 tablespoons brown sugar

Welcome to COPPER MERMAID

Join us for a relaxing visit on our

dog-friendly porch, sip a lemonade and visit the gallery for a treasure from our local artists. We offer sculpture, jewelry, photography, paintings, prints and ceramic work. You’ll find gifts for your home, heart and soul. Enjoy southern hospitality, friendly service and always new creations for your enjoyment.

2 teaspoons grated orange zest 6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces 1 cup pureed sweet potato, cold ½ to ¾ cup cold buttermilk, as needed Combine first 7 ingredients in medium bowl. Then cut in butter using a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse meal with small pieces of butter still visible. Add sweet potato into mixture with a spatula using a cutting motion. Dough will be chunky looking. Stir in ½ cup buttermilk until loosely combined, being careful not to overmix. If it seems dry, add remaining buttermilk.

Preheat oven to 400° F and flour your workspace. Gently knead dough 3 to 4 times, then pat dough down to ½ inch thickness and cut out biscuits with a floured 2-inch round cutter. Place biscuits on a parchment-lined baking sheet, brush with buttermilk or melted butter and bake in a preheated oven until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. If left unbaked, the biscuits can be frozen and stored away for 2 to 3 months.

Slice biscuits in half crosswise, pile on poached apples and add a dollop of crème fraîche.

Art Gallery & Gifts open Mon-Sat 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

300 E. Driftwood Street, Gallery Row District Milepost 10 1/4, Nags Head (between the highways)

252-715-5330 • COPPERMERMAID.COM @NORTHBEACHSUN

33

FEATURE

TO THE

Rescue

PHOTOS BY CORY GODWIN / STORY BY STEVE HANF

Mast destroyed. Sail gone.

A boat floundering in 12-foot seas. A sailor who thought he was 10 miles offshore when, in fact, he was 100.

Above: Rescue swimmers John Crow (left) and Mario Estevane (right) in the hangar at the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station in Elizabeth City.

The first report to the rescue swimmer shop at the United States Coast Guard Air Station in Elizabeth City alerted the crew that a C-130 was heading out to eyeball the situation and pinpoint the boat’s location. Not long after that four a.m. wakeup call, another alert arrived.

It was time to spool up the helicopter. Two pilots, a flight mechanic and an Aviation Survival Technician (AST) raced into action. For AST-3 John Crow, endless hours of training ran through his mind as the helicopter escorted him to his first real-life rescue.

But when Crow dropped into the water near the Gulf Stream, he realized that the boat was moving far faster than he could swim to reach it. The second drop got him closer, and as Crow pulled himself and his gear out of the water, the realization hit him: All that training had been worth it.

“I puked all over his boat,” Crow remembers with a smile. “It was bad, but I saw it through, got the guy up, and sent him home.”

That day marked an important milestone for Crow. He hadn’t taken the most direct route to the demanding job of being a Coast Guard rescue

swimmer, but he had arrived. Four years later, Crow and his fellow ASTs continue to save lives in areas that range from Virginia to South Carolina to Bermuda.

“Picking someone out of the water is the best feeling in the world,” Crow says from a coffee shop in Kill Devil Hills, the town he now calls home despite his somewhat lengthy commute to work. “I grew up coming to these beaches. I grew up seeing the Coast Guard fly over. This is where I want to be.”

Rescues don’t happen that frequently however, and truth be told, much of the day-to-day work of being a rescue swimmer is far from glamorous.

ASTs work on “everything not bolted to the aircraft,” Crow explains. That means long days spent checking seat belts, survival vests, rafts and oxygen systems – mostly because everything has to be ready when the calls do come.

When they’re not maintaining their equipment, the ASTs also maintain their physical fitness. They work out at least two hours a day – which for the handful of swimmers who call the Outer Banks home can mean everything from practicing Jiu Jitsu at Momentum Fitness in Nags Head to surfing in wild weather for extra practical experience.

At a moment’s notice, though, a seemingly routine day spent at the Elizabeth City station can turn into a search-and-rescue (SAR) mission. Rescue swimmers are on duty for four or five days each month, during which they’re on call for 24 hours straight alongside two pilots and a flight mechanic.

“You can be turning wrenches when the SAR alarm goes off,” Crow says.

“You’ve got to be ready to set aside your work hat, put on your helmet and fly.” continued on page 36

34

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

There’s six different ways There’s six different ways There’s six different ways There’s six different ways to get out and play. to get out and play. to get out and to get out and play. play.

Sharpen your game Sharpen your game Sharpen your game Sharpen game on the Currituckyour Outer Banks, NC. on the Currituck Outer Banks, NC.

onthe theCurrituck Currituck OuterBanks, Banks, NC. With a half-dozenon unique golf coursesOuter within reach, now is a great time to NC. With a half-dozen unique golf courses within reach, now is is a great time toto With a half-dozen unique golf courses within reach, now a great time get in the game where variety of play tests old pros and newcomers alike, With a half-dozen unique golf courses within reach, nownewcomers is a great time to getget in the game where variety of play tests old pros and alike, in the game where variety of play tests old pros and newcomers alike, and golfers can easily play multiple breathtaking courses on the same day. get in the game where variety of play tests old pros and newcomers alike, and golfers can easily play multiple breathtaking courses onon the same day. and golfers can easily play multiple breathtaking courses the same day. and golfers can easily play multiple breathtaking courses on the same day.

Call 877.287.7488 for a free golf guide www.VisitCurrituck.com Call 877.287.7488 forfor a free golf guide www.VisitCurrituck.com Call 877.287.7488 a free golf guide www.VisitCurrituck.com Call 877.287.7488 for a free golf guide www.VisitCurrituck.com

@NORTHBEACHSUN

35

“The best day is any day you bring somebody home. You want to do your job and make a difference.”

-AST-3 John Crow

At other times, the on-call crew will be conducting training missions when the real thing comes in. One day in June, Crow was gazing down at the Ocracoke Island Lighthouse when his helicopter was diverted to pick up a diver about 15 miles away. The man was unconscious when Crow got him hoisted out of the water, but he improved on the way to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.

While two hoists in a day is atypical, Crow was in for a surprise on that summer Sunday.

A few boaters had also gotten themselves stranded off Cape Lookout when the tides shifted in the shoal-filled waters. Rescue boats couldn’t reach them in the shallow water, so Crow and his crew raced out once again and saved the men from a night exposed to the elements.

“The best day is any day you bring somebody home,” Crow says. “You want to do your job and make a difference.”

CROW GREW UP SWIMMING IN CHARLOTTE, and while his older and younger brothers went on to swim at the University of North Carolina in Wilmington, he became more adept at competitive bicycle racing. That was, until a friend of Crow’s made a sudden decision to leave the cycling circuit, and he suggested that Crow should join the Coast Guard – a move that Crow eventually made at the age of 24.

“I had no idea what I was signing up for,” he recalls.

In November of 2013, Crow entered the Rescue Swimmer Training School in Elizabeth City with a healthy dose of respect for the challenging conditions heading his way: push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups; endless sessions in a pool with a wave machine; EMT training; and every real-world situation the instructors could throw at the trainees.

Crow went into the class with two former college swimmers, one of whom failed out within the first month. Crow himself struggled with the non-compliant swimmer test, during which the instructors simulate a disoriented swimmer who fights the rescuer the whole time. After failing that test too many times, Crow appealed for another chance – ultimately passing with just five others out of a class of 24. He was posted to Elizabeth City in 2014 and has been there ever since.

About two years ago, he got his first taste of a real-life combative rescue with three Frenchmen about 260 miles offshore. Two couldn’t swim, none of the three spoke English, and one of the men fought Crow all the way to the basket – and even tried to climb up the hoist cable.

“You don’t realize how important the training is until you get in the water,” Crow says. “Every case you have seems to validate school a little bit more.”

Generally speaking though, the action is often more routine than dramatic. Local rescue swimmers perform approximately one to three cruise ship medevacs a month – which involve getting seriously ill vacationers to a hospital – and they help a handful of boaters, especially during the so-called “snowbird transit seasons” of fall and spring when a rogue wave or a sudden storm can wreak havoc on sailors in the Graveyard of the Atlantic.

continued on page 38

Life jackets with written reminders of the lives saved hang in the rescue swimmer shop at Air Station Elizabeth City (top). A close up of the main controls on a Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopter (middle). One of the Elizabeth City Jayhawks that was painted yellow to celebrate 100 years of Coast Guard aviation in 2016 (bottom).

36

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

All Fitness Levels!

Yarn Needles Patterns Inspiration & Instruction

Edibles, sublingual, vaporized, salves, lotions, soaps, as well as jewelry, clothing and more!

Mon / Wed / Fri 5:30 - 6:45 a.m.

Milepost 4.5, Kitty Hawk, NC knittingaddiction.com •

HEMP PRODUCTS

252.255.KNIT (5648)

Contact: Todd Parks 252.599.0056 • fb.com/rebootfitnessobx

Seagate North Shopping Center 3105 N. Croatan Hwy Kill Devil Hills Our mission is to bring hemp cannabinol (CBD) based products to our community.

Mention this ad for $10 off!

Free Your Toes!

houseofhempobx.com

The sweetest treats in Duck!

Fine Art • Prints • Stationery

by Local Artist Barbara Noel

®

BRING IN THIS AD TO GET ONE

Hottest Brands, Latest Styles Flip Flops, Shoes, Boots Accessories & More!

Sanuk • Reef • Olukai • Rainbow • Cobian • Birkenstock • Havaianas Vionic • Chaco • Teva • Oofos • Under Armour Sun Bum • Pura Vida • 4Ocean • Lokai • Crush • Kreed • and more!

Tanger Outlets, Nags Head, NC • MP 16 • 255-3100 Scarborough Lane Shoppes, Duck, NC • 441-1757

More than 35 toppings Coffee & Espresso etsy.com/shop/OuterBanksBarb

With purchase of dessert item.

Limit one per person.

252-261-0484 • 1216 Duck Road Located on the Duck Boardwalk

facebook.com/obxbarb

Original Art Available at: Max’s Pizza • Heidi’s Fine Jewelry • Blue Moon Beach Grill

MUCH MORE THAN WINE & BEER!

CHOCOLATES GOURMET FOODS OLIVE OILS SAKE

AUTHORIZED DEALER

Service & Sales

MP 6 Plaza • Highway 158, KDH • 252.449.8229 • ChipsWineMarket.com

2001 S Croatan Hwy, KDH • 252-207-1306 An Ocean Atlantic Rentals Company

VISIT OUR SISTER STORE OUTER BANKS OLIVE OIL CO. IN THE WATERFRONT SHOPS IN DUCK!

Jewelry

Free!

Linens

HERE a better deal than direct mail

sales@northbeachsun.com

right FLYER

t h e l egacy o f f r a ncis r o ga l lo, inv ento r o f t h e f l exibl e w ing d es ign

four local restaurants • four amazing seafood dishes

for these local wine experts, a lot of work goes into helping people enjoy themselves FA L L 2 0 1 7 • VO L . 1 2 2

FR EE!

A DAY I N TH E LI FE O F SIX U N I Q U E LO CAL JOB S

Mike Kelly

the exit interview

volume 124

free!

HARN ESSI N G POWER FROM TH E G U LF STREA M

volume 123

New Holland

the forgotten heart of Hyde

FOLLOW THE SUN ALL YEAR

Glass Art . Gifts

ADVERTISE

SPRING 2018

holiday 2017

the lost fishing gear recovery project benefits all making music with ruth wyand and chris creighton

vo lu m e 1 2 1

(252) 453-0199 sprycreek.com Local Art . Home & Garden

since 1987

years

S UM M E R 2 0 17

Pottery HISTORIC COROLLA VILLAGE

30

ADVERTISING • INFORMATIONAL • WEDDINGS

baldwinvideo.com • 252-599-6297

Say it with a

BANNER e!

Same Day Servic

Subscribe!

1 YEAR

$12

OR

5 YEARS

Mail Checks to:

$45

115 West Meadowlark St. Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948

NORTH BEACH SUN

Name: Address: City: State:

Zip:

CC #: 115 W Meadowlark St, KDH • accessdesignandprint.com

Exp. @NORTHBEACHSUN

37

Left: AST-3 John Crow and Petty Officer First Class Mario Estevane on the tarmac at Air Station Elizabeth City.

WHILE CROW COUNTS HIMSELF LUCKY to have had nothing but good cases in his career so far, Petty Officer First Class Mario Estevane has had his share of good and bad. Now a Kill Devil Hills resident, Estevane manages the Elizabeth City station when he’s not standing duty, and like Crow, he also took a circuitous route to the Coast Guard.

OPEN FOR LUNCH & DINNER, MONDAY THRU SATURDAY

Estevane grew up diving all over the world with his U.S. Air Force father, Bill. Against his father’s advice, Estevane initially joined the Air Force rather than the Coast Guard and became a firefighter. One night while he was working a 911 dispatch, he saw a Discovery Channel special about rescue swimmers and immediately felt as though he had found his calling. He quit the Air Force in 2006 and headed to Coast Guard boot camp a year later – despite the fact every recruiter he spoke to told him that he had no chance of becoming a rescue swimmer since about 80 percent of applicants inevitably fail.

“It’s a mind game,” Estevane explains retrospectively.

“People can psych themselves out.”

With intense focus, Estevane persevered, and after first being stationed at Cape Cod, he arrived in Elizabeth City last summer. Not long afterwards, he encountered

Seafood Pots To-Go AS FEATURED ON THE

20+ Wines by the Glass Local Brews on Tap Full Bar

Elizabethan Gardens

ThE

According to Crow, some of the most challenging rescues involve convincing people to leave behind a sinking ship – which can often represent a life’s savings. The Coast Guard can’t require anyone to board their helicopter, but Crow tries to reason with people in order to get them to make the right decision.

“If your house was on fire, would you stay in it?” he’ll ask.

“What if it was flooding?”

an overturned vessel off of Bogue Inlet near Wilmington.

Three men had gone fishing, but when the helicopter arrived on the scene, one was missing and another was unresponsive in the water. The third man seemed calm at the start of the rescue, but he began fighting Estevane when rotor wash from the helicopter startled him. It took a while before they successfully hoisted the man.

“At first I was frustrated, but then I thought about it.

He was out there for 12 hours and had just lost two of his friends,” Estevane says. “He was scared, and I’m just glad he’s alive.”

Still, two others didn’t make it, and Estevane was struggling with that fact when he was back on duty two days later. That’s when Estevane’s helicopter headed toward an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) signal about 80 miles offshore. As the search-and-rescue mission unfolded, they encountered a raft with two heads popping up out of it, and a fish box with three people on it who were floating away from their friends. Their boat had taken a roller on its side that swamped their open fish hold and sent the vessel down fast.

“They were all there, no one was injured, and when I got in the raft they were all smiles,” Estevane recalls. “The captain signaled the EPIRB, and that’s what saved their lives.

They had no idea if anyone knew they were out there – but they said that when they saw the helicopter, they knew they were safe.”

It’s a small shop, and a tight-knit crew, but the rescue swimmers, flight mechanics and pilots at Air Station Elizabeth City always seem to be there when they’re needed.

And every so often, they even deliver more than a safe flight back to shore.

On one of Crow’s more memorable rescues, he brought up someone who was probably the most prepared stranded sailor of all time: a retired U.S. Marine who finally called for help after taking on water for four days on his way back from Bermuda. The man was starving, and it just so happened that Crow and a buddy had picked up some fast food right before the call came in.

“We gave him all the Bojangles we had when he got in the helicopter. I’ve never seen someone eat chicken so fast,” Crow says with a laugh. “Elizabeth City has some of the most random, interesting cases. If you can imagine it, someone here has probably done it.”

Award-Winning Crabcakes & Steaks Presented by

Fresh Local Seafood

RAW OYSTERS

1/2 PRICE ON THE HALF-SHELL

WEDNESDAYS • DINE-IN ONLY OBX Best Selection Offer subject to change.

2017 BEST OF THE BEACH WINNER Best Oyster Bar

1 Ocean Blvd, Southern Shores Crossing • CoastalProvisionsOBX.com • 252-480-0023 38

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

Project is Sponsored by

select nights Dec to Jan

TICKETS NOw ON SALE

OPEN DAILY Manteo, NC

elizabethangardens.org 252.473.3234

Come fly with us!

OBX AIR TOURS RIDES AS LOW AS $42 PER PERSON

BIPLANE HELICOPTER WARBIRD

252-216-7777 • 252-475-4354 ONLY 20 MINUTES FROM NAGS HEAD AT THE DARE COUNTY REGIONAL AIRPORT ON ROANOKE ISLAND

Ask About Our “OBX by Air” Video Specials!

A $25 value. Must show this ad to receive offer. Not valid with any other offer.

Casual Outer Banks Dining LOCATED IN HISTORIC LIFESAVING STATION # 6

SERV ING LUNCH, DINNER , & COCKTA I LS DA I LY STA RT ING AT 11:30A M OFFER I NG EXCEP T IONA L CAT ER I NG SERV ICES

Open Year Round at 11:30 am | MP 4 on the Beach Road in Kitty Hawk | 252-261-3171 | blackpelican.com INTERACTIVE TRIVIA

@NORTHBEACHSUN

39

THE LOCAL LIFE

Photo by Kati Wilkins / Story by Amelia Boldaji

Leslie Vegas Coastal Specialist, Environmentalist

TWENTY-SEVEN-YEAR-OLD MANTEO RESIDENT LESLIE VEGAS has called

the Outer Banks home for the past six years, but this West Virginian native has had a connection to our area for much longer than that. Regular family vacations soon led to annual volunteer and internship positions with local organizations such as the Outer Banks Center for Wildlife Education and the Network for Endangered Sea Turtles – starting when she was only 15 years old.

Earning a degree in Environmental Science and Policy with a concentration in marine and coastal management from the University of Maryland, Leslie even got permission to complete her last semester online so she could move here as quickly as possible and get to work on the things she’s most passionate about.

“The ecosystem here is extremely unique,” she explains. “It’s a really special place, and I’ve arranged my whole life to end up here.”

Can you talk about your environmental career here so far?

I recently started working at the North Carolina Coastal Federation, and before that I was an aquarist at the North Carolina Aquarium [on Roanoke Island] for four years. While I was there I took care of a variety of animals’ daily needs, and it was a lot of record keeping, pretty similar to working in a hospital. All the aquarists have their own sections, too, so I worked with the ambassador animals – everything from possums and owls to snakes and frogs that we trained to participate in educational programming both on and offsite.

How are your interests in animals and the environment connected?

My position at the aquarium was the perfect hodge-podge of things. My three main loves are animals, the environment and environmental policy; and at the aquarium I was able to help inspire an up-close, emotional connection between people and other animals. If you don’t know about something, it can be hard to care about it – and we all need healthy places to live, after all. Landscapes are great, but I personally think that animals make the environment more interesting.

You also started the grassroots group, OBX Five Minute Beach Cleanup, this past year. How does that fit into things?

Well, it’s a big part of things, but it’s also something I mostly do in my spare time.

[Laughs] I got the idea to organize twice-weekly summer cleanups with local business sponsors after seeing other beach cleanup social media accounts both nationally and internationally. I thought it would be cool to see if that would work here. And a lot of locals are really environmentally conscious to begin with, so I could see that people were already taking similar types of actions – they just weren’t necessarily being noticed for it.

Do you feel as though the cleanups have been successful?

The thing is that we already have pretty clean beaches here, so what I want to get from these cleanups is a baseline. We’ve been collecting data on everything found in order to figure out if we do, in fact, have a problem locally – and if so, to figure out what can we do to get ahead of it. People have been really generous, and the cleanups have taken off a lot faster than I anticipated. It wouldn’t work if people didn’t want it to…and I still think we have more blue seas out there than anything else.

40

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

E L E VAT E D C A S UA L FA R E • I M AG I N AT I V E W I N E S • C R A F T B E E R S O N TA P • H A N D - M I X E D C O C K TA I L S • L I V E M U S I C

Now Open!

1314 DUCK ROAD, DUCK OPEN YEAR ROUND VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR CURRENT HOURS 2 5 2 -7 1 5 -1 4 1 4 • V I L L AG E TA B L E A N D TAV E R N . C O M

FISHING. FAMILY. FUN.

MAKE LASTING MEMORIES

Hook into world-class fishing, educational opportunities, an exceptional banquet facility as well as clean, wide, public beaches, bathhouse and free parking all at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head. Our full-service pier shop offers tackle, beach supplies, unique gifts, cold drinks, hot coffee and snacks. Come see why Jennette’s Pier has been a family favorite for more than 75 years.

BEAUTIFUL RECEPTION VENUE

WORLD CLASS FISHING

MILEPOST 16.5

WWW.JENNETTESPIER.NET

252.255.1501 @NORTHBEACHSUN

41

PHOTO BY PIVOT VISUALS

Visit Duck’s favorite spot

Yellowhouse Gallery FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY AMERICAN FINE CRAFT

THE

STORE

Sunset Ice Cream CK’S DU

42

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

GENERAL STORE

for shopping, dining, yoga… and Aw�so�e Sunsets!

DUCK, NC At the north end of the Duck Village Boardwalk

@NORTHBEACHSUN

43

It’s All Good At Mama’s!

n u F l l a F MAMAs

Great Selection

At

Nc Beers & IpA’s

Lunch &Dinner s p ec IA ls

Tiki Bar

d r IN ks & A p ps

World Famous FIsh tAcos Milepost 9.5 • Hwy. 158 in KDH • 252.441.7889 • MamaKwans.com

Serving Lunch & Dinner • Tiki Bar • Check Our Facebook Page For Hours & Events!

All CleAr

!

facebook.com/mamakwans

Safe To Fall Back To The Shack!

Serving Lunch & Dinner (Closed Tuesdays) Outdoor Dining • Corn Hole & Games!

Sundaze:

$1 Off Bushwackers All D & Live Music with ay Blurky’s Quirky Frie nds 5-8 PM

Burgers • Seafood • Wings • Surf Snacks • And More 44

NORTH BEACH SUN FALL 2018

MP9 on the Beach Rd. • KDH • BonzerShack.com • 252.480.1010