My Outer Banks Home - Spring 2016

Beautiful

Swimmers Starts on Page 4

Into the Deep –

Shipwrecks of the Outer Banks

All Tricked Out Extravagance in Rental Homes

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what’s inside CONTENTS

HOME MY OUTER BANKS

enjoying the coastal lifestyle

feature

4 `

PUBLISHER

Mary Ann Williams, Gene Williams

EDITOR

Beautiful Swimmers

Eighty-two year old Murray Bridges’ Endurance Seafood is the #1 spot for soft shells in the area – and he doesn’t plan on retiring any time soon.

Meg Puckett

ART DIRECTOR Sue Colao

GRAPHIC DESIGNER Lanie Whitaker

SALES ASSOCIATES

Katelin Kight, Marie Walker

CONTRIBUTORS

4 home 8

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All Tricked Out

From extravagant rooftop pools to decked out elevators, the difference is in the details when making your rental home unforgettable.

Amelia Boldaji, James Charlet, Meaghan Beasley, Jane Elfring, Brenda James, Rosie Hawthorne, Mallory Lengel, Meg Puckett, Michelle Wagner

PHOTOGRAPHY

archaeology.ncdcr.gov, Jennifer Adams, Beach Realty, James Charlet, Coastal Studies Institute, historical-markers.org, Jane Elfring, lifesavingmuseum.org, Meg Puckett, Milepost Portraits, Museum of the Albemarle, Nags Head Hammocks, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Park Service, offbeatoregon.com, NC State Historic Preservation Office, Pea Island Station File (USCG Historians Office Archive), Rosie Hawthorne, shutterstock.com, Abby Stewart, Town of Nags Head, Twiddy, U.S. Navy Photo Library, Michelle Wagner, Marie Walker, Lanie Whitaker

DISTRIBUTION Jason Adams

PUBLISHED BY

Three Dog Ink Media, LLC 111 East Baltic Street • Nags Head, NC 27959 252.261.6490 • 252.261.5476 Fax

E-MAIL info@threedogink.com OUR WEBSITE

myouterbankshome.com

a look back 16

The Original Showboat

The James Adams Floating Theater brought Broadway to the Albemarle and Chesapeake Bay areas during the early part of the 20th century.

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food 18

Welcome Spring!

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One rotisserie chicken, four recipes, and minimal time spent in the kitchen.

Three Dog Ink welcomes comments and suggestions about errors that warrant correction. E-mail your corrections to editor@ threedogink.com.

Three Dog Ink, LLC cannot and does not guarantee the correctness of all information furnished them, nor the complete absence of errors or omissions, hence, no responsibility for the same can be nor is assumed. Three Dog Ink, LLC cannot and will not be held liable for the quality or performance of goods and services provided by the advertisers in this publication. Reproduction of any material from this publication is strictly forbidden without permission from the publisher.

what’s inside CONTENTS

gardening 36

Going Native

There’s a method to the madness when you’re gardening to attract local wildlife.

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community 24

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24 Coastal Classroom

The Coastal Studies Institute in Wanchese is using state-of-the-art technology and innovative programming to get students excited about science and our maritime environment

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DOORS

last page 44

Seeking Sea Glass

Lifesaving Station

Heroic sea rescues have been a way of life since this area was settled, but it wasn’t until the late 19th century that an official, functioning Lifesaving Service was established on the Outer Banks.

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Into the Deep

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Doors of Dare County

education 40

Around and Around We Go

The Ferris Wheel may be gone, but Dowdy Park promises to keep the tradition of family fun alive at this popular Nags Head spot.

Dive into the Graveyard of the Atlantic and see how shipwrecks have shaped our coastline and continue to impact our lives here on the Outer Banks.

Nothing says “welcome” quite like an inviting doorway, and we have lots of them on the Outer Banks.

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The search for sea glass leads one newly retired OBX resident home.

Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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s r e m m

l u f i ut

a e B

i w S STORY BY

Amelia Boldaji ✺

PHOTOGRAPHY BY

Lanie Whitaker 6

myouterbankshome.com | Winter 2015

FEATURE

murray bridges If you blink you might miss it: Driving through Colington Island, which lies just west of Kill Devil Hills, an unobtrusive, time-weathered sign marks the gravel road that leads to Endurance Seafood Company. Soft shell crabs, live hard shell crabs, the sign reads year-round.

Fresh and frozen. For those who are in the know, an extra bright orange sign is hung every so often to signal that they also have local shrimp for sale.

Though it’s not hard to imagine the bustle of this place during peak crabbing times, today it’s quiet. Tomorrow is the last day of the winter crabbing season, and Murray Bridges, founder and patriarch of Endurance Seafood, is getting ready to pull his crab pots and get things into gear for the next round.

At 82 years old you might expect that Murray is looking forward to the reprieve of some downtime,

grew up. They’ve been in the same brick house that greets you when you pull up to Endurance Seafood ever since.

“I knew I wanted to get back on the water,” Murray says. “It wasn’t like today, but there was already a market for fishing so I put together a small crew with my wife and my sister-in-law, Kathline, and we mostly did beach hauling. A few people were shedding crabs back then too, but not in a commercial way, just a few at a time to sell local. I started nosing around, and I seen potential in it.”

Taking a leap of faith with his hunch, Murray used all his savings to buy the equipment he needed and started Endurance Seafood in the mid-‘70s. The name, which Brady picked from the Bible, seems understandably fitting.

“You’ve got to endure in order to do it,” Murray says with a smile.

Four decades later, that’s exactly what Murray is still doing. His eyes light up as he expertly plucks several fat, hard-shelled blue crabs out of a barrel and turns them over to expose their markings — or “aprons” — that reveal the crabs’ genders. He also reveals a bit of unexpected poetry that goes along with the crabbing terminology. Male crabs are known as “jimmies,” while mature females have distinctive red claw tips, or “painted fingernails,” and the scientific name for blue crabs as a whole is Callinectes sapidus, which roughly translates to “savory beautiful swimmers.”

But while the live hard crabs are fascinating, Murray’s main focus with Endurance Seafood has always been in commercially catching soft shell crabs. As crabs grow they have to regularly shed their exoskeleton, and when they’re beginning to enter the molting cycle they’re commonly called peelers. This is where

but you’d be wrong. This is a man who doesn’t use a computer and only carries a cell phone in case his boat breaks down but still gives the impression of someone half his age, energy-wise. He hardly ever stays still, and even when he talks he’s constantly gesturing for you to follow him in order to see something else just around the corner.

“He’s a go-getter, and this is what he loves to do,” says his daughter, Kristina. “It’s pretty amazing to watch him.”

Murray grew up in Wanchese where he fished and picked oysters with his uncles during the summertime for extra money. After fibbing about his age in order to join the Merchant Marines at 16, he spent the next 23 years traveling the open seas as a Chief Engineer before retiring in the early ‘70s and returning to Colington where his wife, Brady,

Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

7

FEATURE

murray bridges

Murray — and all that equipment — steps in. Since female crabs need to have molted in order to mate, special crab pots are used with a male crab inside as bait. One male crab can attract hundreds of females, and once the peelers are caught, they’re put into what’s known as shedders — shallow trays that keep the peelers in water until they reach their soft shell state.

Sound easy? It’s not. Crabs only stay in this state for a short amount of time before their hard shell starts to grow back, so peelers require near-constant supervision so that they can be removed and packed on ice before that happens. As Murray points out, in peak soft shell season (typically from mid-April through June, and especially around full moons) this is no nine to five job, but more like a 24-hour deal.

“It’s like having a new baby,” Kristina adds. “Even in the middle of the night you have to check them every few hours. We don’t get a whole lot of rest around then!”

The math of all this is pretty incredible too. Murray has more than 150 shedders that hold an average of 300 peelers apiece. During peak soft shell season they can have up to 60,000 peelers that need to be repeatedly monitored each day — not to mention the other facilities required to grade the crabs, box, and ship them to areas all up and down the East Coast.

It’s an operation that requires all hands on deck, and everyone in the family chips in during crunch time. Though Murray was the first one to see the potential in commercial soft shell crabbing, every year there’s a bit more competition as prices have skyrocketed and fishing regulations have tightened, forcing commercial fishermen to diversify. He’s not complaining though; Endurance Seafood is still the biggest outfit in the area, and that doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon. “I’ll do this until I die I guess,” Murray declares.

And as for some of that relaxing downtime until spring rolls around? “I’ll mend the crab pots and make some more,” Murray replies. “It’s time consuming but it’s not hard. I’ve got other odd jobs too, like repairing and selling electric crab pot pullers. I’m a jack of all trades, master of none — and I always like having something to do.” ³ Amelia Boldaji grew up “crabbing” in Manteo with chicken necks and string before realizing that she was better off as a writer.

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myouterbankshome.com | Spring 2016

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STORY BY

Abby Stewart

All

Tricked Out

EXTRAVAGANCE IN RENTAL HOMES

W

When guests go on vacation, they expect to be transported to a place of escape, wonderment, or simply to a refuge of peace and relaxation. While we are lucky enough to live in an area that offers all of these things through the intrinsic nature of the Outer Banks itself, how we construct and arrange the homes that we share with vacationers helps them find what they are seeking. It’s what gets them talking about their experience and what keeps them coming back year after year to stay in the same home. While pools, hammocks, elevators, media rooms, and specialty furnishings are a few features that many Outer Banks rental homes offer, some turn more heads than others. Here are a few extravagant features we’ve come across in rental homes around the OBX.

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myouterbankshome.com | Spring 2016

tricked out

BEACH REALTY

BETTER BUILT

UNCOMMON POOLS

“Tricked out features will help book the home, but it’s the modern conveniences and comfort that will keep them coming back.”

MILEPOST PORTRAITS

TWIDDY / MELISSA MATTINGLY

The sky’s the limit when you’re relaxing in a rooftop pool. With a view from the sound to the sea, all without leaving the refreshing water, a rooftop pool will wow just about anybody. What about doing 65 feet of laps in one direction in an impressive pool fit for even the most luxurious of estates...but with the roar of the ocean in the background when you come up for air? Or taking a late-night swim in a lighted pool, heated to the perfect temperature, no matter what time of year it is? These are the pools that separate your average backyard from an extravagant one.

“Each year the features in our vacation rental homes get more and more impressive,” said Leslie Etheridge, Marketing Manager at Beach Realty and Construction. “My favorite features, though, are outside the home. Elegant private pools with flowing waterfalls, rooftop pools, extravagant outdoor kitchens and tiki bars come to mind,” Etheridge said.

LAVISH DECOR

Whether it’s art deco, contemporary, coastal country, or shabby chic, one thing remains the same: the “WOW” is in the details!

Eye-popping color, original artwork, captivating photography, cascading spiral staircases, grand pianos, and jukeboxes are just a few things that have stopped us in our tracks in some Outer Banks rental homes. While some renters desire a more down home feel, there are many out there who want to be wowed! They are spending a lot of money on their Outer Banks vacation, so they expect to be impressed.

It’s the little things that create an unforgettable experience, like turning on the light in your closet to reveal a stunning chandelier, or having a seat in the bathroom right next to a beautiful fireplace. These facets are hard to forget.

The ancient Chinese practice of Feng Shui is founded on the belief that our moods and well-being are directly affected by our surroundings. Whether you believe this or not, it’s undeniable that when renters enter a home for the first time, the way it is decorated, designed, and laid out will immediately affect their perception and thus navigate their overall mood during their stay in the home. Extravagant decor makes a bold statement and usually leaves a lasting impression.

Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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tricked out

ABBY STEWART

BETTER BUILT

In the world of rental searches, elevators rank high among amenities vacationers are looking for, adding value to a home. But not every elevator is created equal. Some elevators we’ve seen will leave you feeling like you’re 20,000 leagues under the sea, while some seem to take you on a tour of the entire Outer Banks in just 3 floors. Glass elevators ride past intricate, hand-painted murals or cascade over artistic mural wraps featuring seascapes, famous Outer Banks landmarks, or elaborate underwater scenes.

Elevators such as these “make rental homes unique,” said Kenny Pekrun, owner of Atlantic Elevators. “People will remember them and you will get repeat renters because of that. It’s good to appeal to any kind of niche to make your home different from the rest,” Pekrun said.

MILEPOST PORTRAITS

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myouterbankshome.com | Spring 2016

MILEPOST PORTRAITS

AWESOME AMENITIES

ABBY STEWART

UNFORGETTABLE ELEVATORS

We define amenities as any feature that provides comfort, convenience, or pleasure. We all know a home theater makes an impressive statement to renters, but sometimes it’s the things that you might not immediately think of that actually make you feel the most pampered. We’ve come across outdoor game rooms fit for a fraternity party, home gyms that rival private fitness clubs, and custom-built home bars that will make you forget you don’t have to tip your bartender...because it’s your Uncle Jim. Sorry Uncle Jim. Laundry rooms with more state-of-the-art washers and dryers than a laundromat probably aren’t what you would think of first when searching for a rental home, but when you open the door to a luxurious laundry oasis in the middle of a week with your 20 closest relatives, you’ll realize you can never rent a vacation home without one again!

The Cozy Kitchens group made sure the cabinets and countertops in The Ocean Club of the Outer Banks were top notch, beautiful, and functional, from the lavish laundry room all the way down to the mini kitchen in the kids’ playroom.

“Art, color, and architectural intrigue come together with some very practical and important amenities to provide our guests the most comfortable surroundings on all of the Outer Banks,” said the owners of the Ocean Club.

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tricked out BETTER BUILT

NAGS HEAD HAMMOCKS

OLD FAVORITES

OUTSIDE OF THE HOME

Sure, outdoor tiki bars and fireplaces in the john are definitely game changers, but what about the extravagant extras that come attached to some Outer Banks vacation homes? Depending upon your rental program, and what you choose to offer your guests, some of the perks that actually come with the home impress the guests more than what is actually in the home.

Rental packages paired with discounted rounds at local golf courses, cabana services that set up tents and chairs, and meal delivery services that will bring any Outer Banks take-out directly to your beach chair are just a few of the added amenities guests will deem grand gestures.

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myouterbankshome.com | Spring 2016

Here on the Outer Banks we are lucky to enjoy the best of so many worlds!

Just as we are able to watch the sun rise and set from the very same porch, we like that perfect combination of “Wow!” and “ahhhhh…” So amidst all of the impressive features found in some of the most extravagant rental homes here, rounding a corner and seeing a good old-fashioned hammock is the icing on the cake!

“We might be old-fashioned in our approach to quality and craftsmanship,” said Jessica Magnus, General Manager of Nags Head Hammocks, “but the materials we use have continued to evolve and offer you the finest, long lasting products available.”

It’s about the quality and the personal Outer Banks touch that makes an element really stick with a visitor. Not to mention the lasting impression when a gorgeous view is involved!

“We make it easy to take the Outer Banks feeling home,” Magnus said.

While many of these features are incredibly impressive, it doesn’t mean you have to have something lavish or eye-catching in your Outer Banks rental home to keep guests coming back year after year. “‘Tricked out’ features will help book the home,” Etheridge at Beach Realty said, “but it’s the modern conveniences and comfort that will keep them coming back.”

So put some thought into the things you include in your Outer Banks rental home and put your own spin on what your guests will remember when they head back home. ³ The extravagant details Abby Stewart enjoys the most are the ones she finds while exploring outdoors, both back home on the Outer Banks and anywhere else she can get to...as everywhere is on her list!

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Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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tricked out BETTER BUILT

Branding Your Rental Home In the ongoing quest for repeat renters, one key component for many Outer Banks homeowners is branding.

Just creating a clever name is a thing of the past, and today many homeowners on the OBX are developing logos, websites, and ongoing themes throughout their homes to tie all of the pieces together into one beautifully branded package.

“We are seeing more and more of a push for homes to be branded individually,” said Joseph Ausband, Vice President of Sales of IDentify Yourself in Kitty Hawk, a company which specializes in branded marketing solutions.

“The idea is to keep guests renting the same home, year after year.”

While beach bags, beach towels, and t-shirts continue on as trusty staples for the industry, Ausband says he is seeing more and more homeowners and vacation rental companies thinking outside the box.

Custom-printed coolers with fresh North Carolina shrimp inside, custom bicycles branded with the name of the home, specialty dart boards and ping pong balls, and custom boogie boards and beach umbrellas are some of the creative things Ausband has recently seen branded for homes. Custom-made flags, signs, and floor mats have also

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$

a month

STORY BY

Abby Stewart

been high on the list of branded items for homes.

“You name it and our clients are branding it for their homes,” Ausband said.

Another way to establish a presence in the minds of past, present, and future renters is by incorporating a centralized theme throughout the TWIDDY / MELISSA MATTINGLY home. Whether subtle or blatant, tangible reminders of the overall motif you are trying to evoke will help you achieve that very goal. rental programs. Not only do they help you reach new renters, they also help nurture past renters into becoming Appealing to a specific niche helps make your home more promoters of your home. relatable and, in turn, more memorable.

“Guests appreciate this effort by the owners to say The Pine Island Lodge in Corolla employs many facets thank you and they feel it is a key element of hospitality, of branding, including a centralized theme. The owners which is what the vacation home business is all about,” chose to name all of the rooms after old Outer Banks huntAusband said . “We think this notion of saying thank you ing lodges to supplement its classic coastal North Carolina builds a bridge between the guests and the homes - where feel. Even the tiniest details help to support the home’s they look forward to being a part of something where they intended concept throughout. are appreciated, and know it.”

The Lodge also presents custom-made gifts for renters A well branded home, coupled with Outer Banks hospitality, to keep, like branded cups and keychains. Practical items is sure to be a recipe for success. ³ are a smart gift choice for Outer Banks homeowners in

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Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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The Original

Showboat

Residents of small towns along Mid-Atlantic waterways excitedly ran to the dock when the massive two story James Adams Floating Theater slowly glided into view behind its two tug boats.

This was as close to the Great White Way as many of them would get and they eagerly looked forward to the arrival of the 436-ton barge with its spacious theater. As soon as the barge was securely fastened, local workers and children raced on board to perform various tasks in return for tickets to the shows.

The theater was also the inspiration for Edna Ferber’s novel Showboat which was made into a Broadway musical and two movies. Standards like “Ol’ Man River,” and “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II have kept the romance of showboats alive.

James Adams commissioned the WM Chauncey Marine Railway in Washington, NC to build the 128-foot barge in 1913 for the sum of $8,941.42. He christened it Estelle but changed its name to James Adams Floating Theater after the Coast Guard required him to paint the vessel’s name on its white superstructure.

STORY BY For over twenty years, the theater Jane Elfring traveled to small towns in Maryland, ✺ Virginia, and North Carolina bringing PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF melodramas and vaudeville acts to Museum of the Albemarle rural communities along the Chesapeake Bay and Albemarle Sound. For ten cents, patrons could sit in one of the general admission seats in its spacious 500 seat gold and blue trimmed theater.

Above: Carl Clover and his wife were part of the 1916 company. They were both actors and he played the cornet.

For ten cents, patrons could sit in one of the general admission seats in its spacious 500 seat gold and blue trimmed theater.

Like most public spaces during this time period the theater was segregated and there were 350 seats for African Americans in the balcony. In addition to the large seating area, the theater had space for a 10-piece concert band and a six-piece orchestra. The 25 performers and crew lived on board, so there were dining and sleeping quarters too. It was also equipped with electric generators to provide light for the performances.

Above Right: Harry Masten played Tryouts for the first season were held in Elizabeth City. During its 40-week violin and baritone horn and directseason in 1914, the theater performed in small hamlets from Washington, NC to ed the orchestra. Wife Della was cornet soloist and played piano; St. Michael’s, MD with two to five day stops in the Northeastern North Carolina Left: The theater had space for a cities of Greenville, Bath, Aurora, Belhaven, Elizabeth City, and South Mills.

10-piece concert band and a sixThe James Adams was able to visit these small towns because it had a piece orchestra. fourteen-inch draft, ideal for shallow water ports. It returned to Elizabeth City for the winter and often came back to the Elizabeth City Iron Works for repairs between seasons.

Records from the first season show that a variety of plays were produced by the itinerant performers, including Under Western Skies, The Girl Ranchman, Tempest, and Sunshine. Specialties such as singing, dancing, juggling, and tumbling were performed between the acts while scenery was changed and refreshments were sold, and vaudeville routines concluded the evening.

Showboats were very popular during this period in the Midwest and South because rivers were the primary mode of transportation. The James Adams Floating Theater was the only one of 53 showboats to work in the Albemarle and Chesapeake Bay areas from 1831 to 1939. Her owner previously traveled with vaudeville and circus acts in the Midwest and knew he would have no competition in the Mid-Atlantic region because

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myouterbankshome.com | Spring 2016

floating theater A LOOK BACK

showboats were more expensive to operate than carnival shows.

Adams, his wife Gertrude, sister Beulah and her husband Charlie Hunter, brother Selba and his wife Clara were regulars on the ship. Beulah, known as the “Mary Pickford of the Chesapeake,” always received a warm welcome from audience members when she came on stage.

Adams usually found cast members through theatrical trade papers. He allowed couples to be part of the cast but no single women were allowed.

The James Adams Floating Theater was the only one of 53 showboats to work in the Albemarle and Chesapeake Bay areas from 1831 to 1939.

The James Adams was part of the Repertoire Theater movement of the early 20th century. These companies employed actors and actresses who performed in six or more plays at each of their stops. Charlie Hunter and Harry Van were the ship’s advance men and they drove a car from one town to the next so that playbills could be posted before the theater arrived.

Adams’ theater was immortalized in Ferber’s 1926 novel after she came on board while it was

in Bath, NC to observe life on a showboat. During her four day visit she helped with ticket sales and talked extensively to Adams, taking copious notes on the life of the showboat and its crew. She then left to write her famous novel, which was followed by its successful debut on Broadway in 1927.

The shallow draft that served the vessel well to reach small towns also caused it to run aground numerous times. After it was refloated each time, it was towed back to Elizabeth City for repairs.

By the late 1920s, the tide was turning against showboats and the James Adams’ time was drawing to a close. Movies, the Depression, and high taxes at some ports put a strain on the finances of the enterprise. In 1932, Adams put the Floating Theater up for sale.

It was purchased in 1933 by Nina B. Howard who renamed it The Original Show Boat and painted it red. The stops remained similar to those followed by Adams. In 1938, disaster struck once again and the barge sank in the Roanoke River while it was en route to Williamston. It took two weeks to raise and tow it to Elizabeth City for repairs.

Under Mrs. Howard, the Showboat played at larger cities like Alexandria, VA and Baltimore, MD but it still returned to Elizabeth City and some of

The Bellows played both leads and villains, and their son was also a part of some performances. its original ports. Revenues dropped as the size of the audiences shrank and Mrs. Howard sold the Original Floating Theater in 1941 at public auction for $6,000.

Shortly before Pearl Harbor, the ship was being towed across the Savannah River when it caught fire and was eventually grounded when the tide went out, thus ending its 27 year run in spectacular fashion. ³ Jane Elfring is a freelance writer living in Elizabeth City who specializes in historic and arts writing.

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Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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WELCOME SPRING We’ve Missed You! STORY & PHOTOGRAPHY BY

Rosie Hawthorne

Outer Bankers welcome spring with open arms! We’ve been through snow, when a dusting closes down schools and we spend the day hunkered down in front of our fireplaces. We’ve been through Nor’easters when again we shut down schools due to high winds, high bridges, and ocean over-wash.

We are ready for spring. We want to get outside. Breathe the air. Rejuvenate.

Become green again. We’ve come full circle and it’s time to enjoy our days outside, whether working in the garden or simply taking in the green.

The first tempting days of spring, I want to get outside and play in the dirt and plant my garden. The last thing I want to do is spend a lot of time in a hot kitchen when it’s beautiful outside.

I’m going for sheer ease when it comes to preparing meals. Drop by the market and pick up a rotisserie chicken. I have four preparations – appetizers, lunch, and dinner – that can all be done with one rotisserie chicken. Make no bones about.

I’m picking that chicken clean!

spring delights RECIPES

First, I’m making the rolls, which, when sliced, make for excellent bite-sized appetizers.

ASIAN-INSPIRED SPRING CHICKEN RICE ROLLS Makes approximately 12 rolls.

For a light lunch, I’m going with a simple chicken salad accented with curry powder, toasted almonds, pineapple slices, and red grapes on a lettuce leaf.

CHICKEN CURRY SALAD Serves 2

1 cup chopped chicken ¼ cup chopped celery ¼ cup toasted almonds, cooled (Save 1 tablespoon for topping.) ¼ cup + 1 TB mayonnaise ½ tsp curry powder Pineapple slices Red grapes Sliced green scallions Boston or butter leaf lettuce Thoroughly combine mayonnaise and curry powder. Combine with chicken, celery, and toasted almonds. When toasting nuts, which boosts the flavor, I don’t bother with the broiler. It’s too easy to burn them. I dry toast them in a skillet since I have more control.

To serve: Place a lettuce leaf, pineapple slice, and scoop of chicken salad on top. Sprinkle a few toasted almonds, green scallions, and grapes around.

Boston or butter leaf lettuce 2 ½ oz. black beans 2 ½ oz. rice 2 ½ oz. corn 2 ½ oz. chicken ½ avocado, thinly sliced and doused in lime juice to prevent browning ¼ cup chopped red onion Package of 6-inch diameter rice paper, found in Asian section of market Jalapeño, chopped Cilantro, chopped Lime, sliced

Soak rice paper in plate of warm water until pliable. Place lettuce leaf on first, then a little corn, rice, black beans, chicken, avocado, and onion. Make one full rollover, then tuck sides in, and continue rolling like a tight little cigar.

Do not overfill.

To serve: slice diagonally, sprinkle cilantro and jalapeño as desired, and serve with dipping sauce and lime slices.

Dipping Sauce

½ cup mayonnaise 1 heaping TB of your favorite barbecue sauce (I like Sweet Baby Ray’s.)

Dash or so of Mr. Stubb’s Hickory Smoke Flavoring, to taste 4-5 drops Tabasco or Texas Pete, your choice, to taste Mix all ingredients and sprinkle cayenne over top.

For my next offering, you’re getting a twofer, because that’s just the way Rosie rolls. I started out with an idea for Asian-inspired Spring Chicken Rice Rolls with a zesty barbecue dip. I would be using a 15.25 oz. can of corn since that’s what corn comes in, then I started doing the math. I drained the corn, weighed it, and ended up with 9.6 ounces of corn. Rounding up to 10 ounces since it was easier for my meager brain, I measured out 10 ounces of the chicken, 10 ounces of cooked white rice, and 10 ounces of cooked black beans.

Extrapolating these figures, I realized this amount would make 48 wraps. I did not want 48 wraps. I only wanted 12 rice rolls. To make a short story long, that’s how I ended up with 12 wraps and your twofer, which uses up the rest of the corn and beans – my Mexican-inspired Corn/Bean/Chicken Tortilla Pie. I am nothing if not eclectic. It’s a Win-Win. To begin with, have 10 ounces each of corn, cooked rice, cooked black beans, and chicken. (A heaping ½ cup of dried beans should give you 10 ounces cooked.) I prefer cooked dried beans to canned. I rinse them off, never bother to soak overnight, then simmer approximately 30 minutes, drain, refresh water, and cook until al dente, 25-30 more minutes.

Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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spring delights RECIPES

Now on to the twofer – Chicken/Corn/Bean Tortilla Pie. This is the first time I’ve used chicken in this dish, but it’s my go-to dish, sans poulet, for our annual Labor Day block party. It’s expected by my neighbors and I’d probably be hurt if I didn’t bring it.

CHICKEN/CORN/BEAN/TORTILLA PIE 1 cup black beans 1 cup corn 1 cup chopped chicken 2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese or Pepper Jack cheese if you want a little heat 2 cups grated cheddar cheese 2 TB unsalted butter, melted 9-inch flour tortillas (burrito size) Cumin Cayenne pepper

Rosie’s Note:

As I said, this is my go-to dish for a quick and easy crowd-pleaser. Next time you make it, and trust me, you will want to, you don’t need to bother with chicken. Just double the beans, corn, cheeses, and tortillas and stack ‘em high! I wouldn’t be adverse to a few sliced jalapeños and black or green olives throughout either.

Start assembly: Place one tortilla on your buttered baking sheet and sprinkle a little cheese, beans, corn, chicken, and more cheese. Add another tortilla, pressing down, and continue sprinkling and layering. Reserve a few tablespoons of cheese, corn, and beans for the top layer. This made enough for 5 layers.

Brush melted butter over top and sides of tortilla, then sprinkle remaining corn, beans, and cheese on top layer. Sprinkle a little cumin and cayenne over top and around sides. Bake at 325° for about 30 - 40 minutes until golden brown. Tent with foil if necessary. Let rest about 15 minutes before slicing.

To serve: with your favorite salsa, sour cream, sprinkling of cilantro, and that other half of the avocado from the rice rolls, sliced.

Now, I’m back on that rotisserie chicken like a buzzard on road kill, a charming culinary simile. I relieved the chicken of 8 ounces of nice breast meat, which is going into my last production – an appetizer – another chicken salad, but with a totally different flavor profile from the first, plus it comes with a story.

I remember my Auntie Corabeth used to have elegant cocktail and dinner parties. Mama Hawthorne would always drag me along. Being 10 years old at the time and the shortest person there, I could easily serpentine through the packed room. I found the appetizer table. Auntie had a shrimp dip, along with other delights. I remember grabbing the dip, some crackers, and sitting underneath the table with my stash, hidden by the crisp, starched, white linens draped over. She always remarked that she needed to make more of that dip; everyone loved it so!

Auntie Corabeth was forever telling us that this was a recipe she “got from Jackie Kennedy,” as if she and Jackie were besties! Most likely it came from Ladies Home Journal, McCalls, or some such magazine. I knew this would work with chicken, so I took the recipe and ran with it, gussying it up with phyllo cups.

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spring delights RECIPES

DILLED CHICKEN IN PHYLLO CUPS 8 oz. chicken breast meat, ¼” dice, ½ cup mayonnaise 1 TB ketchup 1 TB minced red onion 1 TB minced celery 1 tsp Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce ½ tsp chili powder Pinch pepper flakes 2 TB chopped fresh dill 1 package mini phyllo cups (15) Mix mayo, ketchup, onion, celery, Worcester shire sauce, chili powder, pepper flakes, and dill. Add in chicken and toss to coat.

Rosie’s Note:

If you don’t have fresh dill, you could substitute dried dill seeds. Start out with a teaspoon and taste-test. Add more to taste, if desired.

Dried is always stronger than fresh.

Heat phyllo cups in a 325° oven until lightly browned. Fill with chicken salad and top with fresh dill. Serve with copious amounts of wine.

Now for another twofer, here’s Auntie Corabeth’s recipe for Shrimp and Dill Dip which she obtained, apparently amidst, and in spite of, Secret Service agents, from Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, herself. At least that’s her story, and I’m sticking to it. ³

I’ve given you four recipes with which to ravish one rotisserie chicken and I used every piece of meat! Please put the leftover carcass in a freezer bag, date it, freeze it, and save it for making chicken stock later. We want to use up every bit of flavor in that bird.

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SHRIMP & DILL DIP

2 lbs. shrimp, cooked, shelled, & chopped 2 cups mayonnaise 3 heaping TB chili sauce 1 tsp celery seed 1 small onion, minced 1 stalk celery, minced with leaves 1 tsp dill seed Mix all together. Serve with assorted crackers.

Rosie Hawthorne is a blogger, gardener, wanderluster, and mother of three. She learned to cook by watching Julia Child every Saturday afternoon on her 11-inch black and white TV with legal pad and pen in hand. For the Hawthornes, every meal is a celebration of life.

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• The Outer Banks Beach Food Pantry serves an average of 4100 people annually.

• 15% of Dare county’s residents struggle to put food on the table.

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• North Carolina ranks #6 in the nation for food insecurity.

It’s easy to donate!

• Securely on our website, Facebook page or through Paypal • By sending a check to Beach Food Pantry, PO Box 1224, Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948 • Dropping off food donations at participating Realty Offices, Kill Devil Hills Library, or the Baum Center in Kill Devil Hills

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Around & Around We Go! DOWDY PARK

STORY BY

Michelle Wagner

hen Erin Walters was a toddler, she would stand on the back of the sofa in her living room and look across the highway at Dowdy’s Amusement Park.

“I remember she would just keep saying ‘wheel, wheel,’” says mom Susie Walters, Nags Head’s mayor pro tem. Walters also recalls her husband taking Erin to Dowdy’s every Saturday evening during the summers to go on her three favorite rides. And Walter’s son, Tim Jr., got his first job at Dowdy’s around that same time, operating the tilt-a-whirl and then the racetrack.

Like Walters, thousands of people can likely recall time spent at the amusement park that operated for more than 40 years at the corner of U.S. 158 and Bonnet Street and entertained generations of families.

“I went to Dowdy’s as a child and have wonderful, fond memories of taking my own children there when we moved here in 1983,” Walters said. “Anyone who was here during that era remembers Dowdy’s as a fun family place for all ages.”

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“I went to Dowdy’s as a child and have wonderful, fond memories of taking my own children there when we moved here in 1983,” Walters said. “Anyone who was here during that era remembers Dowdy’s as a fun family place for all ages.”

Above photos by Jennifer Adams c. 1990’s

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Now, more than three decades after Erin would watch for the Ferris wheel spinning, her mom Susie has taken a lead role in developing a plan that will turn the five acres of abandoned property into another place for families to play.

Three years after the town purchased the property for $1.5 million, shovels will begin turning up the soil to begin the first phase of Dowdy Park. When all phases are complete, it will include everything from a playground, tower fort, art wall and rock wall, to a multi-use turf area and playing field, children’s and wetlands gardens, pavilion, and walking path with fitness station.

The first phase includes the all-inclusive playground, largely being funded by a $750,000 grant by Trillium Health Resources, a local government agency that manages mental health, substance use, and intellectual/developmental disability services in eastern North Carolina. It will also include the construction of an amphitheater and events plaza, fitness trail, and central green. Other funding will come from a Dare County Tourism Board grant of $250,000 and $150,000 from the town’s capital reserve.

“From the very beginning, we wanted this to be a park for all ages in perpetuity,” said Walters.

That beginning was in March of 2014 when the Dowdy Park Steering Committee, made up of eight Nags Head residents, was formed. Since then, the committee has turned to the public again and again to receive input to ensure the park would be one that residents and visitors wanted. Walters said more than 700 people, through survey cards and online responses, let the committee know what they’d like to see Dowdy’s become. The town also partnered with Nags Head Elementary School to survey guests at its annual pumpkin fair last year.

The committee even turned to the area’s littlest residents, asking Nags

OUR COMMUNITY

Head Elementary School third, fourth, and fifth graders to paint pictures onto cedar shakes of what they would like to see at the park. Those pieces of art were displayed on the existing wall at the site.

With an art wall, Walters said, art has become an overriding theme at Dowdy Park. A small events area could be used for anything from a farmer’s market to an art show. “This was designed as a community park above all else,” Walters said. With the Bonnet Street beach access, Nags Head Elementary School, the YMCA, skatepark, and Nags Head Woods trails all within walking distance, Walters said the addition of the park really creates a sea-to-sound recreation area.

Much of the surveying and design took place this winter and once the town secures necessary permits this spring, the project will be put out to bid in June. Deputy Town Manager Andy Garman says he expects the playground to be complete

by Nov. 30.

“This is the first of its kind in Nags Head,” Garman said. “It will truly be a community gathering space where people will have the opportunity to come together and have multiple opportunities for uses.”

As for future phases, Garman said he sees the park development continuing to evolve and will in-

dowdy park

TOWN OF NAGS HEAD

clude features such as multi-use playing fields and a sports court and wall.

Walters said the planning and development phase has been such a positive experience for the community. “Not everyone got everything they wanted, but we had great community involvement. And the majority of people wanted the same things,” she said.

When the park is built, Walters says the land

will continue to be what it was for her and her own children when the go-carts were running, the Ferris wheel was lit up, and the tilt-a-whirl was spinning. ³to be a place of “The park is going to continue fun and happiness for families.”

Michelle Wagner is a freelance writer who has called the Outer Banks home since 1999.

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OUTER BANKS FAMILY YMCA 3000 South Croatan Highway, Nags Head, NC 27959 P 252 449 8897 W www.obxymca.org Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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JAMES CHARLE

The thinks of Cape Hatteras as the yardstick from which to measure the location of all Atlantic hurricanes!

Indeed, those three factors are paramount influences on the Outer Banks: (1) tourism, (2) a marine environment and (3) weather. Those three are exactly what makes the fourth mega-influencing factor for the Outer Banks: the

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of it as “my maritime community.” And everyone

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beach vacation.” Most residents the Outer Banks think

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Most visitors to the Outer Banks think of it as “my

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eventual presence of the United States Coast Guard and a long tradition of Lifesaving on the Outer Banks. But first….

STORY BY

The Beginning

James Charlet

The very, very first lifesavers on the Outer Banks were the original European settlers. They were severely isolated and lived an extremely difficult, hardscrabble life. Their very existence was dependent upon helping each other, so it was only natural that when a shipwreck occurred within their sight that they would go to help. Of course, no records were kept of these activities, so we have no hard data, but these were clearly the first OBX “volunteer lifesavers.” Indeed, we are not even sure when the first European settlers (long after the Raleigh failed attempts of 1585 and 1587) populated Hatteras Island and the real banks. The early records were as murky as the Sound water sometimes. There are official references to Colington and Roanoke in the late 1600s.

obx tradition LOOK BACK

By 1696, there was already an official report of Bankers robbing the grounded H.M.S. Hady somewhere around present day Currituck. Probably by the early 1700s Hatteras was being populated, entirely by “squatters.” Most were coming from Virginia and the Carolina colonies, and yes, some were shipwreck victims who just stayed. Most of these folks, for one reason or another, just wanted to be left alone, but would pitch in to help their neighbors – and shipwreck victims.

The first Outer Banks Life-Saving Service stations were built and manned in 1874.

Here their dual personalities would show clearly: loners when they could; socially when they needed. Help save shipwrecked victims, but steal their cargo and valuables. Author Joe Mobley dramatically recounts in his book Ship Ashore! The U.S. Lifesavers (sic) of Coastal North Carolina,

newly created “United States Life-Saving Service.”

These first Coast Guard stations on the Outer Banks were not called that at all and were actually from a federal organization called the United States Life-Saving Service. It existed nationally on all of America’s coasts from 1871 to 1915 when it merged with the Revenue Cutter Service to become the Coast Guard. The Life-Saving Service had a singular mission: to save lives in peril from the sea.

The first Outer Banks Life-Saving Service (LSS) stations were built and manned in 1874. They were, from north to south, Jones Hill (later with the more familiar name “Currituck Beach”), Caffeys Inlet, Kitty Hawk, Nags Head, Bodie island (renamed “Oregon Inlet”), Chicamacomico (now village of Rodanthe) and Little Kinnakeet (just north of today’s village of Avon). In 1878, eleven more stations were added. These included the now famous Kill Devil Hills station, which assisted the Wright brothers, and the Hatteras Inlet station. Still more were added, eventually totaling 29, averaging about six miles apart on the NC outer coast from the Virginia line (Wash Woods LSS – 1878), to the South Carolina line (Oak Island LSS- 1886). In 1915, all these became Coast Guard stations.

Heroes of North Carolina’s Outer Banks From the beginning of sea travel to and from the North Carolina coast, no one knows the total number of shipwrecks, of lives lost, or of lives saved. Even getting those numbers for the age of the U.S. Life-Saving Service (1871-1915) is difficult and unclear. But we do know that the 29 Outer Banks Life-Saving Service stations during their combined times saw hundreds of shipwrecks and saved thousands of lives. We do have a national figure: over that 44-year period, the men of the U.S. Life-Saving Service on every coast of America responded to over 178,000 lives in peril from the sea, of which they saved OVER 177,00!

Here are just three examples from those hundreds of actual rescues: WW

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“Captain Albert I. Lewis, a onetime underwriter’s agent, once remarked, ‘The people on Ocracoke and Hatteras would drop a corpse while carrying it to the grave, and leave it on the road, if they heard ‘Ship on the Beach!’ Still another resident remembered: ‘I have known when the signal is given, “Ship on Beach,” crowds to leave church even during a revival meeting.’” Today’s current Director of the North Carolina Maritime Museums, Joe Schwarzer, may have said it best for modern ears when he describes shipwrecks of that time as “Walmart coming ashore!”

Most of the rare, existing shipwrecks with local volunteer life savers were tragedies, with FAR more losses than saves. One example: In October of 1837, the steamboat Home was sailing from New York to Charleston, with the crème de la crème of both cities aboard. It encountered a hurricane and was totally destroyed. Ninety bodies of passengers and crew littered the beach at Ocracoke the next morning. Two of the survivors used the only two life preservers aboard. The next year, Congress mandated life preservers on all ships for all personnel. But the disasters continued unabated. The local volunteers could simply not keep up with this. The Good Samaritan did not have the training, equipment or time for this full time job. Finally, a reluctant Uncle Sam, according to the famous cartoonist Thomas Nast, agreed to put federal money into the

Pea Island LSS – October 11, 1896.

A hurricane wrecks the E.S. Newman just north of the station. Due to conditions, neither the surfboat nor the Beach Apparatus can be deployed. So Keeper Etheridge asked for two volunteers. A rope was tied around them, they waded into the raging surf and miraculously retrieved a victim. The same technique was used to rescue the entire party of nine persons.

Goal Shoals LSS – August 16, 1899.

Rasmus Midgett, Surfman Number 1, was on Beach Patrol in the middle of the night during a hurricane when, about 3 AM, he heard cries of distress. Rasmus was one of the many LifeSavers who had done numerous rescues the day before from this same storm.

He was an hour and a half from his station. It would take too long to go back and get the full crew and equipment. So he went in solo. One at a time, Rasmus pulled the 10 victims out of the ship and brought them to shore. Single-handed.

In the middle of the night. In the middle of a hurricane.

Chicamacomico LSS – August 16, 1918.

The British tanker SS Mirlo was either torpedoed or struck a mine laid by German Submarine U-117 seven miles offshore, almost directly in front of the station. It carried 6, 679 TONS of gasoline and related flammable materials. Three explosions rocked the Mirlo, splitting it in two, releasing all of its volatile cargo. It ignited and spread like lightning over acres of ocean. After a six and one half hour ordeal, covering

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obx tradition LOOK BACK

over 28 nautical miles, “Capt’n Johnny” (Keeper John Allen Midgett, Jr.) and his crew of five in their 26-foot Surfboat No.1046, saved 42 of the crew of 51. It was to become the most highly awarded maritime rescue in all of American history.

What is Left of the Originals Very little of those original U.S. Life-Saving

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

Service stations remain. Caffey’s Inlet has been converted to the “Lifesaving Restaurant,” part of the Sanderling Resort. It has been extremely modified and modernized. The Kitty Hawk station was similarly converted to the Black Pelican Restaurant. Unless you know what to look for, its origins can easily be missed. The Kill Devil Hills station has become the office of the Twiddy Insurance Company in Corolla. The 1898 Oregon Inlet station is that restored but abandoned structure you see crossing the Oregon Inlet Bridge, the first building ocean-side on Hatteras Island. Chicamacomico is

the only fully restored museum open to the public.

One of the other five built in that 1911 style is a beach rental cottage in Kill Devil Hills, again, highly modernized, but still very recognizable. Little Kinnakeet had its 1874 station reconstructed and its 1904 station exists but is badly in need of restoration. Owned by the National Park Service, neither is open to the public. Just south of that is Creeds Hill. The 1918 Chatham-Type station is a private “beach getaway” not open to the public and rarely occupied. Portsmouth Station, even farther south on Portsmouth Island, has been beautifully and expertly restored by the Park Service. This one is open to the public, but it is very difficult to get to, only accessible by boat, and thus has little visitation. The 1888 Cape Lookout station exists, but not for much longer at the current rate. It is unrestored, unrepaired, unattended and has seriously deteriorated. The 1889 Oak Island LSS station has been beautifully restored, but with a modern interior as it is now a private residence. West and south of

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Wilmington, it was the southernmost of all NC Life-Saving Stations.

All the rest of the original 29 stations are completely gone. Some destroyed by storms, some simply fell apart over the years due to abandonment, and some were destroyed on purpose after decommissioning.

Why So Many Shipwrecks in the Waters off the Outer Banks?

There are a variety of explanations for the origin of the term, “Graveyard of the Atlantic.” The most popular one involves Alexander Hamilton. Even then, the details of the story vary widely! According to a 1773 publication, Hamilton "passed Cape Hatteras on a summer night in 1773 and thereafter remembering the night's terror, he spoke of that portion of the sea as the "Graveyard of the Atlantic.” This, according to renowned NC historian William S. Powell, may be the most authentic. That moniker is important to the understanding of the lifesaving tradition of the Outer Banks.

It is, in fact, one of the most treacherous and violent areas of ocean in the world. Estimates of the total number of wrecks there range from 2,000 to 6,000. There are a number of factors accounting for this. Any one of these can cause a shipwreck; a combination of them is guaranteed to be lethal.

First is the fact that the Outer Banks stick out so far into the Atlantic. Its easternmost point, Rodanthe, is 300 miles EAST of Jacksonville, Florida! That means ships captains must go far out of their way to pass around. In the early days of sailing ships, most captains did not trust navigation instruments, and thus never sailed out of sight of land. Around the Outer Banks, peppered with shallow and shifting shoals (a second huge reason), that often spelled disaster.

It is, in fact, one of the most treacherous and violent areas of ocean in the world. Estimates of the total number of wrecks there range from 2,000 to 6,000. There are a number of factors accounting for this. Any one of these can cause a shipwreck; a combination of them is guaranteed to be lethal.

A third major factor is the point of Cape Hatteras is the confluence of two major ocean currents: the south-bound cold waters of the Labrador Current collide violently with the warm waters of the Gulf Stream right there. Every second of every day, 24-seven, waves are breaking into each other head-on ninety degrees from the usual surf on the beach! These can be towering collisions, which in themselves would wreck a ship. But the real danger is that they are dispersing sand in a random fashion making miles of shoals… and they change every minute. The famous Diamond Shoals off of Cape Hatteras extend 20 miles out to sea, where the depth can be as little as four feet. This single factor alone has accounted for hundreds of the ship grave sites. But it gets worse. The two currents are obviously moving in opposite directions. The ships sailing our Atlantic Coast, the “I-95” of its day, were wooden sailing ships. They were powered by wind and basically sailed whichever way the wind was blowing (very limited tacking ability). So if a ship was sailing south from New York to Charleston, it already had a south current but if it was a south wind (that is, blowing from the south to the north), it was in their face and they were in trouble. The opposite, of course, was true - sailing from Charleston to New York the northern current was great but a north wind put you on hold. As a result, hundreds of ships often gathered around Cape Hatteras waiting for the wind to change favorable to them. When it did, there was often a mad scramble of “bumper ships!”

Additional factors were storms, often rising suddenly; the fact that North Carolina’s coast is a string of barrier islands, and that is exactly what they are: there is no port available for 301 nautical miles from the Chesapeake to Wilmington. A sailing ship of those days could take four or five days to navigate that, and a lot can happen in that time. More factors included: mechanical problems, rudders stuck, sails torn, watch falls asleep, captain drunk, mistaken course plots, pirates and most recently, the two World Wars. 

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obx tradition LOOK BACK

So, Who Were These Life-Saver Men? Three short, but spot-on, answers, in this order - one by a poet, one by an official report from a U.S. Life-Saving Service Supervisor, and one by the acknowledged expert in this field: “He's a rigger, rower, swimmer, sailor, undertaker, And he's good at every one of 'em the same, And he risks his life for others in the quicksands and the breakers.

And a thousand wives and mothers bless his name. He's an angel dressed in oilskins, he's a saint in a "sou'wester," He's as plucky as they make, or ever can.

He's a hero born and bred, but it hasn't swelled his head, And he's jest the U.S. Government's hired man.”

Author Unknown.

“I do not believe that a greater act of heroism is recorded than that of Daily and his crew on this momentous occasion. These poor, plain men, dwellers upon the lonely sands of Hatteras, took their lives in their hands and, at the most imminent risk, crossed the most tumultuous sea that any boat within the memory of living men had ever attempted on that bleak coast, and all for what? That others might live to see home and friends. The thought of reward or mercenary appeal never once entered their minds. Duty, their sense of obligation, and the credit of the

Service impelled them to do their mighty best. The names of Benjamin B. Daily and his comrades in this magnificent feat should never be forgotten. As long as the Life-Saving Service has the good fortune to number among its keepers and crews such men as these, no fear need ever be entertained for its good name or purposes.”

Report on the wreck of the barkentine Ephraim Williams, 1884, Cape Hatteras LSS Station “They were the greatest heroes of the American coast, routinely risking their lives in the grand maritime rescues. Their work was respected and honored by America’s most prestigious leaders, celebrated in the most popular publications of their time and of deep interest to medical, educational, religious and political leaders. The Wright Brothers knew them well, poet Walt Whitman wrote of them, and the artist Winslow Homer painted them. But somehow America forgot these peaceful heroes. Yet anyone reading of their bravery today will always remember them. The Life-Saving Service answered that most basic of human questions, “Who will help in our hour of greatest need?”

Ralph Shanks, The U.S. Life-Saving Service, Heroes, Rescues, and Architecture of the Early Coast Guard, Costano Books, Novato, CA © 1996, p.1

PEA ISLAND STATION FILE, USCG HISTORIAN’S OFFICE ARCHIVE

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James Charlet recently stepped down from his post as site manager at the Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station Historic Site & Museum in Rodanthe to pursue a career as a speaker, performer, and author. Prior to serving on the staff at Chicamacomico, Charlet taught North Carolina history for 24 years, and spent a combined 13 years providing historical interpretation at the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Wright Brothers National Memorial, and Roanoke Island Festival Park.

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myouterbankshome.com myouterbankshome.com | | Spring Spring 2016 2016

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33

INTO THE

STORY BY

Meg Puckett

Shipwrecks That Shaped Our Coast

The history of the Outer Banks can be told many ways, from the stories of free spirits and explorers to shifting sand dunes and fishing seasons.

It can be seen in the weathered cottages in south Nags Head, the fuzzy winter coats of the Corolla ponies, and even the traffic that backs up on Highway 12 on summer Saturdays. The history of the Outer Banks is quite literally the stuff legends are made of, and perhaps nothing is more legendary than the Graveyard of the Atlantic.

Wreck of the German U-576 off of Cape Hatteras.

T

he waters off North Carolina are known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic due to the shipwrecks that dot the coastline – they number in the thousands. Strong currents, irregularly-shaped barrier islands, and constantly shifting sands make it extremely difficult for ships to navigate the area, even with modern technology. Where the water is deep one day it may become shallow the next. Inlets and shoals form and disappear with the weather and the pull of the moon.

Some of the most experienced crews found themselves run aground when they thought they were much further out at sea (see “The Lifesaving Tradition of the Outer Banks,” page 26 for more on this).

And this is where the history of the Banks merges with the history of the sea that shaped them. In the early days, before there were lighthouses and rescue crews, these grounded ships were at the mercy of the people who lived on the island. Word of a “ship on the beach” would bring everyone out to salvage the wreck for anything useful or valuable. It’s well-known that many of the original homes on the island were constructed with wood taken from shipwrecks - you could say that the history of the Graveyard of the Atlantic is built right into our daily lives.

These wrecks brought people to the Outer Banks too. Some were shipwrecked and stayed, and others migrated here via the Lifesaving Service.

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Presently, the wrecks attract tourists and researchers who contribute to both the local economy and to the canon of our local history.

USS Huron & Metropolis

Two wrecks, one off of Nags Head in 1877 and the other off Corolla in 1888, resulted in the beginnings of the United States Coast Guard as we know it today.

The USS Huron’s final resting place is about 250 yards offshore, just north of the Nags Head Fishing Pier between mileposts 11 and 12. On November 24, 1877 the ship ran aground during a storm. While it wasn’t too far offshore, the crew were unable to swim to safety due to the severe impact the weather was having on the surf. The lifesaving stations were closed until December, so no help came for the crew of the Huron and 98 men died as a result.

Just a few weeks later, in January, the Metropolis was bound for Brazil with over 200 men aboard when she hit the shoals just off of what is present-day Corolla, near Albacore Street. Ironically, the Metropolis had previously seen action during the Battle of Roanoke Island. After the Civil War the ship was sold and not refitted properly, which played a large role in her sinking. Eighty five people died in the wreck.

These two tragedies prompted Congress to authorize both the construction

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shipwrecks

U.S. NAVY PHOTO LIBRARY

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of new lifesaving stations and acted as a catalyst of change to usher in a new era of lifesaving on both the Outer Banks and up and down the East Coast.

Both wrecks are on the National Registry of Historic Places and parts of them can sometimes still be seen from the shore. The USS Huron was the first dedicated Historic Shipwreck Preserve. Recreational diving is allowed, but disturbing the wrecks or collecting any artifacts is not. Designating these sites as historic places allows officials to preserve the wrecks, promote public education and awareness, and keep them accessible to the public.

The story of the Monitor is steeped in history, legend, and controversy. The impact the wreck has had on the development of regulations on underwater archeology, recreational diving, promoting

TWIDDY.COM/HISTORY

USS Monitor

NOAA PHOTO LIBRARY

NOAA PHOTO LIBRARY

Above: NC historic marker signifying the wreck of the USS Huron; Above Right: USS Huron in port at Newport News, VA, July 1919; Below Middle: Diagram depicting the resting place of the USS Huron wreck site in Nags Head; Below Left: The bow of the USS Monitor; Below Right: The wrecks of the Metropolis and Huron brought a public cry for government-funded maritime wreck assistance and led to support for the U.S. Life Saving Service. Shown is a maritime rescue device called a Breeches Buoy. It is attached to a line overhead that runs from the shore to a wrecked vessel. The line is shot to the ship with a Lyle Gun and tied to the ship’s mast, allowing the seaman to board the vessel and retrieve victims.

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shipwrecks

NOAA PHOTO LIBRARY

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Above Left: A research diver surveying the now-collapsed portion of the USS Monitor that housed the captain’s quarters; Above Middle: The USS Monitor’s anchor; Above Right: Crew members aboard the German U-576; Right: Multibeam sonar scanned image of U-576 and Bluefields and their proximaty to one another. cultural history, and the preservation of wreck sites reaches far and wide. The USS Monitor site was the first to be designated as a Marine Sanctuary and set the stage for expanding protection of other historic wrecks across the country.

Researchers from Duke University located the wreck of the Monitor in 1973 and the site was quickly nominated for National Marine Sanctuary status by the governor of North Carolina. On January 30, 1974 President Ford approved the designation, making the Monitor site the first National Marine Sanctuary. Since then, over 170,000 square miles of waters have been put under the protection of the act - this includes 13 sanctuaries with sites in the Great Lakes, Hawaii, the Florida Keys, Monterey Bay, and more.

Unlike many Outer Banks wrecks, Monitor cannot be seen from the shore, nor is it easy to get to. The ship’s final resting place is about 16 miles off Cape Hatteras, more than 200ft below the surface. This is right where the cold Labrador Current and the warm Gulf Stream converge, making it extremely difficult and dangerous to access the wreck. The unstable environment also makes preserving the wreck site challenging.

In addition to this (and like many other Outer Banks shipwrecks), the wreck of the Monitor is a gravesite.

In 2013 the recovered remains of two sailors were laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery, but 14 other sailors died when the ship sank and their bodies were never recovered.

German U-boat 576 & Bluefields Many people don’t realize how close WWII came to the East Coast of the United States. During the war, German U-boats (submarines) lurked in the waters off of the Outer Banks, attacking freighters that were transporting supplies, oil, and troops to the European theater. Many of these ships were also carrying civilian passengers; people who ended up casualties of war in American waters.

The attacks were so widespread and damaging that news of them was kept classified in the interest of public safety. But they couldn’t be kept a secret from the people living on the Outer Banks. Explosions that rocked the island were a common occurrence, as was debris washing up on shore and massive oil spills that polluted the water.

The freighter Bluefields was heading south with supplies when it was attacked and sunk by U-576 in July 1942. In response, the Navy launched a counter-attack that ultimately led to the sinking of the sub.

The vessels now rest just over 200 yards apart and tell the story of an important part of history that has been widely overlooked for the last 70 years. They also demonstrate a partnership between two federal agencies, NOAA and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which is a significant development in the ever-evolving quest to document and preserve these significant sites.

There are dozens of WWII-era wrecks in the water right off our barrier islands, however the only dedicated sanctuary is the Monitor site. While it’s illegal to disturb or salvage any of the wrecks, protection via inclusion in the Monitor National Marine Sanctuary would increase funding for research, exploration, and the development of public programming that would seek to increase awareness and appreciation of the Outer Banks’ unique cultural history.

These well-known wrecks serve as good representations of what’s out there; the thousands of ships,

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myouterbankshome.com | Spring 2016

NOAA PHOTO LIBRARY

from freighters to military vessels, U-boats, trawlers, and recreational vessels that tell the maritime history of the Outer Banks. Many of them have not been mapped or documented and they are quickly succumbing to the rough Atlantic currents. The wrecks have also become an important part of the ecosystem, serving as reefs for a large variety of marine life. And while they are already somewhat protected from being salvaged, inclusion in an expanded marine sanctuary would assure that these wrecks are not only preserved, but included in mapping surveys as well as expanded public history programming and funding.

Outer Bankers know that nothing on this beach is permanent. A shift of the wind or a strong tide can reshape the way the coast looks, bury roads, and wash away houses. And much like the tides, the way we protect and preserve the history of our home is ever-changing.

NOAA is currently exploring ways to expand the marine sanctuary to include a significant number of historic wrecks, while at the same time maintaining a level of public access that would not disrupt commerce and recreation in area waters. For more information about the proposed expansion and the impact it would have on the Outer Banks community, visit: monitor.noaa.gov/management/ expansion.html. ³ Meg Puckett is a writer, social media specialist, and editor for Three Dog Ink Media. She once had the chance to walk around inside the Monitor’s turret, which was as close to a religious experience as she’ll ever get.

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With Backyard Gardening STORY BY

Michelle Wagner

Karen Lebing first began gardening five years ago at her soundside Waves home, planting mostly crepe myrtle, some hydrangeas, and some other plants. Several years later, Hurricane Arthur rolled into town and wiped out all that she planted. You could say that changed the way she looked at gardening.

decided I would take the Master Gardener course before I tried gardening again,” Lebing said. What she found was that the best way to attract birds and wildlife was almost obvious – keep it as natural as possible and plant native species. And with only a little maintenance, Lebing has kept her garden very much as Mother Nature has intended, and it’s working.

“Migrating and year-round birds are best adapted to native plants for food and cover, so a well-planned landscape of native plants can help you attract more birds to your property. It’s best to keep it as native as possible,” she says of attracting local wildlife such as birds, bees, frogs and turtles. “They like messy, native areas. If someone comes in and destroys that, there is nothing to eat.

They need that food.”

But Lebing hasn’t planted a thing. Mother Nature has done all the work. Her biggest task in her backyard garKaren Lebing den that includes a pond and over an acre of marshland is to control the invading phragmites reeds and filamentous algae. And the wildlife seem to love it. In 2015, Lebing’s yard was ranked

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the number one yard in North Carolina for the most species of birds by Cornell Lab of Ornithology eBird database.

Lebing is currently developing a presentation for the N.C. Cooperative Extension focusing on attracting birds with native plants. Along with birds, Lebing has discovered that other wildlife including snakes, lizards, turtles, and bees love her backyard wilderness that is covered with plenty of wildflowers during the spring and summer months.

When there are non-native or exotic species planted, Lebing suggests removing them. “When at all possible, these plants should be removed from the landscape and replaced with native plants,” according to Lebing. Some more common non-native plants along the Outer Banks include mimosa, kudzu, Queen Anne’s Lace, Russian olive, Japanese honeysuckle, and sawtooth oak.

Lebing gives the example of crepe myrtles, which are not native to North America and are not remotely salt tolerant. While the crepe myrtle is used by more than 150 species of wildlife and insects in its native Indian subcontinent, it only is used by a measly five species in North America.

going native GARDENING

Tips for Going Native

According to Lebing, planting a single species across a large area can be quite detrimental to wildlife. An integrated native plant landscape is always the most optimal. According to literature provided by the N.C Cooperative Extension Service, native plants generally grow well and require less care than exotic species when grown in proper soils. They also typically require much less water.

Native plants provide protective cover for most animals as well as seeds, nuts, and fruits for squirrels and other wildlife. They are also a good source of nectar and shelter for hummingbirds and butterflies. The extension service suggests allowing native grasses, brambles, and shrubs to grow in sections of the yard to provide a habitat for birds and butterfly caterpillars.

Lebing offers four steps for gardeners who are looking to attract local wildlife, the first step being to identify wildlife needs in your yard. This includes the types of food eaten by birds and other wildlife, the cover required for nesting, roosting and protection, and a year-round water source.

The second step is to map the site and vegetation by creating a base map of your yard, mapping and inventorying existing vegetation, keeping records and taking photographs of the changes in the landscape throughout the year, and making wildlife observations. “A written record can be used to identify which areas of the yard are performing well and which need habitat improvement,” Lebing points out in her presentation.

The third step is the design phase, where gardeners should take into consideration the needs of their family’s use of the area and the wildlife needs.

“Now is the time to choose your target wildlife species and to make sure that your native plant landscape design eventually will meet the specific needs of that target species.”

The fourth and final step in the process should be implementation. “Remember that creating a native landscape can be done in small steps,” according to Lebing. “Rather than tackle the whole yard at once, you can start with a corner, or the backyard – whatever is doable.”

To do this, she suggests gardeners should collect soil samples from different areas for analyzing. The sample can be tested for nutrient content. The results can provide key information on preparing the soil before any planting occurs. It will also help gardeners determine which native plants will grow best in their yard. Lebing suggests seeking information from the N.C. Cooperative Extension on where to get native plants. There are also links to providers through the N.C. Division of Forest Resources, the N.C. Botanical Garden, and the N.C. Native Plant Society.

What to Plant Bird-friendly native wildflowers and groundcover include Gaillardia or blanket flower, a wildflower that is abundant on the Outer Banks. Also Pink Muhly Grass, Tickweed, Verbena, Coneflower, Seashore Mallow, Butterfly Weed, Autumn sage, and Seaside Goldenrod are favorites of birds.

Bird-friendly native vines include Coral Honeysuckle, Virginia Creeper, Car-

olina Jessamine and Muscadine Grape. Native shrubs many local birds prefer include Yaupon Holly, American Beautyberry, Firebush, Yucca, Dwarf Sweet Pepperbush, Winterberry, Inkberry Holly, Brilliant Chokeberry and Pokeweed.

Native trees to plant when attracting local wildlife are Live Oak, Wax Myrtle, Yaupon, Bald Cypress, Southern Magnolia, Eastern Red Cedar, American Holly, River Birch, Water Oak and Persimmon.

If gardeners are looking for butterflies, they can obtain a list of trees, vines, flowers, and grasses that attract them to your garden through the N.C. Cooperative Extension. A butterfly habitat will thrive best in a sunny area as many butterflies are active primarily in the sun and larval and nectar plants require sun. Be sure to put flowering plants with similar blooming periods close together so butterflies can access them easily and remember, taller plants and shrubs provide butterflies with protection from harsh weather.

“Throughout the growing season, leave the dead flower heads and dead foliage on your plants or you may accidentally remove eggs or pupating butterflies,” according to literature from the N.C. Cooperative Extension. “Wildlife habitat, whether for birds or butterflies, is best left untidy. As native grasses and wildflowers grow, bloom, and set seed, they may grow fast, tall and a bit scraggly.”

But, as the literature points out, nature is not always neat and “the most effective butterfly gardens will follow in nature’s footsteps.”

If gardeners would like to add bird feeders, consider what type of birds you’d like to attract before installation. It’s important to clean feeders on a regular basis and hummingbird feeders should be cleaned every five to seven days. According to Lebing, almost all seed-eating birds will eat black-oil sunflower seeds. In addition, birdhouses should be well-constructed and use untreated wood and galvanized screws. The house should also have a sloped roof, recessed floor, and drainage holes. To keep predators out, it should not have perches and include a baffle to discourage predators from getting to the house. Finally, it should have an entrance size that is right for the bird it is looking to attract to keep larger competitors out.

If gardeners are looking to attract box turtles to their yard, brush piles as well as leaf piles and fallen logs are key. “Landscape with both shady and sunny areas that include un-mowed areas and native food plant favorites like mulberry trees, wild grape, and blackberry,” according to literature provided by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.

Due to the hot summers experienced on the Outer Banks, keep in mind that fall planting is typically best for most native plants. According to the N.C. Cooperative Extension, it takes up to five years before gardeners may begin to see the payoff and wildlife using the native plants.

As it quotes in its literature, “The first year a garden sleeps, the second year it creeps, the third year it leaps.” ³ Michelle Wagner is a freelance writer and has called the Outer Banks home since 1999.

Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

39

STORY BY

Meg Puckett

DOORS A

pink door might signify that a home’s occupants are hopelessly romantic, while a blue door tells the world that you value peace and truth. No paint on the door? Then perhaps you’re down to earth and enjoy natural beauty.

Or maybe you painted your door turquoise because it’s your favorite color.

There are lots of reasons why we decorate the way we do, but the one thing that remains universally true is that doors are how we transition through our lives; in and out, much like the ebb and flow of the tide.

On the Outer Banks you’ll find all kinds of colorful, sturdy, quirky, old, new, and well-known doors (a lot like the people here!). They welcome us home, greet our visitors, and keep us safe from storms. Some are made of wood salvaged from shipwrecks, many have seen generations of family members pass through their thresholds, and others signify the start of a good meal, an afternoon movie with friends, or a shopping spree after a stressful week.

Here are some of our favorite OBX doors (and one just for fun). Do any of them look familiar to you? ³

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Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

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C OA S T AL Walk into the Coastal Studies Institute (CSI) campus on any given day in April and chances are you will find students from across Northeastern North Carolina studying power potential, creating energy from waves, investigating a shipwreck, or creating land-use development plans.

C L A S S R OOM STORY BY

Mallory Lengel âœş

PHOTOS COURTESY

Coastal Studies Institute

coastal studies EDUCATION

I

n 2013 the Coastal Studies Institute opened their facility in Wanchese in order to better provide meaningful opportunities and hands-on experiences to foster interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education (STEM) and Science, Technology, Engineering, Art/Design, and Math Education (STEAM) programs. From school field trips to summer camps, CSI continuously develops engaging and exciting programs for students.

CSI will offer four, week-long camps this summer and one three-day program during spring break.

“We really try hard to have a hook, to get kids excited about science through fun, hands-on things,” says David Sylbert, K-12 Education Specialist.

Participants get to go out on the water in the CSI’s fleet of vessels, visit research labs, trawl, hook-and-line fish, and more, all while hitting a strong set of educational objectives. These camps are open to anyone interested in the program.

The summer camps, which are targeted at 10-15 year olds “combine the fun of being out in the natural environment of the Outer Banks with learning a little bit of science and the scientific process along the way,” according to Sybert.

Children can go snorkeling over oyster beds, engineer buoys and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), and study water quality and properties. Programs offered through the school curriculum, such as land use and development planning projects are offered on-site during summer camps as well.

Although CSI UNC is mandated to serve the K-12 school system in Northeastern North Carolina, their passion for spreading knowledge far exceeds any state mandate. Last year 2800 students were served on-site and 2500 students were served off-site through distance learning capabilities.

The CSI Education and Outreach program focuses on grades 5-12, providing engaging learning opportunities specifically tailored for each age group. One of their more popular offerings last year was their ocean energy program, offered at both the middle and high school level.

Middle school students can visit the lab and learn about ocean processes and how those work, while high schoolers go even further, learning about kinetic energy and how to convert that into electrical energy.

“They actually build their own device that will take either waves or currents and make electricity from it. It’s a very small amount of electricity but they can see how it works,” explains Sybert.

Their wave tank, located at the Wanchese facility, directly mirrors the statefunded renewable ocean energy project that is being spearheaded by the CSI. Students can test their devices in this wave tank and see first hand how harnessing naturally occurring energy can change the future of renewable energy.

Although the CSI receives state funding for their renewable ocean energy program, the Education and Outreach program is completely self-funded.

Each program maintains a relatively low cost, $10 per student, thanks to generous donations from local businesses and community members.

“We understand that funding is tight for field trip opportunities, so we work with the schools in many ways to try and raise funds or scholarship dollars for the students to come here,” says John McCord, the Interim Director of Education, Outreach & Communication.

The funds and scholarship dollars go towards not just student fees, but also

bussing costs, which can often exceed the program fees. Scholarship money, donated by Towne Bank, Dominion Power, Duke Energy, and through personal donations to their 501C3 foundation, help keep these invaluable opportunities affordable.

During their sustainable coastal communities program, students are taken into the field to learn about what ecosystems need in order to be healthy, and how to balance those needs with community needs. Students are given a topography map and are challenged to use sustainable design to reduce the impact of the community on the environment.

“We want them to learn… we need to find a healthy balance of those things.

If we just wanted environmental stability that would be easy; we would just rope everything off and not let anybody in, but we live here now, so how do we balance those needs to find something that works for everybody?” asks McCord.

Depending on the time of year and weather, students enrolled in this program either participate in a field study or work in the plankton lab.

Spring 2016 | myouterbankshome.com

43

coastal studies EDUCATION

Other projects that the Coastal Studies Institute has undertaken include building an oyster research sanctuary and aquaculture system in Hatteras, wetland cisterns and rain gardens in Manteo, and installing wind turbines at multiple locations within their 13-county service area.

UNC CSI also offers an internship opportunity for Manteo High School students and is a partner for the Remotely Operated Vehicle workshop and competitions. These ROVs are underwater vehicles maneuvered by a person operating a remote aboard a surface vessel and act as underwater eyes when weather or other environmental factors prevent researchers from conducting dives.

CSI provides opportunities far beyond K-12 as well, through partnerships with East Carolina University, Elizabeth City State University, North Carolina State, and UNC Chapel Hill and Wilmington. These partnerships place students from the various universities with duly-appointed professors to complete internships and field research. UNC CSI also offers paid research positions funded through grants.

In addition to programs for students, The Coastal Studies Institute also hosts monthly “Science on the Sound” lectures where community members can learn about a myriad of topics ranging from winter gardening to the effects of the Gulf Stream on North Carolina waterways.

Information from these lectures is available online on the UNC Coastal Studies Institute YouTube channel. These lectures provide a vast array of information that is valuable to both tourists and locals, including potentially life-saving information on rip currents as well as hurricane and wave surge modeling.

Each month the lecture is filmed and broadcasted live on their YouStream channel in a multicamera format.

Programs like the ones offered by UNC CSI are much needed additions to the school curriculum and are indispensable tools for developing and furthering student interest in STEM objectives. Thousands of students each year are given opportunities that would be impossible to create if not for the Coastal Studies Institute and scholarship money donated by our community. ³

Mallory Lengel grew up in Southern Maryland and moved to the OBX two years ago. Since moving she’s learned to hang glide and tried her hand at surfing but primarily continues to ride her pony.

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obx memories LAST PAGE

Seeking

Sea Glass t

he summer of 2006 was a tough one for our family with the passing of my father after a long illness. Shortly afterward, an unsolicited catalog from an Outer Banks vacation rental company came in the mail. On impulse I decided that a family vacation might be just the tonic we all needed and promptly began trying to select the perfect place. This was to be my first trip and it was the birth of a dream that continues.

We arrived in Rodanthe on a golden day in early October and from the first moment it was like a homecoming. I knew almost immediately that this place was where I needed to be. It was during a long walk on a beautiful, completely deserted beach that I discovered what would begin one of the great passions of my lifetime. A tiny piece of cobalt blue sea glass! I had only very limited knowledge about the stuff but was already completely hooked.

After returning home, most of my spare time was spent planning the next vacation and researching sea glass. I learned that the most common colors are white (originally clear), green and brown. I found out that some very old clear glass contains manganese oxide which turns it lavender after lengthy exposure to the sun.

And almost every source I explored discussed the rarity of red sea glass. Apparently red is very scarce because it once contained gold which was very expensive and also because, more recently, plastic has replaced red glass in almost all boat and car lights and warning beacons. Finding a piece of red glass then became a personal fixation. Although I now have yellow (another very rare color) black (usually from extremely old thick wine bottles), a pottery shard that looks quite ancient and numerous other treasures, I still am without my Holy Grail, a perfectly frosted piece of red sea glass.

And so for the next few years, vacation time was focused on the almost maniacal pursuit of sea glass. I had the perfect stalking companion, my brother, who loves to hike and who soon was as caught up with the thrill of the hunt as I. Our time was spent plotting tide charts, combing the beaches for miles at least twice a day, and coming inside mostly to eat and sleep. The only minor aggravation on those perfect days was arriving at what was usually an empty beach and discovering someone already there in that head-down searching mode so familiar to seasoned seekers.

The ultimate insult would have been to learn that one of these poachers had found a piece of red glass which, thankfully, never happened.

Before too much time passed, I began another crusade. I was a few years from retirement and realized that it had to be somewhere on the Outer Banks. After wading through countless real estate listings for every type of home in every coastal town, I soon saw that the dream of an oceanfront home on Hatteras or anywhere close by was miles out of my price range and I began to search a little more realistically. This went on for quite a while until most of my friends and relatives tactfully retreated when I began the often repeated spiel about my future plans.

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STORY BY

Brenda James

Meanwhile, we managed at least two vacations yearly, one each in spring and fall when the rental rates were more reasonable and the sea glass fervor continued to grow. On the rare occurrences when our search resulted in finding nothing, we reluctantly admitted to “being skunked’ and considered it the utmost humiliation. We were totally obsessed!

Finally, in the summer of 2012 during my daily review of online ads, a newly listed condo on the sound in Kill Devil Hills jumped out at me. Affordable, minimal upkeep, close to shopping, near medical facilities and best of all, only a mile from the beach! It was finally time to get serious.

I arranged a hasty overnight trip to look at several places but somehow I knew that this was going to be the one. By sheer chance, the agent who showed the properties I’d requested happened to own this particular condo and offered a very attractive deal. I truly believe some things are meant to be!

So finally after two years of renting to long term tenants which helped with mortgage expenses until I retired, the long awaited moving day arrived in early November 2014. Finally a large part of the dream is now reality. But I know, as I’ve always known, that waiting somewhere here on the Outer Banks is that elusive piece of red sea glass that has always belonged to me. And I am completely confident that one day very soon I am going to find it. ³ Editor’s Note: Do you have a story to tell about why you love the Outer Banks? Send us an essay submission (800 words or less) describing your love for the Outer Banks lifestyle and a few photos, and we may publish it here. Send your essays to editor@threedogink.com.

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