American Locations 13- Cape Point Campground, Outer Banks

The trip is from New River, West Virginia, to Stinking Creek, Tennessee, by way of Long Key, Florida.

Cape Point Campground, Outer Banks, North Carolina

The next morning we drove south on Rte. 12 across the Bonner Bridge (no relation to those unfortunate pioneers in Oregon, I presume) off Bodie Island onto Hatteras Island. We left the national seashore to pass through the little towns of Rodanthe, Waves, and Salvo, then back into the national seashore. It was back out of the park to pass through the town of Avon, then back into the National Seashore and on to Hatteras Lighthouse.

Then it was on to nearby Cape Point Campground.

The National Park Service operates four campgrounds on the Outer Banks, and we decided to stay at all of them. Oregon Inlet had been crowded, but Cape Point was nearly empty. Many of the roads in the park are paved with crushed clam shells. That make a good solid base to drive on. They were working on the roads while we were there, which meant they had huge mounds of shells which hadn't been crushed yet. What a stink. Crushed and dried and spread out on the roads it wasn't even noticeable, but piled up in twenty-foot mounds they were quite fragrant.

Cape Point is the largest of the four, merely a huge open field and a short walk from the beach. And what a beach. It was beautiful. Totally deserted. And the hurricane had washed up a lot of shells. I found some huge perfectly-formed spiral shells that are now sitting on the window ledge in my office.

There are many sandy four-wheel accesses to the beach. But it is very expensive to drive on them, I believe the annual fee was $400, I'm not sure. But they were free to walk, so I set off one afternoon on one to see where it led.

It led through wetlands.

And provided a good sunning spot.

Eventually it led to the beach.

Where people were fishing.

There was a lot of music blaring, too. Some people could care less about fishing, they were there for the party.

I planted my butt in the sand for a while to rest. The sand on the road was very loose and deep, which made walking difficult. Rested, I headed back.

Those footsteps are mine, the ones I'd made walking in. I kept a close look-out for that snake, but he must have gotten enough sun because he was gone.

I saw some more wind surfers over top of the sea oats.

By the time I got back I was worn out. That night as I sat out after dark I watched nearby Hatteras Lighthouse flash and reflect off the side of our motor home and the few other RV's camped here. A hypnotic effect that was an enjoyable end to another enjoyable day.

Next Location - Frisco Campground, Outer Banks