Hatteras National Seashore

After a nice relaxing afternoon with friends at the beach, we headed north to Morehead City for the night and then, as my husband puts it, had a day of adventure (as opposed to a day of vacation) traveling up the Hatteras National Seashore. We got up and out early, drove to Cedar Point to catch the ferry ride to Ocracoke Island. Once on the island (the ferry ride is over two hours long), we took some lunch at the Jolly Roger Pub and Marina and then drove over to the Ocracoke Lighthouse which was undergoing renovation.

After an ice cream stop and a brief view of the Banker Ponies at the Ocracoke Pony Pens, we drove north to catch a much shorter and free ferry over to Hatteras Island.

On Hatteras Island, we drove by the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum making a note to visit there when we get a more extended stay in the area. We drove north to the Hatteras Lighthouse, the most famous of all the North Carolina Lighthouses as it shows up on state driver's licenses and automobile license plates.

There are height requirements for climbing to the top, so we sat and listened to a program on Blackbeard, the most infamous pirate who ever lived. I found it interesting that he braided slow burning fuses into his beard and would set them smoldering during his attacks to intimidate those he preyed upon.
We made it to Nags Head and decided to stop and picnic at Jockey's Ridge State Park before heading home. We hiked out onto the dunes and watched some hang gliders. For me, this was the highlight of the day.