For our first full day on the Outer Banks we had a busy itinerary planned. We started in Kitty Hawk with the Wright Brothers National Monument. We arrived just as a ranger was starting a presentation at the hangar and small cabin where the Wright brothers lived while at Kitty Hawk. We were glad we joined the ranger’s talk as it was a good introduction to what we would be seeing at the site. Afterwards, we spent time walking around the area where large granite stones signify the distance traveled for each of the 1st three Wright brother flights. Next we made our way to the top of the nearby hill which holds the Wright Brother Monument.
The Wright Brothers Monument
Making our way south, we next came to the Jockey Ridge State Park. This state park has two of the highest sand dunes on the east coast. It provides an excellent take off point for hang gliders, however when we arrived at the state park, we heard thunder rumbling in the distance and rain was threatening - not great hang gliding conditions. Jim and I had the dunes almost to ourselves as we walked from the visitor center up and over the dunes to the Roanoke Sound. We were glad it was overcast as we imagine it would be a very hot walk on a sunny summers day.
Jim and I at Jockey Ridge State Park
Jim on the dunes
The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was our last stop of the day. We explored the light keepers house first before climbing the 257 steps to the top. It was interesting to learn that the entire lighthouse was moved back in 1999 when shoreline erosion made the original location unstable. It took 23 days for the lighthouse to be hydraulically lifted and then rolled on a series of rails 2900 feet to its present location.
At the top of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse
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