NC Nags Head, South Beach Grille, Civilian Air Patrol

     Welcome back to Nags Head NC.

     One of the unique things about this area is the fact that if you know where to go, you can watch the sun rise and set over water without leaving that spot.  In the background of this photo is a small island where the bridge comes across, but for the most part the water on the inland side is open viewing for miles.

     The beach is the finest sand I have found yet on the east coast - almost like powdered sugar.  It is great for walking on, but it does tend to get in everything.  Oddly, just a few miles down the island the beach is very "pebbly,"  made up of shells that are slowly being ground into sand.

      Finding quiet places with good Wifi where I can sit, edit photos and write for four or five hours a day is always a challenge, and I don't often pull into restaurants because I feel funny not spending much money but using their resources.  But when I arrived on Nags Head, I was driving through the main strip and felt drawn to turn around and pull into this restaurant - South Beach Grille. 

     I am glad I did.  Meet Kerstin and Wayne Everhart.

     Kirstin and Wayne have owned this restaurant for twenty five years.  It has raised four children to adulthood and provided them with an opportunity to be of service to many people in many ways.  In fact, their youngest son was only one day old when he found himself helping his mom at the greeting station.  

     Wayne built this deck a few years back - in fact Wayne has built 5 houses from the ground up over the last thirty years - he and Kerstin doing all the work themselves.  The deck has a view of the Atlantic on one side and over the sound on the other - one of those truly rare spots where you can watch the sun rise and set over water without moving.

     And as talented as Wayne is with construction, Kerstin is with decorating.  Kerstin also does dozens of styles of crafts from shells and all manner of other things that are for sale in the front of the store.

     You are looking at the results of the third time they have completely made over the restaurant.  You see, over the last years the demographics of the clientele have changed dramatically and they have had to make big adjustments to keep up.  When they first opened they called it "Island's Eye."  Back then they catered primarily to a local crowd.  The age of weekly rental houses had not arrived yet; most folks stayed in small clusters of cottages called "cottage courts" or in motels.  Rates were much lower and people had a lot more disposable income.

     

     Then around the turn of the century they decided to become more of a night life place to cater to the numerous military personnel who were visiting from nearby bases.  They changed the name to "Bushwhackers" and hosted bands nightly.

     The money was rolling in, but the whole thing was bothering them.  They were attracting lots of people who would sit and drink when they should be home with their families.  And since one or usually both of them are always here, the late nights grew old and they wanted a healthier lifestyle.  So the decision was made to make themselves over again, and in 2009 they made the transition to an upscale seafood menu while still maintaining a local family restaurant feel.

     (The objects on the wall in the photo above were all scrap from building the deck - Kerstin took the pieces Wayne cut off of the ends of the joists and the empty paint cans to create this corner.)

     Running a place in this environment is a big challenge.  Over 80 percent of their annual receipts come in from mid June through mid August, following precisely the summer vacation schedule for schools.  The sudden influx of a quarter million folks a week changes everything drastically.  They would have to double the staff, but many long term employees want to work double shifts for the busy season.

    I was able to interact with a number of the employees for the couple of days I was here, and they all rave about how good Kerstin and Wayne are to them.  Many were down and out with a lot of troubles when they got here, and found themselves treated more like family than like employees.  Without exception and without my solicitation every employee mentioned that they didn't understand how Wayne and Kerstin were together all day every day all these years and are still so madly in love.

     The vast majority of the menu is local seafood, and there is a big focus on healthy foods.  Salads are real salads and there are many gluten free choices.  Appetizers like steamed shrimp, fried onions, sliders or blackened chicken are just $ 2.00 in the afternoons.  

     Kirsten and Wayne took it upon themselves to feed me for the four days I was here, and I can tell you the food is very good.  There are lots of home recipes and they keep the prices very reasonable.

     I had the opportunity to talk with Kerstin for a couple of hours about all manner of subjects regarding their lives, their decision and their goals.  My observation and that of all those I talked to is that the Everharts are are deeply spiritual people - the kind that live it rather than talk about it.

     One of Kerstin's stories is about a waterspout (tornado) coming by the restaurant last year.  It seems there was a couple having their engagement party up on the deck.  The storm came through, knocking all the stuff on the deck about except their table.  Everything on their table and the table itself was intact - exactly as they left it when they ran downstairs for cover.

     Kerstin has been wanting to put a bed and breakfast  together for missionaries that visit a country in South America that they have done a lot of work for, but for now God is keeping them here.  So, when you are in Nags Head please stop in here and say Hi.  You will have instant friends.

      When I arrived last week, they were putting together a spaghetti dinner as a fundraiser.  The fundraiser is for that island they and several other families from this area have sort of adopted.   One of the others very active in that effort is James Dale.   

James Dale

     James is a consultant that is working with several companies in Detroit Michigan, a city that is currently working hard to re-make itself.  He and the Everharts are both very passionate about this work, and it is a unique enough approach that it is worth hearing about.

     An interesting story with Jim is his son Matthew.  Matthew had bi-polar disorder so bad that he almost succeeded at killing himself as a freshman in high school.  Jim was able to find a psychologist in Canada that offers neuro-feedback, which is a technology that is a big part of the reason we are on this journey to start with - ultimately this will become a fund-raising journey to build a research hospital to solve these issues.  Today Matthew is off of the cocktail of meds that he was prescribed, is very active as a youth minister and is thriving as a young man in his early twenties.

     But back to the mission - the specific spot they are working in is St. Helene, Honduras, and the website for their effort is Mission Encounters International.

(photo supplied by James Dale)

     What makes their mission unique is that they are focusing on making the people self sustaining.  This island's only income was from drug runners, and they were all put out of business some years back.  The situation on the island was critical, and while they wanted to help the people there, they didn't want to create dependants.

     An interesting side note - most of the islanders have to build their houses on stilts over the water because all of their native land is now spoken for.

(Photo supplied by James Dale)

     There are a number of people involved.  One of the fellows, a David Dascher of Austin Texas has been building small houses for single mothers.  He funds it by building condos on a nearby island that is seeing a large surge of foreigners buying second homes.  

(photo supplied by James Dale)

     Since 2004 when the efforts first began, schools have been built and the first students have now graduated.  The school teachers and administrators are all people from the island.

     Medical and dental clinics have been established and the island now has a government - run by its own people.  The neat thing is that the way they have gone about this is such that they can soon move on to another area and duplicate this effort - this place will be self - sustaining.

(Photo supplied by James Dale)

     This is where the Everharts want to establish a bed and breakfast to help the missionaries that visit here - and I believe they will.  What an incredible gift to give - the gift of the ability and means for one to sustain himself.  It goes back to the old saying that it is much better to teach a man to fish than it is to give him a fish.

(Photo supplied by James Dale)

     Both James and the Everharts talk about the profound effect that doing work with the folks on this island has had on their children.  It opens their eyes to the world, taking them out of the bubble they are in during the teen years.  The Everharts son wanted to be a dentist, so the let him work with a dentist on the island.  The boy changed his mind about his career choice after having had the opportunity to be exposed to what the work is actually like.  All of the children are eager for any opportunity to return, and all have found much gratitude and richness in their young lives that they would not have if their parents had not made this effort.

     Back at Nags Head, there has been an interesting embellishment that folks have been doing to their houses.  I am told it started about twenty years ago - and no one seems sure who started it or why.  "It" is decoratively carved fascia pieces built into the outdoor stairways.

     There are all kinds of styles, some quite attractive.  Another thing you find in abundance here is surf worn branches and roots.

     With all of the movement of sand bars they are fairly abundant here.  Not as common but still available are old crab pot buoys that have been well worn and in some cases are encrusted with barnacles.

     There is some new construction - an outdoor adult play area with a big obstacle course has gone in on the sound alongside a miniature golf course.  There is also a park going in along the sound.

     There is one more story just across the sound at the airport in Roanoke is worth touching on.

     These coasts were infested with German submarines during World War II.  At the beginning of the war, all of the United States Navy's assets were tied up elsewhere, leaving shipping on this coast vulnerable.  The subs became so bold that they would surface within sight of shore and hang out their laundry to dry as they recharged their batteries.  

     Civilians who had pilots licenses took it upon themselves to form the Civilian Air Patrol.

     They hastily cobbled themselves together, many of them retired business men in their fifties and sixties who had a plane and knew how to fly.  Initially they took off and landed wherever they could.

      In the beginning they were the laughing stock of the Navy and Air Force; they were denied any sort of logistical or material support and given no respect.

     But then a few things happened.  They attached bombs to their planes, and they actually disabled a couple of submarines.  They also spotted some Navy fliers who had to ditch and rescued them. 

    According to old accounts, it was the Navy fliers who were suffering from hypothermia that they rescued that changed the military pilots minds.  All of the sudden they were taken seriously.

     

     From Maine to Mexico groups sprang up and answered the call to serve their country as best they could.  At the airport is a small museum commemorating their efforts.  Below is one of the bombs they strapped on.

     It really was a remarkable effort.  The kills the Germans scored on American ships plummeted and the east coast of the United States became much safer to navigate.  

     That brings us to today's "Faces in the Crowd." taken of a girl who visited South Beach Grille with her mother and grandmother.

     And that brings us to today's parting shot, taken in the kitchen of South Beach Grille.

     On the personal front, I am returning to Charleston for a few days.  There is some work that needs done for the foundation and some other things that have come up that need tended to.  I intend to be back on the road in two weeks, with the plan to drive up to the tip of Maine and work my way back here by November.

Click Here if you can contribute a few dollars to this effort, Click Here for today's meditation, and Click Here to email me.

Have an awesome day !!
David

NC Cape Hatteras National Seashore

     Welcome back to the Outer Banks, NC.  Today we are on Bodie Island, home of Nags Head and the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. 

     This park was established by congress in August of 1937, and is comprised of about 63 miles of sea shore.

     We are with Randy Swilling, who is the Natural Resource Manager for this site and three others - the Bodie Island Lighthouse, Fort Raleigh and the Wright Brothers Memorial a few miles north in Kitty Hawk NC.

Randy Swilling

     Randy has a degree in wildlife biology accompanied with a masters in zoology.  He supervises twenty technicians, half being full time and half seasonal.  Handling plant control, animal management, water quality, maintaining accurate maps and environmental compliance are among their responsibilities.

     The National Park Service is unique in the fact that it is their job to preserve and protect for future generations any lands that congress makes them responsible for - key words "future generations."  This means that (theoretically) all decisions must take a long term view.  And this often includes cultural items such as forts, landmarks, buildings, battlefields, artifacts, natural resources - in some cases entire towns.

    One of the most unique features of this area is that a large southern moving ocean current, the Labrador Current meets the larger Gulf Stream moving up from the south.  That makes this area the southern end of many species' range and the northern end of many other species range. There have been well over 300 species of birds alone that have been observed in this park.  Many unique and endangered species of bird and marine life have nested on these shores for many millennia.

     But the outer banks have been drastically altered in the last 100 years.  During the great depression in the 1930's, men were put to work building miles of dunes along the shore.  That has done much to stop the banks from migrating toward the mainland as they have for since the last ice age.

     Many species of plant have taken hold - many of them introduced and some native to the area that have been able to get a better hold.  Early park records show that these banks were entirely surfaced with sand or mud that migrated from ocean to sound with the winds and the waters.  

     The net result of this is that the banks are shrinking now - rather than the erosion on the shore line accreting on the back side of the island, the erosion is simply washed into the sound behind the islands.  The vegetation allows for many predators that were either not here before or were introduced.  This includes many varieties of snakes, raccoons, domestic cats and others.  These animals feed on birds and bird eggs.  There is also much land that has been turned into residential developments - all of which conspires to put tremendous pressure on the bird populations.

      We, too, are a "future generation," and hopefully many more will follow.  You and I have every right to access the lands that were put in trust for our enjoyment.  So the Park Service must give us access, but balance the impact that our access against their charge to preserve this land for still more "future generations."

Eel grass that grows in the channels and the sound is deposited by currents on the beach

        As you can imagine, this sets the stage for folks of various competing interests to engage in lively conflicts.  Beach access by vehicle has been allowed by the parks, but it is limited during times that species are actively nesting. 

     Clear back in the 1930's there were complaints from citizens about folks driving vehicles through flocks of birds - often sites that had nests full of young.  I think we all have known a few people who would get a few beers in them and think it was cute to chase birds in a car.

     Today, one must purchase a permit to drive on the beach. This does a few things.  First, it keeps the vehicles not designed for off road driving from getting stuck.  

    Second, the program raises money from the fees.  This money allows the Park Service to maintain the vehicle access points, hire law enforcement folks to keep an eye on the beaches and pay those that implement the program.    

   

     Some of the locals don't care for this at all.  In fact, in the nearby town of Buxton, several restaurant owners have put out the word that National Parks Employees are banned from their establishments.  If I had more time I would interview the owner of one or two of these.  I am curious if they think the resulting additional beer sales bring more income than the Park Employees would spend on lunch.  Or if they would rather have the land developed and have big box stores come in and put them out of business.    

Oregon Inlet; Outer Banks NC

     Then there are those folks who oppose any human presence at all and those folks that would love to put in high rise condos and pave the rest.  These two groups have a lot more money and influence than the locals, so it sets up some pretty interesting situations.

      Randy says that when he steps into a conflict, the best possible path of middle ground is what he has to seek.  He has to weigh this generation desires against all those generations to come - and future generations aren't yet capable of speaking for themselves.  Since fringe folks are not usually satisfied unless everything goes their way, everyone is usually upset with Randy.  He deals with it ok - he figures that if everyone is mad there is a good chance he has found that optimal path that runs through the middle ground.

Charter deep sea fishing boats returning through Oregon Inlet

     Back in the 1800's a hurricane cut a swath through the bank on this stretch of land.  That cut is known today as Oregon Inlet.  

  

         When we visited Portsmouth Island we saw how that inlet had been plugged by a storm.  As a result this is the only inlet of any size from Beaufort SC to Chesapeake Virginia - a couple hundred mile span.

     As you can see above, the tides and the currents make this a treacherous inlet.  This problem is compounded by the fact that it has not been properly dredged for decades.  I am told that over a hundred folks have lost their lives here in the last century.  

     Just as this is the artery from oceans to the sound, the bridge that runs across Oregon Inlet is the artery that brings people and goods to all of the communities between here and Ocracoke.

     For twenty years the locals have been trying to get this bridge replaced.  There is also a "temporary steel" bridge that was put in after hurricane Isabel cut a half mile swath thirteen years ago that desperately needs replaced.

     These islands are going to keep eroding, moving and reshaping and the big storms are going to keep coming.  But the inlet is slowly closing in on itself and the bridges are deteriorating to the point where it is becoming a public safety issue.  It will be interesting to see where the area stands with the issue five years from now. 

Old Coast Guard life-saving station on Oregon Inlet

     There are also the needs of the commercial fishermen and the deep sea charter fishing industries.  At the closest point to the Gulf Stream on the east coast, boats of any size will soon have to detour for about a hundred additional miles to get into and out of the ocean.

Charter fishing boats at Oregon Inlet

     Although the commercial fishing industry has been hit hard here, the charter deep sea fishing business is thriving.  Additionally, for millions of people these are the only beaches within an hour's drive.  Consequently, millions of people visit this area each year. 

     In fact, during the peak months of the year 250,000 new visitors arrive here each week.  That means 250,000 people are just leaving here too - which requires a lot of effort by the locals to keep up with.

     The area has been able to avoid the big resorts and hotels, but all those folks have to stay somewhere.  We meet Beth Midgette of Midgette Realty.

     The company has been operating here since the 1950's, and handles 525 vacation rental properties.  These range from the small condo type setting to the large ocean houses.

     That is a big range of houses - and correspondingly there is a big range of price difference.  The low end of the range is about $1,100 per week during peak season, with the average being around $2,300.  There are a few that are basically compounds that go for as much as $ 15,000 a week.

     Many are right on the ocean, and they all are fully furnished.  

     Beth says one of her greatest joys is watching the change that happens as the beach works its magic on people.  Folks drive many miles to get here, and on Saturdays traffic gets backed up.  Many are stressed and quite surly.  But, give them a week, and Beth says she doesn't think a bomb going off would disturb them.  Most want the same house year after year, and if not the same house at least the same neighborhood.  

     Beth related the story of a woman who came into the office in tears after a week on the beach.  It was a grandmother who had put together a large family gathering, and she was crying because one of the granddaughters had come to her upset.  The little girl thought that they were all going to live here together forever - she didn't realize they were going to have to leave.

     The vast majority of the traffic arrives from the north, having crossed the bridge to the outer banks at Roanoke Island.  But some traffic comes in from the ferries to the south.  Beth makes it a point to show up at the various local, state and federal hearings that deal with issues that impact the community.  Right now she is among those trying to get the bridges and ferries brought up to snuff.  It would seem to be a simple task, but when you have special interest groups and governmental agencies competing for power simple reasoning often seems beyond reach.

     

     I met a guy that has a short term bicycle rental business on a popular beach.  He said that when newlyweds rented a tandem bike, you could tell in no time at all how the marriage was going to go.  It bodes ill if they can't team together on something so simple as a bicycle. 

     If the rhythm of the waves, the bracing breeze and a good book are not enough to keep one occupied, there are plenty of toys available.

     I have never tried wind surfing, para-sailing or stand-up paddling.  Perhaps we will have to do a story on them soon . . .

    That brings us to today's "Faces in the Crowd."  This is one of the commercial fishermen.

     And today's parting shot - a kite.  They have gotten so fancy.  I saw one shaped like a hornet that made buzzing sounds as it swooped and climbed.

On the personal side - I am meeting great people on this stretch of coast.  Life is good.

Click Here if you can contribute a few dollars to this effort, and Click Here to email me.

Warmest to you all !!
David