1281 October 10, 2025 Ocracoke…Last Day???

We had no additional critters.  Is it possible that just one mouse caused so much chaos?  I spent much of the day scrubbing and organizing and putting things back.  I really sincerely hope that there was only one!

The day was cloudy and intermittently rainy and very windy.  We made the best of it.  Today is our last day in Ocracoke…we think!  There is supposed to be lots of rain and wind again tomorrow.  Hopefully the Cedar Island Ferry will be running as scheduled and we will leave at 1pm.  If the weather turns and we need to stay…then we can stay.  We have no future reservations or firm plans.  This place wouldn’t be such a bad place to be “stuck.” 

Tim started his walk and told me to meet him at Deja Brew for breakfast.

We met shortly before 11.  I had delicious overnight oats topped with blueberries and strawberries and honey.  I may have to try to recreate this!                                                                                                                                          

Tim walked back to the campground and I wandered through town.  I stopped in a few shops and then went to the seafood market for more shrimp and some scallops. The town is dressed for the season.

This afternoon, Tim braved the wind and rode his bike.  I stayed in and finished cleaning and did the last of the laundry.  I am so grateful that we were able to move to this full hookup site.  It was nice to be able to get everything washed in our own washer without having to use the park laundry.

Under leaden skies, we went for one last ride on the beach.  There were a few fishermen out but the weather really wasn’t conducive to beach time today.

This evening, we went across the street to 1718 Brewing.  We had excellent chicken chimichangas.  Tim enjoyed a dark stout and I had some tasty blackberry cider. 

Brooke and Nick played live music.  They have a quirky, catchy, positive vibe.  She played a cello and he played a ukelele.  They harmonized beautifully.  It was a really fun time!

1280 October 9, 2025 Windy Day

We settled for bed last night and not long afterward, the wind began to blow hard.  It was still blowing this morning, with windspeeds in the 30’s.  Tim got up and did his stretching.  We had no evidence of mice inside overnight.  Tim went outside to check the basement and we had caught a single mouse.  The question was: “Is this the only mouse?”  I spent the morning doing laundry…potholders and kitchen towels and blankets.  Tim went for his walk and to the gym and I washed all of the pots and pans and then set out for my walk.  I talked with my sister as I went. 

Tim called and said he was at Deja Brew if I wanted to join him for some breakfast.  There was this little bird that really wanted a bite of Tim’s breakfast burrito!

I finished my walk and did some more laundry. 

We went into town to get some fresh seafood for our dinner.  We brought home steamed shrimp.

This afternoon, we went to Springer’s Point Preserve to walk the trail to the beach.  We walked through marsh and under large live oak trees.

Tonight, we packed our steamed shrimp and other picnic food and we drove to the beach.  It was waaaayyyy to windy to eat at the beach!

We went to the Ocracoke Preservation Society Commons.  We were inland and more sheltered from the wind.

We drove the short distance to the boat ramp and watched the sunset from the Jeep.

1279 October 8, 2025 Mouse In The House

I had a great walk this morning even though it was misting and then a little more than misting.  I got to spend time talking to my mom and my Uncle Fred and Jen. 

I stopped at the grocery for a couple of things.  When I got back to the campground, Tim was pulling in the slideouts and getting ready to move to a full hookup site.  It was raining but we got resettled.  I saw this little green frog hopping in the grass.

Tim went to dump the tanks and I went to put water and tablets in and I saw that the toilet paper stored beneath the bathroom sink had been shredded…I immediately knew what that meant…mice!  I was hopeful that it was the only place that the mouse or mice might have been but that was NOT the case.  Suddenly our plans for the day were clear.  We removed everything from the lower cabinets in both bathrooms, and then from under the kitchen sink where they had also had a party and then all of the kitchen drawers had mouse poop…

Tim went to the hardware store for sticky traps.  I kept moving things and cleaning.  The mice had begun to create a nest under the couch in the living room.  They chewed one of my favorite blankets and left a mess.  Now we have stuff sitting on every available surface.  We hope to catch the little critters quickly.

We did pack a lunch and we drove to the northern end of the island.  We took the dirt access roads to the bayside and I was thinking we might have our picnic there but the mosquitoes drove us away.  We have seen a truck spraying in town but in the National Park areas, I am sure they do not spray.

We took Ramp 59 and found an isolated stretch of beach.  We ate lunch and then took turns walking along the shore.

It rained for a while this afternoon.

This evening, the RV was too torn apart to cook anything complicated and so we had eggs.

We went out after dinner to see if we could catch a glimpse of the sunset but it began to rain again.  We got out and sat under the cover at the tram station.  As we sat, the rain stopped and we could see color.  We walked to the deck at the ferry terminal to watch the sky.

1278 October 7, 2025 Dajio Again

Tim and I left for our walks at the same time.  He turned off to walk to the gym.

I walked to the harbor and back.

After lunch, we rode our bikes on the bike path.

This evening, we returned to Dajio.  We had another outstanding meal.  The shrimp and grits entrée was the best I have ever had.  Tim took my picture while I was chewing and refused a do-over saying that he liked the picture just the way it was…the real me.

We drove to the boat ramp to watch the sunset.  The couple we met on the beach last night rode up on their bikes and we chatted as we watched the sky change colors.

1277 October 6, 2025 Harvest Moon

I started my day with a another more than two mile walk into town.  The sea was calmer today and there was just a slight breeze.  The Carolina sunshine is still powerful at this time of year.  The walk felt good and I was motivated to ride my bike on the path.  I finished at just under 7 miles. I am still astonished that I can walk without foot pain…what an amazing feeling!  PT does work!

We went to Dajio’s in town for lunch.  I couldn’t decide what to eat and so I took the server’s suggestion.  We had terrific fish and shrimp tacos.

This evening, we packed a light picnic of tuna salad and crackers and apples and we headed out to the beach.  Beach fires are allowed but are restricted to certain areas.  We drove out and found the perfect spot.  We set up our chairs and Tim dug a hole for our fire.  Tim climbed the dunes to see the view.

We were a little disappointed when another couple made their way toward us.  They also set up to have a fire.  We saw the man go out into the ocean to get the requisite bucket of fire water but he had only a gallon jug.  Needless to say, he got very wet.  Then we heard him rummaging around in his vehicle for a long time.  Apparently, he had forgotten matches.  He came to our fire and asked if he could light a stick but this proved to be very difficult in the wind.  Finally, Tim offered him matches so that they could enjoy their fire as well. 

We ate our meal by our campfire and watched and waited for the moonrise.  At 6:19pm, the October Harvest Moon made its appearance behind a bank of clouds.  This is a Super Moon and it was gorgeous.  When there is a full moon, there are also king tides.  High tide came at 7:51 and fingers of ocean water reached within feet of our parked Jeep.

What an incredible evening.  This is absolutely one of my favorite things to do.  We were in a nostalgic mood and we listened to Neil Young sing Harvest Moon and then listened to James Taylor and lots of other old songs that we both know all of the words to.

The moonlight on the ocean waves, the scent of salt, the fire warmed sand between my toes, the soothing sound of waves in an endless ribbon…ahhhh!!!

1276 October 5, 2025 Beach Day

I started my day with a 2.25-mile walk from Jerniman’s to the ferry terminal and back to the campground. The forecast for today was mostly sunny with a high of 73 and a low of 71 and winds with gusts to 17mph.  Lots of people who come to the Outer Banks prefer Duck and Corolla…but this small and sleepy fishing village is our favorite place. 

Tim walked to the gym, did his workout there and then made a loop to the harbor and back.  We hopped on our bikes and rode the 3.4-mile bike path to the Ocracoke Day Use Area and then we biked back.

We packed a picnic lunch and went out to eat on the beach.

This evening, I grilled chicken and prepared quinoa bowls and we took our dinner back to the beach.  I love watching the waves and the drifting clouds and the birds.  We drove as far as we could to the end of the island and then got out and walked to the water’s edge to watch the sunset.

Unbeknownst to us, the people who had parked their Jeep next to ours, took some pictures and videos.  When we got back to the Jeep, the woman was able to airdrop the pictures to my iPhone…what a kindness!

The sky was still changing and beautiful as we drove back to town.

1275 October 4, 2025 Ocracoke Ferry

We started the day with 2-mile walks and then we returned to the campground to prepare to move.  The Ocracoke Ferry resumed operations on Thursday evening.  Today the winds were only 17mph and we were glad to be able to go.  There wasn’t room for us on the 10am ferry and so we waited and we took the 10:30 trip.  I was first on with the Jeep and then Tim pulled on with the RV a couple of cars behind me.  It was smooth sailing across the Pamlico Sound.

We arrived at Jerniman’s Campground shortly after noon.  We will be here for a week.

This afternoon, we took the Jeep out onto the beach.  The entire length of the Island is accessible with the exception of the Day Use Area.  It was a lovely day.

When we got back, we hopped on our bikes and cycled through town.  We stopped at Angie’s Gym where Tim was able to purchase a one-week membership.  He opted to stay and get a work out in.

This evening, we grilled delicious venison burgers.  Thanks for dinner Kyle!

We went back out onto the beach to watch the last vestiges of the day.

1274 October 3, 2025 Last Day In Hatteras

After starting the laundry and cleaning the bathrooms, I walked the two-mile loop around the campground.  I had planned to walk all the way to the ferry but my legs were tired after yesterday!

We packed our lunch and drove to the beach.  We parked the Jeep along the access road and got out and walked all the way to the point.

Then, we drove until we found a parking spot on the edge of the dunes.  We sat by the water and had our lunch. It was cloudy and breezy and perfectly pleasant.

We rested this afternoon and Tim biked around the neighborhood.

We ate corn on the cob and grilled bruschetta chicken and had a fruit salad of nectarines and blackberries.

We drove across the island to the bay side to watch the sunset.

We are finally starting to feel more relaxed.  The rhythm of traveling is very different than being at home and there is always a period of adjustment.  We are happy to be spending more time outside and I am especially happy to be more active.  We have a good life and we are as always very grateful.   

1273 October 2, 2025 Happy Place

We each took walks from the campground to the ferry terminal and back. It was still windy but today the wind forecast is for less than 30mph…woohoo!!!

We had our breakfast and took the Jeep out to the beach. What a wonderful privilege to be able to drive out to the water’s edge and claim our own little piece of beach. We sat by the Jeep, protected from the brunt of the wind, and we enjoyed the warm and beautiful sunshine and we watched the water. The gulls and pelicans were fishing today. The waves were less chaotic and the breeze was balmy. This is our happy place!

We returned to the campground for lunch and naps.

We each rode our bikes, the headwind made riding challenging but not impossible.

This evening, we drove the short distance to Hatteras Sol where we enjoyed excellent food. The view of the small harbor was pretty.

After our meal we went back to the beach to watch the sunset. The tide was too high to have a good vantage point.

1272 October 1, 2025 More Wind

Last night was long.  The wind speeds were 34-39mph and the RV was pummeled relentlessly for hours. 

This morning, it was still windy.  There were deer walking through the campsite.

We both took walks.  The beach access road remained flooded. 

We packed the RV and drove to the dump station.  Then, we parked in the lighthouse parking lot.  We took our bikes and cycled several miles on the new bike path.  Tim spotted two more snakes.  We believe these were both black snakes.  The first was too far to get a good picture but the second was just a few feet from the path.

We drove to the end of Hatteras Island to the Hatteras Sands Campground.  We encountered some water on Route 12 as we approached the village. 

We will be here for 3 nights and it will be nice to have full hookups.

We started laundry as soon as we got settled and I put a big bunch of fresh lima beans from Morris Farm in our crockpot.

We saw a few peeks of sunshine and blue sky and later this afternoon, we tried to drive out onto the beach.  It was high tide and there was not much beach to drive on! The ocean is much less angry today and the winds have calmed considerably.

We had a quiet day and made omelets for dinner.  We had planned to eat out but the restaurants were both closed until tomorrow.

We knew that the tide should have receded and so after eating, we drove back out to the beach.  We were able to travel in the sand for a short distance.