After the wedding, we had dinner at Doni's Under the Trees, the location of our first date one year ago. When we left Anderson, we drove across North Caroline to the picturesque, charming and historic town of Edenton. This lovely place is on the north shore of Albemarle Sound, the largest fresh-water sound in our country. We sailed on the sound in the "Sandpiper", toured much of Edenton, and enjoyed the hospitality of the Edenton Rose (a bed and breakfast in the historic area).

After several days in Edenton, we drove to the Outer Banks. Our first stop was at Kitty Hawk. The exhibits are outstanding, but seeing the actual place where powered flight first took place was the highlight. Then we drove south along Highway 12 until reaching Buxton, which is very close to the famous Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. Here we played in the surf and enjoyed the serenity of the beach and ocean. We explored the wildlife refuge at Pea Island and the fishing center at Oregon Inlet. We visited the 205 foot tall Hatteras Lighthouse, which had been moved (intact) a distance of 2,900 feet further from the beach in 1999 to keep it from being swallowed by the sea. That was truly an amazing feat of civil engineering! When we left Buxton, our route carried us to the southern tip of Hatteras Island. Here we were ferried across to Ocracoke Island, where we visited the Ocracoke Lighthouse. Then we took a two-hour ferry ride across Pamlico Sound to the mainland. A deckhand on the ferry suggested that we visit Fort Macon, near Morehead City, on our way home. We did so and found it to be a fascinating place dating back to the early 1800s, very well maintained and accessible. From here we drove to Raleigh for the night, then five more hours the next morning brought us back to Anderson - and our new life together.

Edenton is a lovely town. Here we sailed the "Sandpiper" on Albemarle Sound.

Kitty Hawk, Hatteras, and Ocracoke

Fort Macon