Atlantic Coast Tour
April 26th - Teeters Campground Oracoke, NC to Ocean Waves RV Park Waves, NC

We're up before daylight and so are the mosquitoes. Both of us are have welts on our extremities. At breakfast the infestation is almost unbearable. No amount of our bug spray seems to repel the tiny insects. As we leave Teeter's camp we aptly rename the place Skeeter's Camp a good place to go when you get an itch for the great outdoors.

Cycling on Highway 12 is quiet this morning. We stop at a roadside fruit stand that isn't quite set up yet. An old man eyeballs us right away and grabs a bag for us to fill with goodies. You could almost see dollar signs in his eyes as we filled the bag with apples, bananas and a loaf of his wife's homemade banana-nut bread. Tourist season here isn't for another month we are told. Oracoke Island must be buzzing with bikes when everyone shows up because we pass several bike rental outfits touting hundreds of beach cruiser bicycles. Sixteen miles into our ride we reach the ferry to Cape Hatteras. It is just pulling out so we have to wait one hour until the next ferry arrives. Time passes quickly when we meet a couple of people from Maine. They are happy to hear we are going to visit their state and tell us it will be very nice.

When we arrive in Cape Hatteras it is very different from Orackoe Island. Many of the small businesses have closed and much of the available land has been or is being converted into condo developments. We see many signs that say "Save our beaches". Apparently the condo developers want to privatize the beaches. We stop at an Internet café and take care the day's business. Becky is not sure if we will find a good market on the route today so we stop at a nearby market and get gouged for some basic food items. Traffic on Highway 12 is markedly heavier than it was earlier. Half of the traffic is Motorcycle enthusiasts and the other half are RV's and SUV's touting fishing poles.

At thirty-six miles we pull in to the Cape Hatteras State Park to see the lighthouse and have lunch. The place is buzzing with tourists. A park ranger is busy trying to get all the motorcycles to park the way he thinks they should be. Most of the motor-bike owners aren't around so he doesn't get much accomplished while we are there. We think the Park Ranger should stick to more Rangerly duties instead of harassing the Harley crowd. We meet a couple at the lighthouse interested in bike touring and we tell them a little about our experiences. Louie snaps some quick photos of the lighthouse before we sneak off to the much quieter picnic area to enjoy our lunch.

Halfway between the lighthouse and our camp we spot a Food Lion. Becky says "I want real food tonight!" so Louie has to go shopping again. He comes back with gourmet meat, vegetables, fruit and cottage cheese. Becky says, "I am happy now". It is just a short ride to camp now. What else could possibly happen? We stop twice, once to pick up an AM/FM Radio Flashlight and yet in only a matter of minutes we find yet another flashlight. We won't be left out in the dark tonight!

Ocean Waves RV Park provides us with a nice tent site just a stones throw from the ocean. We get all of our laundry cleaned, a hot shower and WiFi. What more could a couple of Berries ask for. Life is good once more.

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