Vacation to North Carolina

 The kids have been asking to see the ocean for a few years now and we finally did it! We packed ourselves into the van and drove 20 hours to the ocean. 

We stayed in a nice little town called Beaufort. The first morning we explored Beaufort, ate some delicious shrimp and grits, then went to show the kids the ocean. We weren't swimming that day but we went back the next day! We bought some kites at the Kitty Hawk Kite store in Beaufort and took them to the beach. The ocean breeze made them easy to get up and was a fun experience! The kids loved the kite store because of all the great kids toys and they each brought their own money to pick out something special. Riley picked out 2 stuffed unicorns, Nora bought a stuffed llama, and August bought a shark scientist set.

We also enjoyed the Maritime Museum in Beaufort which showcases pieces from Blackbeard's flagship, the Queen Anne's Revenge. Afterwards we got some delicious ice cream from The General Store in Beaufort. They made sure that it was gluten free and peanut free so that the kids could enjoy the experience. 

Another day we went to the aquarium at pine knoll shores and they had a lot of great information about the salt marshes, maritime forests, seashore, and what animals live in these environments. There was a great place to walk around outside to view a salt marsh. I loved watching the tri-colored herons catch little fish!

Their first look at the Atlantic Ocean was enchanting

Monday we drove to Harkers Island to take the ferry to Shackleford Banks and Cape Lookout. Riley is in love with horses right now and we were hoping to see some of the wild horses that live on Shackleford and then see the lighthouse and enjoy some swimming on Cape Lookout. It rained on us on the trip to Shackleford but it passed and the sun came out. We came prepared with sunscreen and water as it is not available on Shackleford. Then we picked a direction and started looking for the horses knowing that we may not see any but as we got over a small hill we were surprised to come across a group of 4 horses! We stopped and just enjoyed the view.

The view of Cape Lookout from Harkers Island

A brown pelican near where we were waiting to get on the ferry

 

We are on our way to look for horses

 

Shackleford Banks

Firewheel Wildflower

Marsh Pink Wildflower

This was the first horse we came across and the rest are behind in the trees but came out soon after.

Prickly pear cactus plants were abundant

Horses in the background

Lighthouse in the background

Lighthouse in the background

On our way back to the beach to wait for the ferry

Tri-colored heron out in the marsh

Snail shells were everywhere

Laughing Gull

I think Keenan is doing something funny behind me

 

Cape Lookout

We played on both sides of the island, these pictures are on the ocean side. We loved both sides of the island. The sound side was shallow and calm(we were there at low tide) the kids liked how far out they could go and not worry about waves. They also loved the Atlantic side because of how powerful the waves were. The sanderlings(shore bird) in the picture were running down the sand as the wave went out and eating something. I started digging my hands into the sand to see what it was and to my astonishment I found an array of life. There were a lot of sand crabs/sand moles and tiny bi valve clams. The kids and I started digging them up then watching as they quickly burrowed back into the sand. The kids also collected a lot of shells every time we visited the ocean. It was an amazing day!

Sanderlings wave chase to hunt the mole crabs

Noras wave chase to splash and play

Fort Macon

They fire a cannon once a week and it was fun to see them pull it back, load it, and fire. They just use powder and no cannon ball. The kids were amazed at how loud it was and we couldn't imagine being around dozens of them going off at the same time.  There was also a tour guide that walked us around and told us stories about the fort covering various time periods. 

 Atlantic Beach

Kites at the beach. They took turns but quickly ran back to the water or to build sand castles! I can't wait to use them in Ames too!

 Beaufort Information Building: Park Ranger Office

Riley, August, and Nora worked really hard to learn about life at the seashore and earned their junior park ranger badges from the Cape Lookout National Seashore. Park Ranger Kat was wonderful with kids and full of great information! Nora filled out part of a book also and we didn't know she could participate because she isn't 5 yet but she was allowed to earn a badge as well!

 

We stuffed ourselves with fresh seafood as often as we could. These restaurants right on the water have access to fresh seafood twice a day. MMMMmmmmmm.