We took a week off in August for vacation, initially with the hopes of getting back out to Orcas Island. When the frequent flyer tickets weren’t available for Seattle, we opted to travel closer to home. Thus it was a few days in the mountains and a few days at the beach.
The mountain in question was Gateway Mountain, outside of Old Fort, NC. After being welcomed with the traditional mountain greeting, we enjoyed getting our caricatures drawn, looking around Old Fort, or just enjoying the stunning view of a mountain sunset. We took a side trip to Chimney Rock, where my photo from the Rock is still featured on its Wikipedia page.
While the mountains were beautiful as always, the area was alarmingly dry. We swam in knee-deep water at Lake Lure. Honestly. Even four months later the area’s still in the grip of a terrible drought.
The second half of the trip was spent at Carolina Beach, at a condo found on Craigslist (as was our mountain cabin). The kids enjoyed the beach more, hands down. There’s just something about a hundred-miles-long sandbox that kids can relate to. While the weather didn’t always cooperate, we did have one or two great days. And meeting a UN staffer and his family vacationing from France provided an unexpected look at foreign cultures.
I still shake my head at how interesting a life like theirs must be. But its not necessarily better. While I’ve sometimes daydreamed about what it would be to live life like a rolling stone, I think my need for place outweighs it. At least for now.