Hatteras Trek 2004
…. To boldly go where few have gone
before
Betty and I want to extend this invitation for you to join us next June on Hatteras Island, North Carolina at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Feel free to forward this email to any one else that may be interested…. the more, the merrier!
I am sending this email to gauge the interest in a reunion/group vacation. After reviewing this email and the web page links below, Please reply by email before December 1, 2003 if you have any interest at all in joining us. This way we can spend the month of December working out reservation details with the goal of setting reservations around January 1, 2004. Betty and I got this idea while vacationing there last year from several other family and friend groups that were staying near our rental beach home.
Hatteras Island is a popular reunion/group vacation spot for several reasons but probably the biggest reason is the pristine, un-crowded 70 miles of beach with no high-rise hotels, resorts, shopping malls, fast food joints, or endless lines of traffic. In fact, development is prohibited within the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. There are more seagulls than people. The only built up areas are within the villages of: Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, Avon, Buxton, Frisco and Hatteras. There is only 1 two-lane road that runs the length of the island (NC 12). That makes it darn near impossible to get lost - if you stop and ask directions from a local resident, they are likely to give you a strange look and say “Uhhh, well, it’s off 12.”
All living accommodations are family beach homes. These houses are huge, and most can accommodate 2 (and some 3 or more) families. Most with 3 to 10 bedrooms, 2 to 10 bathrooms, large living rooms with fully equipped entertainment centers, game rooms, outdoor decks - many with views of the ocean and sound, 6 person hot tubs, many with free access to community pool, some have a private pool on premises, and fully equipped (some gourmet) kitchens so you don’t have to spend a large part of your vacation budget on eating out for every meal all week long. You should bring most of your groceries with you from home. Believe it or not, shopping trips to the Food Lion in Avon, the only grocery store on the entire 55-mile long island, will become one of your fondest memories of Hatteras Island. All of the beach homes are within very easy walking distance of the beach or Pamlico Sound. In fact most of the island is less than ½ mile wide.
Hatteras Island has all the attractions (and a lot more) of other beach resort areas like Myrtle Beach without the crowds and at a lower cost:
· The Beach: swimming, surfing, kite surfing, shell hunting, sand castles, surf fishing, bon fires, and sunrise walks.
· The Sound: fishing, boating, dolphin cruises, bird watching, and wind surfing.
· The Villages: museums, shopping, Victorian gardens, aquarium, lighthouses, outdoor dramas, hang gliding, fishing piers, and restaurants.
· The Inlets: charter boat fishing, surf fishing, car ferry to Ocracoke Island, and boating.
Here are some web links to look over:
Welcome to the Outer Banks. This is the best web site take your time and explore all its pages!
Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. America’s Lighthouse, the granddaddy of them all.
Insiders' Guide® North Carolina's Outer Banks, 24th Edition
Outer Banks Travelogue (Outer Banks, North Carolina)
The Sentinel. Local newspaper.
Hatteras Island Vacation Rentals/ Hatteras Realty
Howard's Pub - Ocracoke Island, NC. You have to make at least one stop here! The trouble is, you can only get there by boat (ok so, it’s a NCDOT car ferry). Just remember the last ferry for Hatteras Island leaves at midnight.
Driving time from stark county is approximately 9½ hrs. Most beach homes rent for 1-week intervals from Saturday to Saturday. Most rental companies consider mid June to be pre-season and rent homes at a significant discount. Mid June is also the calm weather time of year: temps average 80 to 85, Atlantic Ocean 74 and Pamlico Sound 80. There is a constant 10mph southwesterly breeze.
For the best selection of homes we should make reservations no later than January 1 2004. Most rental companies require ½ of the rental price be paid within 10 days of making a reservation. The balance is due 30 to 45 days before arrival. Surf or Sound Realty is the only agency that will accept a credit card. We used them last year and their service is excellent. On the other hand, all Hatteras Realty customers have free access to their huge swimming pool, tennis courts, children’s program, gourmet cooking classes, and conference center. I have ordered 2004 rental catalogs from both of these agencies but information on all of their properties is also available on line at the links above.
We are taking S/V Patriot with us, if the paint is dry and the rigging works.
http://www.oocities.org/stevenhunt9384@sbcglobal.net/ErieFleet.jpg
Steve &
Betty Hunt
S/V Patriot
Fair winds and calm seas!
