Part III: Ocracoke

Hi-ho, hi-ho it's off to Ocracoke we go! The final leg of our journey was about to commence and I don't think Ocracoke knew what was in store when the Sanger's and BLT's arrived!

On the way down to Ocracoke we drove down Highway 12 which drives through the Outerbanks and is a beautiful drive, especially when the sun is shining! We took two detours on the trip to see a few lighthouses.

First up, Bodie Island Lighthouse and Keeper's house


Next up on the lighthouse tour was the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse


We continued the trip to the ferry docks where we queued up in line for our trip over to Ocracoke. While we were waiting we thought it might be a good idea to break in the boards that Scott and I got for Heather and Jason to see if they might have a little "home field advantage". You see there is finally a team that we all agree to route for, besides we were cheering for the Durham Bulls but we got blamed that they didn't win, so we knew that we were going to get some Duke boards for them.



The lines starting to move onto the ferry so we did a quick Zamboni clean up and onto the ferry we went.

A few pics from ferry



Once on the island of Ocracoke, we drove to our B&B villa for the duration of the trip, The Castle B&B.


After settling into our digs, we headed out on our beach cruisers for a guided tour of the island. First stop was lunch though since we were all starving! A recurring theme starting from lunch which was that Jason and Scott were wearing Boston and Yankees gear, respectively. People kept asking, "You two are friends?". We had a good laugh with all the commentary around that. So here is a photo op of the two boys in their gear.


We explored the rest of the island that afternoon with stops at the lighthouse, Blackbeard's beach for some shells, crab hunting and a few pictures.

After working up a sweat on the beach, well not really, but some parched mouths, it was time to grab some coffee at Ocracoke Coffee Shop. This place was packed but had some damn good coffee. Heather and I ordered the drinks in which the guys wanted the mother of all frappachino like drinks. The lady asks if we want whip cream on them and Heather says no and I say yes. Fast forward now to drinks in hand and Jason asks where his whip cream is and Heather says, "I didn't order any for you." That started what Jason called the downfall of the coffee since he went back and asked for whip cream, they had to change the cup his drink was then in which had chocolate sauce down the side and now said new cup did not. Needless to say, Jason is enjoying the mother of all frappachino drinks WITH whip cream as well as Scott. Heather and I settled with iced coffee...see simple. The relaxing life we had!

We headed back to the villa in order to prep for our dinner festivities on the beach. We loaded up in our car with firewood in the trunk, beach chairs, blanket, beer, wine, and our dinner to be cooked on the fire.

The guys set out to find a bit more driftwood, if possible, since after getting all the wood from our car to the beach, Jason thought we would need more since it would burn pretty quickly with the ocean breeze.



The fire was started and we were settling in quite nicely!


Hazy view of the sunset



Hot Dogs were being roasted on an open fire!



We were starting to get some admirer's of our campfire. If you click on the photo you will see some crabs that wanted to come join our little party we had.



Smores time with our Escazu chocolates we bought in Raleigh.


Here is where things start getting interesting since we didn't have a flashlight, there are crabs all around us and we are starting to take photos. See they don't look too bad a little blurry at times but not too bad.





This is where I think the guys were trying to pull a fast one on Heather and I. This is a string of photos that I put into a video to show the constant movement that Heather and I were doing so that we could not get eaten by the crabs.

The next day, we had a nice day at the beach and then got back on our old trusty bikes and headed out for another coffee. Yes the guys both got another mammoth frozen drink with whipped cream on top and chocolate chips.

After that I wanted to go check out the British Cemetery so we headed further down the road and I put on the breaks when I saw this place, Zillie's. I popped the bike in the rack and went inside to pursue....or the guys did.

After a glass of wine/beer on the porch of Zillie's and some 6-packs to go....is that legal? We headed off for the British Cemetery.

We pulled into the cemetery and in about two minutes after that Jason says, "I don't think this is my bike." We are all standing there like "huh....you STOLE some one's bike", he quickly rode off back to Zillie's to retrieve his bike while we walked around the cemetery.

One recovered bike and time to head back to get ready for campfire number 2.

Scott and I headed to the general store for stuff for dinner while Heather and Jason went to pick up some fresh fish for our fish taco dinner. After we buy the groceries but forgot the firewood, Scott and I head back in and ask to buy a few bundles of wood and the cashier asks us what we are up to and this is where the problem starts

Scott says: Just having a fire on the beach tonight.

Cashier: You know they are banned right now due to the heat?

Scott: Since when?

Cashier: Awhile, just like the rest of the OBX beaches.

Scott: Oh, ok. Thanks for your help.

After we got back to the villa and broke the news, we felt satisfied that we had a nice 6 hour fire the night before and that not a sole in sight said anything to us!

So we improvised with fish tacos on the charcoal grill at the villa. We pulled it off well with a sundowner on the deck, fish tacos for dinner and a game in the villa afterward.

Day three, was a repeat of Day 2 but with Heather and I going out shopping at the local stores and the guys watching the baseball and taking a little nap. We caught back up with them at home and then headed back out for Zillie's then home for a sundowner again with a few photo ops, where we tested out the timer on the camera!

After a nice meal out that night we bid farewell to our bikes and called it a night. We had a bite to eat in the am and headed out for the ferry back over to the Hatteras. We said our goodbye's until next time. We had a wonderful trip with Heather and Jason and absolutely agree that Ocracoke is one of the best places on earth.

I am finishing this post up on the night that they are evacuating Ocracoke as Hurricane Irene is supposed to be making her way up the coast. I sure hope they don't get hit hard.

Arts & Crafty Beer

Now that you have been reacquainted with the BLT's, it is time to move on to our next adventure on the trip. NC Craft Beers.

The day truly started off with a trip to a new artisan chocolate shop/maker, Escazu, to pick up some fine chocolates to make some smores on the beach one night. We did end up picking up a few chocolate bars as well as a few chocolates to sample right there. I mean who can resist the smell of chocolate and these delicacies below?





With a few chocolates in our belly's, we headed off for some proper lunch at Busy Bee Cafe. Now that our skinny bitches were full, we could think a little better and it was time to get our drink on. First stop, The Raleigh Wine Shop, to pick up some provisions for our trip to the beach. With a few bottles of Vinho Verde, White and Rose picked out we headed back to the Sanger household to finish off preparations for our trip to the beach.


Just before dinner time, Heather had booked a private tour of Big Boss Brewery for the four of us and three of Jason's co-workers. When Scott and I first came to Raleigh back in April, I had sampled a few of Big Boss's finest and truly enjoyed them. We gathered at their bar and we were all given a pint of any beer we chose. As our glasses were emptying they must have thought we all looked parched and filled them up again!!

















Big Boss got the names of their beers from old airplane nicknames, hence the signs with all of the ladies on them.
















Now it was time to start the tour of the brewery itself. We were lead downstairs into the heart, heat, of the brewery. We were introduced to the brew master whom started talking about the process of making beer, etc. What was really funny was that on his computer screen was a YouTube video of the Royal Wedding. I don't know maybe he has a thing for Pippa?





















I love the look of their labels on the beer. They are vintage looking with their colors and style.

After we finished off the tour, it was time to pose for a photo or two.














We proceeded back to Busy Bee's Cafe so Jason could get his hands on a Basil Farmhouse cask beer made with Thai basil. That was the real purpose of our lunch trip but you see it didn't get brought out until 6pm. We scurried back there and bellied up to the bar so the guys could try a pint of the Basil beer. It was time to get some grub, so where better to go than another brewery, Boylan Bridge Brewpub. This time with a view that overlooks downtown Raleigh!



We woke up the next morning with orders that we had to be on the road at 9:30am to make our private tour at Duck-Rabbit. Scott and I got our car packed and I helped Heather get some of their stuff in the car, while Jason was typing up a work email. I think in the time he first told Heather he would be done with it in 5 minutes, that he actually wrote a novel and got it published, or maybe it just seemed that way. Needless to say, Jason was showered, packed and in the car at 9:28am so kudos to him until he had to go back into the apt and grab his work laptop. We hit the road and made great time to Duck-Rabbit and were greeted by our tour guide right at 11am! Duck-Rabbit is a very small craft brewery but makes some damn good beers! Unfortunately for Scott and I you can't buy them in New Jersey so Heather and Jason when you guys are up in this neck of the woods you will have to bring a few with you!

We had a brief tour of the brewery and got to meet one of their brew masters, who happens to be from Cornwall. Such a small world. We were told how brewing is as much of an art as a science.




After a quick chat with the brew master, we were guided to their new tasting room which has not been opened yet and therefore making us the first guests to sit at the bar and do a tasting. We asked quite a few questions, made small talk with our guide and enjoyed a few productions made by the brew master with him.
































And of course we got to test out our pouring skills behind the bar. What do you mean the taps don't work???






























During our conversation with our guide and the brew master, Jason started to enquire about working at said brewery since one of the perks is free beer. Then we got into their website/social media updates, etc. and Heather was then named Queen of Social Media for Duck-Rabbit.

Here is the Queen making her first pose.

We headed out for one last photo op.

We thanked them for an awesome tour, by far the best tour we have been on. We were given a little bit of advice for lunch as we were leaving and decided we would hit it up, if we were lucky enough to get there before they ran out. We arrived at B's Barbecue in Greenville, NC and walked up to the window at the side of the building and said "2 small and 2 large please". The guys response was "Plate or Dinner". We said "2 plates and 2 dinners please."

We were all smiles when we opened up our containers of lunch and found this yummy goodness.

So now not only did we have the best beer tour we have now just hit the jackpot of barbecue in North Carolina too! B's was an old gas station that was bought and then transformed into a barbecue joint. They cook 8 pigs a day and when they run out, the run out, which is normally around 1pm. Glad we made it since it was delicious! B's barbecue is also on the NC BBQ Trail, which I subsequently found out.

Food coma had sunk in and it was time to hit the road for our 3 hour drive to the Weeping Radish Brewery. We were in a bit of a rush since it closed at 4pm and if calculations worked in our favor we would be there with 20 minutes to spare. Just enough time to grab a beer. We hit the road and headed to the coast. We got there with plenty of time to spare since they actually don't close until 5pm and even that is open ended since they stay open if there are people in there.



We ordered a flight for each of us and sampled away. By far there was no comparison to these beers versus Big Boss and Duck-Rabbit but when in Rome do as the Romans do and finish your beer.

We left Weeping Radish and headed off to our B&B for the night, which was a lady's home that was opened to us for the night. We found her home got settled into our rooms and headed out for dinner to the Outerbanks Brewing Station. We found some seats at the bar, had dinner and then headed outside to enjoy a game of cornhole, BLT's vs. Sanger's. I will add that the BLT's were victorious which makes up for our washer toss loss back in April to them.

Team BLT: 1

Team Sanger: 1

After good food, drinks, music and a cornhole game we headed for a walk on the beach before headed back to the B&B. Back at the B&B we decided it was too early for bed so we got out the scrabble board and got into a game.

The game got a little serious when I challenged Jason's word of "ID" as being an abbreviation and not a word. It was time to set off and look for a dictionary in this house. Scott hit the ladder and pondered where the dictionary might be and Jason looked around the rest of the downstairs for the dictionary too. Heather took to the camera and I just sat in amusement!


Jason won the battle with ID, won the game of scrabble and we called it a night.

Next up- Part 3 Ocracoke

Meet the BLT's

Road trip started a little later than expected due to Scott putting in lots of OT the last few days (including Saturday) leading up to vacation. We hit the road first thing on Sunday with a nice cup of Joe and a bagel and headed south on 95 for Richmond.

Scott is a history buff and he wanted to visit The Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond so that was the first stop on the leg of the journey.

We were greeted outside the museum by this lovely fish depicting (l to r) Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson and J.E.B. Stuart.

Inside the museum, we took a self-guided tour, probably for the better, about 90% of the museum was flags and clothes from the Confederate soldiers, Confederate Battle Flags and some Official Confederate Flags.

The flag below was the Headquarters Flag of General Robert E. Lee and was made by his wife and his daughters. The flag is the Confederate First National pattern bearing the distinctive "bread of life" star pattern. This flag was used at Lee's headquarters from June 1862 to July 1863.

The flag below was the 3rd Official Flag of the Confederacy. The only change to this flag from the 2nd Official Flag was the addition of the red strip on the end so that it could be seeing when flown.

This is the flag of the 2nd Florida Infantry, Co. C called the Columbia Rifles.

We hit the road after some strolling through Richmond and headed to Durham, N.C. to have dinner and spend the night with my brother's best friend and his family. We had a wonderful evening with them and got to catch up with them and see their new home.

Monday we got up and took their kids to the playground then out to lunch with the kids and Steph (my brother's best friend's wife). We had a lovely lunch, said our good bye's and then headed to the Basketball mecca of the U.S., Duke University.

First stop:

From here, Scott was nothing but in heaven. We got to go inside the stadium and walk through the Duke Hall of Fame.

We continued the self-guided walking tour of the campus and went to the Duke Chapel. It is breathtaking from the inside. I wasn't expecting it to be as elaborate and ornate as it was on the inside but the details were just gorgeous. Renovations were starting so we got to take a few pictures and you can see for yourself the gem that it is.

It was time to hit the road and go meet Heather and Jason for an evening of good 'ole baseball. We got settled in at their place and caught up briefly and hit the road for dinner at a new Burger "hot spot", aka Bull City Burger and Beer.

I love their little wagon behind the door that they use for deliveries! By the way that door is not a door so I am unsure what it actually is. Any ideas?

It was raining a bit off and on all day so we were unsure of the timing of the Durham Bulls game so settled in for dinner and a few drinks before the game. There was one item in particular that jumped out to me for dinner and only for the topping that was on it. Pimento Burger! Heather introduced us to Pimento cheese at our last outing together when we tailgated for the Canes vs. Sabres game and it was instant love. I am a huge cheese fan, I mean raised in the mid-west who wouldn't be? You can't find Pimento cheese up North, or maybe I have never looked for it or just bypassed it not knowing what it was, but you can bet your butt I will be looking for it now....thanks Heather! Scott started laughing when he asked what I was getting and told Heather and Jason that when we got in the car in NJ to drive down, I told him "I can't wait to have some Pimento cheese." So I had my first Pimento cheese on the trip and it was so good. I think I have found a new burger topping now, if I can find it in New Jersey.

There was a little bit of competition amongst the 4 of us when I asked what the "CFOH" stood for underneath one of their t-shirts that had BCBB (Bull City Burger and Brew). Scott jumps in with "Come for our Hops". Hmmm good guess but I was thinking no way that could be it. I started looking at the menu and said "Certified Fresh Organic Hamburgers". Another good guess only to be confirmed the winner by the brew master himself when he delivered our dinner.

We headed off to the game and were a bit sceptical when the parking lot attendant told us to just go through and park the car, aka not pay for parking. I mean really, it is only misting. We headed into the ballpark and it was on a rain delay, so we grabbed a beer and headed to the seats just as they were taking the tarp off the field. Game time!!!

We had the BEST seats in the house not only because there were fans above us but because we had the best fans behind us. I mean the best fans your could ever imagine, mom's braiding their daughters hair, kids who didn't want to be at the game and the icing on the cake fan, the loudest fan out there who made you laugh the whole game. I mean she was looking forward to the 7th inning for the YMCA when we were only in the 2nd inning. Priorities I guess. I am sure Heather will post a video of some of the commentary that Jason caught of her. The kicker was that Scott thought it was a dude the whole time until the end of the game when we all were talking about she and he then realized it was a chick. Good one dear! The Bulls didn't fair too well in the game with a Loss to Toledo of 2-6. However, Heather did get to see her man, J. Furmaniak, hit a homer and the dancing started.

We headed back to see if we could catch the end of the Sox game and sure enough it was on a rain delay so we got settled in on the couch and watched till the bottom of the 12th inning and called it a night to only resume the rest of the game in the morning over breakfast. The Sox lost in the 14th inning and the Tune's at that point received a new name. The Bad Luck Tune's or for short The BLT's. You see every time we have been with Heather and Jason there is a sporting event involved. First Devils vs. Canes (Canes lost), next up was Canes vs. Sabres (Canes lost), then Durham Bulls and even though we were cheering for the Bulls (Bulls lost), Sox game (Sox lost).

So without further ado let me introduce you to the BLT's

Next stop is NC Craft Brewery tours!

The Aftermath

We are back from our road trip to North Carolina and back to the grind, work that is. We had a wonderful time catching up with friends, seeing new sites, tasting some wonderful craft beers and all in all just having a great time! I am working on getting up post 1 of the trip but need an all important audio clip from Scott so you can get a full appreciation of an event. I am hoping to get it wrapped up tonight.

In other news, Scott officially started as a FT employee with pwc yesterday! In bad news, we were welcomed home to a Hornet that is trying to burrow underground in our backyard. My belief is that this happened because Bailey, our dog, has been at my parents house since we were heading on vacation and otherwise I don't think a hornet would have chosen that particular location to nest. My brother in-law, Ryan, called Scott on vacation to tell him that he thought we had hornets and Scott said, "Well get rid of them." Ryan I will say is a bit of a baby when it comes to that stuff since said Hornet was still flying around when we got home. So I told Scott let's go out and do what is suggested to get rid of them, pour gasoline down their hole in the ground at night and then they will die, you dig up the nest and no more hornets. We geared up in long pants, jackets and glasses went outside on a mission to kill said hornet (since only one has been spotted). We poured gas down the holes we could find after dusk when the hornet should be in the holes and wouldn't you know it in the morning the hornet was still there. The damn thing must not have been in the hole.

Fast forward to last night when Ryan and I were playing soccer with Bailey, her favorite sport, and I asked Scott to get a shovel and let's just dig up the nest and get rid of it once and for all. He starts digging and nothing is in the ground. I mean not one inkling of any sort of nest, life, etc there just a lingering smell of gas. He puts the dirt back and the damn hornet comes back to the area where Scott just started digging. We have a Japanese fly swatter, which is plastic tennis racket that is electric (see picture below), and Scott takes a swing at the hornet and it hits the racket and the hornet goes down. Scott was doing a bit of a victory dance when the hornet then gets back up and flies away. We were defeated.

I woke up this morning and there he was again, flying around the same area. I grabbed the racket and headed outside to finally kill the thing. Needless to say my tennis skills I think need improving since I didn't get him and he is I am sure now wondering what this Chocolate colored dog is now doing in his territory. Bailey is now on patrol for the day and I hope she fends him off. If he is still around when we get home tonight he is toast. I am sick of seeing him fly around and need him GONE.