Tag Archives: Beach

Tropical Storm Isaac Delivers Swell to Surf City

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It’s the time of year when I keep one eye on the tropics for potential surf-generating storms. I’ll glance at the Atlantic Ocean swell models a few times a week and see if it’s time wax up the surfboard for a coastal get-away. This week was no different, except there are two reasons to further investigate: Tropical Storm Isaac and Tropical Depression Joyce.

Wave height forecast from TS Isaac via MagicSeaWeed.com

Towards the end of last week, I was seeing some favorable conditions in the forecast. At first, it looked like Joyce was going to deliver this coming Tuesday, but more recent swell models have changed. However, on Friday, the forecast was looking good for the weekend. It looked like long-period swell would be arriving in North Carolina starting on Saturday. I was zeroing in on Topsail Island. Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day Eight – Pea Island

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Pea IslandThis was our last full day on the Outer Banks for the week of Fourth of July. I can’t believe our week on the beach flew by this fast. We had a blast. For our last day, we decided to take a trip South to Pea Island. After a long night seeing Southern Culture on the Skids, we were up fairly early and heading for a full day on Hatteras Island. Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day Seven – SCOTS

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After a great recovery day, today was going to be a scorcher! We had an outline for our day, but no firm plans other than a few hours of work this afternoon and a concert tonight. We wanted to get to the beach early, then get off the sand before it got into the high 90’s. We were heading to Port ‘O Call this evening to see Southern Culture on the Skids (SCOTS).

We grabbed a quick breakfast and headed over to Raleigh Avenue for a few hours in the sun. We kept it pretty minimal today. Zander was skim boarding, Merri Beth and I were in our beach chairs. The sun was shining and the wind was light out of the West. The water was beautiful. We were on the beach for a few hours, then headed back to the beach house. Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day Six – FOJ Recovery

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We had an awesome Fourth of July on the Outer Banks. It’s got to be my favorite holiday. When else can you hang out on the beach all day, enjoy a few beers, then see some awesome fireworks after a long day in the sun and surf? Memorial Day and Labor Day come close, but FOJ is where it’s at.

On day six of our vacation on the beach, we were planning on relaxing at the pool for a few hours. But just as we were getting ready to leave the house, I noticed some smoke coming from the Sound. At first, I thought it was a storm, but upon further inspection, it was smoke from a marsh fire near Collington. Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day Five – Fourth of July

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View from the beach chairOops, we slept in today. Not typical for us. We were out a little later than expected last night at Elizabeth’s Cafe. We’re usually pretty eager to get on the beach early on the Fourth of July. Merri Beth, Zander, and I managed to get to the beach by 11:00 am—not too bad considering our lack of alarm clock.

We packed up the Jeep, lunch included, and headed out. At first, I was thinking Nags Head would be the spot. But as we drove down the beach road, the beach accesses were packed. We turned around and headed back to Kill Devil Hills for the day. We found a great spot that just had a few cars at it. Within the next two hours, it was full. We got lucky. Continue reading →

Marsh Fire Smoking Out Outer Banks

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The family was getting ready to head to the pool for the day and while letting the dogs out around 10:30 am, I noticed large billows of smoke. At first, I thought it was a storm, but then it looked like a bomb had exploded in the air. The smoke was coming from the Sound so we hopped in the Jeep and headed to Bay Drive for further inspection.

According to WAVY-TV 10, “A marsh fire burning in Colington Harbor on the Outer Banks of North Carolina was reportedly sparked by fireworks.” Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day Four – Wine in Duck and Geeking Out

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Elizabeth's CafeWe geeked out today. There’s no question about it. After my morning run, I booted up the laptop to find a mini disaster that took up most of my morning. Merri Beth decided to log in for a half-day of work. Meanwhile, Zander kept himself occupied with a variety of games and activities. It felt like we wasted a great beach day staying inside, velcroed to the Internet, but it ended up being much better than that. Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day Three – Snorkeling and Sand Forts

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Great beach viewWow! A great day on the Outer Banks. The ocean was fully cooperating and the weather was almost perfect. My day started off with a 5.7 mile run from the house to the Wright Brothers Memorial. I was up around 6:00 am and hitting the pavement before the sun took it’s full toll on the other runners and bikers out on Bay Drive. I had a great run considering the Summer conditions. A beautiful run with some great views. Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day Two – A Day at the Pool

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Surf Check with ZanderIt was HOT today. No question about it. We enjoyed a full day at the beach yesterday, but not today. Being on the Outer Banks helped us forget about the heat for a while. We slept in today, and enjoyed every minute of it.

After some breakfast, Zander and I biked over to check the surf and the beach conditions at First Street. By 9:00 am, it was already steamy. There was some small surf, but nothing worth getting the board out for. We had big plans to hang out at the pool for the day. Continue reading →

Life in Board Shorts Day One – Outer Banks Style

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heading to Norfolk

Heading to Norfolk

Our 10-day vacation on the Outer Banks started last night when the family flew to Norfolk after a week in Boston for the Red Hat Summit and JBoss World. We landed just in time to experience some 5-o’clock traffic in Hampton Roads area of Virginia. We took our time and eventually made our way to Kill Devil Hills, NC for the evening.

Along the way, we stopped in Currituck at a local produce stand to get some fresh fruit and veggies. We walked out with blueberries, peaches, plums, squash, zucchini, and sweet corn. On the way towards KDH, we wanted to grab dinner at Weeping Radish, but they were closed when we passed. Bummer! Instead, we got some Mexican at La Fogata in Kitty Hawk. Continue reading →