Weekend Getaway

Charlie and I went to Southport the weekend before Easter. It was the first time we'd taken a trip without the kids since December 2006, when we celebrated our 12th anniversary.

We left Friday, April 11th, and came home on Monday, April 14th. We wanted to stay at a B&B or the Riverside Motel, but they were all booked. So, we stayed further inland at the Comfort Suites.

We ate at Ship's Chandler the first night. I love the views of the river and nearby islands from the restaurant. The food wasn't as good as it normally is, but it was still good. Certainly better than any seafood in Greensboro.

On Saturday, after eating breakfast at Locals, we took the ferry over to Ft. Fisher to go to the butterfly house at the aquarium. It's a new attraction and we really enjoyed it.

The green butterflies (emerald swallowtail) were my favorite.

After taking the ferry back to Southport, we got ice cream at an ice cream shop in the yacht basin and then went to Caswell Beach, but didn't stay long because there were too many people for my liking. I prefer having the beach to myself. Or at least no more than about 5 or 6 other people. I normally go in the early evening (5-6:00) for this reason, but we were there around 4:00 and that's too early if you don't want to share the beach with a dozen or more people.

We spent most of Sunday (after eating breakfast at Locals) browsing the shops downtown. One of our favorite stores is Ocean Outfitters. Charlie got a couple T-shirts (Southport & Salt Life) and a Salt Life sticker for his Nova. I got a Southport T-shirt, a Salt Life sticker for my car, and a sign with the words "Southport Where Memories are Made" painted on it. I got a pretty throw pillow (Life is Better on the Beach) and Southport, NC, flag at Bullfrog Corner.

We also picked up a few things for the kids while we were in Southport - Oak Island T-shirts, a Tar Heel beach towel for Sean, a stuffed tiger cub for Kelly. I got another Southport T-shirt at a drug store and an Oak Island T-shirt at one of the beach stores for myself.

After shopping, we spent some time at Waterfront Park and then went to "The Point" on Oak Island.

 
For supper that night, we ate at Fishy Fishy Cafe in the yacht basin. We had never eaten there before, but I'd heard that the food is good. I always order fried flounder when I eat seafood. Fishy Fishy Cafe has the  best fried flounder I've ever eaten in my life. It tasted so fresh and fishy (in a good way) and the crust was crunchy and tasty. I couldn't get over how good it was. I wish Southport was a lot closer because I've craved Fishy Fishy Cafe's fried flounder many times since coming back home.

Charlie and I ate at one of their outdoor tables. We loved the view of the river, the intracoastal waterway, the yacht basin, Oak Island, and Oak Island lighthouse. There were just two things I didn't like about Fishy Fishy Cafe - the fries were too soft and they don't have fried clams. Other than that, excellent restaurant.

Monday, April 14th, we ate breakfast at Locals one more time (I love their French toast) and took the ferry to Ft. Fisher. (We wanted to go to Caswell Beach again, but there were way too many people there, so we didn't even stop.) From there we drove to Wilmington and rode the horse-drawn trolley. It was a nice way to end our weekend away.

Favorite Vacation Pictures

Of the vacation pictures I have uploaded to my computer, these are my favorites. This will be a long entry, but it will be mostly pictures. We didn't get our digital camera until after our vacation in 2005, so these will start with 2006.

June 2006

Sean (age 9) on the balcony of our hotel room in Topsail Beach, NC.

Cockscomb at the Ft. Fisher Aquarium in Ft. Fisher, NC.

Reeds at Ft. Fisher Aquarium.

Sago Palm at Ft. Fisher Aquarium.

Kelly (age 6) on a train at the Railroad Museum in Wilmington, NC.

Sean (age 9) on the same train, other side.

Fixin' to go on a boat tour of the sound.

In a "beaver dam" at the Cape Fear Museum of History and Science in Wilmington.

Kennan Fountain in downtown Wilmington.

Bellamy Mansion in downtown Wilmington.

Fixin' to go fishin' with Daddy.

Topsail Beach, NC.

June 2007

Kelly (age 7) crossing the bridge from the Elizabeth II on Roanoke Island, NC.

Sean (age 10) on the same bridge.

Hydrangea at the Roanoke Island Festival Park , outside the museum, in Manteo.

Bodie (pronounced "body") Island Lighthouse on the Outer Banks.

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, the Outer Banks.

Taken from our hotel room balcony in Kill Devil Hills, NC.

The Whalehead Club in Corolla (cuh-RAH-luh), the Outer Banks. That's an osprey nest on the far left chimney.

Kelly throwing rocks into Currituck Sound in Corolla at the Whalehead Club.

Currituck Lighthouse and the Whalehead Club boathouse in Corolla.

Sean on the footbridge near the Whalehead Club. Currituck Sound behind him.

Trees at the end of the footbridge.

Watching a man catching crabs.


At the Roanoke Island Aquarium. We like the one in Ft. Fisher best.

At the Roanoke Island Aquarium. Possibly Croatan Sound behind him, and Manns Harbor Bridge in the distance.

Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse in Manteo, NC.

The Elizabeth II in Manteo. Taken from the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse.

Jockey's Ridge, Outer Banks. Tallest sand dune on the east coast.

Feeding the seagulls while waiting for the ferry to come that would take us from Ft. Fisher to Southport.

Peeping into the car.

Seagulls, aka Laughing Gulls. I love the way they sound.

On the ferry to Southport, on the Cape Fear River. You can barely make out the islands that separate the river from the Atlantic Ocean on the horizon.

Looking out across the Cape Fear River in Southport towards Bald Head Island.

Water lily inside the Ft. Fisher Aquarium.

June 2008

Sean (11) and Kelly (8) at PJs where we eat breakfast when we're in Southport.

Sean fishing with Charlie on Southport Pier.

Alleyway in Southport. Looking towards the river.

Southport Pier. Charlie and the kids are center, near the lamp. Oak Island Lighthouse in the background.

Cape Fear River/Intracoastal Waterway. Taken from the Oak Island Bridge.

In the hotel pool.

April 2009

Sean (12) and Charlie fixin' to go fishin' on Southport Pier. Kelly and I browsed the shops.

Not sure what this is called. It's some kind of marker. Southport Pier in the background.



Ft. Johnston on the Southport waterfront.

Tree-lined W. West St., looking towards the marina and PJs.

Kelly (9) standing along the Southport waterfront at Waterfront Park and near Ship's Chandler Restaurant, now called the Cape Fear Restaurant.

At the hotel pool, which being April, it was almost always empty.

Dolphins at Caswell Beach, NC.

Back at the pool.

An azalea bush in the Old Smithville Burying Ground, an old cemetery in Southport.

Eating ice cream at Frosty's on Oak Island.

At Frosty's. "Peace out."

We really enjoy going to the coast every year. Especially Southport, where I lived as a little girl. I don't know if we'll be going this year or not. The thought of not going makes me sad. It's a beautiful, peaceful area and vacationing there is the highlight of our year.