Beyond Exit 95 on Interstate 95

Beaufort  

An absolutely beautiful morning had us eager to get outside and complete a few final (for now) boat projects. As we worked in the cockpit, Town Creek was busy with all modes of water travel. A kayak passed alongside a waterman while sailboats departed the anchorage and center consoles headed toward Beaufort Inlet. A large mosquito was even a welcome site at this time of year. With chores, showers, and lunch done, we were off to our destination of Smithfield, NC.  New signs of the changing seasons were everywhere. Roadside displays touting a bridal fair and pork-cookin' challenge battled for our attention with blooming forsythia, red buds, and Bradford pear trees. Boats were lined up at the launch ramp awaiting their time to get in the water. I did some quick research and identified three stops to make before our final destination. First up, lured by a Roadside America review as being "epic," was Dinosaur Skeleton Sculptures in Pikeville. The 30-foot T-Rex was the first installation and easily spotted on the horizon. This sculpture garden is located on the property of Benton & Sons, a company that specializes in heavy steel and stainless steel sheet fabrication. 

Over the past 15 years the number of dinosaurs have increased, other species have been added to the display, and a side venture in retail has evolved. I walked around and gawked at hundreds of items, noting that some were covered wrapped in lights. Pleasantly surprised, we moved on to the next stop.

This stop came to us through Trip Advisor. I doubt we could have found this place without the help of Google maps. Multiple turns finally terminated in a cul-de-sac. Contradictory messages met us as the directional arrow stood only slightly higher than the private property and no trespassing signs. Wild Bill's Western Town Shadowhawk is a replica of a Wild West town built in 1997 by former Hollywood actor Bill Drake in his large back yard. We're still not convinced that the place was officially open, but two gentlemen and a rooster welcomed us and told us to walk the "street" and take some pictures and that's what we did. (Side note: the rooster immediately transported me to The Bahamas with memories of their 24-hour a day crowing in Rock Sound and Governor's Harbour.) Over the years, this recreation of the past has served as a set for movies and as a wedding venue. We stopped by the saloon (complete with piano), ... 

... chapel (with rules posted at the door, and beautiful pews), and a few other buildings. From certain angles, the vintage vibe was still strong. All that took about 10 minutes. We passed through the authentic swinging doors and hit the road again.

We advanced still closer to our destination and stopped in downtown Smithfield at the Ava Gardner Museum. Other than recognizing her name and the titles of some of her more famous movies, I didn't know squat about the native of Grabtown, NC, located seven miles east of Smithfield. A nice sign in Historic Downtown Smithfield marked the location. Free on-street parking right in front on the elegant building was a bonus. We arrived at 4:00 and the museum closed at 4:30. The sweet docent explained that that have over 500 exhibits and it usually takes folks a couple of hours to see everything along with the film. We were skeptical, but soon became converts. This museum was beautiful and well-lit, the exhibits comprehensive and beautiful. I'd even venture to say they were of Smithsonian quality.   

I was shocked by the number and greatness of her A-list costars (Gregory Peck, Burt Lancaster, Humphrey Bogart, tons more) and husbands (Mickey Rooney, Artie Shaw, Frank Sinatra). In the end we could have easily stayed much longer. Barry had set an alarm so that we would exit before closing and we did. A large mural on the side of the museum was just as elegant as the museum. 

We walked along East Market Street, the main thoroughfare and spotted the clock. Extra credit was awarded for accurate time, but was then negated by a significant deduction for not having the town name displayed. The artwork on the Evans Jewelers building and a statue in front of the library received extra attention. After circling the block we hopped in the Escape and moved on to our ultimate destination of the day. For most folks, Smithfield is "Exit 95 off of Interstate 95" at the Carolina Premium Outlets. Thankfully for us, there are also several restaurants that made for an easy meet-up with dear friends Chris and Gina as they traveled home from Florida and back to New Jersey. We had driven to Roanoke Rapids a month ago for a similar meeting and lamented about not having enough time to visit. How happy we were to be able to coordinate catching them again. We visited for several hours before eventually saying goodbye until summer. They drove on to Roanoke Rapids for the night and we headed back to Beaufort.

Even though it was late, we still made a 20-minute detour to see the dinosaur sculptures lit up at night. What a cool display. Rain began to fall soon thereafter and we made it back to the boat just before midnight. Sorry for the late post, but sleep was calling my name.