Epilogue

Glen Allen  

 I felt the need for one last post to complete the story of our 2024 Winter Cruise. Our first day back in Deltaville was warm and beautiful. We walked down the Bradford tree-line driveway to get my car out of storage. I happily took my chair to Fiberglass Beach and read for several hours in the afternoon. Besides being disappointed about cutting our trip short, I also missed the time sitting in the sun with a good book. I did not finish a single one and will make catching up a summer priority. At 4:00 we packed a few things in the car and headed home. We did not do much at the house other than turn on the water and get some sleep. I did, however, spot the blooms beginning to show in my azalea beside the garage door.

First thing Friday, we hit the road again for Beaufort to pick up Barry's Escape. We've made the trip several times, but it seems Google has routed us differently on each. A quick detour was made in New Bern to get lunch and stretch our legs. We made up for the fact that we failed to get a selfie with one of the New Bern Bears. A new feature since our last visit was the thick layer of pine pollen atop EVERYTHING. We still had plenty of afternoon ahead of us when we reached Morehead City so we stopped at Atlantic Beach. Hello, Wind. This area would not be the same without you. It was warm (Yay!) and we were thankful to finally walk this stretch without coats. One thing for sure, Chicago has nothing on this area of North Carolina.   

It was excellent closure to take another stroll toward the pier. It was a nice touch to see real footprints in the sand. The sea foam had a mysterious iridescence. The shorebirds walked along with us.

We walked from the public access beach well past the pier before retracing our steps. And we got a photo on a real beach day. 

One more stop was downtown Beaufort. To bookend our stay, we visited the sign just as we did on our first day in town back on January 8. In the few weeks since we last strolled the streets of the historic district, the Beaufort Inn has been torn down. While we were still at Town Creek Marina, the fire department was using the structure for training purposes. The pine trees were loaded with pollen just waiting to coat all items, whether moving or still. We had a quiet night at the hotel, watching the ACC Tournament until I fell asleep (thankfully missing UVA's epic meltdown). 

Saturday morning we finally bid farewell to the area. Barry left and visited West Marine, because he could. I needed one last beach walk and drove back over the ICW to Atlantic Beach. The wind had the ocean whipped up, and the temperature required jeans and a sweatshirt, but the beach is still the beach. The gulls were searching the surf for breakfast. A half dozen surfers took advantage of the conditions. I took a few moments to watch. I will miss these walks along the lapping waves.

Every walk yielded something new and my final one featured a half dozen large jellyfish washed up in the sand. I found one intact shell and carried it back to my car where I placed it on the dash for the ride home. One last pass alongside the "Visit Us Again Soon" sign and I was on my way. By the time I reached Rocky Mount and Interstate 95, the day's weather had drastically improved. It was clear sailing to Richmond without delay. Before reaching the house, I stopped by the grocery store and picked up a few things to hold us over until I can unload all the food from Crossroads. With this final photo, the Chicken Salad and Lemonade Tour officially comes to an end.