Sea Trail 3 Nights/3 Rounds $193
October 29, 2010 by gary
Filed under Recreation and Sports
Stay at the area’s premier oceanfront resort The Winds Resort Beach Club (5 -10 mins. from Sea Trail) Read more
Bald Head Island, NC
North Carolina Maritime Museum
October 3, 2010 by gary
Filed under Attractions And Events
The North Carolina Maritime Museum’s Southport branch houses a collection of memorabilia pertaining to the vast nautical history of the “Lower Cape Fear” area of southeastern North Carolina. You can easily follow the self-guided tour throughout the twelve designated stations and on-site Research Library.
… Read Gentleman Pirate Stede Bonnet’s touching pleas for clemency, before he was hanged … Test your knowledge for pertinent trivia, from our own jeopardy board. Great fun for “children” of all ages … See artifacts from the important colonial port of Brunswick …
Touch the chevrons of an old pine tree “boxed” for naval stores … Our Civil War Blockade exhibits include a 200 lb. pile torpedo retrieved from the historic waters of the Cape Fear River …
Enjoy the extensive collection of delicate ship models, including those built by the late Col. Herbert Franck …
The “River Pilots, Rescues and Aids to Navigation” section offers a variety of nautical instruments, including a 48″ Coast Guard nun buoy … Bounce and rock on the 5′ model of a turn-of-the-century “Joggle Board” …
… The shipwreck “City of Houston” display will bring back memories of great-grandmother’s home of 1878. See our rescued treasures from the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, near the Frying Pan Shoals. Newly retrieed additions are a continuing delight …
… Commercial and sport fishermen posing with their “catch of the day” display angrand variety of fresh seafood from the waters of the Lower Cape Fear …
A local net expert has made a 9′ model of a shrimp-boat net for our museum, complete with “doors.” If he’s in the museum while you are visiting, he’ll be glad to show you how to knit a net …
North Carolina shells are here, as well as white and black coral. Shark teeth, a loggerhead turtle skull and an overhead 8′ whale jaw bone await your discovery, all a beautiful addition to our Lower Cape Fear maritime story …
The research librar/classroom provides an abundance of material for study and program presentations …
… Learn about hurricanes and listen to the weather forecast on marine radio; when storms are present in the Atlantic, we will be tracking them on a hurricane chart… The 12 Storyboards will guide you through our maritime history, from the earliest settlers to modern sailors… Visit our gift shop for a variety of small toys, souvenirs, and post cards, and rest on an antique bench used in the old Brunswick County Courthouse. The expansive Research Library can provide hours of study and entertainment… Videos of pelicans, pirates and shipwrecks are on view, anaother pleasant way to learn about the “Lower Cape Fear” …
Bald Head Island
October 2, 2010 by gary
Filed under Featured Dining And Lodging
Representing nearly 150 lovely homes, cottages and condominiums, Bald Head Island Limited offers you the most comprehensive selection of accommodations for rent.
Choose from accommodations located in a variety of different environments- including South Beach, West Beach, East Beach, Harbour Village, Creek & Marsh, Golf Course and Maritime Forest. Guests of Bald Head Island Limited enjoy temporary membership in the Bald Head Island Club, allowing you access to its celebrated golf course, croquet greenswards, tennis courts, fitness room, pool, dining room and lounge. http://www.baldheadisland.com
1-800-432-7368 vacations@bhisland.com
Book On Area History
October 2, 2010 by gary
Filed under Cool Stuff
Tales of the Silver Coast – A Secret History of the Bald Head Island Area and Brunswick County – From the earliest days of European exploration to the golf courses and beach resorts in this fascinating and fast-growing region, Brunswick County has attracted settlers, invaders, and visitors of all descriptions.
In these pages you’ll read about Steve Bonnet, the “Gentleman Pirate,” who hid his ships in Brunswick’s moss-draped creeks but unfortunately underestimated the ebbing tide; Coast Guard mounted on horse-back patrolling Ocean Isle’s beaches hunting for spies landed by German submarines; “Mrs. Calabash,” who’s said to have lent her name to the famous sign-off for Jimmy Durante’s classic radio shows; and Topsy the Elephant, who swam for the Brunswick riverbank after breaking loose from circus handlers in the 1920s.
Follow the struggles and victories that shaped Brunswick County, from the first contact of Europeans with native Americans, to successive administrations of the Lords Proprietors, the royal governors, the British crown, and the leaders of a new nation—many at whom hailed from this small but influential corner of North Carolina. Discover Brunswick’s rich Civil War history, scenic roadways and waterways and current-day towns and townships.
Tales of the Silver Coast, recounts the tales of privateers and plantation owners, politicians and Prohibition rum-runners and the many colorful people and diverse places of southeastern North Carolina.
Hard Cover $14.95
The Oak Island Lighthouse
October 1, 2010 by gary
Filed under Attractions And Events
The Oak Island Lighthouse was completed in 1958. It was once the second brightest light in the world. The total cost of construction was $110,000.00 (it would be millions of dollars today!).
The lights are 169 feet above the water. The structure is 148 feet tall, but it stands on a slight hill.
There is no spiral staircase as are found in most older lighthouses, but instead there is a series of ships ladders with a total of 131 steps to the lantern gallery level.
The base is set upon 24 concrete-filled steel pilings 10 3/4 inches in diameter and 67 feet deep. The pilings are capped by a 30 foot wide by 3 foot deep octagonal concrete base upon which the tower structure was built.
The main tower is 128 feet tall, built of monolithic reinforced concrete. It was poured continuously into a movable form that was raised by jacks at the rate of one foot per hour.
To accomplish this task a concrete mixing plant was set up on the site to allow for the continuous 24 hour a day operation for days.
The tower has a uniform inside diameter of 16 feet 4 3/4 inches. The wall is 8 inches thick, and the three stripe color pattern is permanently cast into the concrete.
To establish a color for each section the first forty feet is the natural gray of Portland cement. The next fifty feet was poured with white Portland cement and white quartz aggregate for the white color. The top fifty two feet is gray Portland cement with black coloring.
The smaller diameter concrete section at the top was formed with stationary metal forms after the top floor was poured. Windows in the tower were constructed of stainless steel but sashes have been replace with vinyl.
The 11 foot tall aluminum lantern housing was installed by Marine Corps helicopters. Total height of the structure above the foundation slab is 153 feet.
The characteristic flashing pattern for the light is four one-second flashes every 10 seconds.
The lighting apparatus in the Oak Island Lighthouse is made up of 8 aero beacon lighting fixtures, 4 on top and 4 on the bottom.
When first activated in 1958, the lower bank used carbon-arc mercury lamps in 36-inch reflectors. These reflectors with their housings were adapted from aircraft spotlights used in World War II.
When these lamps were in use the Oak Island light was the second brightest in the world. When the upper bank of lights, comprising of 24 inch theatrical lights and 1,000 watt Quartz lamps became the primary beacon and the bottom were decommissioned, it lost that distinction!
Today the brightest light along this part of the Atlantic coast is the Sullivan’s Island Light near Charleston, South Carolina which was erected in 1962.
Free tours are given on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 AM till 2 PM starting on the Wednesday before Memorial Day until the Wednesday After Labor Day. Tours are to the 2nd level ONLY.
· Weekly seasonal tours are only to the 2nd level of the tower, NOT to the observation balcony at the top!
· Children MUST be 7 years or older to enter the lighthouse due to government safety regulations.
· No more than 15 visitors will be allowed inside the tower at any time.
· Visitors are requested not to wear flip-flops, high heels, open-toed or hard leather heels/soles. Sneakers are the preferred shoes.
· Climbers are required to have both hands free for climbing due to the steepness of our steps. No exceptions will be made!
· Weather permitting (visitors are not allowed in the lighthouse if there is lightning in the area)
· There are no Restroom facilities on site
· All tours are free of charge
