Carolina Beach, North Carolina
For our anniversary our daughter treated us to a weekend getaway at the shore, and our son and daughter-in-law came up from Georgia to join us!
Things didn’t go exactly as planned. Tim’s shortness of breath has returned and now he has a cough that might also be related to his diastolic heart failure. (He’s had additional tests and the cardiologists still don’t have any answers.) So we knew ahead of time that he wouldn’t be able to take this long morning walk with me.
It wound up being an afternoon walk because I wound up sick with a flare-up that morning. I needed several hours to recover while the rest of the crew enjoyed visiting, and some time spent at a nearby playground and a walk down to the beach.
When I finally rallied Nate took some of us for a short ride in his huge truck — quite a thrill for me! Arriving at Carolina Beach State Park we then walked about three miles, looking for Venus flytraps in their native habitat and a 50′ high sand dune overlooking the Cape Fear River. The weather was lovely with comfortable temps and just a few drops of rain near the end.
most of our walk looked like this
provided Finn with plenty of kicking options
The cones of longleaf pine are the largest of the southern pine and range in size from 5 to 12 inches in length. Because of their large size, only animals like the fox squirrel are sizable enough to manipulate and open the longleaf pine cones to eat the seeds before they fall to the ground.
~ The Longleaf Alliance website
looking out over the Cape Fear River
The urge to run down the dune to the river proved to be irresistible for the kids, but Nate and I continued to rest at the top, and discussed possible routes back to the parking lot. Tried to get some pictures between all the trees with the zoom lens. Not sure if I’ve ever seen a dune covered with a forest before.
We basically decided to retrace our steps and never did see any Venus flytraps. But, there were lots of pitcher plants in the area where the flytraps were supposed to be. And, as we got back close to the parking lot Finn spotted a broad-headed skink hiding in the leaves.
It was fun climbing up into the truck for the short ride back to the vacation rental. I was so happy to have shared this walk with my son who I don’t get to see often enough. A happy memory to cherish. Each one is precious, and all the more so the older we get.
do you know why its called Cape Fear, Barbara?
I so very much enjoyed this adventure in the woods and riverside, Barbara. How wonderful it must’ve been for all of you to explore together. I enjoyed the great photos, especially the pitcher plants and Finn’s find the skink.
I’m glad you finally felt well enough to enjoy this trek, Barbara (but sorry to hear of your hub’s shortness of breath). I don’t guess I’ve ever seen a skink — ew, creepy! The prickly pear flower is lovely — and such a cheerful color.
A fun adventure, I’d say. Those kids have lots of energy, I can only wish!
Sorry to hear of you and Tim’s continuing health challenges. One can only count the good days, I guess. 🙏🏼