Coastal North Carolina, part two (March 2020)

Written by ceddammit

When last we left our hero, he was emerging from the grounds of Tryon Palace in New Bern, North Carolina. Next, he photographed a couple of the historic homes nearby:

At this point, our hero resumed writing in the first person. The next day, I continued down the coast to Fort Macon State Park, an old coastal defense fort that is NOT located in Georgia. Over the last half century, I have visited many historic forts; Fort Macon quickly established itself as one of my favorites, partly because it has not given in to the modern idea of keeping tourists safe. (If there was one thing I hated most during my years as a ride operator, it was keeping tourists safe!) Dig this crazy joint:

Quick run-down of the fort’s history
Check out the Warning/Caution signs.
Each of these little nubboes would have had a cannon mounted on it…
…like this one…
…and there were a lot of little nubboes.
Right: Outer wall. Left: Inner wall. In between: The Ditch
This is what the signs outside were about: Nothing to stop you falling into The Ditch
If falling into The Ditch isn’t painful enough, try falling onto these brick stairs!
Must’ve been some door.
This appears to be the back door of the inner wall
Front door of the inner wall, with conveniently placed state park vehicle.
Note the fence and vehicle on the right. The outer wall is surprisingly low.
Angled mounts were improvised to convert carronades to mortars
Each room along the inner wall has this three-window configuration overlooking The Ditch.

OK, that’s enough of the exterior, let’s head into the inner sanctum…

Down in The Ditch
Inside one of the three-windowed rooms overlooking The Ditch
These mortars were not in place during the Civil War battle.
Is it just me, or do these three-windowed walls look like faces?
Oven-like structure at right is hot-shot furnace; used to heat cannonballs
The doorways on either side could be ears or hands (a la Home Alone).
If you like, you can go in one ear and out the other. And the other. Ad nauseum.
Each room’s “face” is a little different.
Obviously, these weren’t intended to be big empty rooms with a face at one end…
…they served purposes, like this re-created mess hall.
But really, they look like characters from The Oatmeal.
Looking up from the front door
View from atop the outer wall
Artillery from Another Period

Next, I made my way even further down the coast: all the way down to Wilmington, North Carolina. Here, the local news reported that North Carolina had identified its first case of COVID-19. My immediate response was this:

Nevertheless, I proceeded to thoroughly enjoy Airlie Gardens. A very peaceful and relaxing place, it made me wish I could smell the flowers. But I can’t, due to Parkinson’s Disease. The visuals are worth sharing, though:

The centerpiece of Airlie Gardens is the mighty Airlie Oak.
Estimated to be over 400 years old, this is an absolute beast of a live oak…
…and it’s practically drowning in Spanish moss.
This looks more like a cake decoration than an actual flower.
Seriously, does this not look like it’s made of frosting?

That evening, the local news reported COVID-19 had made its way to the very county in which I was staying. Once again, I thought:

The next morning was wet and dreary, but I didn’t mind because I planned to spend the full day inside the Wilmington Railroad Museum. Unlike most railroad museums, this one has almost no actual rail cars, so it is almost entirely an indoor deal. There is a lot of interesting information about the railroads of East Carolina, and a huge model railroad get-up. It was around noon and I was enjoying a leisurely day at the museum when the call came down from on high: all public facilities within the county (including the railroad museum) were ordered to close immediately and indefinitely due to COVID-19. So, off I wandered, back to the hotel. When I got there, I found the hotel restaurant was closed due to COVID as well. Fortunately, it was just the seating area that was closed; I was still able to get room service.

There I was, with several more days of outings planned, but everything suddenly closed. After pondering for the better part of the P.M. hours, I made the decision. This trip had to be cut short; I would return home the next day. And so the following morning, with tears in my eyes and a small child trapped in my colostomy bag, I checked out of my Wilmington hotel and drove home to Charlotte. But I shall return. Rest assured, my friends, I shall return.

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