New Plan -- Going to Kill Devil Hills

Enroute to First Flight...

Ashville NC
Fly the "gap" at 4000 feet MSL. Go visit the Biltmore.

Elizabetown NC
Stop and see the WW2 blimp hangars (are they still there?)

First Flight
Fly in spend the day. Fly across the bay to Dare County Airport. Spend
the night, rent a care, drive Naggs Head and Cape Hatteras.

Charleston SC
Enjoy the charm of the Old South.

Savannah GA
More Old South charm. Spend the night at one of the hotels in the old
riverfront. The area has been rehabed and has excellent restaurants and
nightly entertainment. There is free outdoors entertainment as you
stroll the riverfront.

Pennsacola FL
Museum of Naval Aviation (contact Tom Callahan ? from the binaries group
for local information).

Cedar Key FL
Lunch

Mobile AL
Lunch or dinner with Dan Luke

Huntsville AL
NASA propulsion facilities

A few notes from when I lived in Chapel Hill and flew an Ercoupe a few
years ago.

1. My favorite place in the Outer Banks is Ocracoke (as mentioned
above), the airstrip is not bad but bring tie-downs as there never
were any there in my time out there. Howards Pub is a fine place for
lunch, easy walking distance to stretch the legs, although it's on the
two lane highway, it's the only road around and has a huge shoulder,
so is safe. There are nicer places in town, Howards is nice for a
quick lunch. Ocracoke village is really a great place to spend a day
or two just relaxing. Really my all time favorite spot in NC (and I
lived in Chapel Hill!). The flight down the rest of the outer banks is
really quite neat to Cape Lookout, around the light and over to
Beaufort, NC which also has its charms. The Civil War fort at Fort
Macon is an interesting side trip from the Morehead City/Beaufort
area. Nice landmark to fly over as well. I can't stress enough how
different Ocracoke island is from the built up condo and vacation home
hell of Kitty Hawk and Nags Head can be!

2. There is alot of restricted/military airspace around the outer
banks, but everytime I called up Cherry Point MCAS or any of the other
radar facilities in the area for flight following (like Seymour-
Johnson AFB), they were cordial and accomodating. They all sounded
like they were 18 y.o. though! It was quite seamless in the transition
from RDU's hand off, or vice-versa.

3. I've been on the USS Wisconsin and the USS North Carolina. The
Wisconsin was still officially in mothballs (or some sort of reserve
designation) so other than walking on the main deck and poking your
head around a few places, it was closed to tourist traffic. That visit
was in December '03, so things may have changed since. The North
Carolina, berthed in Wilmington is much more comprehensive in your
ability to wander around and really explore the vast majority of the
ship. You will need several hours!!!

4. Patriots Point just outside of Charleston, S.C. is a big complex
with the centerpiece being the USS Yorktown (CV-10, not CV-5 which is
not available for tours for obvious reasons!), a destroyer, a larger
Coast Guard cutter, and a post-war sub. Another place you could spend
a whole day, and highly recommended! Having been on the USS Midway, I
thought the level of presentaion was much better on the Yorktown.
Charleston is another great town with charm in the tourist area. I
liked it alot. Take the ferry out to Ft. Sumter, although short in the
time allowed on the island itself, was well worth it. There is quite a
bit of post-war construction which has changed the looks of the place.

5. Savannah has Fort Pulaski, another massive brick fort that was
state of the art in 1861, but quickly fell to rifled artillery of a
new era. This is a National Park Service site about 20 minutes outside
of the city out near the beaches, and is interesting to look around.
My wife and I had a hotel on the riverfront, and it was really quite
neat and interesting to see the massive container ships about 100
yards outside your window. I raised my beer to a deck crewman (from
somewhere in Asia) from my balcony (which was on his same level) and
he waved back...Cool. Savannah is another great town to spend a few
days in to get the feel for the place. The squares are interesting,
the night ghost tours are neat (if you get the right person leading
it, we took more than one evening organized walk, one history, one
ghosts, great for before or after dinner).

6. I could go on and on about all the battlefield in the east to
visit, they all have interesing parts to them and the National Park
Service does a uniformly good job of presenting the history (despite
their budget issues). But the one that stands out in my mind, and I've
been to almost ALL of them at one point or another, is the one
mentioned in a previous post, which is Antietam. I got the feeling
that it was closest to its original form (unlike all the touristy
shlock at Gettysburg), not completely inundated with monuments, and
far enough away from suburbia (unlike Bull Run and Fredricksburg,
amongst the most threatened) to really get a feel for what the
battlefield was like. If I may say so, the best way to get to know
these fields is to WALK them. Not drive the usualy park service circle
tour (which I've done many times when time is short); but to really
know it is to walk it!!! Shiloh is another.

So there. My tidbits from a northerner living in the south and
spending alot of time getting to know the place. I really enjoyed
living down there.

Ryan in Madison, WI
email me if you want particulars

A few notes from when I lived in Chapel Hill and flew an Ercoupe a few
years ago.

snip of great stuff

Wow -- thanks Ryan, Jim, "John", Vincent, Don, and anyone else I'm
forgetting. Sounds like we could easily take a month just to explore
that area of the country!

The weather will dictate our schedule, as it always does, but I think
it's gonna be W. Virgina tonight, Kitty Hawk Monday, up and down the
coast Tuesday, Pensacola Wednesday....and by then, who knows? We're
like gypsies on these trips, so it doesn't do any good to think much
beyond Wednesday...

:-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
ups.com...
A few notes from when I lived in Chapel Hill and flew an Ercoupe a few
years ago.

snip of great stuff

Wow -- thanks Ryan, Jim, "John", Vincent, Don, and anyone else I'm
forgetting. Sounds like we could easily take a month just to explore
that area of the country!

The weather will dictate our schedule, as it always does, but I think
it's gonna be W. Virgina tonight, Kitty Hawk Monday, up and down the
coast Tuesday, Pensacola Wednesday....and by then, who knows? We're
like gypsies on these trips, so it doesn't do any good to think much
beyond Wednesday...


If you're in the area, you'll regret not spending a full day in
Charleston...

The museum at P-cola is nice, but (IMO) it is the only reason to visit the
city. For a family, even an aviation family, there may be better
destinations unless you're gonna be in the area anyway. For instance, the
Air Force Museum at Warner Robbins, GA (Near Macon) is 2nd only to the Air
Force museum in terms of USAF (and AAC) aircraft on display. And it is
closer to Charleston and Savannah.

And, if you go to Warner Robbins, you can turn the trip back north, visit
the Aircraft Spruce store at Falcon Field near Atlanta, head NW to the Space
and Rocket museum at Huntsville, Alabama to see the only erected (IIRC)
Saturn rocket in existance.

:-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

KB

On Mar 11, 5:49 am, "Jay Honeck" wrote:
A few notes from when I lived in Chapel Hill and flew an Ercoupe a few
years ago.

snip of great stuff

Wow -- thanks Ryan, Jim, "John", Vincent, Don, and anyone else I'm
forgetting. Sounds like we could easily take a month just to explore
that area of the country!

The weather will dictate our schedule, as it always does, but I think
it's gonna be W. Virgina tonight, Kitty Hawk Monday, up and down the
coast Tuesday, Pensacola Wednesday....and by then, who knows? We're
like gypsies on these trips, so it doesn't do any good to think much
beyond Wednesday...

:-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Last year I vacationed in the barrier islands and my favorite activity
was renting a Jeep and driving up to Corolla until the road ends and
then driving the beach and dunes and looking at the wild horses. The
local Jeep-Chrysler dealer is within a mile of Kill Devil Hills and
will deliver a car to the airport. If you do this, remember to let
some air out of the tires when you exit the road to drive on the
dunes. (But the dealer will instruct you on this.)

I just talked with Jay. He took the group's advice to heart and said they
are having a great time in NC & SC. After visiting Kill Devil Hills & Kitty
Hawk, they're now at Myrtle Beach, SC enjoying temps in the 80's, great
seafood, and a great ocean view hotel.

He asked me to thank those who recommended Ocracoke Island and Howard's Pub.
After initial thoughts of their husband/pilot/fearless leader loosing his
mind, he said the family all agreed that Howard's Pub was well worth the
trouble.

Jim

I just talked with Jay. He took the group's advice to heart and said they
are having a great time in NC & SC. After visiting Kill Devil Hills & Kitty
Hawk, they're now at Myrtle Beach, SC enjoying temps in the 80's, great
seafood, and a great ocean view hotel.

Myrtle Beach is awesome! And it's been a great journey, thus far,
living the life of "aviation gypsies"...

Our first night was in Beckley, West Virginia, where we stayed at a
fairly forgettable "Park Inn & Suites" -- chosen because of the hotel
name's similarity to our hotel name. It wasn't a bad place -- and
they DID have free wireless internet -- but the $35 cab rides (each
way) really sucked.

Next morning we launched bright and early for First Flight (Kill Devil
Hills), and, wow, what an experience. To land where it all began,
after a nice, long cross country flight, with that beautiful, immense
monument beside us, to walk the field where the very first powered
flights took place -- it was all very special, and I had chills the
whole time. But not from the cold. (Although it *was* cool, with a
brisk, steady wind off the ocean -- precisely why the Wrights chose
this location...)

Then, after cleaning out their gift shop (for our Wright Brothers
Suite) it was down the long spit of land called the barrier islands to
Ocracoke Island, for a fantastic lunch at Howard's Pub. I had a great
crab cake sandwich, Mary had some fabulous flounder -- and we all
enjoyed their home-made clam chowder. It's a bit of a hike to the
bar (and it seemed longer, with my kids whining all the way), but
everyone agreed it was well worth the effort.

Incidentally, at Ocracoke there was a broken (like, in half!) Cirrus
SR-22 alongside the runway. Dunno what happened, but it had police
tape all around it. No one was around to ask, but the plane was a
complete write off. Musta been a WILD landing.

The barrier islands are stunningly beautiful to follow, and we did,
all the way down the coast to Beaufort, NC for gas. What a great
airport and FBO! We chatted for 30 minutes or so with the airport
manager, and we had a good laugh because we soon discoverd that we
were all fighting the same damned political battles back home in Iowa
regarding airport operations. They've apparently got some real
whiners in their town that have basically made it mandatory not to use
two (of the six) runways, or bear the wrath of several Noise Nazis.
Thank goodness we don't have THAT in Iowa City, at least not to that
degree.

By now, we had flown many hours, and were starting to feel like real
aviation gysies, having NO idea where we were going next. With no
preference one way or the other, we asked them where THEY would go for
the next few days, if they were looking for fun and sun. Everyone in
the FBO agreed that Myrtle Beach, SC was the perfect combination of
beach, sun, and fun things to do -- so, we launched south once again.

Which is where we have been for the last 36 hours. We spent all day
baking on the beach in 80 degree sunshine, oogling the nubile young
Spring Breakers, and we found a hotel suite (at the "BayWatch Resort")
in North Myrtle Beach -- with an 18th-floor ocean view -- for just $93
per night! We're at the airport right now (using their free internet
-- the stupid hotel has TWO computers for 525 room!), checking the
weather, trying to figure out how far we will make it back toward Iowa
tomorrow before hitting the crap weather that is forecast...

We might end up in Nashville, or maybe Chatanooga. We don't really
care, to be honest -- cuz we don't have to be home till Saturday, and
we're having a great time everywhere we go!

Thanks, everyone, for the great recommendations!
--
Jay Honeck
North Myrtle Beach, SC
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"john smith" wrote:



Mobile AL
Lunch or dinner with Dan Luke

Fried softshell crabs at the Original Oyster House...mmmmm!

--
Dan
C172RG at BFM

Scarborough Inn on Roanoke Island just south of Kill Devil Hills. Run by
Rebecca Scarborough. The restaurant across the street and down a block has
the best Carolina (vinegar based) barbecue I've ever tasted. The memorial
is about fifteen minutes away. First Flight airport can handle Atlas.

Jim



"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
ups.com...

Any recommendations?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay, I'm coming into this thread late, so you may have already settled
on your plans. But ... adding to what others have posted (and for
anyone else looking for a place to visit):

Hampton Roads has =lots= to offer (Williamsburg, Newport News, York
County, Hampton, Norfolk and Virginia Beach, among other localities:
-- Touted as the "Historic Triangle"
---- 1-Yorktown Battlefield
------ including some lesser Civil War sites nearby
---- 2-Historic Williamsburg
---- 3-Jamestown Landing, and Jamestown Settlement
------ with recreations of the 3 ships that brought the first settlers
------ and they're celebrating the 300th anniversary of the landing
-- Mariner's Museum, the premier nautical museum in the U.S.
---- opened just this weekend - the Monitor exhibit
------ with artifacts recovered from the wreck site
-- Hampton Air & Space Museum
---- not the Smithsonian or Air Force museum, but some nice exhibits
-- In Norfolk and Virginia Beach
---- Nauticus with oceanography exhibits and the Wisconsin
---- Norfolk Naval Base, the largest Naval Base in the world
------ at least one aircraft carrier in port almost always
---- Virginia Beach itself

Airports?
-- Newport News/Williamsburg (PHF), Rick Aviation provides good service.
Lodging and restaurants nearby. Three miles to Yorktown, 8 miles to
Williamsburg, 16 miles to Jamestown
-- Williamsburg (JGG), nice small airport, in the middle of the Historic
Triangle. Nice daytime restaurant on the field. Two miles to Williamsburg.
-- Others on 'southside' (Norfolk [airlines] plus smaller Chesapeake
(CPK), Hampton Roads (PVG), & Suffolk (SFQ)

Going south?
-- stop at Ocracoke (W95); it's a regular for lunch
---- 1/2 mile walk to food at Howard's Pub
---- I'd expect someone will pick you up for lodging
-- Moorhead City (MRH); nice place to overnight
---- almost 'in town', interesting quaint sourthern coastal city

george
gyoung at (poppa india november november).net