By the middle of the month, you know that most of summer is behind you.
Yet those of us who live here know that fall is often our most spectacular season.
We have had plenty of hot weather this summer. On top of that the first part of the summer was very dry.
July reversed that dry trend with over eight inches of rain falling here in Western Carteret County.
We have received over an inch and one half of rain the first week in August so our wet trend continues.
It is still hard to believe that just a couple of years ago water was licking at the vehicle ramp there.
Now the sand is advancing so fast that it almost seems like Mother Nature is on a mission to close off Bogue Inlet.
We have not ventured all the way out the Inlet this year because a number of boats have run into trouble there.
The good news is that the buoys have been recently repositioned. The bad news is that the Inlet is still very narrow between buoys one and two.
With all the traffic that we will see on the Intracoastal and out in the Inlet for the next few weeks, I hope people pay attention the warnings.
I am hoping things will change a little before the fall fishing season.
While the weather has been warm during the day, we have seen some evenings when the temperatures stayed warm until morning.
Last night the warm air and humidity felt like a blanket draped around your body. It wasn’t a bad feeling.
The evening’s full body warmth is something all of us will be wishing for when February rolls around.
I do think the warm evenings might have made it difficult to have a second season of tomatoes like we have enjoyed the last view years.
Our old plants have given up, and the ones that I planted in July have set very little fruit.
The early season tomato crop was fantastic so it is hard to complain after enjoying two months of wonderful homegrown tomatoes.
This marsh scene is right out our garage door. Often we see white herons and coastal birds taking shelter in the waters around our home.
When I am out for my early morning walks, there is plenty to enjoy.
About the only times the heat makes us rearrange our lives are when I end up mowing my yard early in the morning and when we have to do our beach walks late in the evening to avoid the hot sand and blazing sun.
While we will get some cloudy like today, even those make for great times here on the coast. With some rain this morning and clouds keeping the temperature down, the afternoon was a good time to drop by our subdivision swimming pool with our granddaughter.
The pool was just cool enough to feel nice after the walk across the cul de sac.
Then there are those days when the weather is nearly perfect, and the land and waters of the area really take over your imagination.
With vistas that stretch to the horizon, this is truly a scenic area.
Even thought summer is winding down, there is still plenty of time to make some memories.
While there are no guarantees with beach weather, you can bet on catching some great beach days over the next few months.
The ocean seems to even things out. We have gone from having no sand on the Point to having sand as far as you can see.
As a bonus there is a new safe shallow swimming area off of Inlet Drive near the Point.
It looks like plans for the new fishing pier are moving forward at the Western Regional Access.
With some luck, we might have some nice day docks for visiting Swansboro within the next year.
I have been very pleased with the slow but steady pace of development here along the Crystal Coast.
There is just enough change to keep us on our toes.
I guess if you measured the development of the area from the sixties to now, it might seem overwhelming, but these days it is pretty manageable.
Come for a visit and see what a nice balance there is between development and preserving scenic beauty here on North Carolina’s Southern Outer Banks.
Why we love it here?
It is hard to say that any place is perfect. There always a balance between what you like and what you don't like. That also changes as you age. At one time I was close to homesteading in Newfoundland.
Today I would steer you to my articles, Ten ways Carteret County met our needs, Why I love living in Carteret County, and to the Crystal Coast Electronic Village Homepage as answers to why we have chosen this area.
From that reading it is easy to understand why we enjoy living in a small subdivision called Bluewater Cove near Cape Carteret. It is what we were looking for in a place to live. It's close to services and close to the beach but not on the beach. We have a dock behind the house and are close to some great trails. I can ride my bike in the neighborhood and not face a lot of traffic.
I also use my kayak on the White Oak River and have learned to love exploring the river and surrounding waters with our skiff.
This area also has some great festivals like the Newport Pig Cookoff, the Emerald Isle Saint Patrick's Day, and the Swansboro Oyster Roast. We were also impressed with the Emerald Isle Christmas Parade.
It is a friendly area with a great future. So right now it is the spot for us. I often write about the area in my other websites. If you are a very avid reader, you might find some content on multiple sites, but usually the content is fairly specific to the sites.
These are additional sites not mentioned in the above post.
Ocracoke Waves
Crystal Coast Blog 09
Crystal Coast Blog 08
Some archived articles