The gods Are Cooperating with Our “No Planning Mode” – by Foiling Our Plans…


We woke up early in Temperance, VA to strong winds from the North and ended up leaving around 8:10AM – somewhat earlier than planned. 

Given the winds, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel had us concerned, but the winds were at our back and not a problem at all. Probably got better fuel mileage.

As part of our spur-of-the-moment plans we stopped at Powell’s Roadside Market in Sligo, NC, where we bought pickles, fruit, and blueberry cider.

Restocked at Powell’s – Including Blueberry Cider
Powell’s must have had 50 signs along the roadside like this one as you approach. We missed taking a photo of those and settled on this one.

Planning ahead (a no-no, but we did it anyway), we decided to refuel before getting on the Outer Banks at a Shell for $5.11 per gallon (best price so far). They claim to have the “Fastest Pumps in Town – Guaranteed” right there on the pump. First time we’ve seen that, but they didn’t seem much faster than average. We wondered how to submit a claim and what they would offer to fulfill their guarantee

A Bold Marketing Strategy, Cotton. Let’s See if it Plays Out for Them

We ate lunch at Grits Grill in Nags Head – Scott loves Grits and enjoyed shrimp and grits.

Wondering whether the ferries we planned to take on the Outer Banks were operating, he found out that the ones we had reservations on Wednesday were, in fact, suspended due to the high winds. We took it in stride – what else could we do?

Shortly after lunch we arrived at our windswept but deserted campsite – deserted, at least, of any employees.  Tom had received an email from the state park system warning us that the water would be out from 8AM for “8 to 10 hours.”  Not a problem for our self-contained RV, we thought.  We’d have water by the evening, we thought.  We set up our trusty Starlink and Tom started finding an inland route, cancelling our Outer Banks ferry and next campground, and making a new reservation for Wednesday night at another state park in “Cliffs of the Neuse State Park”. Nimble we are.

Seared Sea Scallops at Kill Devil Diner

We had dinner at Kill Devil Grill (an authentic 50’s diner on the National Register of Historic Places), and returned to our dark, windswept campground.  The restrooms were still locked, and there is no water.  But we leave in the morning where hopefully the wind will be less and we won’t be rocked to sleep.

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