The Windmill Posts

Another fairly long day, interstates and state highways. Nothing unique, nothing particularly North Carolina about it. It could have been almost any state. Out west I was surrounded by massive mountains that you could see from miles away, reminding you that the earth was exploding and running into itself and pushing up huge landforms. You could see an ocean that made you realize we’re on a rock, spinning out of control through space, and on the barest surface of that rock there is some water. Water that we find to be depthless. You drive through a desert and feel the sun beat down on you, the dry air burning the moisture out of you in a way that would literally kill you given enough time. Or you may even drive through lake country, glimpsing a new lake every five miles that were the product of glaciers, impossibly large ice flows from thousands of years ago.

But the miles today and yesterday haven’t been any of that. They’re flat, no lakes, not cold but cool. And the ocean is hidden behind houses and distance. So it’s hard to stay interested. In the coming week or two I’ll be closer to the ocean, right by the Great Lakes and coming back into home territory. So hope springs eternal. Or winters eternal. I am excited to see family, and very curious to know how the last leg of the trip turns out. I can vary or eliminate destinations, days taken, distances per day, and potentially add a day or two. Luckily, I have appointments back home that drive my deadline, otherwise I would be tempted to just keep circling the country until the money runs out.

At the end of my day I got to enjoy two brilliant historic locations. And of course, you get backstory!

The Lost Colony of Roanoke

In the 1970’s there was a show called “In Search of..” hosted by Leonard Nimoy. It was all about the supernatural, the unsolved mysteries, and the myths and legends of the world. Episodes on Bigfoot, Bermuda Triangle, ESP, Dracula, and most importantly: “The Lost Colony of Roanoke.” I specifically remember watching the show with my sister, and we would be mesmerized by these exotic tales. And they were being told by Spock! But as a human! So much of my knowledge about the “other things” of the world came from that show. When someone mentions Oak Island, Bigfoot, Aliens, The shroud of Turin, D.B. Cooper — it’s too many to list. All of these things we shown to me on a black and white TV set (possibly over headphones while Dad played the piano) and they were all burned into my brain.

I was invited to a Halloween party thrown by a coworker who was fairly new. This was only about 30 years ago. Because he was new none of us from work knew his party friends, and back. I dressed as a sock, and I was the sock that was lost in the dryer. Paranormal costumes all around. But upon arrival we walk into a room with a bunch of people sitting around in a circle. I was immediately concerned. Was this a cult initiation? Was someone about to ask us if we had accepted Jesus into our hearts?

Turns out the host wanted to have something to start the party with that wasn’t just loading up on alcohol. There was that, but first, introductions and a game. We all went around and said our names, how we knew the host, and what we believed in as far as the mysteries of the universe go. In my introduction I admitted that I really don’t believe in that kind of stuff. Next, we had trivia in the realm of the paranormal and beyond. Being someone who doesn’t believe in that kind of thing..

Of course I won. Apparently I don’t believe, but I know an awful lot about it. And much of that is from Mr. Nimoy and that black and white TV.

One of the episodes that creeped me out the most, was “The Lost Colony of Roanoke.” To summarize: English dude makes three trips to new world. First, to recon, second, to set up a military fort (and then nope home with all the troops right away, and third, to settle a colony. Colony comes over on boat, lots of people get sick, you know the drill. They eventually land and set up shop on Roanoke island, and the first European to be born on North American soil, Virginia Dare, is born. One of the old white guys says he’s going to pop back to England to get more supplies, and off he goes. It was going to be a quick turnaround, but there was this pesky war, so three years later he shows up at Roanoke Island and .. nothing. Buildings taken down, people gone, anything that could be carried off was, well, off. No sign is struggle or anything. Poof, gone. Except.. on a tree nearby was the carved word: CROATOAN. Audible gasp from 8 year old me. What could this mystery word mean? Leonard spun it a bit like nobody knew. Like it could even be an alien word, or voodoo. No, it’s the name of the island next door. The one I’m on right now, in fact. Anyway, big mystery and they still don’t know what happened. Hit Wikipedia to burn a few hours on that one.

So there’s a Fort Raleigh National Historic Site on the location of the lost colony. A very nice visitor’s center with a great museum type exhibit explaining the whole story and mysteries associated. There’s a nice trail where you can see the earthwork fort that the second voyage built, rather a reproduction, but it’s on the original footprint. And there’s a lovely theater where they put on a play about the whole thing. I guess it’s quite the big deal.

The hike was nice. Placards here and there explaining things, and just a nice stroll through the woods. The same woods those colonists lived in for a time. Scary and mysterious, or beautiful and fascinating? How did they feel being on the other side of the planet from everyone and everything they knew? Like being stranded on the moon. To me they seemed like peaceful woods, and they had a wonderful smell. Sweet, with cherry or tobacco hints? I asked the ranger back at the visitor center if she knew what it was, but she didn’t.

On the drive out I wondered why they didn’t have a living history experience, with colonists dressed up and showing how they survived. And then I realized they did. With missing colonists and all. (too soon?)

Kitty Hawk and the Wright Brothers

Within gliding distance is Kitty Hawk. The Orville and Wilbur Wright National Memorial stands where they made their famous first flight. Great visitors center, again with explanatory displays and such. Really went into great depth but not boring. Lots of info about the Wright family, the iterations of the gliders and finally airplane, and a full scale recreation of the Wright Flyer, with a few actual artifacts. A piece of fabric from one of the wings, most of a propeller, and some bike parts they used for their launch rail. The brothers were big bicycling fans. Some say the brother flying the fourth and longest flight yelled “on your left!” as he whizzed past his brother.

The field is what we all come for though. There is a giant hill with a monument on it, but it’s the launch rail and stones marking flights that are really cool. They flew four times that day. The first three they actually had some hang time, but only for a hundred feet or so, a little bit more every time. The fourth flight was 852 feet, a huge improvement over the first three. Unfortunately, the plane had issues landing and then when a gust of wind hit it. There is a facsimile of the rail from which they took off, and markers at all four flight distances. The first three are sad. They’re so close! But that fourth one – walking all the way down there takes so long you have a good bit of time to think about whether or not you needed to make the walk. But you did, and it was worth it. The takeoff spot is so far away!

There is a single runway next to the field where airplanes can land and takeoff. If I had a plane of my own, that would be right up there on the todo list. It was amazing to see airplanes taking off and flying around the field where the first one flew.

I think I’m still processing this, but I felt quite a bit there. Part of it was the contemplation of what these brothers did. Years or trials and learning and work, and they made history. What have you done to make history? Somehow it felt easier to try and comprehend my life in relation to the long life of a Redwood, than to think of mine next to the Wright brothers. A truly humbling experience.

The detail I loved was the fact that they sounded like they were having fun. Yes, they wanted to prove something, but there are so many little details that show how welcoming they were to friends who wanted to visit, and how they didn’t seem to be ego driven, especially when it came to failures. What caught me the most was the propeller. It was a prop built for flying their airplane. Likely to bust and have to be remade, like any other part. But they painted it. And it had a little design on the tip. That’s not the work of someone who’s driven. That’s the work of someone who is passionate.

Deets

• License Plates: None
• States: NC
• Departed: 8:01 am EST, 51 degrees
• Original ETA 12:49 pm EST
• Arrival: n/a, went to sites before arrival
• Warmest/Coldest: Death Valley 90°, Wallace ID 22°
• Weather: Cool, mostly sunny
• Music:
  • U2 – Zooropa
  • Tori Amos – Little Earthquakes
  • Alanis Morissette – Jagged Little Pill
  • MC 900 ft Jesus – Welcome to my Dream
  • DJ Sammy – Heaven
  • Smiths – Hatful of Hollow
  • Eels – Souljacker

Observations

• Parked next to the Wisconsin car at the Wright Brothers National Memorial
• Actually paid for a National site entry finally, the Wright Brothers National Memorial
• I tried figuring out where the scene from the end of Brainstorm was filmed. And found it.

Pictures

f

f