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They could have been Cycas revoluta (Sago Palm). It is a primitive, cone-bearing plant that is related to conifers and is hardy to about 15°F. It has the appearance of a palm and a tropical look. The frost will burn the leaves but you cut them back every year and they sprout new growth. They can grow up to 10ft tall.
yes, I saw those but also the taller ones, but not as tall as in the Caribbean, of course. To my NY eyes, sago palm + blue green, warm water + soft sand = tropical!
I think what you probably saw were palmetto trees. They're all over the NC coast. Taller than a sago, shorter than the kind of palm trees you see in Florida and California.
As for good NY pizza (if it's NY pizza you were wanting), I recommend Long Island Pizza in Surf City (on Topsail Island). There may be something closer to Wrightsville Beach than that, but if you ever go to Topsail Island (which my family & I really enjoyed this year) Long Island Pizza is the place to go for delicious NY pizza.
There was something else I was going to say. Hmm. Oh, most of NC's beaches have free parking and public access. Next time try Topsail Island or Oak Island (south of Wilmington).
yes, I saw those but also the taller ones, but not as tall as in the Caribbean, of course. To my NY eyes, sago palm + blue green, warm water + soft sand = tropical!
I hear ya! I consider drinking a pina colada on my back deck tropical! LOL
I don't want to bore the natives, but I want to share this for my fellow northerners who are wondering about living away from the beach...
This past weekend was my son's 12th birthday. He is feeling a bit low, due to the move, and missing his friends & having to start school in the middle of summer!!!! So, we decided to drive to the beach. My husband warned me that it would be a 2 hour drive but I have to admit it was a drag, coming from Long Island where it is 10 minutes to the bay & 1/2 hour to the surf (or- 2 hours with traffic!!!!) The drive was beautiful, through farmland & rolling terrain. We headed down 40 and arrived at Wrightsville Beach, paid to park at the municipal meter ($1.50/ hour) and stepped out on to a gorgeous beach.
The Outer Banks is beautiful in a rugged way, very much like Fire Island/ Robert Moses- we go to Buxton which is reallly undeveloped & wild, with challenging waves & lots of birds.
Wrightsville Beach, on the other hand, has that sugary sand & clear water like Florida. There are palm trees everywhere. The beach was lined with condos too. On the day we went there were gentle rolling waves, the water was really warm, there were lifeguards... the kids were in heaven.
After 2 hours on the beach we had pizza up in town... American pizza (but hey, they had a cool surfing show on the tv so who cares?)
Then we drove to Wilmington to see the USS North Carolina. It took 1/2 an hour to get there, & the sky was clouding up, which was merciful b/c that sun beating down would have been too hot for sightseeing! They really let you all over that ship on the self-guided tour, more so than the Intrepid or the Wisconsin so the kids were loving it. Then we headed home, into a rainstorm.
All in all, I would say that the drive was a bit much to make it an every- weekend thing. Now I see why people stay over night. But, on the plus side, it was a 2 hour drive to a tropical beach experience. Everything in life is a trade off. Next weekend we will explore one of the local lakes...
Glad you enjoyed your visit to the beach..... Your kids might also enjoy the aquarium.
We are finally moving down this weekend, we bought our house down there in April. On my visit in late April i took a drive to Wrightsville beach from Clayton because i had a whole afternoon to waste, i found it to be very nice and the people were very nice also. When i got there i found out there were some head high waves so i ran to the nearest surf-shop and bought a new wetsuit and a used surfboard. I was able to surf for a couple of hours which was nice and i bought the whole set-up for $225. On LI i would have spent that much just on the used board with-out the wet suit. I live in Bay Shore LI and i can be at the beach in like 10-20 mins. depending on which beach and wether i hit 105 mph's over the robert mosses bridge,,,lol.
As for the USS North Carolina i have visited it twice, once 10 yrs. ago and again last year. My father was born and raised in Brooklyn, when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor my father and his best friend went and enlisted with the Navy, he had to forge my grand-mother's signature because he was only 17 and she wouldn't sign for him. My father was signed onto the USS North Carolina which was just being finished being built in the brooklyn ship yards. He is known as a "plank owner", which means he was on the first crew to set sail on a new ship. It is really nice to know i can go to the ship and still see his name on the roll call list and my son was very excited to see it too last year( my son is named after my father).
As for the USS North Carolina i have visited it twice, once 10 yrs. ago and again last year. My father was born and raised in Brooklyn, when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor my father and his best friend went and enlisted with the Navy, he had to forge my grand-mother's signature because he was only 17 and she wouldn't sign for him. My father was signed onto the USS North Carolina which was just being finished being built in the brooklyn ship yards. He is known as a "plank owner", which means he was on the first crew to set sail on a new ship. It is really nice to know i can go to the ship and still see his name on the roll call list and my son was very excited to see it too last year( my son is named after my father).
Wow that is so cool. Your father was a good man to do that. How exciting it must have been to walk on the same ship and see where your father served. My dad was in the Navy also during the Korean War aboard the USS Gary. That ship was destroyed by fire back in 1992. We have toured the USS North Carolina also and enjoyed it.
Very cool, William. I've been to the USS North Carolina once.
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I am headed to Carolina Beach in the morning I hope it's nice I keep telling my friends it is. Hopefully I'm right.
I hope you like it. I wouldn't want you to be disappointed with a trip to the beach. I personally don't care for Carolina Beach though. I would choose Oak Island or Topsail Island.
Did I mention the alligators? On the Carolina there was a sign that says there are alligators in the River! We did not see them but we looked for quite a while! I got nervous in the parking lot, thinking they could be hiding near the museum building!
Yeah, yeah, laugh at me!! Go right ahead!
Very cool, William. I've been to the USS North Carolina once.
I hope you like it. I wouldn't want you to be disappointed with a trip to the beach. I personally don't care for Carolina Beach though. I would choose Oak Island or Topsail Island.
Some people at work told my husband that Carolina Beach has more native North Carolinians, and that Topsail is nice but has a steeper drop off into the water & more of an undertow than Wrightsville Beach.
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