Day 141 - To Wilmington

Monday, January 17, 2011

Last evening was a good one. Robert and I watched the NFL games, he fixed dinner, and I packed the gear for the final leg starting tomorrow morning. I slept well, was up at 6, fixed breakfast, and heading out by around 7. Robert is going to keep the cart with him today, and deliver it to me this afternoon. Much of today will be going through Wilmington using busy roads, so we thought it would be safer to not have the cart. It's about 90 miles to Emerald Isle, and I have 5 days, so should be there in plenty of time to catch a ride. I still haven't heard about going through Camp Lejeune....the woman who was going to call me either Saturday or Monday (today) is off until Wednesday, so I had to start the process over with another person. We'll see how that goes. Weather forecast for today is rain starting late this afternoon, and completed during the night.

The first several miles of the walk was fine due to either good shoulders / sidewalks, or little traffic. Jack Bradshaw called to check on my progress....I think he's really worried that I'll get turned around again and head back to his condo in N. Myrtle Beach. I assured him I was going north today. Around 930 it started sprinkling rain, but nothing to worry about. I crossed over the Snow's Cut Bridge, which spans the Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway.......and which makes Carolina Beach part of an island, Pleasure island. I've passed under the bridge many times boating down the waterway, but never been over it. As I continued to walk, the rain got harder and the traffic heavier.

Around noon or so, I stopped for lunch at the "Original Salt Works" diner. Loads of atmosphere and good food. While there I received a call from NPR Radio.......they interviewed me about the walk, and said it would be broadcast sometime soon....and they will let me know. After lunch I headed out again, and by now it was pouring rain......didn't wait until late evening to start. The rain suit I bought just before the trip has turned out to not be such a good bargain after all. It hardly slows down the rain, much less keep it out. I passed a shopping center with an Eddie Bauer store, and now have a new rain jacket......this one does keep out the rain. I also had a call from radio station WNCT in Greenville, NC. They are going to do an interview tomorrow morning at 640am (I'm up). They don't "stream" live, but the woman said it would be available on their web site soon after the show ends. If interested, check WNCT.COM sometime after 7am or so.

The rain continued and I decided to cut the day short and get inside. I didn't do lots of miles today, maybe 16-18.....but I'll make it up when the weather improves. There was a McDonald's nearby, so I went there and called Robert to bring the cart and gear. He offered to take me back to his place for the night, but I think it will quit raining soon, and there are several good camp sites near the McDonald's. I sat inside until he came, we unloaded the cart and gear, and he went on his way. he also brought me ice for the cooler, snacks, and sandwich.......good brother. I went back to McDonald's to use their wi-fi (does anyone know why wireless Internet is called wi-fi?....check here) for a while, and will go to one of the camp sites when I leave later this evening. Hopefully the rain will have stopped or at least slowed some.

About the pictures:
Another look at City Marina in Carolina Beach,
Intercoastal Waterway under Snow's Cut bridge;
When's the last time you saw one of these?