Category: Cape Hatteras

Right off the bat, a probably very tired and stressed officer greeted us this afternoon in a rather unkind fashion. To him we said, good afternoon to you too and took a stroll beach side to avoid any unneed conflict.

Heading north we could see all the debris from the houses being ripped apart, and old pilings that were uncovered by all the sand loss along the tide line. We made it up to Serendipity to see what looked like a minefield of debris.

They continue to build up the sand dunes on the side of the road, and were allowing 4×4 vehicles along a path close to where the beat up Highway 12 laid. The highway looks like it was put in an oven and then went through a magnitude 7.3 earthquake. It was the first time I had been down there at low tide and it was a sight to see.

HWY 12 Closure Photos: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7.

Headed back to Mirlo Beach at the North end of Rodanthe, NC. It just before high tide this evening. To my surprise the guys got a ton of work done since I was there earlier in the morning.

They cleared out hwy 12 from the south all the way up to the Serendipity house. But with the incoming tide they were battling against time. The bulldozers were working as fast as they could to dump sand to rebuild the dunes and stop the oncoming waves.

By the time we left just after high tide the waves were already breaking over the sand dunes. It will be interesting to see what is left in the morning.

HWY 12 Closure Photos: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7.

This morning’s high tide was too early to get up to go shoot so, after we woke up Mel, Chris and I ventured back up to the North of Rodanthe, Cape Hatteras, NC (or what’s left of it). After walking the half-mile from where we could safely park, things weren’t looking any better than yesterday.

Nearly all the pools of the first dozen houses to the south of town were broken or gone. You can see the pavement that buckled from the seemingly endless waves breaking over what use to be 10-15 foot high sand dunes. The sun broke though for a little, while we were exploring the area. It made things seem very surreal as the double overhead waves were crashing just feet from the houses.

The clouds quickly covered up the sun, and with the strong North winds at our face we decided to head back for some breakfast, as things weren’t going to change any time soon.

HWY 12 Closure Photos: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7.

It was going on high tide and the surroundings looked more like a war zone than the tranquil escape many people know as Cape Hatteras. With water rushing down the streets from all directions it was crazy hiking the half-mile to the end of town.

The Serendipity House in Rodanthe made it though another high tide as did the 4-5 houses just south of town. Things were looking much worse than I’ve ever seen it before. Just take a look at the images.

HWY 12 Closure Photos: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7.

I headed back during lunch to see what I could see at the north end of Rodanthe in the Outer Banks of Cape Hatteras, NC. Things were way worse off than when I left the night before. David Carson, Matt, Claire, Jessie, Steve and I found that nearly all the sand dunes between Serendipity and northern S-Turns was flattened.

Waves were rolling across where the Highway use to be. Part of the concrete was breaking off and floating to the sound side.  Serindipity “Nights in Rodanthe House” was holding strong through the high tide but was taking a beating. It was again a sight to see.

HWY 12 Closure Photos: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7.