Wrightsville Beach sits on a barrier island on the southern coast of North Carolina. It was left almost entirely to nature until a crushed oyster shell road, which turned bleached white from the sun, was laid down and vacationers could drive in. Before long it became one of the most popular beach spots in the state and resorts began popping up. An electric trolley shuttled beachgoers up and down the island.
The resort vibes eventually lulled and were replaced with family oriented rentals. Today it is far from empty, but Wrightsville Beach is a quiet strip of sand dotted with pastel beach houses. At low tide, the waves pull back leaving warm tidal pools for splashing and floating in.
My aunt and uncle have a house overlooking the ocean. A boardwalk leads from their back door to a little deck with wooden recliners sitting out above the sand. It’s the perfect place to lounge in the sun all day, and when it gets too hot we run down to the waves for a dip.
The best time to enjoy the beach is dawn. This weekend, my mom and I woke up each morning to walk along the shoreline as the sun rose. The colors are amazing and while the sun is warm, the sand is still cool from the night.
As a child I would stay for weeks with cousin Sam, returning home a deep shade of brown from all the time we spent out in the water. Now Sam is married with two babies and I can only visit for a weekend, but you’d be hard pressed to tell much has changed.
We still debate healthy meals (although our diets now consist of more than fruit smoothies), get excited about makeup (although we no longer repaint our nails each day), gossip about boys, go for long walks on the beach and run around in the sand.
We’ve recently been invited to visit our friends who live in South Carolina. They’ve just bought a stunning beach house from Weichert Realtors – Coastal Properties. Hopefully it won’t be too long until we’re back in the Carolinas!
It’s nice to know we’ll always pick up right where we left off.