Although I’m originally from North Carolina and have been coming to the coast since I was a child, Carolina Beach was one of the beaches my family never went to when I was growing up. As far as I can remember, we went to Nags Head and Avon in the Outer Banks, the beaches of Brunswick County, especially Holden Beach, and maybe Wrightsville Beach once or twice.
When I moved to Wilmington in January and wanted to go to the beach, I went to Wrightsville because I knew it, but then I expanded my trip to Carolina and Kure beaches because I found a friend there who was renting a house in Kure.
My family, who live about four hours northwest of Charlotte, decided to come over for the holidays, which I was incredibly grateful for because I’m terrified of driving through Charlotte, even though I bravely drove Interstate 85 as a 16-year-old while working for my dad during the summer. I have to admit, it was a weird feeling packing my suitcase to drive just 25 minutes down the road to Carolina Beach, but at the same time, it felt like a blessing.
Here you can see how our vacation went.
A trip to the aquarium
Although I had visited the Fort Fisher Aquarium before, we decided to go again.
Every time I’ve been there, I haven’t regretted it. Even though I remembered most of it from my last visit, it didn’t change the cuteness of the otters when we entered the first room. The last time I was there, they were busy swimming around and doing flips in the water. This time, they were huddled together on a log, dozing.
On the hunt for mussels
Inspired by our trip to the aquarium where I learned about the seashells you can find on the North Carolina coast, I searched the beach and found so many cool seashells. I even found a piece of sea glass the day after my dad told me he had never found any before and that he wanted to find some now. I still don’t think that was a coincidence.
I found lots of beautiful calico seashells with lots of unique patterns and colors. I also found a bunch of thin, pearly seashells that look like mermaid scales and reminded me of the movie Aquamarine, which was my favorite as a kid. Aquamarine’s nails were pearly and changed color depending on her mood.
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Fishing traditions
Growing up, my dad always took us out on his fishing boat on Lake Norman. Whether we were casting a line at Lake Norman State Park or pulling on our waders to fish for trout in the rivers of Avery and Watauga counties, my dad raised my brother and I to never forget the basics.
Although my brother now knows a lot more than I do, as fishing has always been his hobby, I’m starting up again. My dad brought me my fishing rod that he bought me years ago and we fished in the Fort Fisher Recreation Area, where you can buy a permit to go to the beach.
It reminded me a lot of the Outer Banks. I think most of the fish I caught I used as bait, but my dad fried some of the umbrines when he made our Low Country Boil one night. My brother also caught a shark for the first time. It was a baby and my dad unhooked it and watched it swim back. Of course, my mom, who is always cautious when she goes in the water, was a little scared when she realized a shark was swimming so close to shore.
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Made with love
One thing to say about my family is that we know how to cook. My father, who made us breakfast every morning while we were on vacation, had tears in his eyes after we ate the first morning and said that cooking breakfast for us was his favorite thing to do because my moving away from home made him feel like we were all back home together.
I think it probably goes without saying, but I believe I live in a very special place and I am grateful to be able to share it with my family.
