Driving to the Beach

So, as previously noted, I am vacationing on the beach. In my nearly half-century of life, this mid-western boy has never done the "week on the beach" kind of thing. Its been a pretty laid back week. Not much to do (and that's just fine) but it doesn't make for much interesting map stuff. So, feel free to move on to the next post.



I'm on the North Carolina coast for a family reunion. All three of my brothers, and most of our kids, wives and grandchildren (none for me yet, thank you) are all staying in a big house of the beach.



The family is scattered all over. My brothers and I are originally from Michigan, but now we live in Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, Florida and Maryland. I've done a bit of swimming and bicycling, but mostly just hanging out with the family. The biggest bicycling challenge was climbing to the top of the bridge that connects our island to the mainland, over theIntracoastal Waterway



I find it quite fascinating that the Army Corps of Engineers has built this waterway that connects most of the Gulf and Atlantic coastal states with navigable rivers, straits and canals, allowing commerce and pleasure boats to travel without hitting the high seas. Perhaps more on that in a future post.

Another mappish thing noted on this trip: While I haven't added any new states to Where I've Been, I did drive a stretch of highway I've never driven before. That's always fun.



No new map postcards, in fact, I don't think I have even seen a postcard at all this week. Fewer and fewer shops even carry them any more. Who sends postcards any more I wonder...

I'll be back to a more regular schedule next week.