Flanners Beach Campground in New Bern, North Carolina
June 17-20, 2021
I scheduled a few days stay at Flanners Beach Campground as an interim location for my goal of visiting Orcacoke Island on the Outer Banks of NC. After falling in love with the wild ponies of Assateague Island, I wanted to see the ponies on Ocracoke Island, too. This is the link to learn more about them: https://www.outerbanks.com/ocracoke-wild-horses.html
Sadly, we never made it to the island…
When I booked the reservation for Flanners Beach, I was aware of previous storm damage caused by Hurricane Florence in September 2018. Now almost 3 years later, the beach area is still closed to the public.
When we arrived at the campground, there was a sign on the never-locked 😳 swinging gate at the entrance. The sign instructed campers to check in by text message to the number listed. Ok… 🤔 At previous campgrounds, I was required to show my ID & my NPS Senior Pass. They also recorded my vehicle make, model & license plate number. There was none of that here.
I located my campsite & settled in. The first night was uneventful. The cicadas belted out their chorus loud & strong all night & we slept well.
The next morning, I woke up early because it was VERY hot in the tent. I had arrived late in the day & didn’t pay attention to the best spot for shade. By 7am, we were in full, HOT sun. I immediately moved the tent to a shadier spot.
It was now Friday morning & reports of Tropical Storm Claudette started coming in. I’ve been very carefully monitoring weather reports since Day #1, so this got my attention!
Maddie & I spent the day relaxing, while I considered my options. I had reservations to take the ferry to Ocracoke Island on Tuesday & reservations to stay in a campsite on the island for 3 days. This campground’s description stated “No shade” for most campsites, including mine.
By Saturday, the weather reports indicated that this area was in the direct path of TS Claudette. It didn’t take much to convince me that I needed to get us to safety! Between being at a campground that had been severely damaged before, with zero staff presence to help out in an emergency, I didn’t feel safe. Even if the storm fizzled, the thought of taking a ferry ride 2.5 hours each way on choppy water to stay in a campsite with no shade, suddenly lost its appeal. I canceled the ferry reservations, the island campsite reservations & the campsite reservations for our return trip. Now the challenge was deciding where to go next!
On Sunday, Father’s Day, I packed up & drove 1.5 hours to Jacksonville, NC. I was able to get reservations at a Red Roof Inn which allows dogs. Yay! We ended up staying there 3 (expensive) days because the storm was lingering in the area. It was nice to have a roof over our heads again, a comfy bed, hot shower, TV, etc. They offered a free continental breakfast & Burger King & McDonald’s shared the parking lot. I didn’t eat healthy for that few days, but it was cheap & convenient in the rain.
Next stop: Buck Hall Recreation Center in McClellanville, SC
Where's Wendy? Livin' in the Edge! 