Month: August 2024

Though some of their research and their bike shop was located in Dayton, OH. The Wright Brothers flew their experimental plane in Kill Devil Hills, NC. They made four flights the shortest being approximately 120 feet and the final test flight at approximately 820 feet. The actual runway and flight path are marked by small rock markers showing the four flights.

Monument on a hill overlooking the runway and work buildings of the Wright Brothers

The large stone marker on the left is where the engine was started and the flights began. To the right, you can see the markers for the first-three flights.

This marker indicates the fourth flight approximately 820 feet from the start.

We visited four lighthouses on the Outer Banks and Cape Hatteras on the shore of North Carolina. Dave was able to climb the Currituck Beach Lighthouse; 220 steps. We had to take an hour ferryboat ride to see the Ocracoke Lighthouse. The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is currently undergoing renovations. It is the tallest lighthouse in North America.

Currituck Beach Lighthouse

We were lucky in our timing to see the Air Space Museum. It had been closed for renovations for the past four years and only half reopened September 2023, the other half is set to reopen next year. It was dark inside and no flash is allowed so it was difficult to get good pictures.

New London is a coastal city in Connecticut. We visited New London for a several hour water tour to see light houses and the old fort. We also passed General Dynamics Electric Boat Works where submarines are built. Unfortunately, we went to the U.S. Navel base to see the submarine museum but is was closed due to a power outage.

Mystic began as a seaport in Connecticut in 1784. Over 600 ships were built there. Today, there is an aquarium and the Seaport Museum which has been modeled after Colonial Williamsburg. Aside from a boat museum and an Indian history museum, shops have been setup to create, repair and manufacture supplies and parts for the C. W. Morgan whaling ship. The shops create everything by hand, including metal works, ropes, wooden parts and even an original printing press.