Two RV Gypsies: Full-Time RVers
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The two RV Gypsies went to
The Bodie Island Light Station
at Cape Hatteras National Seashore
in Nags Head, NC
June 23, 2020

USA map showing location of North CarolinaBodie Island location

Nags Head water tower
Lighthouses of the Outer Banks
Cape Hatteras National Seashore sign Historic Albemarle Highway sign
welcome to Bodie Island Light Station sign National Register of Historic Places sign

Bodie Island Lighthouse Quick Facts

Bodie Island is pronounced “body”. Folklore says the origin is due to the number of bodies that washed ashore after shipwrecks in these waters of the “Graveyard of the Atlantic”.

  • The current Bodie Island Lighthouse is the third that has stood in this vicinity.

  • Stands at 164 feet high and was first lit in 1872, electrified in 1932 and re-lit in 2013 after restoration.

Bodie Island Lighthouse and sign lens of the Bodie Island Lighthouse

historyThe grounds feature a visitor's center in the old keeper's quarters with exhibits, an Eastern National Bookstore, and a self-guided nature trail that winds through the forests and marshes. The lighthouse and keepers house are tucked away amidst tall pines and marshland creating a quiet respite from the busier parts of the beach.

The lighthouse was originally constructed on Pea Island, south of Oregon Inlet in 1847 but was abandoned 12 years later due to a poor foundation. Rebuilt in 1859, the then 80-feet tall lighthouse was blown up by Confederate troops in 1861 fearing that the tower would be used by Union forces during the Civil War. Across Oregon Inlet in the current location on Bodie Island, construction of the new 156-foot tall black and white horizontally-striped lighthouse was completed in 1872 with the installation of a first-order Fresnel lens, eventually electrified in 1932.

Above quote from https://www.surforsound.com/things-to-do/bodie-island-lighthouse/

Karen Duqueette at Bodie Island Lighthouse Karen Duquette at Bodie Island Lighthouse
Lighthouse Anatomy Bodie Island Lighthouse

The two RV Gypsies walked the boardwalk to the viewing tower.

boardwalk near Bodie Island Lighthouse boardwalk to the viewing tower

Below: Sign warning to use walkways because of Venomous snakes, yet many people were cutting across in the marsh.

Venomous snake warning people not walking on the boardwalk

Below: Views from the viewing tower

Lee Duquette at the viewing tower
view from the viewing tower view from the viewing tower
view from the viewing tower view from the viewing tower

Below: "Don't Poop on Me", Karen Duquette yelled as she held her camera up above her head to photograph birds flying overhead.

bird flying overhead bird flying overhead
Karen Duquette and the Bodie Island Light Station Bodie Island Light Station
Bodie Island Light Station Bodie Island Light Station
Bodie Island Light Station

Below: Leaving The Bodie Island Station and getting back on the main road, The Two RV Gypsies, saw a statue of a donkey, so Karen took a couple of photos of the donkey as they drove past it. Obviously, there was different lighting at each angle.

donkey donkey

look below

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