Springtime is kind of a slump. It’s cold and hot. Pollen is in the air. Flowers bloom. It’s rainy. It’s sunny. Let’s just say it’s a pretty confused season. And to add to it, there aren’t a lot of vacay days or scheduled time off, with the exception of Easter. So when we randomly had a 3-day weekend, we decided to put our extra day of freedom to good use and go on a road trip!

We jumped into the truck and headed down to the Outer Banks in North Carolina.

Now we knew it wasn’t the most ideal time to take a beach trip, but we really wanted to go somewhere peaceful that wasn’t too far from home, and we REALLY wanted to escape the cold. SPOILER ALERT: We didn’t.

When we finally got there, we didn’t really have anything planned. We looked up a couple of activities beforehand, but didn’t quite settle on anything, which made the first day there pretty chill. We slept in, had lunch at Food Dudes Kitchen — which btw was delish — and then drove around to scope out the area to find things to do because newsflash, Trip Advisor doesn’t always help.

Wright Brothers Memorial

We figured we’d head to the Wright brothers memorial first, since Kitty Hawk is home of their first flight.

The memorial is set on top of a giant hill that you have to walk up, hello glutes 🍑. Not a problem, although it’s a little less bearable when it’s 40 degrees outside. (Pro tip: Try to park close to a walkway unless you want a little workout).

While we were a little salty we paid $14 to see a granite structure in the sky and a replica of a plane, we do have to admit that we left feeling inspired. The Wright brothers had a dream and they pursued it, despite how scary it was. We mean, FLYING, come on…they were the epitome of ballsy.  And to be where they supposedly were, high up off the ground, wind aggressively blowing in your face and yet, feeling like you can achieve anything.

Personally, it gave us a renewed sense of purpose and the strength to believe in our dreams and FLY, in our own way. It definitely set the tone for the rest of our stay.

Off-Roading

Because we went during off-season, ATV-ing was not an option. So we looked online and found this place that rents these things called dune buggies. But unfortunately, all the buggies were rented out so we were left with one option: renting a jeep and going off-roading.

The exciting part about the Outer Banks, which is one reason why you might choose it over other beach destinations, is because you can drive on the beach itself, that’s if you have 4WD. It’s also a place where you can spot the famous wild horses, although we weren’t as lucky 🙁

We drove to Corolla, the north end of the Outer Banks, to get to the 4×4 part. There aren’t outlines of where you should drive, because duh, it’s a beach. But that’s part of the thrill. We drove in the water, on the dunes and on flat sand. All of it was SO fun. It was definitely our favorite part of the entire trip.

At one point, I stood up on the seat while Begad drove over the dunes, not realizing we were passing a police SUV.

Take A Look At Our recap video:

If you decide to go on your own OBX off-roading adventure, be sure to check out this website. It does a good job of explaining everything you need to know about driving on the beach, like if you get stuck..(It happens).

Jockey’s Ridge State Park

Right before sunset, we headed to Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Nags Head.

We took a barefoot walk up the dunes. Some people had their dogs, other people were flying kites and taking hang-gliding lessons. We even saw people who were sledding on the sand, which we were slightly jealous of. (So if you go, take a sled or kite.)

But even if you don’t bring anything with you, it’s a relaxing atmosphere. If you walk up some of the dunes, you’ll find a beautiful view of the beach town and water from both sides of the island.

So if you’re craving a peaceful, yet adventurous beach trip, put the Outer Banks on your list.