Heading North Two Lane Adventure - 4th Leg

We spent the whole day on US 17. We left the bumper to bumper non- stop traffic of Myrtle Beach mid morning. We both agreed that all that congested traffic is not for us! We really do appreciate the slower pace of the two lane roads!

We followed part of Washington's Southern Tour. It occurred in the spring of 1791 mostly following the path of current US 17. In order to become acquainted with the American people, to know their hopes and problems, President George Washington decided to tour a section of the United States each year of his presidency. Worshipped as a hero, Washington had been saluted, wined and dined in all major towns he visited in the south. Just off us 17, near Wilmington NC is Moores Creek National Battlefield. This national marker is the site where nearly 1,000 North Carolina Patriots waited quietly with cannons and muskets poised to fire on the unsuspecting Loyalists as they charged across a partially dismantled Moores Creek Bridge on February 27, 1776. This dramatic victory ended British rule in the colony forever.

We saw pink garbage trucks and dumpsters, and wondered what were they about? Pink-Trash was born when INMAN Septic merged with Coastal Ladies Carting to launch Pink-Trash. The Company is New Hanover County’s one-stop-shop solution for Recycling, Trash, Dumpsters, Grease Trap & Septic Tank Services for your home or business. 1% of the billed amounts of their customers are contributed to Pretty in Pink Foundation. This foundation pays for cancer treatment for local women and men. In 2013, contributions paid for over $200,000 in life saving treatment for North Carolinas family, friends and neighbors.

Further up US 17, you cross over the New River. It is a 50-mile long river in southeastern North Carolina that empties into the Atlantic Ocean. My question is we saw the New a River, but what happened to the Old River? Maysville, North Carolina is known as the "Naturally Welcoming" community. It boasts tree lined streets and medians. We can see why they are so friendly! Carefree RV Resorts manages an RV resort in Kissimmee Fl, called Mill Creek, so when we passed Mill Creek Farms I just had to know more! Mill Creek farm is located in Johnston County North Carolina in a low area called Neuse River Islands. The 2,000 acre tract has been privately owned by the Lane family since the 1950’s, originally used simply for timber farming it was all but inaccessible. Russian razorback hogs were introduced to this area by adjoining landowners in the early 1960’s with limited success and only occasionally seen at best. In the 1970-80’s roads were constructed into the property and land was cleared for farming purposes. The Mill Creek Hunt Club came shortly there after as a primarily deer hunting club. Two hurricanes, Fran and Floyd, changed the property forever by displacing many domesticated pigs from farms in the area to this property. The pigs flourished presenting the farm with an uncontrollable number of feral hogs some with very suspicious razorback qualities. If you want to step back in time and find out about a fascinating tale of love, war and the strength of a Southern family. Check out Foscue Plantation, located on the Trent River in Pollockville, North Carolina. Have you ever wondered what southern plantation life was like in the 1800’s? To know what it’s like to share a Thanksgiving dinner where everything on the table came from your own fields and forests? To flee from your home when it’s taken over by unwanted intruders? The tours and history of the Foscoe Plantation can provide all this and more. Built in 1824 by Simon Foscue, Jr., the plantation house has been in the family for nine generations. The décor is high-style ante-bellum and retains a number of original furnishings. In addition, the family has continued to acquire antiques which are correct to the period. Placed on the National Register of Historical Places in 1971, it was one of the first in North Carolina to be designated. US 17 neither begins nor ends in North Carolina. Yet it is the thread that ties together many of the historical and natural wonders of the coastal region. This stretch of highway ties together Wilmington to Elizabeth City, nearly 300 miles to the north. The road has many names that are evocative of its role: the Ocean Highway and the Historic Albemarle Tour Highway to name a couple. Originally, US 17 was intended as the North Carolina segment of Interstate 95. But eastern Carolina politicians, appalled by the idea of an asphalt superhighway cutting through their farmlands, vetoed the idea, and the Interstate was diverted further west. Regardless, millions of people travel US 17 each year. The fact that it is not an interstate is a blessing since many of the gems along the route are fairly well kept secrets. All you need is a tank of gas, a road map, and time to spare, and you can be on your way to discovering the charm and history of eastern Carolina via US 17.