Helen and I pulled out of Camp Blakeslee and drove about 70 miles up the coast to Camp LeJeune Marine Corps Base and the military campground at Onslow Beach. We spent seven days at Kure Beach and were looking forward to the next seven days of our East Coast adventure. We had not visited Onslow Beach previously but had heard it was an excellent place for a beach vacation.
We pulled through the gate at Camp LeJeune and then drove another ten miles through this huge military installation until we reached the shores of the Atlantic. A charming young lady greeted us and assigned us to Site 33—less than 100 yards from the dune guarding the shoreline. All the campsites are gravel and grass with a covered patio beside each one. The covered patio was very helpful in shielding us from the sun’s piercing rays.
Our week at Onslow Beach was very relaxing. We only ventured out of the campground on one occasion, and that was to do a little shopping at the Exchange and Commissary—a ten-minute drive to the center of the Marine Base. I love shopping at Military Exchanges. There are always great buys in the clearance section, mainly casual clothing.
The remainder of our week was spent on the beach in the mornings or under the covered patio in the late evening. We rose early each day to walk on the beach before the hot temperatures chased us inside. Mortimer went with us a few times, although hot weather is not his “thing.” We were treated to some beautiful sunrises on those walks. I took my camera on several of them, but Helen and I were primarily hunting for shark teeth to add to our growing collection.
When we checked into the campground, we purchased a handy piece of beach gear called the Sand Dipper, an expandable hiking pole with a strainer attached to the lower end. We made great use of the Sand Dipper every day. We found The shark teeth on the small side, but the Dipper allowed us to sift through the sand to find many of them in the surf.
The literature attached to the pole explained that the Dipper could double as a hiking stick if the strainer was removed and a rubber tip attached over the end. The literature offered a free rubber tip if the user would send pictures of the Dipper in use and post photos of anything recovered on social media. Helen sent Mr. Dipper the image above and a note detailing our findings and location and posted a picture on Facebook. Mr. Dipper sent us two tips and thanked us for promoting his product. He was especially impressed with the Great White tooth I found on our second morning. I guess I took a “big bite” out of Onslow Beach.
Stay with us on our road trip. Next up is Cherry Point, NC. We’re Easin’ Along.
I’m always amazed at the creativity exhibited by the people who come up with ingenious ideas for useful products. Never in a million years would I have thought about making a Dipper, but I can certainly see how it makes treasure hunting easier. That beach looks fabulous, Joe!
Hi, Mary,
The Sand Dipper was a lot of fun to use and we scored big on shark’s teeth. Onslow Beach is a lovely place and not at all crowded. We will go back. Looking forward to hearing about all that’s going on with you and Alan. Please stay in touch. Joe
Wow, those shark teeth are impressive. I wonder if that’s an east coast thing. I’ve never seen them our here but then again I havent really looked. Your trips impress me. We just havent gotten down the traveling as long as you. Today we head up to Tahoe for a week.( 6nights). It’ll be chilly but we have the heater in Rubi(our Coleman Rubicon). Maybe next year we’ll figure out the longer trips. I’d like to do the South West and SanDiego. That would take some planning. Thanks for posting such interesting pictures.
Good morning, Christina,
We have never found shark’s teeth on the west coast, and it seems that they are found most on the beaches of North and South Carolina. We have a good time looking for them and have quite a collection. We plan at least one extended trip every year. Our sons live on each coast, so we plan trips that include a visit to each of the–and our grandchildren. They require a lot of planning, but that’s part of the fun. I enjoy having them to in our future. We have camped in San Diego three times and the area is one of my two favorite destinations. I hope you get there. Thanks for checking in, and have a great week. Joe
That Sand Dipper is very cool. I loved the win-win attitude of the inventor!
Good morning!
The Sand dipper is very handy for shark’s tooth and shell collectors. I wish I had invented it. Always great to hear from you. Hopefully, Richard is getting along nicely by now. Please stay in touch! Joe
What a gorgeous beach! You’re amassing quite a collection of shark teeth and your photo of them in the sand is very artistic. That great white tooth is scary!
That Great White tooth was hard to pull out of that shark’s jaw, but I finally got it. He was not happy! Thanks for checking in. Please stay in touch! Joe
Hi Joe,
You two seem to be really enjoying the beach. We love NC and had 2 rental homes in New Bern where we had originally planned to retire. But after visiting during Feb school vacation where there was a vicious ice storm and Dan’s arthritis wasn’t happy we decided we had better look for warmer. So Florida it is, but I LOVE historic New Bern and we’ve visited there several times over the years since.
Getting chilly here in NH; slowly doing our cottage-closing chores. Dock comes out this week then we start our RV trek south. Stopping for 5 days in MD to tour DC which I’ve never done! Figured we’d better visit while it’s still standing.
All the best, Nancy
Good morning, Nancy,
We visited New Bern on the next stop after Onslow Beach. I hope to post about later this week. New Bern is a charming city and I can see it as a place to retire. Wishing you and Dan a safe trip south. Enjoy DC and please check in once you’re settled. Always enjoy hearing from you. Joe
Hi Nancy, sorry Joe for jumping in here, but Nancy is a long-lost friend! I hope all is well with you. We just started having cooler mornings here, so our days should get better soon. However, the humidity yesterday was off the charts.
Joe, your collection of shark teeth is impressive—great apparatus for gathering. The beach looks glorious. I love the photo of Helen and Mortimer with that awesome sky in the background. Have a wonderful time easin’ along. I will have a post soon that sort of explains my month-long absence from blogging.
Suzanne,
You’re welcome here anytime and for any reason. I was happy to hear from Nancy as well. Onslow Beach was a great place to camp, and we will return. Looking forward to your next post, and thanks for checking in. Joe
Sounds great. We’re enjoying Pawleys Island right now.
Hi, Ginny,
Love, love Pawley’s! Enjoy to the fullest and return home safely…with a cooler full of shrimp. Joe