Outer Banks Excursion with the Hefelump.

On October 08 1999 I left the Appalachian mountains and headed east for the Outer Banks. Unfortunatley on this excursion I was roverless as my beast was down with a defunct transmission--so I had to settle for a lesser vehicle(no offense Jim)--a Ford F-150 4x4 pick-up! My reason for going was to deer hunt but as black powder season did not open until monday morning I decided to take a more northerly route and meet fellow Ambulance owner--Cole Stage--in Nags Head. On our way south on Hwy 12 we drove over Oregon Inlet bridge where I snapped the below picture of Cole's beast the Hefelump(is that spelled right Cole?)! The lighthouse to the left of the lump is the Bodie island light (pronounced body).

We drove on down the strand to Cape Hatteras where we viewed the new position of the Hatteras Lighthouse--see the photos below.

Here's a pic that I took a few years ago of the lighthouse in it's previous position. If you are interested in the whole Hatteras lighthouse story just click on the lighthouse below and instantly go to their site!

Here's one of it's current resting place after the move with the stone circle in the foreground marking it's original location.

Another view---

The Atlantic ocean adjacent to the lighthouse's old position--the distance was about 240 feet(rough estimate). Yes, the word "PLAY" just hovers there above the beach--it's just one of those unexpained Outer Banks phenomanons?!?!

As we pulled out of the lighthouse entrance road a SeriesIIa 109 was turning in!! I caught it on film below--it's in the lower right-hand corner! If it is yours drop me a note! We saw a total of three series Rovers (Hefelump included) in one day!

It seems that the Banks attract us folks with acute roveritis.

After leaving the lighthouse we drove on south and took the ferry to Ocracoke island--home of legendary Blackbeard the Pirate. While there we explored the beach for a couple of hours in the Hefelump...In the below picture you can see the Ocracoke Lighthouse in the background as Cole plays in the sand.

Cole pilots the Hefelump across a small lagoon...while people stare in awe! I wonder if the Hefelump's prowess at crossing water is due to the fact that it's powerplant is a Mercruiser and/or that Cole is the captain of his own self-built schooner?

The view of the Atlantic ocean from inside the Hefelump...

That's me driving the Hefelump...that thing just reeks of power!!!

Here's another view of Ocracoke's beach. It is a very popular surf-casting spot!

Once we found us a campsite (the Beachcomber campground)behind the islands only gas station I learned how to open a beer the right way. See below:

First, get a beer...Next, you need a Series Land Rover...one of which we had close buy. Then, place the lid of the beer under the bottom lip of the bulkhead tray as shown below.

Finally, exert a rearward, downward and foreward pressure--all at the same time--in order to keep the cap against the bulkhead and lever the cap from the bottle. And that's it--another of the many different uses of the worlds most incredible multi-purpose vehicle--the Land Rover! Note: this procedure will work with domestic beer(USA) but it is ill advised since the onboard gremlins are best kept at bay with ales of British/Irish origin.

Amazingly, over all my years of Land Rover ownership I never knew of this handy procedure--until Cole introduced it to me--Thanks Cole! While on the island we visited Howard's Pub and had several exotic fermented beverages from around the globe, ate of steamed local shellfish and enjoyed the fire charred flesh of at least two different species of domesticated grazing animals. The next day Jim and I had to depart and leave Cole and his Hefelump alone on Ocracoke. I found out later that he went back to the beach and explored the north-east end of the island. He soon found a nice spot on a deserted section of beach and set up camp--built a big fire in a pit in the sand and watched the sun set over the sound while listening to Perry Como and eating Chili--sure sounds great Cole, I wish I could have been there with my Ambulance--it would have been grand--maybe next time!

Thank's Cole...that's him below.

For the continued story of my Outer Banks Excursion with the Hefelump--Click:HERE

For you hunters out there that are wondering if Jim and I shot any deer--no, not this year...but below are a couple of pictures of my friend Mark and the Whitetail Buck that he shot a couple of years ago! His first--can't you tell by the grin!

Behold St. Christopher...then go your way in safety.

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