Friday morning around 6 am, I snapped this photo as I came back across the bridge from Emerald Isle to Cape Carteret.. The spectacular sunrise was an appropriate beginning to Cape Carteret's birthday party.

There are a lot of reasons that I enjoy living on North Carolina's Crystal Coast, but the small town atmosphere is at the top of the list.

We have enjoyed a number of local festivals since moving here last fall, but I never expected to be treated with hamburgers and hot dogs cooked by the Mayor of Cape Carteret.

We did not need special invitations either. My wife, Glenda, had just noticed in one of the Wednesday papers that Cape Carteret was inviting everyone to lunch this past Friday to honor their 48th birthday.

Since we are trying to meet as many people as possible, we headed towards Cape Carteret's Town Hall a little after 12 noon. We really had no idea what to expect.

When we got to the town hall, we saw some smoke coming from a grill in the park beside the town hall. There were also a few people eating at a picnic table.

The friendly fellow flipping burgers directed us inside the town hall where we found a cornucopia of burgers, hot dogs, chips, and salads. A number of people were spread out enjoying the burgers in the town council meeting room.

It has been a long time since I had a burger grilled over real charcoal. I really enjoyed the treat. On top of that, there were some hot dogs that had been cooked to proper crispness.

It did not take us long to figure out that our burger flipper was Mayor Harvey Ellis.

We talked briefly with him about why Cape Carteret is such a great place to live. Mayor Ellis also warned us that it gets in your blood, and if you try to leave, you will likely be drawn back.

Though everyone has their own answer as to why they like living and working here, being a safe, friendly small town is almost always mentioned. My personal guess is that the willingness of people to accept outsiders is an important factor.

Perhaps another reason everyone is so happy aside from the beautiful setting on the shores of Bogue Sound and the great winter-free weather is that almost everyone is here by choice. Being in this area is part of a dream for most of us, so it is pretty hard to complain or be unhappy.

Also while munching on our burgers and dogs, we also to meet David Fowler, one of Cape Çarteret's commissioners, who also welcomed us to the area.

That makes it official, having met two people from local government here, I have met twice as many as I idid in Roanoke in nineteen years, and certainly no government official there, especially not the mayor, ever expertly cooked me a burger.

I also just put up a few pictures of the Cape Carteret Town Hall and surrounding area. While you are wandering the web and planning what to do for dinner, check out the article, On the trail of some treats from the sea, that I just posted on my Crystal Coast Restaurants site.

The photo sites that I maintain at Picasa Web Albums and Flickr should convince anyone that I love to take pictures.

I also have a site where maintain my favorite sunrises from our deck in Roanoke.

Since coming to the Crystal Coast last fall, one of my favorite spots for photos has been the bridge between Cape Carteret and Emerald.

I guess a little of what I find special about the photos is the challenge of getting them.

First you have to time your bridge crossing. Then I usually have to let traffic pass me just before I get on the bridge and be careful that no one is behind me before I stop.

Even with those precautions I can only get three or four shots with a fast camera so I have to work quickly while my wife watches for traffic. I have gotten some really nice photos including the one in the post.

I am looking forward taking delivery of our skiff so I can take sunset photos on the water while sipping a beer.

I think that qualifies as a great time especially if it is interspersed with some fishing.

I have gotten some really great photos other places such as down by Clyde Phillip's Seafood where I took this sun-drenched Pelican or at Emerald Wood's park where I snapped this fantastic sunset.

The beach is a great spot for sunrise photos if you can manage to get up early enough to beat the sun.

I also love to take pictures down by the Point at Emerald Isle near the intersection of Bogue Court and Inlet Drive. This sunset is a great example.

Still when I can hit the bridge at the right time, it is hard to beat. I have even managed to time it right for one sunrise.