Steps: 3,615,084
Miles: 1513.32
The Virtual Walker is making a side trip by special request!
Corolla is a community located in Currituck County, North Carolina, along the northern Outer Banks. It has a permanent population of about 500 people and about 119 wild Spanish Mustangs.
Corolla is primarily a summer community. In fact, many of the houses are built with 6-8 bedrooms making this location a favorite for multi-family vacations or reunions.
Many outsiders erroneously pronounce Corolla the same as they pronounce the name of the car, the Toyota Corolla, where the second syllable sounds like 'roe'. However, residents pronounce the second syllable like 'all'.
The Currituck National Wildlife Refuge is located on the north end of Corolla Island. Here endangered plants, wild boar and Corolla's famous wild horses have a safe 1,800 acre haven.
The history of the wild horses living on the Currituck Outer Banks begins more than 400 years ago. In the early 1500s, Spaniards explored coastal North Carolina. They brought with them horses that were raised in the Spanish colonies which are now Puerto Rico. Originating from Spanish and Portuguese Barb stock, these choice mounts were bred for their stamina, size, temperament, ease of gait, longevity and their ability to survive and work in a sandy, harsh environment.
Along with other livestock including cattle, sheep and pigs, the horses were transported by being harnessed on the decks of Spanish ships. Because of the lack of deep harbors in North Carolina, some of the livestock made the final leg of the journey by swimming ashore.
The horses found here were presumably destined for Sir Walter Raleigh's colony on Roanoke Island some time during the years 1584-1590.
Today, the horses are protected by the United States government (after a fashion) and by the Corolla Wild Horse Fund - volunteers that donate time, money, and care.
Information Source
Corolla is also home to the Currituck Beach Lighthouse.
Photosource
Photosource
On December 1, 1875 the Currituck Beach Light was completed, located between Cape Henry Light and Bodie Island. Unlike its fellows (which include the famous Cape Hatteras Lighthouse), Currituck Beach Light wasn't painted, leaving its brick facade visible.
LIGHTHOUSE FACTS
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Number of steps: 214
Height to focal plane of lens: 158 feet
Height to top of roof: 162 feet
Number of bricks: Approximately one million
Thickness of wall at base: 5 feet 8 inches
Thickness of wall at parapet: 3 feet
Information Source
2 comments:
Great post. Loved the pics. (i would have pronounced Corolla like the car, too)
*makes note on pronunciation of Corolla for when I vist farther south*
ooooh horsies!! I need to make sure to plan a trip to that Refuge.
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