Explore the Duck Boardwalk

The Town of Duck is such a fantastic place to live.  One of the things I treasure is the ability to visit stores and restaurants on foot without the use of a car.  The Town Park and boardwalk are located in the center of Duck on the soundside.    The boardwalk is open from dawn till 1:00 a.m.    

Photo Courtesy:  Town of Duck

Photo Courtesy:  Town of Duck

Photo Courtesy:  Town of Duck

According to The Town of Duck website the boardwalk cost $479,849 to construct, is ten feet wide and held up by around 393 pilings that are inserted 8 feet into the ground.   The boardwalk is 3,500 feet and the first phases of the boardwalk were completed in 2009 with the most recent phase just completed.

Most of Duck’s shops and restaurants are connected by the Duck Trail or by the boardwalk.  If you take a stroll on Duck’s beautiful boardwalk you’ll find all types of shops as to explore and fantastic restaurants to visit.    You will find anything from books, clothing, art, kayaks, candy and toys. 

Some great places to visit near the Boardwalk:

1. Ducks Cottage:  A coffee and book store – I highly recommend the Mucky Duck.
2. SeaDragon Gallery:   A shop that promotes American artisans that specialize in jewelry, pottery, glass, metal and wood.  Artwork by local artists as well as nationwide.
3. BluePoint:  Regional, coastal cuisine and southern hospitality alongside spectacular views of the Currituck Sound.  Everything is delicious!
4. DuckDonuts: Freshly made cake donuts – you pick your topping, guaranteed you will stop by more than once.  
5. DocksideN’ Duck: Family owned and operated they provide fresh seafood as well as fresh baked goods and sides and supplies for all your cooking needs. 

For a complete listing of shops and located in the Town of Duck click on Town of Duck Visitors Map.  To view all the amazing aerial photos of Duck go to the Town of Duck Facebook page.  

What is a Sand Dollar?

Don’t you just love Sand Dollars?  It is such a treat to find a “whole” one while walking on the beach hunting for sea shells.  We all know what the sand dollar looks like, they are usually small, white and round, unless they are broken.   So what exactly is a sand dollar?

Before you find them on the beach, when they are alive they are a dark color covered with short dark spines.  The spines on the sand dollar are movable and the sand dollar uses the spines to move around the sea bottom or to push food into their mouth.  

Photo credit TerryMcT photo stream

Sand dollars belong to a family of marine animals that are known as echinoderms, which inhabit all the world's oceans and can live in both the shallow and deep-ocean floor.  Other marine animals in this family are the (starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sea cucumbers and feather stars).  They are invertebrates which mean they do not have a spine.  

According to Starfish.ch “Echinoderms are characterized by radial symmetry, several arms (5 or more, mostly grouped 2 left - 1 middle - 2 right) radiating from a central body (= pentamerous). The body actually consists of five equal segments, each containing a duplicate set of various internal organs. They have no heart, brain, nor eyes, but some brittle stars seem to have light sensitive parts on their arms.”

Sand dollars like to live on smooth sandy or muddy ocean bottoms.  They prefer to live in shallow areas near land.  They like to burrow in the sand in heavy currents and even eat sand grains to increase their weight so they don’t get washed away. 

If you find a sand dollar on the beach and it is white then it is a safe bet that the sand dollar is no longer living.  It is best to take the steps to preserve the sand dollar so it will last you for years to come and you won’t have an odor associated with them.

To Preserve and Harden a Sand Dollar:

1- Soak them in fresh water. The water will turn a brownish color and possibly even smell.  It is best to change the water frequently.   Do not go onto step 2 till the water remains clear. 

2- Next soak them in a solution of bleach and water. Let them soak for about 10 minutes.

3- After you remove them from the bleach water, rinse in fresh water and air dry in the sun.  The sun will help bleach the sand dollar. 

If you soak the sand dollars too long in bleach they can crumble.  Bleach weakens a sand dollar so it is best not to soak them more than twice. 

To Harden a Sand Dollar: Mix together white glue and water in equal portions. Take a sponge brush and completely cover the sand dollars with the glue mixture. Then let dry.  After they are preserved and hardened then you can use your sand dollars for decorations or even craft projects.