A simple search for “North Carolina Beach Accommodations” rests at the center of all that is Sandman.
It was October. It was warm for that time of year, even in North Carolina. We needed a weekend to unwind and relax, and the ocean was calling our names. Living most of our adult lives close to water, we missed the sound of the waves and the smell of warm sand and brine.
I found Buxton, NC.
The Inn on Pamlico Sound
Then I found, The Inn on Pamlico Sound. I read the description out loud to my wife, putting great emphasis on things like the Buxton Woods Coastal Reserve, close proximity to the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, walking distance to the beach, and amenities such as a private porch, a library, and dock. Within the hour, we had a four-day stay booked, and we were ready to roll.
The Inn has a cameo appearance in Sandman when Andrew and his boss meet there for lunch to discuss some very important business surrounding the happenings on Buxton Beach. They would have met outside the inn. Andrew would have arrived first and waited on the porch. They would have eaten in the dining area adjacent to the bar.
After we checked in with Steve Nelson, owner, and CEO, we settled into our four-day hideaway. Our sound front room was aptly named, Sunflower. Its bright, sunny walls, sweeping Pamlico Sound view, and large windows offered me a perfect setting for writing notes and drafting scenes for Sandman. To learn more about Steve and his delightful crew, visit their webpage: https://www.innonpamlicosound.com/.
Buxton, North Carolina
Buxton is located in central Hatteras Island, where the island makes its turn back towards the mainland. There is one way in and one way out: NC Highway 12 across the Bonner Bridge. The first time we went, we spent much of our time exploring the art galleries and gift shops that were open that time of year, and the local bookstore. It was after one such outing, that we came across a tiny ice cream shop. We were in luck, it was open!
Inside, we ordered our cones and had a nice conversation with the man behind the counter. He was a Buxton native, a man, as he put it, with his feet and the feet of his ancestors buried firmly in the sand. I commented at one point that it was really quiet. He responded, “Always is this time of year. So quiet, you could bury a body in the sand, and no one would ever know.”
That, dear reader, is how Sandman was born.
Ocracoke Island
We took several trips to Buxton while I wrote Sandman. I wanted to meet more people, listen to more stories, and think about Katia and her friends growing up, working, and being on this little strip of sand. On one trip, we took a ferry over to Ocracoke Island. After we did, I knew it had to have at least a cameo appearance in Sandman. The ferry ride itself was an hour of pure enjoyment. We saw dolphins and ponies, the Ocracoke Lighthouse, and a group of fishermen hard at work (or play). We visited a small British cemetery where four British soldiers whose ship was sunk off the coast during World War II are buried. And we had lunch and happy hour at an amazing little outdoor restaurant with seafood that was better than any we ever had.
Speaking of lighthouses, did you know that from the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, you get a full view of Buxton? It was too late in the season when we went, and the lighthouse was closed for internal exploration. We did walk around outside, though, and we learned much of the history of what is one of the most famous and recognizable lighthouses in the world.
The beam of light that spans 20 miles into the ocean is also the world’s tallest at 208’ tall. This is my wife standing next to the lighthouse for comparison. There are 257 steps to the top. This was not the first lighthouse built to protect the waters off of Hatteras Island. It was the second. The first proved ineffective due to height restrictions and offered little in the way of help for passing ships.
The current lighthouse took about two years from start to finish. It was first lit on December 1, 1870 and did the intended job for over a hundred years. We learned on our second trip to Buxton that the beach where the lighthouse stood became more and more eroded over the years and, in the 1990s, it was moved 2,900 ft. inland. The move took 23 days.
The Dunes
The dunes of Buxton Beach play a lead role in this novel. It was important that I spend many hours walking along, seeking out spots where a particular scene could be set. As I spent more time here, I fell more in love with the quiet rhythm of off-season life. I may no longer be researching, but I will definitely return. I will end with a few of the pictures I kept on my desktop as I wrote Sandman. These reminded me of the places my characters worked and played as I wrote another chapter, and then another and another.
