My favorite place on the east coast has to be the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The sandy beaches, the lighthouses, the endless list of activities and the smell of the salty air...it all comes together and captures my heart like no other place.

There are many legends about how the wild ponies got to the Outer Banks. These, on Hatteras, are in a double-fenced corral, but on many parts of the islands, there are plenty of free-roaming horses to be seen.

White herons purposely make their way across the water at Pea Island Natural Wildlife Reserve at the north end of Cape Hatteras.

Pitch a morsel of bread into the sky and you'll soon have dozens of seagulls hovering, all competing for the free handouts.

Avon pier on Hatteras at sunrise.

Manteo Harbor on Roanoke Island

Lighthouses always bring charm to a beach.

Left: Ocracoke

Middle: Bodie Island

Right: Currituck

Many types of animal life, inclluding this loggerhead turtle, can be seen at Pea Island Natural Wildlife Refuge on Cape Hatteras.

The dunes at Cape Hatteras

Cypress knees at the water's edge on Roanoke Island

The Wright Brothers National Memorial at Kill Devil Hills is an extremely interesting activity for a couple of hours. Take the kids and let them experience history on the very grounds where the invention of flight took place.

Besides the replica buildings (below) where Wilbur and Orville worked and lived, the actual runway is marked where they tested their first flights. You will see (left) that each of the four boulders marks the distance of each endeavored flight.

Besides these structures, there's an information center and a memorial.