Exactly when the compelling desire to write about North Carolina travel opportunities seized me, I cannot tell you. I sometimes think it came from helping my coworkers—many of whom came to North Carolina from other parts of the country to work in the software industry—find something enjoyable to do on the weekend. After all, I was a native North Carolinian, an increasingly rare commodity, and I knew the turf.
After suggesting places to go and things to do, and after 10 years of traveling both the main roads and the back roads—and hiking the trails, rafting the rivers, stopping by the waterfalls, looking for wildflowers, enjoying the museums, touring the historic buildings, finding the restaurants, and otherwise enjoying the state—I have developed a deep appreciation for just how much North Carolina has to offer. (I also have a deep appreciation for what it means to try to cover a state that encompasses 48,708 square miles of land, too, but that’s a story for another day.) You want it? North Carolina probably has it.
Clearly, a book that purports to highlight travel opportunities in such a big state doesn’t just happen by itself! So, without further adieu, I’d like to thank the following people. Without them, this book would not have come about, period.
To Laurie Evans and David Alff of the Raleigh News and Observer go my most heartfelt thanks. Everybody needs someone to open a door for her, and for me, that person was Laurie. While serving as travel editor of the News and Observer in the early 1990s, Laurie took a chance on me as a rookie travel writer, and I am forever grateful to her. Then, a year or so after Laurie opened the door, David assumed responsibility for the paper’s “Travel” section and really let me work. One day, we tried to arrive at the number of stories I’d written for him, and we simply couldn’t do it. We’d both lost count. Over the course of eight years, even on those occasions when I stumped my toe, David was always patient and willing to let me seek out an interesting destination to share with readers. David, you’re the best.
Behind Laurie and David at the News and Observer are people who helped me in innumerable ways, among them Felicia Gressette, features editor; and Marcy Rice and Liz McGehee, copyeditors.
Thanks also go to Carolyn Sakowski, president of John F. Blair, Publisher. She saw a way to nip and tuck my travels to shape this book. Without her creativity, my work would have been less focused. Others at Blair who helped bring this book into being include Steve Kirk, Debbie Hampton, Anne Waters, Kim Byerly, and Ed Southern. Steve was especially helpful with keeping the wealth of detail cleanly structured, and Debbie worked magic with the formatting.
I am also indebted to family, friends, and friends of friends for their helpful suggestions along the way. Among those who aided me were Cathy Farabow, Bob Setzer, Pat Leftwich, Susan Irons, Roonie Craig, Dwight Warren, Don Weisner, Clark Bond, and Rita Johnson, director of DeTamble Library at St. Andrew’s College.
To those who work in North Carolina’s tourism industry—the innkeepers, the wait staffs, the docents, the park rangers, the site staff, the guides, the everyday people—you’re great! While you may think you’re just doing your job, you really do help put North Carolina’s best foot forward with your smiles and helpfulness.
And though he may be last, he’s never least. I owe a special debt of gratitude to my husband and travel companion, Randall Washington. Traveling with me as his time permits, he keeps the pursuit of stories from being a solo proposition. I draw great energy from his indefatigable spirit and optimism.