This weekend Dave and I had a great time at Virginia Beach, our favorite beach in the area. The weather was perfect, the ocean was warm and calm with some nice waves to ride the boogie boards on.
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On the way back from the Chesapeake Bridge -Tunnel, we stopped at Fort Story to visit the Old Cape Henry Lighthouse located there. Fort Story is a military base that is home to a variety of U.S. Army and Naval Units in the City of Virginia Beach. Cape Henry is a cape on the Atlantic shore of Virginia and the southern boundary of the entrance to Chesapeake Bay. Near the point where the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean meet, Cape Henry was the site of the first landing of the English colonists, who eventually settled in Jamestown, on April 26, 1607.
To visit the lighthouse, you must pass through the security gates of Fort Story, and it is required to show Photo Ids at a military checkpoint to enter. Our car was checked out as well, which makes sense to do, by very personable, polite and helpful security staff. After passing the check point, we drove to the Cape Henry Lighthouse visitor center. There was a good view of both lighthouses right from the visitor’s center parking lot. The Old Cape Henry Lighthouse is on the left and the new Cape Henry Lighthouse is on the right in the picture below.
On the last day of our stay in Virginia Beach, Dave and I decided to visit the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel and the Old Cape Henry Lighthouse. According to the official site The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (CBBT) is a 23-mile (37-km) long bridge-tunnel crossing the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and connecting the Delmarva Peninsula’s Eastern Shore of Virginia with Virginia Beach and Hampton Roads, Virginia.
The Delmarva Peninsula is occupied by most of Delaware state and portions of Maryland and Virginia states. It is a modern engineering marvel and is considered the world’s largest bridge-tunnel complex, which was opened in 1965. This Bridge is considered as both a tourist attraction and a travel convenience. Here is a aerial view of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel from a postcard.
Being in VA Beach, we couldn’t miss the opportunity to visit the Virginia Aquarium. The complex has marine life exhibits, aquariums, touching tanks, historical exhibits, nature trails, boat tours and more. There are 2 buildings and a nature walk in between them where you pass by an adventure/obstacle course and an aviary. The birds are mostly varieties that are found in and around the Chesapeake Bay, and are a part of the wetland ecosystem.
The Boardwalk was the best part of our 4 day trip to Virginia Beach. The 28 foot wide boardwalk stretches three miles and features a separate bike path for rollerblading, biking or surrey rentals. Rather than traditional wooden planks, Virginia Beach’s famous boardwalk is concrete. The 59 blocks are lined with quaint benches, Colonial-style street lamps, and nice walking paths.
The Boardwalk also hosts various events and festivals at different points throughout the year, though street performers can be found entertaining passersby most every day. And similar to other Eastern Shore beach destinations, there are many restaurants, souvenir shops, and hotels along the Boardwalk. King Neptune stands tall at 31st Street and overlooks a range of events that occur in the small park surrounding him.
