(Day 10: Saturday, June 5th): six miles southeast of Colonial Williamsburg lies Carter's Grove, a 750-acre plantation on the north shore of the James River. A 14-minute multi-image slide presentation at the plantation's Visitor Centre gives us an introductory presentation before we explore the reconstructed slave quarters, the mansion and its gardens. A cafe in the stable block provides us with some refreshments before we discover the history of Martin's Hundred (that Carter's Grove was part of) including a massacre by Indians in 1622.

(Day 11: Sunday, June 6th): the Comfort Inn is less than half a mile from the Wright Brothers National Memorial - the site of the first flight of a manned, heavier than air machine. This area of the Outer Banks with its open land of soft sand, no trees, and a steady wind must have been an ideal area for the experiments of the Wright Brothers  in 1902 and 1903. The Visitor Centre has excellent exhibits and photographs, and there is a reconstruction of the camp buildings used by the brothers. We thoroughly explore this amazing and historic site.

The 8-mile Country Road (right - where we see two snakes) takes us back to Williamsburg. From there we drive to the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel and then on to Cape Henry (below and right). A further 90-miles takes us to the Comfort Inn at Kill Devil Hills on one of the barrier islands known as the Outer Banks - we are now in North Carolina, our 35th state.This evening we have a pleasant seafood meal at a restaurant with the unpromising name of Awful Arthur's.

Adjacent to the Wright Brothers' Memorial is a 3,000-foot paved airstrip known as First Flight Airport - home to Kitty Hawk Aero Tours. We book for a 25-minute flight over the area at 11:30am