The perfect weekend getaway

My lovely wife and I recently had the opportunity to get away JUST THE TWO OF US for our 15th anniversary. We decided to enjoy what Carolina Beach has to offer. In all honesty, it was an opportunity to take advantage of the area like we normally can't with kids in tow. And it was so much fun.

After getting settled into Our Beach Place Friday evening, we hit the Flaming Amy's Carolina Beach location. We've seen the "Eat at Flaming Amy's" bumper stickers for years, but have never been to one. It was amazing. I had the Buffalo Shrimp Po Boy burrito, which was unbelievable. And it's hard to beat their salsa bar.

After dinner, we walked from our condo toward the boardwalk area of CB. Again, this is something we had probably deemed as too ambitious with children, but it was actually a very pleasant mile-walk along the beach. After meandering around the boardwalk activity, we sunk into some chair outside at the Fat Pelican -- a dive bar in every sense of the word.

On Saturday, we walked back to the boardwalk in hopes of beating the early-morning Britt's Donuts crowd. No such luck. But you know what? We didn't mind -- we had all day and it was nice to meet people while we waited about 40 minutes for the doughy goodness. The wait was well worth it.

The bulk of the rest of Saturday was spent lounging on the (spacious) beach. A cool, stiff breeze kept things very pleasant.  For dinner, we hit the Ocean Grill and Tiki Bar -- and were able to sit on the pier this time around. (Again, because of being sans kids.)  My wife had a crabcake sandwich and I had fried shrimp -- all washed down with great drinks. We even saw an ocean rescued and a wedding from the pier!

Finally, before leaving on Sunday, we had our second donut experience of the weekend at Wake and Bake. I got a turtle-flavored donut, while my wife got a peanut butter one. WOW, were they good. And the donuts are so different from Britt's that I don't even feel like I'm cheating.

All in all, it was a fantastic, relaxing and enjoyable weekend in Carolina Beach.

Happy times! Britt's is open

Ah, the joys of fantastic donuts!

The day that locals anxiously wait for and visitors hear about as they cross into Carolina Beach is finally here…Britt’s Donuts is open for the season.

The Nivens family has operated Britt’s Donuts on the Boardwalk in Carolina Beach for more than 30 years.

The line began forming for the infamous donuts well before the doors opened at 4 p.m. on Friday.

Column: Carolina Beach is 'my beach'

Came across this touching column from Carolina Beach native Kris Worrell, editor of the Utica Observer-Dispatch about her memories of what she called "my beach."

... I’ve lived at (and visited) many beaches in my day – Virginia Beach, the Outer Banks, the Cape, Galveston, Ocean Beach in San Diego – but nothing compares to “my beach.”

My beach is Carolina Beach, a small, unpretentious place about 15 miles outside Wilmington, N.C., between the Atlantic Ocean and Cape Fear River. My grandparents built a house, which my grandmother designed, and two cottages next door during the 1950s. My mother and aunt spent summers there, then my cousins and I did the same. The four-bedroom house never had air conditioning other than the breeze blowing from the ocean but we could always keep cool with a dish of Grandmother’s homemade peach ice cream.

All summer long, Grandmother would rent the two cottages out, mostly to families from West Virginia or Kentucky who saved up all year for this one week in the sun. They would drive up in their cars, the kids pressing their faces to the windows as they saw the ocean for the first time. After they got the key, and often before even unpacking the car, the whole pack would run, stripping off shirts and shoes, arms outstretched, into the waiting surf.

I was born in Wilmington, but only because Carolina Beach, where my parents lived at the time, didn’t have a hospital. Years later while I was pregnant with my first child, my cousins went to the beach house and scooped up a container of sand and shells, then mailed it to me in New York. My husband placed it under the hospital bed (both times) so my children would be born over Carolina Beach soil.

The last time I saw the house and beach was 2001. Monday, Sept. 10, 2001, to be exact. We had gone to meet my cousins and show my new husband this place I’ve talked about for years. The vacation didn’t turn out as planned, as we spent most of the week trying to contact our friends in New York City and watching news of the terrorist attacks instead of lounging in the sand.

My kids had never seen the beach or the house, which my grandmother sold decades ago when the upkeep became too much. So, on this trip, we drove over the bridge and into the small town. The boardwalk, though a bit bigger, still had the obligatory arcade and the wonderfully simple Britt’s Donuts shop, voted the best in the country by numerous magazines, tourists and natives alike. They’ve been selling one kind of donut – basic, glazed, perfect – since 1939. Donuts, coffee, milk. That’s all that is on the menu. What else do you need? ...

I snapped pictures of my kids in front of the house, with the same view I used to see spread out behind them. There were lots more people on the beach than I ever had to tolerate, the tide was coming in and we got caught in a terrible lightning storm that sent us under the porch for a time.

Still, like a sweet, delicious donut, it was perfect.

Don't let the rain and cold weather fool ya: Summer's on its way!

Yes, it's somewhat abnormally cold and dreary, but don't let that trouble you. Summer (and warmer weather) is on its way.

How do I know that?

Britt's Donuts is open!

Life is good.

CB board: Give boardwalk year-round status

From the Star-News:

The end of the summer season is known to arrive when Britt's Donut Shop serves its last tasty treat and shuts its metal drop-down doors on the Carolina Beach Boardwalk. ...

And as the crowds dwindled at the end of September and the last batch of doughnuts were out the door, many other Boardwalk businesses followed suit and decided to close for several months or for certain days each week.

But with the help of the town's Boardwalk Makeover Committee, some have vowed to reach a goal of making the Boardwalk a year-round destination.

The effort faces an uphill battle against perception, however. People don't want to visit the Boardwalk because they don't think any shops are open, while shops don't want to open because they don't think people will visit, said Councilman Dan Wilcox, co-founder of the Boardwalk Makeover Committee.

"To work toward that, what we're trying to do each year is to extend the season a little bit," he said.

Bye bye Britt's (for now), and CB is in the spotlight

"Donut lovers who can't get enough of Britt's Donuts in Carolina Beach are going to have to wait several months before eating them again," says WECT.

"Sunday, the donut shop officially closed for winter. ...

"Every year in the fall the donut shop closes for the winter and reopens in the spring...."

However, the good news is that CB is getting some nice notoriety.

"Carolina Beach is the perfect destination for a fall getaway," says Travel Video News. "Fall means family-friendly festivals and events. It’s always play time. The autumn is special in Carolina Beach where events and activities happen nonstop. There’s a lot to do and an added bonus of uncrowded beaches. Carolina Beach is a popular summertime destination, but in the fall, with its special rates on accommodations, it delivers exceptional value."

(Ahem -- like Our Beach Place.)

"There’s lots of ways to relax and have some traditional family fun. Stroll hand-in-hand along the shore or on the boardwalk. Leave your cares behind and have a picnic, hike along the nature trails and do a little bird watching, or rent a paddleboat at Carolina Beach Lake Park. If you love to fish, grab a pole and join a fishing excursion. Several charter fishing boats are available for rental at the Carolina Beach Fishing Center and Marina. Drop a line off the pier or try your hand at surf fishing. Rent a canoe or kayak and paddle your cares away. Take a ride through town on a surrey bike. Outdoor adventure is all around."

Britt's Donuts: Well worth the drive

The Raleigh News & Observer begins its summer "Open Road" series with a look at a CB institution: Britt's Donuts.

Traveling 129 miles from Raleigh to the beach to try an 80-cent doughnut is to put faith in those who have come before, to trust in their ability to judge grease and glaze.

Because even with rhapsodic testimonials posted across the Internet, driving that far to eat Britt's Donuts is a gamble because there are no choices. If you prefer chocolate, and your buddy eats jelly-filled, that's fine, but you can't have either. Britt's sells only fried glazed doughnuts.

There is a simple reason for this, insists owner Bobby Nivens.

"When we get busy," he says of his airy, hand-cut delicacies, "we don't have time for other doughnuts."

After the first one, you might not either. ...

The doughnut has devoted fans, but Nivens isn't the sort of cook who shares his techniques with friends. Only he and his wife, Maxine, know the exact recipe. One of them has to mix the dough so the employees can make the doughnuts. Even their daughter isn't privy to the doughnut's innards, although she knows where the recipe is written down in case anything happens to the secret-keepers.

Nivens dreamed years ago of expanding his deep-fried empire to include shops in other cities, but he eventually decided against the plan. Money, he says, isn't everything. Plus he and Maxine enjoy their time off, which is pretty much October through March.

The shop opens at 8:30 a.m. every day during the summer. It closes each night when business slows, and Nivens never shuts the garage doors if there are people in line.

"I don't want to get killed," he says, laughing.

When in CB, you have to try Britt's Donuts

We finally experienced the wonder of Britt's Donuts last summer. It was well worth the wait.

The donut shop, a staple of Carolina Beach, closes each year in October but offers their donuts (just one type: glazed) during the high-tourism season.

Well, according to WECT, Britt's opened back for the spring and summer this past Friday.

Owner Bobby Nivens started working at Britt's Donuts in the 1950s and has been the owner for 36 years, though the shop has been in business for 76 years.

In 2008, MSN City Guide ranked the donut shop as the second best doughnut in the nation.

Quirky Carolina Beach: Floating convenience stores, donuts and more

One thing that drew us to Carolina Beach was its "feel" as an old beach town. You can still walk a little ways to a run-down (yet charming) little store for the necessities and there's that perfect mix of old and new.

Apparently I'm not the only one who feels that way.

This beach still has a bit of an old school flavor, especially at night [says the Daily Reflector].

Wednesday night there was a DJ blasting oldies at the boardwalk, while children rode the carnival rides and about 100 adults played cash bingo just a few feet from the beach.

Oh, and don't forget Britt's Donuts.

This places rocks.

Open since 1939, Britt's Donuts has the best donuts I have ever tasted.

This unassuming spot was probably my favorite shop or restaurant that we visited.

It is just a simple counter with a very simple menu.

They have donuts, coffee and soda. That's it. And it's not a bunch of different flavors. It's one flavor: glazed.

So don't order a chocolate filled or something like that. Just say, "I want two donuts and a coffee." Better yet, make it a half dozen.

We went there Wednesday night and we just had to go back Thursday morning before we left Carolina Beach. Britt's Donuts is awesome.

In addition, there's just enough quirkiness in Carolina Beach to keep you on your toes.

Case in point: The Bait Barge, a floating convenience store.

Yes, a floating convenience store.

If you’re a boater and frequent the waters near Carolina Beach Inlet, you’ve likely noticed the Bait Barge [says the Island Gazette]. It’s a convenient location where boaters can buy live bait, ice and other necessities.

Owner Nick Kintner was informed by the Division of Coastal Management earlier this month that state law considers his operation a “floating structure” and regulations prohibit it from staying in one location more than 30 days.

Kintner said he wasn’t aware of that law and didn’t intentionally try to violate the rules. To resolve the situation, Kintner registered the floating bait shop as a vessel.

The Bait Barge sells both live and frozen bait for all types of fishing.

In addition to ice and bait, they also sell snacks, beverages, sun block, and many other items.

The entire Bait Barge is run on electricity that is self generates through solar panels and windmills. They run business hours every day of the week opening at 7:00 a.m. on weekdays and on weekends they open early at 6:00 a.m. Barring inclement weather the Bait Barge will be open and available as your convenient bait shop on the water.

The Bait Barge accepts credit and debit cards and they hope to be an asset to all of the water loving people in our area. Stop by the bait barge for all of you bait and supply needs the next time you are on the water.

(Photos by the Island Gazette and the Daily Reflector)