Target Is HOW Far? Our OBX Shopping Odyssey

A trip to Target is not a big deal. Unless you’re in The Outer Banks of North Carolina. And that’s when you’ll discover the nearest one isn’t even in the state! 

If you’ve been following along on our beach house makeover, you’ll remember that yesterday was a tearful one for me. (Read about my waterworks meltdown HERE.) But the next day was a new day, and I was determined to head out on our shopping trip with a new attitude.

Target…Or Bust!

A quick search on Google Maps showed me the nearest Target was 30 miles away. Not too bad. Or so I thought. But when I put in DRIVING directions I got this shock. An 87 mile drive…and a four buck toll to boot! 

I suddenly realized that the closest Target WAS just thirty miles away…But only IF you could swim across Currituck Sound! Instead, Sarah and I had a two hour drive ahead of us!

Now let me tell you a little bit about the road system in the Outer Banks. Once you come across the bridge at the Southern end of the finger of land there is ONE main road. Highway 12 is a simple two lane road that runs the length of the OBX. That highway actually comes to an end in the sand about three miles North of our house. I’ll share more later about the two legged (and four legged!) inhabitants of that sandy beach in another post, because today is all about shopping!

Since Highway 12 is the ONLY thoroughfare it is always busy, even in the off season when we were there. During peak season a big dose of patience is always necessary. There are very few store choices for everyday household items, so each shopping trip needs to be well planned.  Every shopping list must be double checked so no return trip will be necessary. Lucky for us there is a Food Lion grocery store and a well stocked Ace Hardware within a three minute drive to our house. But a round trip to the only Home Depot or Walmart stores required more than an hour of round trip drive time. But believe me when I say the unspoiled beauty in the OBX is absolutely worth it.

Let’s GO!

Armed with our LONG list the three of us headed to the nearby Chicken Coop Country Diner  for a quick lunch before Sarah and I headed out on our mission. Peepaw was happy to skip that shopping trip. He stayed home and began the huge task of removing every door in the house. All of those solid wood doors (about thirty of them!) were set to be painted, so he carried each massive door down the stairs to the carport. (No gym membership needed for him!)

Our “Girl’s Road Trip” turned out to be a good chance to compare notes and to prepare for the next phase of the kitchen makeover.  While Sarah drove I took some notes on my phone and added forgotten items to our shopping list.

Ready. Set. SHOP!

I bet you’ve watched some game shows where contestants try to beat the clock and fill their carts with everything under the sun. Yup. That was us as we flew up and down the aisles in that Chesapeake Virginia Target store!

It was actually quite FUN!! Except when I realized I was too vertically challenged to see over the top of the pile in my cart! 

It took some serious maneuvering to guide those overstuffed carts up and down the kitchen aisles. And it wasn’t long before we realized we would need more than the two carts we started out with.

The Target clerk in the check out line didn’t bat an eye. That patient soul acted as if everybody showed up with three overflowing carts every day. Unbelievable. And much appreciated!

Believe it or not…we weren’t even finished! We headed to ANOTHER nearby Target store to grab several items that were out of stock at the first store.

On The Road Again…

Our return drive ended long after dark, and we were too tired to even grab anything to eat on the way home. We both settled for a little caffeine just to keep us going until we finally saw the welcome lights of home. 

Unfortunately Sarah’s rental car was not equipped to unload itself. But Peepaw appeared to help us with that daunting task. And once again may I say THANK GOD FOR THAT ELEVATOR!!!

We made short work of unloading all of our purchases, and it was definitely time to call it a day.

Just wait until you see those cupboards and drawers when I was finished!