Whalebone Junction takes its name from a whale skeleton that once stood here, and it is not much to look at now: an intersection and a few shops on a narrow strip of sand between the Atlantic and Roanoke Sound. But it matters, because this is the point where the roads from the mainland meet NC 12, the highway that runs down the Outer Banks, and from here you head south into Cape Hatteras National Seashore, with ocean on one hand and sound on the other.
The Outer Banks are barrier islands, long, low ridges of sand constantly shifted by storms, tides and wind, and living on them has always been precarious. This stretch of coast has seen hundreds of shipwrecks, and the area is nicknamed the Graveyard of the Atlantic. It is also where the Wright brothers flew the first powered aeroplane in 1903, a few miles north near Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hills, where a memorial stands on the dunes. Just south of the junction, the black and white striped Bodie Island Lighthouse stands among the marshes.
The ride is flat and open, with long straight runs broken by gentle curves, the dunes rising on one side and the marsh on the other. It is a pleasure when the air is clear, but wind is the dominant feature, and crosswinds can be strong enough to push a motorcycle across the lane. Sand drifts across the road after storms, so watch for patches, and in places the road is close to the water and may be flooded by high tides and hurricanes. Summer weekends bring dense traffic from beach visitors, so early morning is best.
You can fill the tank at the stations in Nags Head, a few kilometres north of the junction, and at Kill Devil Hills, and you should do so, since services thin out as you go south. Seafood is excellent, with shrimp, oysters, soft-shell crab and local fish served in simple cafes. The bridge across Oregon Inlet takes you onto Hatteras Island, and free ferries run beyond it, across to Ocracoke. In summer, mosquitoes and biting flies can be a nuisance, and autumn brings calm, warm days and fewer crowds, which makes it the best time to ride.