As I write this, the sun is out, it's a bit breezy (20 mph out of the NW), and the tide has receded. Damage is as minimal as minimal can be: tree limbs, floating debris, drowned gardens, puddles in the road. The ducks are loving it. We've all seen much, much worse. 

Ocracoke was lucky. Other parts of the Outer Banks, including Hatteras, did not fare so well.

Puddle ponies!

Courtesy of Laura Michaels

We've gotten word from NPS that the ponies are all okay. Their pens are puddly, but so is everywhere else. (Except in front of Blackbeard' Lodge/Back Porch. Thanks, Justin LeBlanc!)

We never even lost power or internet. It almost doesn't feel like a real tropical storm when you sit in the AC and are forced to watch Amazon TV shows with your drunk friends who show up at midnight, and when you finally go to bed at 4am there's no wind at all, and then when you wake up the sun is shining. I spent most of Hermine watching "Braindead" and it's exactly how I feel today. (Also, I highly recommend it.) (The show, not the staying up all night.)

The National Weather Service in Newport, NC doesn't have an anemometer on Ocracoke, but they get stats from their WeatherFlow partners, who reported the highest wind gusts on Ocracoke were 65mph at 10:35am this morning. That's when the toide was hoigh in the village. Back Road, Silver Lake Drive, and Highway 12 around the harbor were inundated with tidal overwash, but it didn't last long. Great photo ops, though. Keep your go-go boots handy; we might have one more high tide later tonight.

Tom Pahl captured this shot at the peak of the gusts on Saturday morning at the end of Lighthouse Road.

Visitors: Don't expect to get to Ocracoke today. The NCDOT Ferry Division posted this statement: "Higher than expected winds and significant soundside flooding have led the N.C Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division to cancel most ferry routes for the remainder of Saturday. Southport-Fort Fisher and Pamlico River are the only two routes currently operating."

The county will put on a press release this afternoon that we hope will have re-entry information. Until then, the word on the street is that maybe you can come tomorrow, almost certainly by Monday. 

Please hang in there! We know you love Ocracoke and we appreciate your concern – and your business. We all hope to be open again soon.

Local man complains about regularly occurring natural phenomena. (Howard Street rain puddles.)

If you happen to be here, the Ocracoke Oyster Company is open for dinner. We went last night and enjoyed some sweet tunes by Nick and Brooke. No music tonight, just good food. 

Stir crazy? Stop by the Community Square tomorrow (Sunday) from 3–6pm. The Wilma Lee Gala Fundraiser is still happening, come Hermine or high water, so there'll be food and drink on the docks! (It will probably be too windy for sailing.)  

Fair winds! 

Jeramy Guillory took this on Silver Lake Drive at 9am

The back of the Anchorage Marina and the gazebo across from the Wahab house at 9am. Photo by Rob Temple, who let me sleep in.

My backyard at 1pm. I didn't venture far until late afternoon.

Check out the Current's Facebook page for way more photos and even some great videos that Crystal took this morning!