Where the North Carolina Wind Blows

North Carolina is a big, long, beautiful state. It offers diverse landscapes for residents to enjoy in almost every corner, including ocean views, lake views, mountain views, and city views. And, then of course, there is the serenity of the many farm views that our state’s fertile lands provide.

Take cotton for example. On a recent trip to the eastern part of North Carolina, I passed acres upon acres of this unique looking plant of white fluffiness surrounded by rough, brown exterior and stem. As I zoomed along the two-lane highway, these crops virtually blanketed me with their comfort and pride in all that we are able to produce here amongst our many notable views.

Which brings me to the reason for my trip and the rather new and much less known NC view. A new type of farm, which produces a new kind of crop, has sprung up not far from Belvidere, NC.

The Desert Wind Farm (a.k.a., The Amazon Wind Farm US East) produces electricity that is used by AMAZON’s data centers in Virginia. Like the crops that the wind turbines are planted amongst, this farm adds value to the community it is a part of beyond the electricity it produces. Details on the economic, infrastructure and employment benefits of the farm are outlined here.

And, while all that is impressive and could be an interesting discussion to have. The purpose of my trip was much less impressive.

While I had worked in the alternative energy industry for many years, I had never been up close to a wind turbine. I had heard conflicting reports of their size, the noise they made and what they looked like in real life. So, I jumped in my car from Raleigh, and I decided to once and for all experience a wind farm up close and personal.

It is hard to explain how utterly surprised I was by my reaction to seeing the first turbine while driving along the road. My first emotion was surprise. In fact, it almost scared me, as I totally did not expect to see such a mammoth structure alongside the meandering two-lane country road. Also slightly unsettling was the fact that despite its size it barely made its presence known. I saw it, but I did not hear it. That in turn made me wonder if I was really seeing what I was seeing.

I got out of my car on numerous occasions, giddy like a small child at Disney for the first time. I was captivated by the views that I could see and capture from the road. I never went on private property to take any pictures, and yet, I was able to feel like I could reach out and touch several turbines that I encountered throughout my day.

There were far more turbines than I thought, as it is not considered a large farm. Yet at the same time, they seemed spread out and not crowded or ugly. In fact, some were difficult to see at all on the cloudy day that my visit took place. I also noticed that no one stopped on to ask me what I was up to. Perhaps the community is quite used to “out of towners” like me ogling their newest crop?

Whatever the case may be, my unencumbered exploration led to some pretty big hunger pains. Fortunately, the nearby town had an answer in the form of a restored Victorian, which housed a delicious restaurant and small boutique gift shop. Only steps away was Layden’s Supermarket, which caused whiplash as my head swung side to side to see all the yummy treats they had in stock. With the help of their friendly staff, I managed to narrow down my purchase choices and left with some made-fresh-daily sausages, a jar of local honey and some locally made chocolate covered peanut brittle. Yes, it is all as good as it sounds.

While my goal may have been simple - to see a wind turbine up close - the day far exceeded that low expectation. I did not merely place a check mark next to a bucket list item. But, I got the feel for how wind power can be weaved into an already vibrant community. I was educated on what it feels like to generate power from nature in a place that already generates so many crops that help to feed and energize the folks in their community and beyond. And, I got to explore yet another beautiful corner of our tremendous state. In my opinion, you can add this to the long list of amazing North Carolina views.

The original version of this post can be seen at NC GreenPower:
https://www.ncgreenpower.org/blog/where-the-north-carolina-wind-blows