On September 18, 2003, hurricane Isabel visited Gates County, NC and left a lasting impression. Gates was hit hard by this storm, and while photos rarely ever depict the way things look in real life, they can give a feeling of just what the residents of this county went through on that day in September.

Gates County is 70-80% woodlands and because of this we are heavily dependent on the timber industry just as much as we are dependent on agriculture. Those woodlands, and crops were devastated during the storm, and the effects will take years to disappear. We didn't get the coverage in the media the same way other more populated, and more affluent areas did, but in many places Gates was hit much harder. Our property values aren't high, and our houses are few and far between, but that doesn't mean we didn't suffer just as much, if not more than the Outer Banks of NC, or the Tidewater area of VA.

So take a tour of what the county went through, and send your best wishes to the residents here who are trying to put their lives back together after the storm that ravaged this area worse than any in most people's memories.

Indian neck road has always been a very picturesque gravel road here in the county. Above is what it looked like before the storm.

This is Indian Neck Rd now.

Another view of Indian Neck Road.

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