Getting Away the Objective on Ocracoke Island
Isolated Serenity, Lack of Development Can Mean More Solitude
Jun 30, 2009
Ocracoke Island may be a less familiar part of North Carolina’s Outer Banks to some. Kitty Hawk, Nags Head, Kill Devil Hills, and Hatteras might come more readily to mind when one thinks of the state’s barrier islands that separate the Atlantic Ocean from the Currituck, Albemarle, and Pamlico Sound.
Ocracoke, a mere 16 miles long, is a continuation of the southern tip of the Outer Banks but one removed by approximately 10 miles of water. It can be reached only by car ferry from either Hatteras Village or the mainland or by private boat or small plane.
The island is also distinct from the better known and more populated areas to the north with its lack of equivalent development and commercialization. As some inn proprietors on Ocracoke point out on their Web sites, no strip malls, fast food restaurants, movie theaters, go-cart tracks, mini-golf course, or waterslides are to be found anywhere.
Ocracoke on North Carolina's Outer Banks at Heart a Fishing Community
In essence, Ocracoke is a fishing village with charter or individual fishing a principal activity there, particularly in the fall, with the opportunity to catch or buy gray trout, Spanish mackerel, flounder, drum, cobia, yellow fin tuna, wahoo, and marlin. However, in the summer the open oceanfront beach, which is part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, is a favorite spot for surf fishing with the beach accessible to four-wheel-drive vehicles at any time of year.
Others like the long stretch of windswept beach to look for shells, build sandcastles, walk along the miles of sand dunes, or take to the water on their surf boards. Stephen Leatherman, director of Florida International University’s Laboratory for Coastal Research, who writes under the name Dr. Beach, listed Ocracoke as number 1 on his yearly list of prized beaches in 2007 for its environmental quality.
Visitors can choose to swim in the ocean or in the calmer Pamlico Sound where it’s possible to go clamming, bird watching, or otherwise observe nature. Just down the road from the historic and still operating Ocracoke Lighthouse, the oldest in North Carolina and second oldest in the United States, is Springer’s Point, with a nature preserve on a 31-acre tract of land facing Pamlico Sound.
Ocracoke's Quiet Island Roads Ideal for Bicycling
Taking a half-mile trail at the preserve goes past live oaks and through a maritime evergreen forest to get to the water’s edge, where heron, egret, and ibises can be spotted. Parking is not available there, and so walking or biking is the only means to reach the property. However, the scenic and slow-paced roads on Ocracoke lend themselves to leisurely exploring the island by bike. For those somewhat more adventurous on two wheels, the island’s single paved two-lane road, Highway 12, which runs from one end of Ocracoke to the other, can be biked but is heavily traveled by cars and unshaded.
The village of Ocracoke, the only portion of the island not under the National Park Service’s jurisdiction, is similar to a downtown square and is located around a small sheltered harbor known as Silver Lake. The village is located at the widest point on the island, protected from the ocean by sand dunes and a salt marsh. A series of artist and craft shops are found along the village streets.
Beyond it is a smaller residential area built around a series of man-made canals called Oyster Creek. Kayaking is popular on the creeks as well as on the sound. For anyone wanting to venture off of Ocracoke, boat trips are available from the harbor to the nearby uninhabited Portsmouth Island, a ghost village dating back to the 1700s, including guided tours of the village and the island.
Changes over the Years on Ocracoke Island at Southern tip of Outer Banks
In past years those who know Ocracoke and have written about it have noted the increase in crowds at times and even more sport utility vehicles. Chronicling its history, Marvin Hunt, in the March 25, 2001 New York Times, “A Hidden Treasure No Longer,” wrote: “Settled in the early 18th century by families from southwest England and Ireland trickling down the barrier islands from Tidewater Virginia, Ocracoke remained virtually isolated until the mid-20th century. The first ferry, from Hatteras Island in the north, was established in 1957; the first mainland route, from Cedar Island, in 1964.”
Ocracoke remains difficult to reach. Hatteras Village, from where a free 40-minute car ferry leaves for the island across the Pamlico Sound, is just over 70 miles from the northern Outer Banks. Norfolk, Virginia, where some traveling to Ocracoke fly, is a three-hour drive. Getting to the area from the Washington, D.C. region by car takes over seven hours. The North Carolina state capital of Raleigh is about 200 miles away.
For those coming from the mainland and taking one of two toll ferries, the Cedar Island-Ocracoke Ferry is about 2 hours and 15 minutes, and the Swan Quarter-Ocracoke Ferry takes about 2 hours and 45 minutes.
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