Firsthand accounts provide vivid detail of the deadly storm in September 1846 that created Oregon and Hatteras inlets and brought dramatic changes to North Carolina’s Outer Banks.
Our Coast
Our Coast’s Food: Holiday Cream Pies
Made with or without fruit, cream pies are a holiday staple for many families along North Carolina’s coast. Our Liz Biro shares stories from a Portsmouth Island native about Christmastime memories and an aunt’s famous cream pies.
Our Coast’s History: Shell Castle Island
Shell Castle Island in Ocracoke Inlet wasn’t much more than a cluster of oyster beds, but for a couple decades in early U.S. history, the wharves and warehouses that stood here were the center of maritime trade for northeastern North Carolina.
December Brings New Birds, Annual Count
December brings migratory waterfowl to the N.C. coast, just in time for Audubon’s Christmas bird count, and the northeastern part of the state offers ample opportunities for bird-watching.
Susan White Links Space Research, NC Coast
As director of NC Sea Grant, NC Space Grant and the state’s Water Resources Research Institute, Susan White finds ways to put emerging technology to work researching the state’s coast.
Willis: Climate Change Threatens Economy
Rachel Willis, a UNC professor in the American Studies department, is an advocate for the world’s transportation infrastructure to work with, not against, climate change and sea level rise.
Harkers Island To Celebrate Heritage, Decoys
An exciting weekend is ahead on Harkers Island with the 30th annual Core Sound Decoy Festival at the elementary school and the annual Waterfowl Weekend at the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center.
Shorebird Banded 17 Years Ago Brings Hope
The recent recapture of an American oystercatcher at Masonboro Island, one banded 17 years ago in Georgia, was cause for celebration among groups working to help the species recover.
Our Coast’s Food: The Best Clam Chowder
Debate continues regarding the best kind of clam chowder, but on the North Carolina coast, Down East or Hatteras-style clam chowder reigns supreme because it’s made with mostly clams.
Winter Birds Are Arriving On The Outer Banks
Jeff Lewis, an expert on birds and bird-watching, writes for his November column about winter birds, like the yellow-bellied sapsucker, brown creeper, winter wren, waterfowl and other birds you might find this time of year on the Outer Banks.
Wash Woods at 100: Coastal History Saved
Congressman Walter Jones attended the recent celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Wash Woods Coast Guard Station, a preserved historic landmark on the northern Outer Banks.
Eagles Island Stewards Look To Expand Effort
Stewards of the marshy wilderness known as Eagles Island, just off the busy U.S. 74/76/17 interchanges near Wilmington, hope to turn the area into a recreational and educational attraction.
Coastal Birding Trail Marks 10th Anniversary
Officials and about 100 attendees, including N.C. First Lady Kristin Cooper, recently celebrated on the Outer Banks the 10th anniversary of the North Carolina Birding Trail, a partnership project linking birding sites across the state.
Rick Luettich and the Science of Storm Surge
Rick Luettich, director of the UNC Institute of Marine Sciences, has turned his lifelong fascination with water movement into a career as a well-known expert on storm surge, but he’s still working on better prediction methods.
Event to Celebrate Oysters, Shellfish Growers
Oyster lovers and others interested in the roles shellfish play in both the environment and the economy, get ready to Shuck, Rattle and Roll, an event Friday highlighting Carteret Community College’s aquaculture program.
Our Coast’s Food: The Spots Are Running
When spots are schooling, from late August to November, coastal folk are known to “fry up a mess of ’em” and enjoy their mild, sweet flavor, a favorite for generations.
