Prescribed burns, such as this one in Bladen County to restore a longleaf pine forest, take careful planning and keeping an eye on the weather.
Our Coast
Our Coast: The Coastal Fire Forest
Just as water is important to a rain forest, fire is paradoxically the ingredient of life to our coastal forests and all the animals and plants that live there. We spend a couple of days explaining the importance of fire and describing our attempts to mimic it.
Death, Duty and Yellow Fever
A yellow fever epidemic killed hundreds in Wilmington in 1862, including the doctors and ministers who felt duty bound to tend to the sick.
Coastal Sketch: Oceana’s Randy Sturgill
Meet Randy Sturgill, a former car theft investigator who is now the southeast coordinator for Oceana, leading the fight against Atlantic offshore drilling.
Coastal Sketch: Penny Hooper
Not even a broken leg could keep this long-time activist in Carteret County from standing on one leg to urge her government to oppose offshore drilling.
Our Coast’s Food: Cornbread
Introduced to colonists by native Americans, cornbread, a simple staple that varies in preparation from region to region, continues to endure as it evolves.
Navigating the Cape Fear: Locks are Key
Navigation on the Cape Fear River between Wilmington and Fayetteville relies on a system of locks and dams, the first of which was completed a century ago.
Centennial Celebration Set for Lock No. 1
A celebration is set for Oct. 3 to mark the centennial of the completion of Lock and Dam No. 1 on the Cape Fear River and to show off the public facilities.
Pelican Award Winner: Patti Fowler
Patti Fowler will be retiring soon after a career spent protecting coastal waters. The N.C. Coastal Federation gave her its highest award for her tireless efforts over three decades.
Our Coast: A Shelter During Segregation
For African-Americans in North Carolina, the hotels, restaurants and “juke joints” of Seabreeze, south of Wilmington, were their shelters in time of segregation. There they could enjoy Miss Sadie’s fritters and the swing of Count Basie.
A Simple Favorite: Shrimp Cocktail
Shrimp cocktail has been a familiar appetizer since the early 1900s, and while the preparation may be simple, seasoning and presentation can make it unique.
Woodpeckers Thrive at Rugged Preserve
The Palmetto-Peartree Preserve is a rough wilderness, ill-suited to casual visitors, but it’s a surprisingly successful habitat for red-cockaded woodpeckers.
Pelican Award Winners: the Swartzenbergs
They helped save an island and for more than 20 years were champions of clean water and the oysters that depend on it. Meet Jim and Bonnie Swartzenberg.
Unusual Blue Buttons Dot N.C. Beaches
Blue buttons, small ocean dwellers that aren’t jellyfish but are related to the Portuguese man o’ war, have recently made rare appearances on N.C. beaches.
Street Names Tell Ocracoke’s History
Who’s Ikey D and Nubbin? And where’s that poker game on Poker Players Lane? Ocracoke’s history is on display on its street signs.
Our Coast’s Food: Brunswick Stew
Recipes for this traditional, Southern coastal stew are sure to cause an argument. Is it chicken or pork, opossum or squirrel? Should it be thick or soupy?
