Editor’s Note: Tabb’s Trails is a commentary photo-essay series with coastal reporter, photographer and hiking enthusiast Kip Tabb. Post has been updated.

Although it has been a dry year so far at Nags Head Woods Preserve, the protected maritime forest on the Outer Banks is a lush and vibrant green. Songbirds flit among the branches. The raucous cry of woodpeckers is distinctive and unmistakable.

Actually, the more than 1200 acres of protected maritime forest along the Roanoke Sound has been drying out for the past few years, and the freshwater ponds that dot The Nature Conservancy’s preserve are showing the effects. Ponds that are usually picture book-reflecting pools are shallow and covered in algal growth.

The ponds are at the base of a series of hills. “They are relict sand dunes,” said Lora Eddy, conservation coordinator for the preserve. You can “take a core sample of the soil, and it’s just a very thin layer of organic with just sand.”

Those ponds, even if they are low, are the key to the verdant growth of the woods, which the nonprofit organization calls “one of the largest remaining maritime forests on the East Coast.”

“It’s really neat how areas between our relic dunes hold rainwater and help provide a little bit of extra water for the forest, wicking up some of that groundwater and that’s in here so they can sustain themselves,” Eddy said.

The best guess is Nags Head Woods formed around 700 to 1,000 years ago, although it could be older than that. Protected from the salt spray and ocean winds by natural sand dune systems at Jockeys Ridge State Park to the south and Run Hill to the north, the woods are filled with old-growth trees, marsh and upland habitats that have withstood everything nature has thrown them for hundreds of years.

“You think about these really cool coastal habitats, they’re just used to change,” Eddy said. “That’s the amazing thing about coastal habitats.”

There are more than 8 miles of trails and the variety is one of the best features of the reserve, Eddy continued.

The preserve seems to offer trails for everyone, including the quarter-mile Center Trail, a loop around two freshwater ponds by the visitor center. It is a very easy trail and a great introduction to enjoying the forest for young legs.

The Sweet Gum Trail is certainly more demanding. Hikers climb ridges with elevation gains that make it seem almost like a mountain trail.

The Sweet Gum Trail connects with the Blueberry Ridge Trail to create a challenging 3.75-mile hike.

There is also an Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, Trail with two accessible parking spaces. The 1,850-foot boardwalk circles a pond fed from Roanoke Sound. It may be the best birding trail in the reserve.

In the winter, yellow-butted warblers are ubiquitous, red-bellied and pileated woodpeckers are common and there’s an occasional green heron that can be seen on the fringes of the pond.

At the beginning of the ADA Trail is a butterfly garden. The flowers are just now coming into bloom, but the butterflies have been flitting through the reserve since the first warm weather of April.

Nags Head Woods participates in the Carolinas Butterfly Monitoring Program that “aims to track butterfly populations using scientifically sound, standardized survey methods as well as opportunistic sightings across both North and South Carolina.”

It is a community-based science program and Eddy is enthusiastic about it.

“We are using the scientific method called the Pollard Walk,” she said. “I imagine there’s this circle around me as I walk, and as I walk, I count butterflies within that circle. It’s a lot of fun. When I talk to kids who are visiting, they’re asking me what I’m doing, carrying a clipboard and chasing butterflies.”

The squirrels are out in force this year, dancing out of the way of cars as drivers navigate Old Nags Head Road, possibly one of the last maintained dirt roads on the Outer Banks.

The road is located in Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head and is jointly maintained by the towns. The road, Eddy said, “takes a lot of maintenance.”

The speed limit on the road is 15 miles per hour and for a good reason. It’s only one lane, and meeting an oncoming car involves seeing who has the closest place to back up to allow the other car to pass.

The annual Nags Head Woods 5K hosted by the First Flight Rotary Club takes place every year on Old Nags Head Road the Saturday before Mother’s Day. The race just celebrated its 40th year.

It’s a beautiful road and one of the oldest in Dare County. N.C. State Highway Commission maps from the 1930s show a dirt road heading west off what is now N.C. 12 and then going south along Roanoke Sound until it reaches Nags Head.

Now gone, there was a small but thriving community at Nags Head Woods. The Nature Conservancy published a book in 1987, “Everyone Helped His Neighbor: Memories of Nags Head Woods,” that was reissued in July 2018 featuring interviews with those who lived there.

There are still a few homes on the edge of the woods along Roanoke Sound, but the forest has been largely uninhabited for over 40 years.

My father’s service in the U.S. Coast Guard was something he deeply cherished and talked about often. His only regret was never having had the opportunity to attend the Coast Guard Academy. 

This was impossible in 1939 when he enlisted, as the only way a Black man could enter the service was to be a mess attendant. And this is how he began his career: shining shoes, making beds, and serving meals to white officers on a ship. Fortunately, and much due to his own determination, he was eventually transferred to the Pea Island station.

While my father is perhaps known best known for his service at the Pea Island Life Saving Station during World War II, his life also represents much more than that experience. It was because of this, at his memorial service in 2010, the title for a speech I gave about him was called “Beyond Pea Island.” The use of these three words for the title of my talk about his life came easily to me.  Although at the time I did not know anything close to what I know today about his life, his family history, and the heroic service at the historic station during World War II, these three words continued to stick with me as I believe they are so telling about his life.

Ironically, these same three words, “Beyond Pea Island,” have helped me to make the difficult decision some 16 years later to resign as a board member with the Pea Island Preservation Society Inc., or PIPSI. As I reflect on this decision, perhaps this is some way my father is speaking to me now.  He constantly encouraged change, always remaining open to new experiences and encouraging me to do the same. For me, my decision to resign from PIPSI has opened the door for me to be my own voice and to share what I learned in a creative way, something I continually strive to do. 

I joined PIPSI shortly after my father died, initially traveling to Roanoke Island from my Maryland home to attend PIPSI board meetings before moving here after my mother died. Although my involvement with PIPSI and the Pea Island Cookhouse Museum has rewarded me in ways I never imagined, I am comfortable with my decision to move on. I have struggled for a while now with this decision, as my passion for raising awareness of the story of Keeper Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers has not changed. However, I also know there is more to do and the time to do it is now.

I have also come to realize my family’s remarkable record of 400 years of combined service in the U.S. Coast Guard is very important. I want to focus more time and energy helping to make this story known. It continues to amaze me that my great-grandfather, Joseph Hall Berry, who began his career at the Pea Island station serving under the famed Keeper Richard Etheridge, had 21 members of his family follow in his footsteps and join the Coast Guard. This included one son and 14 grandsons. My father was one of these grandsons.

Since moving to Roanoke Island and working with PIPSI, I have also come to better understand the significance of the history of the Pea Island station and my father’s life. I have learned more about the challenges people like my father faced, especially during the Jim Crow era. Yet my father always remained positive, and his love for Roanoke Island and the Coast Guard never wavered. Although his race meant he was denied a great deal, he continued to do more, including obtaining his private pilot’s license at 26 years old while working at Pea Island and earning his GED several years later.

When things were winding down at the Pea Island station and the decision was made to decommission it, this is what he chose to do. He then used his free time to learn to fly. Since speaking at my father’s memorial service in 2010, I have also learned so much more about the place where he was born, the significance of his service, and the obstacles and challenges he faced. This is something I am extremely grateful for having the opportunity to do.

I am also very grateful for my involvement with PIPSI. I gained so much from this experience. Yet I also know it is time to focus on sharing my father’s life story in my own way, an undertaking I realize now began 16 years ago when my father died. When my father passed, one of the first things that came to mind for me was to commission a portrait of him in uniform. I had heard him say often that as a kid he grew up longing to wear a Coast Guard uniform one day. I knew how important this was to him. Also, the most famous picture of him while serving at Pea Island is a picture of him in a Pea Island surfboat wearing a sweatshirt. He told me that, at the time the photograph was taken, his Coast Guard uniform had not yet arrived.

Having his portrait done compelled me to commission more artwork displaying images of my father and his family. Through my experience giving numerous talks for PIPSI, I learned art can be a powerful tool to preserve and teach others about my father’s life. My resignation from PIPSI will allow me to do much more in this regard, including continuing my research, which is also very important to me.  I will now have more time to do this and to write and speak about what I have learned.

I also want to bring to light new and lesser-known stories, particularly stories that shed light on the experiences and history of those who were not white and who lived on Roanoke Island. Unfortunately, these stories remain overshadowed by the colonial history that the Outer Banks and Roanoke Island are most known for. Most importantly, I hope to motivate others to share their own stories, particularly stories that will help fill in the gaps and provide a deeper understanding of the history of where my father was born and the challenges faced by men like my father.

So, while saddened to leave PIPSI, I am very excited about what is beyond. I am also incredibly grateful to my cousin, Darrell M. Collins, president emeritus and founder of PIPSI, who passed away about a year and a half ago. While my father opened the door to the Cookhouse Museum and the pathway for me to do and learn more, it was Darrell who let me in. A historian with the National Park Service for over 40 years, he was known worldwide for his incredible interpretation of the Wright Brothers’ famous first flight. However, the Pea Island story and the history connected to it was something equally important to him. His invitation for me to join PIPSI and work closely with him enhanced my life. I also am very appreciative of his support of my ideas to help raise visibility of the story of Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers and to have worked closely with him after moving to Roanoke Island. This meant the world to me.

I am also grateful to all who have supported PIPSI and my involvement with this organization over the years. I met and made many new friends through my involvement with PIPSI and helped share the inspiring story of Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers with thousands. I look forward to sharing my new “Beyond Pea Island” story in a unique and special way.

Coastal residents by now have likely seen their fair share of reminders to prep for the 2026 hurricane season. But what about readying for life after a storm?

Dare County has a simulation for that.

The Dare County Department of Health and Human Services, Dare County Emergency Management and Trillium Health are hosting a post disaster response simulation to show what it’s like in the weeks following a disaster, including the challenges and hurdles residents often face.

This free event is open to all adults and high school students and is set for 9 a.m.-noon Thursday at Manteo First Assembly’s Connect Center, 812 Wingina Ave.

During the event, participants will be assigned different roles simulating real-life situations, such as a homeowner whose house was badly damaged and needs to work with their homeowners insurance, caring for an aging parent and needing to fill that parent’s prescription or accessing money from a bank, or someone who needs to relocate after discovering mold in their flooded home.

“No matter your experience level, we can all benefit from sharpening our preparedness skills — and this simulation makes learning both practical and fun,” Dare County DHHS Emergency Preparedness Coordinator Greta Sharp stated in a release. 

Similar simulations have been held in other North Carolina counties, offering residents and organizations an opportunity to build preparedness skills and increase empathy for people affected by emergencies. These simulations also highlight how post-storm life affects individuals living with mental illness, developmental disabilities, and/or substance use disorders.

“The post disaster simulation gives individuals the opportunity to learn and understand the daily struggles one may face following a disaster,” Dare County Social Services Division Director Chuck Lycett stated. “For organizations who provide resources, it gives them the opportunity to evaluate their level of customer service and ask ‘Are we creating more barriers for our citizens?'”

Interested participants may register online or on the day of the event, when registration and a light breakfast will begin at 8:30 a.m. Early registration is encouraged because space is limited.

For additional information, contact Sharp at 252-475-5073.

The North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission, during its meeting June 18 in New Bern, is expected to hear from its science panel their findings on the effects of hard structures on sandy, open-ocean coastlines.

That’s according to the agenda that is posted along with briefing materials on the commission’s website. The agenda and order of individual items on it are subject to change. 

The meeting is to start at 10 a.m. in the DoubleTree New Bern Riverfront at 100 Middle St. The public is welcome to attend in person or streamed on North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s YouTube channel.

The commission, during its November 2025 meeting, directed the science panel to evaluate alternatives for managing oceanfront erosion. They are to present their report during the meeting this month.

Related: Special series on permanent beach erosion control structures study

The commission designates areas of environmental concern, adopts rules and policies for coastal development within those areas and certifies local land use plans. The Division of Coastal Management carries out the commission’s rules and regulations.

The science panel, made up of researchers and government agency representatives, provides the commission with scientific data and recommendations pertaining to coastal topics.

Republished from the Island Free Press

Less than 12 hours after an oceanfront house collapsed into the Atlantic Ocean in Buxton, dozens of National Park Service employees, local residents, visitors, fishermen, and members of the North Carolina Beach Buggy Association (NCBBA) joined forces Wednesday to clear debris from the shoreline stretching from Cape Point to the Buxton groins.

The cleanup effort followed the Tuesday night collapse of an unoccupied house at 46000 Ocean Drive, which fell into the ocean at approximately 10:30 p.m., scattering debris along miles of shoreline and prompting Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CHNS) to temporarily close beach access from the north end of Buxton through the lifeguarded beach while officials assessed public safety hazards.

NCBBA Vice President Dan Rothermel began organizing cleanup efforts before sunrise Wednesday in coordination with CHNS Superintendent David Hallac.

Rothermel was on the beach at Cape Point shortly after 5 a.m., where anglers who were already fishing immediately began helping remove debris.

“The fishermen who were out there cleaned up around their areas and gathered debris into piles for us,” Rothermel said. “It was really helpful and was so great to see everybody pitching in.”

As the morning progressed, additional NCBBA members and volunteers arrived, and the cleanup operation expanded northward toward the southernmost Buxton groin.

By midday, several dozen volunteers were working along the beach, collecting lumber, insulation, siding, household materials, and other debris from the collapsed structure. The shoreline from the groins to Cape Point was effectively cleared within hours.

According to CHNS, 25 National Park Service employees worked for several hours alongside approximately 20 members of the NCBBA and local anglers, bringing the total cleanup workforce to roughly 45 people. Using heavy equipment and multiple dumpsters provided by Dare County, crews removed large quantities of debris from the beach and adjacent areas.

In a statement Wednesday afternoon, the seashore thanked its volunteer partners, including the NCBBA and the Buxton Civic Association, for helping coordinate and carry out the cleanup effort. Park officials also expressed appreciation to Dare County for supplying and transporting the dumpsters that made the large-scale debris removal possible.

The most recent collapse marked the latest in a series of erosion-related home losses along the oceanfront.

With Tuesday night’s collapse, 21 oceanfront homes have now fallen on Hatteras Island since September 2025, including 20 in Buxton and one in Rodanthe. Since 2020, a total of 32 oceanfront homes have collapsed along Cape Hatteras National Seashore beaches.

The house that collapsed Tuesday had been identified as a threatened structure, and Dare County had been attempting to purchase the property from the owner in hopes of demolishing it before the upcoming Buxton beach nourishment project or before it collapsed into the ocean.

Following the collapse, CHNS issued a warning urging visitors to stay off the beach and out of the water from Buxton Village south to Cape Point because of hazardous debris scattered along the shoreline.

Cleanup operations are expected to continue in the coming days as crews work to remove smaller debris that remains in the area. Park officials said they are working to reopen affected beach areas as soon as conditions allow.

The Buxton Civic Association has announced an additional community cleanup effort for Thursday, June 4, at 9 a.m. at Cape Court. Volunteers will help bag smaller debris and move larger materials into piles for later disposal. Participants are encouraged to bring work gloves and wear closed-toe shoes.

This story is provided courtesy of the Island Free Press, a digital newspaper covering Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. Coastal Review partners with Island Free Press to provide readers with more environmental and lifestyle stories of interest along our coast.

The unoccupied oceanfront structure at 46000 Ocean Drive in Buxton that collapsed Tuesday night is the fifth to collapse this year, and the 32nd house since 2020 to be demolished by the Atlantic on Cape Hatteras National Seashore beaches.

The collapse will not cause any delays for the beach renourishment project scheduled to begin later this month for the Dare County village.

Because varying amounts and sizes of hazardous debris is scattered along the beach to the south of the collapse site, National Park Service officials are “strongly urging” visitors to avoid the beach and stay out of the water from the Village of Buxton south to the Cape Point area.

Officials also have temporarily closed beach access from the north end of Buxton through the lifeguarded beach to access the situation.

Dare County Manager and Attorney Bobby Outten told Coastal Review Wednesday morning that the collapse will not affect the planned Buxton beach nourishment project.

The contractor for the project is a few weeks from mobilizing and the beach will be cleaned up by then, he added.

Catherine Kozak contributed to this report.

The Hatteras-Ocracoke vehicle ferry route has been switched to an alternate schedule while dredging operations are underway in Sloop Channel.

The temporary schedule went into effect Saturday and is as follows:

• From Hatteras to Ocracoke: 5:30 a.m., 6 a.m., 7 a.m., 8 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 9 a.m., 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., noon, 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m., 2 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3 p.m., 3:30 p.m., 4 p.m., 5 p.m., 5:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.
• From Ocracoke to Hatteras: 6:30 a.m., 6:45 a.m., 7:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 9:45 a.m., 10 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m., 1:30 p.m., 2 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m., 4 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 5 p.m., 5:30 p.m., 6 p.m., 7 p.m., 8 p.m. and 9 p.m.

The federally contracted dredging operation is expected to take about one month to complete pending weather conditions, according to a N.C. Department of Transportation release.

The ferry route will return to its full summer schedule when dredging is complete.

Sloop Channel, which provides the entryway to the ferry’s South Dock terminal on the north end of Ocracoke Island, is being dredged by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contractor.

Ferry users may sign up for real-time text or email updates on weather and mechanical delays through the Ferry Information Notification System at www.ncdot.gov/fins. 

Reprinted from Island Free Press

The long-planned effort to repair one of Buxton’s historic groins can now officially move forward after the final major federal permit required for the project was issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this week.

According to Dare County Assistant County Manager Dustin Peele, county officials received the Army Corps permit Tuesday, clearing the final regulatory hurdle for the project after approvals had already been secured from other stakeholder agencies, including the National Park Service and the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.

“We had a pre-construction meeting Monday for the groin project,” Peele said in an update Wednesday. “Bids are due back later this month. We intend to have a low bidder ready for Board approval during the June 9 meeting.”

The permit approval marks a major milestone for a project that has been in development for years and was intentionally fast-tracked to align with the county’s upcoming 2026 beach nourishment project in Buxton.

Officials have previously noted that obtaining permits for shoreline stabilization work can often take two years or longer due to the extensive environmental reviews and coordination required among multiple agencies. In this case, the process was streamlined as much as possible to coincide with the scheduled beach nourishment effort, which is now expected to begin in mid-June.

The repair project focuses on the southernmost of Buxton’s three groins, which are located along the shoreline near the end of Old Lighthouse Road.

The structures were originally constructed by the U.S. Navy in 1969 and 1970 near the former Naval Facility Cape Hatteras in an effort to slow shoreline erosion and help protect nearby infrastructure. However, maintenance of the groins largely ceased after the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was relocated approximately 2,900 feet inland in 1999.

Over time, the groins deteriorated significantly under constant wave action and lack of maintenance.

Under current North Carolina coastal regulations, only the southernmost groin qualifies for repair. State officials determined that enough of the structure remained intact, at least 50%, for the project to be considered a repair rather than a reconstruction, allowing it to move forward under existing rules. The other two groins have deteriorated beyond that threshold and are not eligible for reconstruction under current regulations.

County officials and coastal engineers have emphasized that the repair project is not intended to stop erosion entirely, but rather to help retain sand placed during nourishment operations and slow the rate of shoreline loss in a small but vulnerable stretch of oceanfront.

Plans for the repair work include removing deteriorated materials, installing new steel sheet piles, and placing additional stone scour protection around the structure. The final repaired groin will follow the same footprint, extending 640 feet into the ocean.

The groin repairs are intended to work in conjunction with the 2026 Buxton beach nourishment project, which is now expected to place roughly 2 million cubic yards of sand along approximately 2.9 miles of shoreline extending from the Haulover Day Use Area to the groin area near the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.

Dare County officials have repeatedly described the nourishment and groin repair efforts as complementary projects aimed at improving the resilience of Buxton’s shoreline and protecting N.C. Highway 12 from future erosion and storm impacts.

The Army Corps permit was issued through the agency’s Wilmington District under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act and Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, authorizing work within federally regulated waters and wetlands.

This story is provided courtesy of the Island Free Press, a digital newspaper covering Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. Coastal Review partners with Island Free Press to provide readers with more environmental and lifestyle stories of interest along our coast.

An Outer Banks nonprofit has a two-day program planned for next weekend that digs into historic and modern-day agricultural practices as part of its mission to honor the indigenous Earth ethic.

The Secotan Alliance … and Beyond’s “In the Spirit of Wingina 3: Seeds of Wisdom and Sustenance,” begins at 9 a.m. Friday, May 29, and continues starting at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 30, in the Virginia S. Tillett Community Center in Manteo.

There is no charge to attend, but organizers ask those interested in attending to register online through the website. There are also volunteer opportunities listed as well.

Gray Parsons of Frisco is a descendent of the Machapunga-Mattamuskeet, and is president of the Secotan Alliance … and Beyond.

Parsons founded the Outer Banks-based nonprofit in 2023 to honor Chief Wingina and indigenous environmental history. Wingina was chief of the Roanoke-Secotan tribe that inhabited Roanoke Island and the nearby mainland. Wingina established the Secotan Alliance with other village leaders to resist English colonization. The alliance territory included current-day Dare, Hyde, Beaufort, Washington and Tyrrell counties and its inhabitants were of Algonquin culture and spoke what has been called a “Carolina Algonquin” dialect. The chief’s attempt to expand the alliance farther inland resulted in his beheading by the English military in 1586, the website explains.

The mission of the nonprofit “is to educate the public on the traditional indigenous principles of the Secotan Alliance under the leadership of Chief Wingina specifically in terms of their application and value in today’s world…and to educate the public regarding the need and the methods to protect Mother Earth through individual, community, corporate and government actions based on the traditional indigenous earth ethic.”

Parsons explained to Coastal Review that this year’s program is following a similar outline as the first two events, though the focus has changed a bit.

The dual mission doesn’t change, “that will always be paramount, but the focus of how we accomplish that will change from year to year,” Parsons said. The inaugural program in 2024 focused on indigenous environmental history and last year’s program emphasized the unique leadership roles of women.

“This year it’s on Seeds of Wisdom and Sustenance,” Parsons said, and will focus on agricultural patterns with an emphasis on ancient, indigenous agricultural methods on May 29, and modern-day gardening with some connectivity to the ancient on May 30.

The keynote speaker for the two-day event is retired professor Dr. Tom Shields, who will speak Friday morning about the “Images of Sustenance: Writings and the Archaeology of Foodways from the 1580s.”

Shields taught early American and frontier literature, at East Carolina University. His publications focus on the Spanish and English literature of colonial North America, particularly the “Lost Colony” and 17^th century English explorer and writer John Lawson. Shields helped establish the Roanoke Colonies Research Office at ECU in 1993, according to the university.

Shields told to Coastal Review that the first idea that many of us had of what Native American life was like along the Outer Banks in the 1580s came from the John White watercolors and the Theodore de Bry engravings based on those drawings. He referenced the website, Virtual Jamestown, where the watercolors and engravings are indexed and compared.

John White, who was eventually made governor of the “Lost Colony,” was an English artist and cartographer who accompanied Sir Walter Raleigh on his voyage to the Americas in 1585. He was brought along to create a “visual representation of the people, plants, animals and way of life in the New World,” according to the National Park Service. Based in Germany, de Bry engraved a set of plates to illustrate scientist Thomas Harriot’s account of the 1585 journey to the Roanoke colony, “A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia,” published in 1595.

“These were done about the same time that Ralph Lane, governor of the 1585-86 English colony on Roanoke Island, wrote the line promoters of North Carolina still like to use, that this is ‘goodliest soil under the cope of heaven,’” he said, adding it’s just as often given as “the goodliest land under the cope of heaven.”

“Whether ‘soil’ or ‘land,’ the emphasis tends to be agricultural — how well maize (corn) grows, sometimes along with beans and squash, the classic Native American Three Sisters companion planting,” he continued.

“The idea of a North American agricultural paradise created in these works influenced how Europe viewed Native America back then, and it continues to influence how people think of that past even today. The pictures and writings from the 1580s English expeditions are still important primary sources about the Algonquian tribes that lived in the region.”

However, Shields explained, archaeological work along the Outer Banks and “throughout the inland Sound Country of northeastern North Carolina paints a more complex picture. The various Algonquian settlements of the inner and Outer Banks shared a language and culture. At the same time, the foods that dominated people’s diets — an important part of any culture — differed according to where the various settlements were located in the region,”

New to the lineup is North Carolina Extension Master Gardener Cheryl Anby of Manteo. She will speak the second day on “A-Maizing Corn.” Anby is the alliance’s secretary and is of French-Canadian indigenous ancestry.

Parsons said that there are a handful of return speakers this year, including Dr. Gabrielle Tayac, associate professor at George Mason University and Piscataway tribal citizen, will speak about “Gourds and Thunders: A Piscataway Return to the Water.”

Dr. Arwin Smallwood, of Tuscarora descent, is Dean of the College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities at North Carolina Central University, and will present, “War, Enslavement and Migration: The Tuscarora Diaspora and its impact on the Tuscarora Nation 1711 to 1722.”

David Rahahę́·tih Webb, a member of the Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka Territories, will present on “Relational Living: Lifeways Rooted in Responsibility.” The Kahtenuaka Territories include the Roanoke, Neuse, Trent, Tar, Cape Fear and Pee Dee river basins, Lake Mattamuskeet territory, archeological sites and traditionally occupied lands throughout the coastal plains of present-day North Carolina and South Carolina, according to the territories website.

Sara Hallas, education and outreach director for the North Carolina Coastal Federation will give a talk on “Environmental Stewardship: Future Engineers and Innovators.” The Coastal Federation publishes Coastal Review.

Her focus has been to bring in public school students who have achieved either recognition or some type of honor within the scope of environmentalism, Parsons explained.

Parsons added that presenter, Sound Rivers Pamlico-Tar Riverkeeper Katey Zimmerman, will speak about the effects of agricultural runoff into the water in her presentation, “The Impacts of Modern Agriculture on our Rivers and Communities.”

“Because of our geography, because we’re surrounded by water, water will always be part of the theme or the content, but each year, there will be a theme that sort of expands that,” he said.

Last year, organizers brought in the jazz band, the Benjie Porecki Trio, based in the Washington, D.C., area, and invited the band to return this year. The performance is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head.

Alliance Board Member Erica Lewis said about this year’s programming that she feels everybody can get something out of the concept of seeds and how it connects with their own family history that of the region.

“People should be able to walk away with newfound information about the parallels of a seed like a native plant in the Outer Banks, and then the seeds of their family,” Lewis said.

Dr. Reide Corbett, executive director of the Coastal Studies Institute on the East Carolina University Outer Banks Campus in Wanchese, is the featured lecturer this month at the institute’s “Science on the Sound” lecture series.

The public is encouraged to attend Corbett’s lecture, “Holding the Line? Coastal Change and Barrier-Island Dynamics on the Outer Banks.” The program is set for 6 p.m. May 28 at the institute and there’s no charge to attend.

From collapsing oceanfront homes to repeated beach nourishment projects, coastal change is becoming increasingly visible across the Outer Banks. But what do these changes reveal about how barrier islands function — and how different management approaches interact with these naturally dynamic systems?

Corbett will discuss the science behind erosion, storms, overwash, sediment transport, and sea level rise, while exploring how shoreline management strategies influence beaches, infrastructure, and long-term resilience.

“Rather than focusing on simple solutions, the discussion will examine the tradeoffs, time horizons, and challenges associated with managing development on a constantly changing coast,” organizers said in their announcement.

Whether you work in coastal science, policy, planning, or simply care deeply about the Outer Banks, this presentation offers an opportunity to better understand the processes shaping one of the most dynamic shorelines on the East Coast.

The program will also be livestreamed on YouTube.

Corbett is a coastal oceanographer and geochemist whose work focuses on coastal change, sediment dynamics, shoreline processes, and the geomorphic evolution of barrier island systems.

Born and reared on the North Carolina coast, he earned his bachelor’s in chemistry and his master’s and doctorate in chemical oceanography from Florida State University before beginning his academic career at Tulane University in New Orleans. He later returned to North Carolina to join ECU, where he serves as dean of Integrated Coastal Programs, executive director of the Coastal Studies Institute, and professor in the Department of Coastal Studies.

Corbett’s research examines the dynamic interface between land and sea, from estuaries and continental shelves to barrier islands and polar coastlines. His work has taken him from North Carolina and Puerto Rico to New Zealand and Antarctica, with a particular focus on how storms, sea level rise, sediment movement, human activity, and long-term geologic processes shape coastal environments. Through the lens of North Carolina’s coast, he helps communities better understand shoreline change, barrier island evolution, and the choices needed to adapt to a changing coastal future, organizers said.

Travelers along sections of N.C. Highway 12 in parts of Currituck and Dare counties will have to slow their roll beginning later this week.

North Carolina Department of Transportation crews on Friday will change signs to reflect seasonal speed limit reductions through a series of villages and towns ahead of the peak summer tourism season.

The speed limit will be lowered from 45 mph to 35 mph on N.C. 12 through the tri-villages of Rodanthe, Waves and Salvo, and in Avon, Corolla and Frisco.

The seasonal speed limit will also be lowered in areas of Cape Hatteras National Seashore, including the area near the Haulover Parking Lot south of Avon.

NCDOT crews will revert to off-season speed limits on Sept. 15.

A section of N.C. 12 between Porpoise Run and Sea Oats Train/13th Avenue in Southern Shores will be permanently increased from 35 mph to 40 mph. Southern Shores Town Council requested the new limits to “reduce conflicts between low-speed vehicles and cars and trucks,” according to an NCDOT release.

Real-time travel information is available at DriveNC.gov and on NCDOT on social media.

Visitors to the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras can see what happened on the Outer Banks during the American Revolution through a new temporary display.

“The Raid on Ocracoke Inlet” unveiled April 15 focuses on events that took place at Ocracoke between patriots and loyalists during the American Revolution. 

The display features a diorama and several panels that provide additional context for some of the main characters behind the raid and the stories as they unfolded.

“We’ve been exploring ways to help bring local stories about the Revolutionary War to our community and visitors,” education curator Molly Trivelpiece said in a release. “This new display helps us do that.” 

The museum, under the North Carolina Department of Natural Resources, is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Admission is free.

The display is part of the state’s America 250 NC initiative, which commemorates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and is led by the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. For more information about America 250 NC, visit america250.nc.gov.

Supporters can symbolically adopt an active sea turtle nest on Cape Hatteras National Seashore for the 2026 nesting season.

The donation of $100 or more for the annual “Adopt A Sea Turtle Nest” Program goes to fund critical projects that protect and enhance the seashore, according to organizers, Outer Banks Forever, the official nonprofit partner of the three national parks on the Outer Banks.

“Our program is now in its seventh year, and more than 600 supporters have helped raise close to $126,000 to protect and enhance the Seashore,” Nicole Erickson, Outer Banks Forever’s development and adoption programs manager, said in a statement. “That collective effort is being felt every day.”

When the gift is made, adopters will be sent a confirmation email. In early June, nests are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis, and the adopter will receive an adoption certificate by mail or email with initial details about the nest.

After the nest hatches, adopters will receive a personalized update with details collected by National Park Service biologists, including how many hatchlings made their way out to sea.

“It’s fun for us to send updates to each person who adopts a nest, particularly sharing the number of sea turtle hatchlings that make their way out to sea. This program provides people the opportunity to learn more about these special island visitors and the great work National Park Service staff does every day to help protect them,” Erickson said.

Organizers noted that no individual or group that participates in this program can claim ownership of a sea turtle nest, eggs, or hatchlings.

“For the safety of the sea turtles and in alignment with National Park Service guidance, your nest’s exact location will not be shared until after it has hatched,” they added.

The Ocracoke Express passenger ferry has begun offering summer service between Hatteras Island and Ocracoke Island’s Silver Lake Harbor.

This marks the eighth season the popular ferry is offering passengers the opportunity to skip the lines for the vehicle ferry and take a 70-minute ride directly into the heart of Ocracoke Village. From there, visitors may walk, rent bicycles or golf carts, or hop a ride on Hyde County’s free Ocracoke Village Tram to village shops, restaurants and attractions.

Tuesday-Thursday, the passenger ferry will depart from Hatteras at 8:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 1:45 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Returns from Ocracoke for those days are scheduled for 9:45 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Departures from Hatteras Friday-Monday will be at 9:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Returns from Ocracoke will be at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Passenger ferry service is not available on Sundays.

A round-trip ticket is $15. Children under 3 ride for free. There is an additional $1 charge to bring a bicycle on board.

Reservations may be made up to 90 days in advance and are highly recommended.

The fare is $15 for a round-trip ticket, with children under 3 riding for free, and an additional $1 to bring a bicycle on board. Reservations are available 90 days in advance and highly recommended during the busy summer season. Reservations may be made online or by telephone at 1-800-BY-FERRY.

The free Hatteras-Ocracoke vehicle ferry route runs 52 scheduled departures daily between Hatteras and the north end of Ocracoke Island. Reservations are not accepted on the Hatteras vehicle ferry.

To sign up for real-time text or email updates on weather or mechanical delays visit the Ferry Information Notification System.

For real-time text or email updates on weather or mechanical delays, sign up for the Ferry Information Notification System. 

Three meetings have been scheduled for the public to learn more about a plan intended to improve public access to the main highway for the Outer Banks.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation is working with the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service and other federal and local agencies to develop a plan for a section of N.C. 12 in Dare County.

The vulnerable, 11-mile stretch of two-lane highway between the Marc Basnight Bridge and the Rodanthe “Jug Handle” Bridge is bordered closely on either side by the Atlantic Ocean and the Pamlico Sound and regularly experiences closures and maintenance issues from repeated storm damage.

Being called the Solving Access for N.C. 12 in Dare County, or SAND, Plan, the group began work in January on short- and long-term solutions to reduce travel disruptions for that section of roadway.

NCDOT representatives will be available to answer questions, facilitate public surveys, and receive comments during the following drop-in informational meetings, all scheduled for 5:30-7:30 p.m.:

• April 28 at the Hatteras Civic Center.
• April 29 at the Rodanthe Waves Salvo Community Building.
• April 30 at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head.

The SAND project is funded with $1.86 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient and Cost Saving Transportation, or PROTECT, grant program.

“The plan aims to minimize environmental impacts and account for community considerations and the costs and feasibility of those solutions,” according to the release.

The team is using the Planning and Environment Linkages process to streamline future environmental reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act. Community stakeholder and public input is being considered important to the process as the plan is developed.

“By addressing environmental requirements in the planning stages, project managers can avoid having to duplicate studies and tackle major environmental hurdles that could delay projects and increase the costs to deliver them,” officials said.

Written comments can be submitted at any of the public meetings or by calling at 984-205-6615 and entering project code 2463, by email at nc-12-access@ncdot.gov or on NCDOT’s public input portal.

Comments during this round of engagement must be provided by May 15. Additional public meetings will be held in the summer and fall. More information can be found on NCDOT’s website.

Reprinted from the Outer Banks Voice

Debbie Swick has a way of spotting problems that most people barely notice — and then refusing to let them go.

On the Outer Banks, the Southern Shores resident is best known as the driving force behind the push to ban balloon releases, a grassroots effort that helped shift public awareness around a form of litter that can travel hundreds of miles before landing in waterways and harming wildlife.

This time, her focus is something less visible but just as persistent: discarded monofilament fishing line — the nearly invisible plastic filament that can linger in the environment for centuries, entangling and injuring marine life long after it’s been cast aside.

In partnership with the Outer Banks Anglers Club, Swick has helped launch a new monofilament recovery and recycling program — one that aims to intercept that line before it becomes a long-term hazard in the water by installing and maintaining collection vessels at sites across the Outer Banks.

“It is a strangling mechanism,” Swick said. “It becomes entangled in fish gills, sea turtles, seals, porpoise. It doesn’t break down. It will amputate and maim marine life.”

Discarded fishing gear — including monofilament line — is widely recognized by marine scientists as one of the most dangerous forms of ocean debris. Research has found that roughly 740,000 kilometers (about 460,000 miles) of fishing line enter the ocean each year — enough to circle the Earth more than 18 times.¹

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), at least 260 marine species are known to be harmed by entanglement in marine debris, including sea turtles, seabirds, and marine mammals.² Monofilament line is particularly dangerous because it is nearly invisible underwater and extremely durable, capable of persisting in the environment for hundreds of years.³

That is something David Masters Jr., vice president of the Outer Banks Anglers Club, sees regularly. “It’s usually tumbled up in seaweed or buried in the sand,” he said. “I pick it up all the time. I’ve seen birds with fishing line caught on the wings or legs and that’s very sad.”

Local conservation groups and park officials have long warned that sea turtles along the Outer Banks can become entangled in discarded fishing line, which can impair their ability to swim or feed — and in some documented cases, lead to death.⁴ Necropsies of stranded turtles in North Carolina have identified monofilament entanglement as a contributing factor, underscoring the long-term danger posed by fishing line that remains in the environment.⁵

Swick is a member of the Outer Banks Anglers Club and last year’s Member of the Year. That, combined with her reputation as an accomplished environmental advocate and volunteer — including recognition with a Governor’s Medallion Award — gave her the standing and credibility to introduce the idea of monofilament recovery to the
anglers. She brought the concept to the club’s board in January, and by February, they were building the collection vessels.

“I told the board, under no circumstances were we going to half-ass this,” she said.

This time, Swick wanted something different: accountability. Each location would be “adopted” by a member of the Outer Banks Anglers Club, responsible for monitoring, emptying, and maintaining the vessel.

“I have the list,” she said. “I know who is supposed to be picking it up, when and where.”

Recreational fishermen are often among the strongest stewards of the waters they fish — a point echoed by fisheries managers and conservation organizations who increasingly emphasize angler participation in sustainability efforts.⁶

The Outer Banks Anglers Club has its own track record, including helping spearhead the creation of artificial reef AR-165 off Oregon Inlet.

The program itself is simple by design. Collection vessels made from PVC pipe have been installed at fishing-heavy locations across the Outer Banks, including piers, marinas, and public access points. Among the initial sites are Kitty Hawk Pier, Avalon Pier, Jennette’s Pier, the Manteo waterfront, Wanchese Marina, and several others.

“We haven’t spoken to one entity that said no,” Masters said, noting support from local governments, property owners, and organizations.

Anglers deposit used monofilament line into the vessels. From there, club members assigned to each site collect the material, clean it, and bring it to monthly meetings. Swick then weighs the line and ships it to a recycling facility operated by Berkley Fishing in Iowa. There, it is processed through the company’s national recycling program, which
has collected millions of miles of monofilament since 1990 and repurposes it into products such as tackle boxes, other plastic goods, and components used in aquatic habitat structures.⁷

The program is still in its early stages, but initial results are encouraging. At one early collection site at Pirates Cove, volunteers gathered 4.5 pounds of monofilament in a single pickup. “That could have all ended up in the water,” said Swick.

As of now, about a dozen sites are in place, with a goal of reaching roughly 20 locations. Organizers are also working to expand the program through local tackle shops and a developing partnership with the North Carolina Beach Buggy Association, whose members could help collect discarded line from beach areas on Hatteras and further south.

Swick has set a clear benchmark for the program’s first year: 100 pounds of collected line. But success, she said, will be measured in other ways too. “When the community starts talking about how much less monofilament they are seeing in the water,” she said, “and when they start asking for us to put more vessels up — that’s a good sign.”

For Masters, the effort reflects something broader about the club itself. “It’s important people realize recreational fishermen really respect the natural resources we have here, because it is our love to fish here,” Masters said. “We want to keep it pristine.”

Sources

1. Global estimates on lost and discarded fishing gear and ghost gear impacts, based on peer-reviewed research (Richardson et al., 2022, Science Advances), including annual losses of fishing line and gear.
2. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) — Marine Debris Program, documenting entanglement impacts affecting at least 260 marine species.
3. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission — monofilament fishing line persistence estimates (up to ~600 years in marine environments), widely cited in coastal management and debris mitigation guidance.
4. Outer Banks Forever — Cape Hatteras National Seashore conservation guidance on sea turtle entanglement risks from discarded fishing line.
5. Outer Banks Voice — regional reporting on North Carolina sea turtle necropsies identifying monofilament entanglement as a contributing cause of mortality.
6. NOAA Fisheries — Recreational Fishing Policy, emphasizing “proactive stewardship” and collaboration with the angling community as essential to sustainable fisheries management.
7. Berkley Fishing — Berkley Conservation Institute, “Dedicated to the Future of Fishing,” documenting the company’s national monofilament recycling program (established 1990) and reuse into products such as tackle boxes and habitat materials.

This story is provided courtesy of the Outer Banks Voice, a digital newspaper covering the Outer Banks. Coastal Review is partnering with the Voice to provide readers with more environmental and lifestyle stories of interest about our coast.

North Carolina’s Coastal Resources Commission is moving through the steps to update rules for building along high-hazard coastlines that are particularly vulnerable to erosion and flooding.

When the commission met April 16 in Ocean Isle Beach’s town hall, members voted unanimously to advance the rulemaking process to draft language amendments for ocean erodible areas and inlet hazard areas. Proposed changes include using the most recent data for erosion rates and maps for the two zones, which are classified as areas of environmental concern.

If approved, this will be the first time new inlet hazard boundaries have been updated since they were initiated in the late 1970s. The commission has been discussing revisions for decades, but the complicated process and public blowback have pushed talks of updates year to year.

Both inlet hazard and ocean erodible areas fall under the ocean hazard areas category of areas of environmental concern, which are the foundation for the Coastal Area Management Act permitting program. CAMA was enacted in 1974, along with the commission to adopt rules for legislation that protects the state’s coastal resources. The Division of Coastal Management, under the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, acts as staff to the commission.

Inlet hazard areas, or IHAs, encompass land along the narrow body of water that allows for tidal exchange between the ocean and inland waters. These swaths of shoreline are susceptible to inlet migration, rapid and severe erosion, and flooding. Land within the boundaries is subject to the commission’s development rules.

Ken Richardson, the division’s shoreline management specialist, told Coastal Review that in addition to the proposed updates to inlet hazard area boundaries, one of the primary changes under consideration is that erosion rate setbacks within inlet hazard areas will be based on inlet-specific erosion rates detailed in a 2025 report rather than the adjacent ocean erodible area, or oceanfront, rates, which is currently the case.

Because of limited data and resources, erosion rate setback factors within inlet hazard areas have been based on the rates of adjacent ocean erodible areas, essentially treating the inlet shoreline as an extension of the oceanfront.

“Given the rapid changes that can occur at inlets, this method has often resulted in setback factors that underestimate the true erosion dynamics of these areas,” according to the division. Erosion rates are used to determine how far back new construction must be from the shoreline.

Richardson said that, “Additionally, the rules would effectively ‘hold the line’ of existing development by preventing seaward expansion of new development in inlet areas that have experienced natural accretion.”

He referenced the “Inlet Hazard Area Boundaries, 2025 Update: Science Panel Recommendations to the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission,” presented in August 2025 to the commission that explains “any accretion at most inlets is temporary and likely to reverse over time; maintaining this line helps reduce future exposure to erosion hazards.”

The commission’s Science Panel on Coastal Hazards was directed in 2016 to update IHA boundaries. Rules were in the process of being updated in 2019, but the COVID-19 pandemic paused draft rules from moving forward.

The “Science Panel recommended updating IHAs on a five-year cycle alongside oceanfront erosion rates, by the time work resumed after the pandemic, the next oceanfront study (2025) was already approaching.  As a result, some stakeholders asked the CRC to proceed with a coordinated update,” leading to the directive in 2023 to provide another five-year review, Richardson told Coastal Review.

Richardson explained during the meeting last week that the science panel analyzed for the 2025 update the state’s developed inlets, which are Bogue, New River, New Topsail, Rich, Mason, Masonboro, Carolina Beach, Lockwood Folly, Shallotte and Tubbs.

Panel Chair Dr. Laura Moore, professor of coastal geomorphology at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, presented the findings in the inlet hazard area boundaries report during the August 2025 meeting.

Last February, the Coastal Resources Advisory Council and a subcommittee reviewed the report and suggested deviating from the panel’s recommendation to measure setbacks from the hybrid-vegetation line because of concerns that existing structures would be nonconforming, and therefore harder to replace if something happened to the structure.

They decided to base the language on existing rules and continue to measure setbacks within inlet hazard areas from the actual vegetation line or pre-project line but not extend farther oceanward than the footprint of an existing structure, or, in the case with vacant lots, the landward-most adjacent neighboring structure, according to the division.

Richardson told the commission that another recommendation included amending the language for ocean erodible areas language citing the 2019 report to the “North Carolina 2025 Oceanfront Setback Factors & Long-Term Average Annual Erosion Rate Update Study: Methods Report report.”

Richardson noted that there are no boundary maps for ocean erodible areas because boundaries are measured from the vegetation line, which are dynamic and could change overnight, so the landward boundary is determined in the field.

Staff also proposes eliminating the distinction of residential or nonresidential for the type of structure, because “It doesn’t matter to erosion what the structure is being used for,” Richardson said.

Now, the proposed rule changes will go through the fiscal analysis. This step in the rulemaking process determines the financial impact of the proposed amendments. After the analysis is presented and voted on, the commission will decide to move on to the public comment period, then to final approval before sending it to the Rules Review Commission.

Septic tank update

Cameron Luck, a policy analyst for the division, briefed the commission on the work to develop rules for septic system siting, repair and replacement within ocean hazard areas.

He began by sharing what took place during a meeting March 30 in Buxton coordinated by the North Carolina Coastal Federation, with representatives from the North Carolina Home Builders Association, North Carolina Septic Tank Association, Outer Bank Association of Realtors, National Park Service, and from county health departments.

Attendees were brought up to speed on some of the issues surrounding failed septic tanks on the oceanfront, heard from Cape Hatteras National Seashore representatives about their policies and ongoing struggles and efforts to address both the threatened oceanfront structures and the failed septic tank systems and systems out on the beach

Department of Health and Human Services provided a quick synopsis of their process, focusing on the role within and alongside local health departments, with a discussion on how the department permits and cites septic tanks and how and failure enforcement.

Luck said that he and other division staff presented the most recently proposed rule language for discussion.

“We spent a good amount of time talking through the proposed language and some areas that could be improved,” Luck said.

Main points in the discussion focused on defining what type of repair would qualify for a permit.

“In other words,” Luck explained, would property owners be required to secure a permit if a filter or a section of pipe needs to be replaced, or does the rule need to be more focused on extreme failures.

Discussion also focused on whether the proposed rule changes should be applied coastwide or be more targeted to specific situations or locations.

“Perhaps, key takeaway from that meeting was a clear consensus among those attendees that some form of action is needed to limit the repair of failed septic systems on the ocean beach and to prevent them from remaining on the beach once they failed,” he said, adding that staff is working on those rule language updates.

Four new historic districts and 19 properties across the state, five of which are on the coast, have been added to the National Register of Historic Places in the last year, the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources announced this week.

Part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources, the National Historic Register is the “official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation,” that was authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and is under the National Park Service.

“Each addition to the National Register of Historic Places represents another step in preserving North Carolina’s unique story,” said the department’s Secretary Pamela Cashwell in a statement Thursday. “These sites help connect our communities to their past while supporting cultural tourism and local economies.” 

In Beaufort County, Pantego School No. 2 was listed Feb. 24. The Rosenwald-funded school building was completed in 1926 and remained operational as an integrated school after 1968, until it closed in the spring of 2001, the application states.

Winnabow is an 1845 Greek Revival frame house with a double-pile center-passage plan at 677 Governor Road, in Brunswick County that was was Dec. 29, 2025.

Clubfoot and Harlow Canal in Carteret and Craven counties, which was listed Feb. 23, is a roughly 3-mile artificial channel dug that opened July 1827 across a peninsula connecting Clubfoot Creek and the Neuse River at the north to Harlow Creek and the Newport River to the south.

The 1850 Adam Dough Etheridge House in Dare County was listed Aug. 11, 2025. The two-story, single pile, vernacular dwelling features a side-gabled roof and partially enclosed full-width porches on the façade, common among houses on Roanoke Island in the 18th and early 19th centuries.

Located in Pasquotank County, Oak Grove Cemetery, which was listed Aug. 11, 2025, is Elizabeth City’s oldest extant Black cemetery. The Black community formally established it on 2.53 acres in 1886, expanded it twice in 1921, and again in 1955 to approximately 8 acres, which it remains today within a 14-acre parcel, according to documents.

The listing of a property in the National Register places no obligation or restriction on a private owner using private resources to maintain or alter the property.

Over the years, various federal and state incentives have been introduced to assist private preservation initiatives, including tax credits for the rehabilitation of National Register properties.

As of Dec. 31, 2025, there have been 4,455 completed historic rehabilitation projects with private investments of $4 billion statewide.

Reprinted from the Ocracoke Observer

Waterfowl memories are woven throughout Ocracoke native Eddie O’Neal’s life.

He recalls redheads, pintails, teal and great flocks of geese on the Pamlico Sound and winter days in sink boxes with old-timers like Thurston Gaskill.

Because of that history and his skill of turning a block of wood into a work of art, he was named featured carver for this year’s Ocracoke Island Waterfowl Festival from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday in the Ocracoke School gym.

O’Neal chose the Canada goose as his signature piece, honoring both the bird and the generations of island hunters and carvers who came before him.

“A Canada goose was a real trophy back then,” he said. “Something you showed off with pride and often shared with older neighbors who couldn’t get out to hunt themselves.”

O’Neal graduated from Ocracoke School in 1978 alongside classmates Vince O’Neal and the late John Simpson, two of the founders of the Ocracoke Decoy Carver’s Guild in 2018.

As a boy, O’Neal was constantly on the water.

Like many island youth, by age 12 he was already hunting and fishing around Springer’s Point and on his father’s nearby property.

He fished commercially with his father, Carson, who served in the Coast Guard, and brothers Andy and Albert, working pound nets and gigging flounder.

During his 23 years working for the state of North Carolina, he held a variety of positions: on a dredge crew, building spillways and working heavy equipment from Southport to Knotts Island.

Included in his working career, he also built golf courses, was a truck driver and worked on road paving crews for an asphalt company out of Norfolk, Virginia.

He and his wife Pam also ran the Island Galley restaurant on Ocracoke until damage from Hurricane Isabel (2003) forced them to close.

Although he appreciated decoys, he didn’t start carving as a hobby until around 2008 while living in Virginia Beach. Over time, that hobby “morphed into a full-time job.”

Among his fond memories are watching Wilbur and Clinton Gaskill, older Ocracoke carvers, who turned out small geese flyers and decoys at an astonishing pace. Wilbur could make 15 to 20 decoys a day and sell every one of them on a summer day when the island was far quieter than it is now.

His second cousin, Dave O’Neal, a retired Coast Guard man and renowned carver, has been an important influence offering tips on the techniques and tools of the craft.

Preferring to focus on his own carvings, O’Neal doesn’t collect or trade in other people’s decoys.

When he and Pam retired several years ago, they moved back to Ocracoke, and his carving became a daily practice.

Today, O’Neal does most of his carvings for the Island Ragpicker shop, run by his siblings Stephanie and Albert.

Not just decoys — he crafts shore birds, small flyers, fish, and a variety of decorative pieces that keep the shelves full and his hands busy.

Carving is his “therapy room” — something that keeps him grounded in retirement and balances time with his grandchildren Carter, Kyler, Amaya, Johnny and Angel.

He rarely sells pieces directly, except at some island events.

He prefers to stock the shop or donate carvings to local fundraisers like the Ocracoke Firemen’s Ball auction where his works have helped raise significant financial support over the years.

For materials, O’Neal favors northern white cedar, which he hauls back from a sawmill near Egg Harbor, New Jersey.

He also uses tupelo, sourced from a Mennonite mill near Pink Hill, and some pine.

Large decoys are almost always cedar, while smaller items, like flyers, often come from scrap wood he picks up from around the island, such as from the school that was torn down.

He appreciates cedar’s similarity to local juniper and its fine, aromatic grain. O’Neal shapes his birds with an angle grinder for the rough form, then refines them with a Dremel and extensive sanding, especially on the delicate heads and bills of shore birds.

He draws most of his own patterns by hand and also enjoys building furniture, having made tables and household pieces for family members from barn oak and other reclaimed woods.

This story is provided courtesy of the Ocracoke Observer, a newspaper covering Ocracoke Island. Coastal Review partners with the Ocracoke Observer to provide readers with more environmental and lifestyle stories of interest along our coast.

Part of an ongoing series on North Carolina’s observance of America’s 250th.

As the United States recognizes the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence July 4, 1776, Dare County is celebrating its unique role in American history Saturday with “Liberty, Legacy, and Lift Off in the Land of Beginnings.”

The Dare A250 Faire is a two-event celebration, with the first scheduled for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday in downtown Manteo. The Star Spangled Spectacular is scheduled for that afternoon from 3:30-7 p.m. at Roanoke Island Festival Park.

“Rooted in a place known as the ‘Land of Beginnings,’ this milestone event honors Dare County’s unique role in America’s story — from the earliest English settlement attempts to the birthplace of powered flight. With a spirit of innovation, discovery and freedom woven throughout, the Dare A250 Faire promises a vibrant and meaningful tribute to 250 years of American history,” according to the county.

Both celebrations are no charge for the public, though the evening program requires those who wish to attend to reserve a spot through the online portal. As of publication, the tickets were all claimed. Those who wish to attend can continue to check the online portal to see if a seat has come available due to a cancelation.

Dare County is the “Land of Beginnings” because it is the location of England’s first attempt to establish a colony in 1587, now known as the “Lost Colony” because more than 100 settlers vanished from the site between arriving and 1590, and the birthplace of Virginia Dare. Dare was the first English child born in the Americas in 1587. The county is also the site of the Wright Brothers’ flight in 1903, the first controlled and powered heavier-than-air flight.

Dorothy Hester, co-chair of the Dare County A250 Committee, explained to Coastal Review that visitors can expect a full day of family-friendly fun in a festive, patriotic atmosphere.

“Downtown Manteo will come alive with a street festival featuring live music, street performers, storytelling, arts and crafts vendors, nonprofit exhibits, and several food vendors,” Hester said. “The celebration continues into the evening at Roanoke Island Festival Park with the Star-Spangled Spectacular, which has officially sold out–an exciting reflection of the strong community interest and support for this event.”

Hester said that the committee has been meeting for more than a year “to thoughtfully plan how our community would mark this historic milestone.”

The Dare A250 Faire emerged as the cornerstone event of that effort, which she said was designed to bring residents and visitors together in a meaningful and memorable way.

“What began as an idea has grown into a true community-wide collaboration among Dare County, local partners, local organizations, businesses, volunteers and sponsors,” Hester said.

Related: Dare County begins America’s 250th commemoration

The Dare A250 Faire was originally scheduled at the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, but was relocated to Manteo and Roanoke Island Festival Park “to allow all aspects of the planning committee’s vision to be included in the celebration,” organizers said in a press release in late February. The park “highlights the area’s rich history as the ‘Birthplace of America,’ with the historic Elizabeth II serving as a meaningful backdrop to the festivities.”

The Elizabeth II is a representational 16th-century English merchant ship from the 1585 Roanoke voyage berthed at the park, where a settlement site illustrates an English military colony from the era.

Hester urged those interested in attending the celebrations to visit DareA250.org/faire for full event details, as well as information about other A250 initiatives, including the interactive map, and additional events taking place throughout the year.

The Dare County committee organizes events under the umbrella of the state’s official celebration, America 250 NC, an initiative of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

The celebration committee launched earlier this year a passport program and an interactive online map to share the county’s history.

Musical performances

Entertainment begins at 11:10 a.m. Saturday at the All-American Stage in downtown Manteo with Cypress Society Singers & Dancers, representing the Lumbee and Kahtehnuaka Tuscarora Eastern Woodland Native nations.

An opening ceremony follows at 11:45 a.m., then attendees can listen to live music throughout the afternoon, including a jazz performance by Connected, Ruth Wyand to perform roots Americana and the Daniel Jordan Band to play Southern country-rock.

The Dare County All-American Award Ceremony starts at 3 p.m. The ceremony will recognize participants in a variety of categories, including patriotic attire, patriotic pet, most decorated business and boat displays, as well as Dare A250 Scholarship Awards. Participants should report behind the stage at 2:30 p.m. for judging.

Performances scheduled for the Magnolia Freedom Stage feature Ascension Music Academy, Shiloh and Enrique with the Mustang Music Outreach Program, and the OBX Jazzmen.

Street entertainment

Roving patriotic performers will wander throughout downtown Manteo from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., including stilt walkers, a bubble artist, a juggler and a hula hooper.

Historical interpreters from The Lost Colony, Roanoke Island Festival Park and Chicamacomico Lifesaving Station and more than 60 local artisans and community organizations will be on-site. Several local businesses and restaurants will offer special events and discounts. A list of visitors is available on the event website.

Student musicians from First Flight Middle School and Manteo Middle School will perform on Sir Walter Raleigh Street at noon.

Storytelling stage

The historic Pioneer Theater, 109 Budleigh St., Manteo, is hosting a storytelling series highlighting the people, traditions and defining moments of the Outer Banks.

Moderated by Miles Daniels, the program organizers are billing as “a marquee element of the Dare A250 Faire,” will feature the following four distinguished speakers sharing personal insights and historical perspectives:

• 11:30 a.m. Clark Twiddy: “Vision, Risk, and Reinvention: How the Outer Banks Became a Destination.”
• 12:30 p.m. Robin Daniels Holt: “The Families Who Stayed: Generational Memory and Cultural Continuity.”
• 1:30 p.m. Nancy Gray: “Water, Work, and Survival: The Working Coast of the Outer Banks.”
• 2:30 p.m. Ken Mann: “Stories of the Outer Banks: Voices, Characters, and Coastal Memory.”

Archival film and video presentations will be shown between speakers.

For young artists

Children can add their own touch from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. to a large patriotic painting. Local painter Brad Price is to enhance the artwork before going on permanent display at the Outer Banks Community Foundation. 

Families can also enjoy coloring a rendering of the first governor of an English colony in America, called a “Flat John White,” and festive tablecloths. Placemats that can be colored will be available at participating businesses throughout Manteo. 

Star-Spangled Spectacular Finale

The Star-Spangled Spectacular performances at Roanoke Island Festival Park will begin at 3:30 p.m. with Just Playing Dixieland, followed by an opening ceremony at 4:15 p.m. and an Earth, Wind & Fire tribute by the Ray Howard Band at 4:30 p.m.

The day will conclude with the Dare A250 Grand Finale at 6:15 p.m. with a multimedia patriotic production with a community choir and tribute.

Volunteers needed

With the committee expecting thousands to visit downtown Manteo and Roanoke Island Festival Park for the two events Saturday, there’s a need for volunteers to help oversee parking areas, serve as a friendly point of contact for guests, and to ensure everything runs smoothly in each designated lot, according to the county.

“No special experience is required, just a welcoming attitude and a willingness to help,” and volunteering is a way to “be part of a once-in-a-generation community celebration,” organizers said.

Volunteers can register online for any of the multiple shifts and activities or contact contact Patty O’Sullivan at patricia.o’sullivan@darenc.gov.

Dare County, Manteo, Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, Southern Bank, The Don & Catharine Bryan Cultural Series and Roanoke Island Festival Park are sponsors of the celebration.

Dare county residents and property owners are invited to participate in an interactive workshop on Tuesday to review and discuss key preliminary findings from an assessment of the vulnerability of unincorporated areas to flooding.

The North Carolina Resilient Coastal Communities Program is hosting the action development program from 5-7 p.m. in room 238 of the Dare County Administration Building, 954 Marshall Collins Drive, Manteo.

The workshop will be a drop-in, open house-style event with interactive stations where participants can learn about the program, review findings of from the assessment, and provide input on topics ranging from natural resources, stormwater management, infrastructure and residential adaptation in unincorporated Dare County.

The workshop will begin with a brief presentation. Refreshments and light snacks will be provided.

The assessment was conducted by a consulting firm through the North Carolina Resilient Coastal Communities Program, which is administered by the Division of Coastal Management to support coastal resilience goals, assess community capacity, and identify and prioritize projects that strengthen resilience to coastal hazards. The division is under North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.

The Coastal Environmental Educators Network will again host its annual Earth Fair OBX at Jockey’s Ridge State Park later this month.

The fair taking place from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 25, will be an opportunity to hear from organizations working to preserve the delicate ecosystems of the Outer Banks.

“Share your love for the natural world and check out our fun and informative exhibits and activities for kids. Walk around and explore the exhibitors, state of the art Visitors Center and other features of the State Park,” organizers said.

Kitty Hawk Kites and Dare Arts Council teamed up to create the Outer Banks Sweep the Beach Trash Art Contest. Artists were asked to create and submit work from the trash they have collected from Outer Banks beaches now on display along the “TrART Walk” at Jockey’s Ridge Crossing. Work will be judged on April 20 and winners will be announced at the Kitty Hawk Kites booth during the event.  

A PBS docuseries exploring how to feed a growing population while protecting oceans, marine ecosystems and coastal communities will be featured as the Coastal Studies Institute’s Science on the Sound Lecture Series installment for this month, and in celebration of Earth Week.

The third episode of the series, “Hope in the Water,” titled “Changing the Menu,” will be shown at the historic Pioneer Theater in Manteo the evening of Monday, April 20. There is no charge to attend but registration is required at https://bit.ly/HopeInTheWater.

“Hope in the Water,” produced by Andrew Zimmern and David E. Kelley, “blends science, food, and storytelling to spotlight innovative solutions in what’s often called the ‘blue food’ system—food sourced from oceans, rivers, and aquaculture. Rather than focusing solely on the problems surrounding fisheries, the series highlights practical, real-world solutions, from regenerative aquaculture to rethinking the species we eat,” organizers said.

The event starts with a prescreening reception at 5:30 p.m. in the Pioneer Theater courtyard, featuring local seafood available for purchase from Basnight’s Lone Cedar Café food truck, beverages, and educational displays from community partners.

The film screening will begin at 6:30 p.m., followed by a cookbook giveaway and discussion with the following panelists:

• Dr. Sara Mirabilio, fisheries extension specialist with N.C. Sea Grant.
• Chef Mac Buben, owner of Sea Chef Dockside Kitchen.
• Evan Ferguson, food blogger and media coordinator at Cape Hatteras Secondary School.
• Jake Griffin, a local commercial fisherman.

The panel will discuss local efforts to diversify seafood consumption and offer perspectives on the future of seafood in North Carolina and beyond.

“This event is an opportunity to connect our community with the people and ideas shaping the future of seafood,” CSI Executive Director Reide Corbett said in a statement. “By bringing together scientists, fishers, chefs, and educators, we hope to inspire more sustainable choices that support both coastal livelihoods and healthy marine ecosystems.”

The Coastal Studies Institute, located in Wanchese on the East Carolina University Outer Banks Campus, has partnered with Fed by Blue, North Carolina Sea Grant, and the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau to host the viewing. Science on the Sound is CSI’s monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in northeastern North Carolina.

Join the debut of Earth & Arts OBX, a celebration of Earth Day and the official opening of Nags Head’s new soundside boardwalk on April 22.

The event, hosted by the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, is scheduled to kick off with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 4 p.m. at the Soundside Event Site, 6800 S. Croatan Highway.

There will be live music by Brooke & Nick and HotSauce, a curated marketplace featuring environmentally conscious artists and makers, hands-on children’s activities, and opportunities to interact with local nonprofits that focus on conservation and sustainability.

“We’re excited to share this incredible new gathering spot with the community,” Outer Banks Visitors Bureau Executive Director Lee Nettles stated in a release. “This event is an opportunity to experience the new Soundside Boardwalk while connecting with the people and organizations dedicated to preserving the character and environment of this special place for generations to come. The views from the boardwalk are spectacular and give us all yet another way to experience the natural beauty of the Outer Banks.”

The event will wrap up at sunset.

Currituck County’s America 250 NC Task Force has launched a yearlong challenge to visit 10 of North Carolina’s lighthouses as part of the country’s celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Called the NC Lighthouse Challenge, participants must visit the 10 sites and submit their photos with the lighthouse visible to nc.lighthouse.visit@gmail.com by the Dec. 31 deadline. Those who complete the challenge will be awarded a personalized certificate from Currituck County upon completion, and earn a free lighthouse climb.

Organizers noted that Hatteras, Lookout, Ocracoke, and Bodie are not offering the free lighthouse climb because of either long-term maintenance or National Park Service rules.

Register at https://www.eventcreate.com/e/nc-lighthouse-visit to receive the official set of rules.

“Long before modern navigation systems, lighthouse keepers and members of the U.S. Life-Saving Service stood watch along North Carolina’s treacherous coastline. Their dedication—often in isolation and through severe weather—helped guide ships safely and protect countless lives,” organizers said in a release.

“These early services were eventually unified under the U.S. Coast Guard in 1939, continuing a legacy of vigilance and service that remains today. The NC Lighthouse Challenge honors that legacy, inviting participants to walk in the footsteps of those who helped ‘light the way’ for a growing nation,” they continued.

The 10 historic sites include the following:

• Old Baldy on Bald Head Island, built 1817.
• Ocracoke Lighthouse, 1823.
• Cape Lookout Lighthouse, 1859.
• Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, 1870.
• Bodie Island Lighthouse, 1872, on Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
• Currituck Beach Lighthouse, 1875.
• Oak Island Lighthouse, 1958.
• Roanoke River Lighthouse, 1886, in Edenton.
• Roanoke River Lighthouse 1867 replica in Plymouth.
• Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse 1877 replica in Manteo.

Tony Cerri, a member of the county’s celebration task force, said that at its core, the challenge is about more than visiting beautiful places.

“It’s about recognizing the vital role North Carolina’s lighthouses — and the people who served in them — played in guiding commerce, protecting lives, and supporting the growth of our nation,” Cerri added in the release.

Currituck County’s America 250 NC Task Force is one of the county committees that plan and organize events, projects, and initiatives at the county level as part of America 250 NC. The state’s official commemoration of America’s 250th anniversary is a program of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Second and final in a series

As the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission’s Science Panel studies the effects of permanent beach erosion control structures such as seawalls and jetties, a critical aspect of the analysis will be looking at the lessons learned.

The commission banned hardened structures on the ocean shoreline in 1985 because of the down-shore erosive effects on the beach. Still, there are numerous examples of such structures in place along different parts of the coast, with varied degrees of effectiveness.

Erosion is not only more severe and longstanding on the Outer Banks, which are more exposed to the power of the open ocean and coastal storms than other parts of the North Carolina coast, it is the most dramatic and unforgiving, especially on Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. But coastal erosion is a statewide issue. To that point, federal beach nourishment projects in North Carolina began in 1965 at Wrightsville Beach and at Carolina Beach, and nourishment at both locations has been done in recent years.

When development and tourism took off on the Outer Banks in the 1980s, it didn’t take long before beach cottages began lining ocean shorelines.

Still, the forces of erosion had no mercy, and Kitty Hawk began losing beachfront properties. After the commission issued a variance to the hardened structures ban in 2003, permitting sheet-piling along N.C. Highway 12 in the beach community, then-Sen. Marc Basnight strongarmed the state’s ban into legislation.

Then in 2011, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a law that permitted four “test” terminal groins and has since expanded the permissible number of groins to seven. To date, four communities submitted permit applications: Figure Eight Island, Ocean Isle Beach, Bald Head Island and Holden Beach. Holden Beach has since withdrawn its application.

Long before the ban, numerous attempts were made to shore up the beach oceanward of the 1870 Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Buxton. By 1930, the nation’s tallest brick lighthouse was a mere 98 feet from the ocean.

According to National Park Service records, interlocking steel sheet-pile groins were installed in the 1930s on the beach near the lighthouse and reinforced a few years later. Over the years, dunes were built, grasses were planted, the beach was nourished, revetment and sandbag walls were installed.

In 1969, the U.S. Navy installed three reinforced concrete groins to protect its base, which was adjacent to the lighthouse at the time. But the erosion continued. More sandbags were put in place; more beach nourishment was done. The Navy left in the 1980s. While the National Park Service officially gave up its beach nourishment and dune stabilization efforts in 1973, it continued trying in ensuing years to protect the lighthouse from the sea with rip-rap, artificial seagrass, sandbags and a scour-mat apron.

Finally, after much study and public debate, with the ocean lapping at its foundation, in 1999 the lighthouse was relocated about a half mile from the beach.

Fast-forward a quarter-century and, since September 2025, 19 unoccupied beach houses near that same beach in Buxton have collapsed into the ocean.

Escalating beach erosion along the state’s entire coast, but especially in Buxton, has put difficult discussions about lifting the hardened shorelines ban back on the table. The few existing permanent erosion-control structures built over the years on North Carolina beaches have yielded mixed results.

Oregon Inlet

One of the most successful examples of a terminal groin doing what it was intended to do, and with relatively minimal harm, is the 3,125-foot terminal groin and 625-foot revetment built in 1991 to protect the N.C. Highway 12 tie-in at the Herbert C. Bonner Bridge, which has since been replaced and renamed the Marc Basnight Bridge. The $13.4 million groin is substantial — ranging from 110 to 170 feet wide at its base and 25 feet wide at its landward end, and 39 feet wide at its seaward end — and was built to withstand waves as high as 15 feet, according to an analysis done by the state Division of Coastal Management, “North Carolina’s Terminal Groins at Oregon Inlet and Fort Macon,  Descriptions and Discussions.”

Located on the south side of Oregon Inlet at the north edge of Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge land, the groin placement encouraged sand buildup, or accretion, landward, resulting in a wide expansion of 50 acres of sandy property on the inlet side of the historic state-owned Oregon Inlet Life-Saving Station. The building is vacant, but has been weatherized to preserve it for future use.

The groin site and surrounding beach have been regularly monitored by state and federal coastal scientists. Studies have shown that the structure has likely increased shoaling of a spit on the Bodie island side and deepening of the channel. Yet, the groin has cause little if any destructive downstream erosion while adequately protecting the highway and bridge infrastructure.

But the report warned that within the next 20 years or so, the continued southward migration of the Bodie Island spit could push the inlet’s main navigational channel up against the terminal groin structure itself.

“If this were to occur, the result would be severe scour and an increase in the maintenance necessary to preserve the threatened integrity of the structure itself,” according to the document.

Beaufort Inlet/Fort Macon

Since Fort Macon was constructed in 1834, about 25 erosion-control structures adjacent to Beaufort Inlet have been built, including groins, breakwaters, timber cribbing, sand-fencing and seawalls, as well as multiple beach nourishment projects, according to the terminal groin report.  The first phase of the terminal groin project began in 1961 and included a 530-foot seawall, a 250-foot revetment and 720-foot long, 6-foot-high terminal groin. Phase II, beginning in 1965, extended the groin 410 feet oceanward, and another groin was built west of the revetment to address extensive soundside erosion, while 93,000 cubic yards of sand was placed on the ocean beach.

The third phase, started in 1970, extended the terminal groin another 400 feet, to a total of 1,530 feet long. A 480-foot-long stone groin was built to stabilize the beach fill, and another 100,000 cubic yards of sand was placed on the ocean beach. Total costs for the three-phase project was $1.35 million.

Effects of the project include increased wave energy along the Fort Macon State Park and Bogue Banks area, and continued increases in wave energy were predicted. A sediment deficit has created erosion on the inlet’s western shoreline. Meanwhile, the sand spit at Fort Macon has migrated into the western bank of the navigation channel, indicating that the terminal groin has become inefficient at trapping sediment.

“Without constant beach nourishment, the terminal groin would no longer perform as observed historically and potentially fail altogether,” the report concluded.

Buxton

Dare County is planning a nourishment project in Buxton, as well as restoration of one of the Navy’s three abandoned reinforced sheet-pile groins that had been installed in 1969. According to the recent application to repair the southernmost groin, which is 50% or more intact, that groin had been lengthened in 1982 on the landward side by 300 feet, and armor stone was added two years later. New sheet piles and additional scour protection were added to the structures in 1994. The other two groins in the original groin field are too damaged to qualify under the Coastal Resources Commission’s “50% rule” that permits repairs.

Dare County Manager Bobby Outten has said publicly that the county is under no illusions that the project planned for this summer will solve the erosion issue for good. But the hope is that it will serve as a Band-Aid long enough to find a more permanent solution to erosion that is now so severe it is threatening the livelihoods of community residents and the island’s tourism economy, as well as N.C Highway 12.

Retired East Carolina University professor and veteran coastal geologist Dr. Stanley Riggs, who has studied the Outer Banks since the 1970s, agreed that the fact that the lighthouse had to be relocated to save it illustrates why Buxton’s erosion is not going to be easy to tame for long, with or without groins. When the first coastal survey from Virginia to Ocracoke was done in 1852, the original 1802 Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, which was destroyed, had been 1,000 feet from the shoreline, Riggs recently told Coastal Review. All told, the shoreline has receded 3,000 feet, or about two-thirds of a mile, at the cape, he said.

“And it’s been constant,” Riggs said. “It oscillates a little bit, but the main direction has been constant.”

As Riggs explained, offshore just north of the motel area in Buxton, there is an underwater rock structure that is set at an oblique angle relative to the barrier island. Similar “old capes” are also off Avon and Rodanthe, he said. The rocks are under as much as 50 feet of water, and they dictate how the waves refract there.

“And so, if you fly over it, and you get the right angle down there, what you see is a series of cusps, and one side of that cusp will be stable, the other side will be highly erosional,” he said. Groins will only make the eroding side erode faster. And when there are permanent or semipermanent structures along the beach, the shore face — the part that is under water — starts to erode and gets steeper and steeper, he said. And the steeper it gets, the more severe the overwash and the more difficult it is to hold the sand in place. That’s a big reason why beach nourishment is having to be done more frequently.

Not only does the Outer Banks stick out farther into the Atlantic, there is also a narrower continental shelf, which allows the bigger waves to come ashore from the open ocean without the wider “speed bump” needed to dissipate the power.

There’s no negotiating with the ocean, Riggs said. Considering the combination of coastal dynamics at play in Buxton, efforts to control erosion will continue to fail.

“It’s that land-sea-air interface that is really the highest energy place that we’ve got on our planet,” Riggs said. “And there’s some things you can do there. There’s some things you shouldn’t do there, you can’t do there, and it’s a matter of understanding how that system works.”

Ocracoke Island

A persistent erosion hot spot on the north end of the island along N.C. Highway 12, the only road between the Hatteras Ferry Docks and Ocracoke Village, has been patched on and off for decades by increasing numbers of ever larger numbers and size of sandbags.

But even the type of large, new, trapezoidal bags permitted at Ocracoke, Pea Island and Mirlo Beach have not held up as expected, according to a presentation provided by Paul Williams of the North Carolina Department of Transportation at the February Coastal Resources Commission meeting.

Williams presented details at the meeting of NCDOT’s revised request to increase the base of the sandbags from 20 to 30 feet and the height from 6 feet to 10 feet, to better protect them from being undermined by waves.

The newer bags have open ends at the top, which proved to be a problem at Pea Island, Williams told the commission. The Pea Island Refuge at the Visitor Center, he added, faces similar risks now to that seen at Mirlo Beach in Rodanthe in the years before the hotspot was bypassed with completion of the Rodanthe “Jug-Handle” Bridge.

“The performance has not been what we anticipated,” he said, describing how they were flooded at the top, which caused the sandbags to deflate. “This product, there may be some modifications that can be made to make them more resilient.”

Some of the new bags were also installed along with traditional sandbags at Ocracoke, and they’re still covered, Williams said, but roughly 1 mile of sandbags along N.C. 12 are at risk of being undermined during the next big storm.

“So it’s basically to give us more latitude on different products, to try to protect the roadway out there better than traditional sandbags have,” Willams told Coastal Review after the meeting. “We’ve used them for decades out there, and especially Mirlo, they really got tossed around during storms. We were looking to find a more resilient product, and we’re working on evaluating other options out there.”

The new sandbags with an opening at the top are quicker to fill, he said. They’ve worked at other areas, but conditions elsewhere are not as fierce.

“When you’re on the Outer Banks, you’re under constant pressure during some of these storm events, because we’ll have a storm set up on the coast and grind for days at a time,” Williams said. “And every tide cycle is just steadily pulling sand out of the bags, and we need to have some way to stop that.”

Even though many of the traditional sandbags without the troublesome opening are still in place at Ocracoke, Williams said that about half of them, or about 1,000, have been exposed and need to be replaced. Another issue on the island is the limited amount of sand available to cover.

Sandbags, which are considered temporary erosion-control structures that are permitted parallel to shore to protect imminently threatened roads or structures, have rules about color and size, but those rules have been notoriously abused with regard to the “temporary” part, with extensions often adding up to decades at a site, making them “hardened structures” in everything but name.

Before Nags Head in 2011 started nourishing its eroded beaches in South Nags Head, for instance, even battered and torn sandbags weren’t removed for years, and property owners often successfully sued the state to keep longstanding stacked rows of protective bags in place in front of their oceanfront homes on the eroded beach.

As sea levels continue to rise, storms intensify and erosion accelerates, even sandbags as fallbacks in the absence of other impermissible erosion-control structures are becoming less effective, as evidenced by photographs of huge piles of sandbags lined up against undermined houses at North Topsail Beach.

Ocean Isle Beach

Responding to the state legislature’s repeal of the ban on hardened erosion-control structures on the coast, Ocean Isle Beach in 2011 began the planning process to pursue permits to install a terminal groin at Shallotte Inlet to stem erosion that for decades had chewed away at the island’s east end. Five years later, state and federal approval was in hand to build a 750-foot-long terminal groin, but environmental groups in 2017 filed a lawsuit to stop the project. A ruling in March 2021 in the 4th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s ruling that the project alternatives were properly considered. By April 2022, the $11 million terminal groin was completed.

Today, a diminished beach remains in front of multi-million-dollar homes that were built after the groin was in place. Rows of sandbags block the surf from reaching some of the oceanfront homes, and several lots remain vacant because there is no longer enough property left to meet setback requirements.

In November, the Coastal Resources Commission allowed the owners of eroding vacant oceanfront lots to use larger sandbags to protect their properties.

Interest in future terminal groins

The Village of Bald Head Island, the first community to build a terminal groin after the “test groin” law passed, was issued a permit in October 2014 to build the erosion-control structure, which was completed in 2015.

North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality monitoring of the project after its completion did not turn up significant issues requiring corrective measures, according to its January 2024 report.

“While ongoing post-construction monitoring performed by the permittee has not identified any significant issues that would require corrective or mitigative measures, the Village performed a maintenance beach nourishment event, received nourishment from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ regularly scheduled Wilmington Harbor maintenance project, and is currently seeking permit authorization for a second Village-sponsored maintenance nourishment event,” according to the document.

Six other communities have expressed “varying degrees” of interest in building a terminal groin project, including North Topsail Beach and Figure Eight Island, as noted in the report.

First in a series

Something potentially and significantly consequential is underway now in North Carolina that could alter management of the state’s increasingly battered Atlantic coastline.

The state Coastal Resources Commission’s Science Panel is in the process of finalizing an analysis of beach erosion-control structures, a report that is expected to be submitted to the commission in June. Although the 10-member advisory panel’s study is meant to inform policymakers of their options, some fear – or hope – that it’s the first step toward repealing the state’s longstanding ban on hardened shoreline structures.

“Alarms are sounding in nearly all of our oceanfront counties,” state Division of Coastal Management Director Tancred Miller said at the commission’s meeting in November at Atlantic Beach, referring to threats from accelerating beach erosion. “Nourishment costs continue to rise and the lifespan of many of these projects is painfully short. Infrastructure is increasingly vulnerable, and some communities are very concerned.”

Since September 2025, the Hatteras Island village of Buxton, home of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and the massive corner of wild beach known as Cape Point, has seen 19 unoccupied oceanfront homes collapse into the surf. In addition to a beach nourishment project, Dare County this summer is planning to restore the only salvageable groin of a 57-year-old groin field in an attempt to prolong the project’s lifespan.

In response to calls from Dare and Hyde counties, among others, to allow more options to address erosion, the division last winter asked the Coastal Resources Commission to review the structures.

“We must approach these challenges with open minds, innovation, and balanced pragmatism,” Miller urged. “We must take a critical view of our past and current practices, embrace what continues to succeed, and replace practices that are no longer working.”

But even the draft outline that the Science Panel submitted at the commission’s February meeting,  titled “Report on The Effects of Hard Structures on Sandy, Open-ocean Coastlines,” revealed the complexity involved in redirecting, blocking, deflecting, buffering, or absorbing the power of an open ocean energized by high winds, with forceful longshore and cross-shore currents feeding beaches with sand here, starving them of sand there.

“We’ve broken this into two categories according to how these erosion-management measures function; essentially all erosion-management approaches fall into two categories,” CRC Science Panel Chair Laura Moore told the commission. “One is structures or approaches that trap sand, and the second is structures that that really harden the shoreline.”

While the report will provide details about protective barriers and techniques, she said, it is less about offering remedies than providing information about effects of each option. It will also include comparisons to beach-restoration methods such as nourishment and living shorelines.

Erosion has been a fact of life along North Carolina’s 320-mile-long ocean shoreline for centuries, but before coastal development and tourism went into overdrive, the Coastal Resources Commission, the 13-member body that sets coastal policy in the state, took steps to preserve beaches.

In 1985, after studying the down-shore erosive effects of seawalls, bulkheads, groins, jetties and sandbags, the commission established a policy banning permanent hardened structures on the ocean coast. Sandbags were permitted as temporary structures.

Upheld in court in 2000, the ban was codified as law three years later by the North Carolina General Assembly. Then in 2011, a law was passed that permitted a limited number of terminal groins — sand-trapping barriers built near inlets or at the end of an island. Much of the ban, however, remains the law of the land. Environmentalists and countless coastal scientists have credited the limits on hard structures for preserving the state’s coastal wildlife and beautiful natural beaches, which attract millions of tourists every year. But critics blame the ban for limiting the ability to protect shorelines, as well as private and public property and infrastructure.

No magic, one-size-fits-all formula exists to address erosion, Moore said, and many factors will need to be weighed.

“There are approaches and strategies that can either shift the erosion problem to another adjacent location, or in some cases, we can slow the problem down,” said Moore, who is professor of coastal geomorphology at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. “We can create more time to make perhaps bigger adjustments that are likely to be needed going forward.”

With seas rising and Atlantic storms intensifying over recent decades as a result of climate change, erosion on the state’s barrier island beaches has been happening faster and more dramatically, especially along the high-energy Outer Banks coastline, where erosion rates at some locations – as severe as an annual average of 14 feet – are among the highest on the East Coast. Dozens of oceanfront houses on eroded beaches, pounded and undermined by surging surf, have fallen into the sea. At the same time, more Outer Banks inlets and waterways are filling with sand, clogging channels that until the recent past had always been navigable.

But the entire coast has been experiencing its own degree of changing and increasingly destructive conditions, and the pressure has been building to find ways to prevent or mitigate damages at different locations, each with different conditions.

“I would say most of the North Carolina coastline is either barrier or behaves like barrier,” Moore told Coastal Review. “Certainly, subsidence in the north is a factor that’s going to make the relative rate of sea level rise a little higher. But there’s also the shape and the orientation of the shoreline and the wave approach angles and the wave energy and how those drive longshore sediment transport gradients, and how much sand is coming into a stretch of coast versus how much is leaving. Also, a really big factor is how frequently in the past the coast has been nourished.”

The final report is to be centered on sand-trapping and shoreline-hardening structures, Moore said. But it will also look at other widely used erosion management tactics, ranging from avoidance with setbacks or relocation, sand trapping with fences or beach plants, and building the beach with sand nourishment and dunes.

The two-category design of the document is focused on function of the structures, she said, “because there are hundreds, maybe even thousands, of coastal erosion management approaches out there, and they all essentially fall into two buckets.” What the panel of volunteer scientists cannot do, she added, is analyze each approach.

“What we are trying to do is provide a better, clearer explanation of how structures function and what their effects are,” Moore said.

Moore emphasized that the science panel’s task is to provide an assessment of structures on the coastline. But she understands the urgency people feel for finding a “solution” rather than a range of options.

“And although we’re not providing recommendations, I do want to highlight that we will be discussing tradeoffs, and I think that’s really important, because whether an approach has benefits or negative effects depends on the perspective and goals of the beholder,” she said. “We certainly know that there are efforts afoot to repeal the ban. And again, it’s not our job to say whether that should or should not happen. It’s our job to lay out in a clear way what the tradeoffs are, given how these different approaches to mitigating erosion function.”

Next in the series: How have hardened structures currently installed on North Carolina beaches performed?

Dare County is finalizing plans to celebrate the nation’s 250th anniversary taking place next month.

Scheduled for Saturday, April 18, in downtown Manteo and at Roanoke Island Festival Park, Dare A250 Faire is Dare County’s signature event commemorating the nation’s 250th anniversary.

The celebration will feature a variety of vendors, along with live music, historical reenactments and storytelling, art displays, educational programming, community exhibits, family-friendly activities and patriotic festivities that highlight Dare County as the “Land of Beginnings.”

Activities will take place throughout downtown Manteo from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., before transitioning to Roanoke Island Festival Park for the Star Spangled Spectacular, an evening celebration featuring headlining musical acts and a special performance highlighting Dare County’s rich history.

The Dare A250 Faire was originally scheduled at the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills but was relocated to Manteo and Roanoke Island Festival Park to allow “all aspects of the planning committee’s vision to be included in the celebration,” organizers said. “The Roanoke Island setting highlights the area’s rich history as the ‘Birthplace of America,’ with the historic Elizabeth II serving as a meaningful backdrop to the festivities.”

The Dare A250 Celebration is designed as a full-day experience and is offered free of charge. While the daytime festivities in downtown Manteo are open to all, free tickets will be required for the evening performance at Roanoke Island Festival Park due to venue capacity. Tickets can be reserved online.

Musical acts are to be announced in the coming weeks.

A public hearing on three proposed shellfish bottom and water column leases in Hyde County is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 18.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries Shellfish Lease and Aquaculture Program is holding the hearing at the Hyde County Courthouse in Swan Quarter and online using Webex.

The hearing will cover the following proposed shellfish lease applications:

• Good Time Charlie’s Fisheries LLC, Mary E. Van Salisbury, has applied for a 2.12-acre shellfish bottom and water column lease in Back Creek.
• Angel’s Breath Oyster Co. LLC, Michael L. D’Amelio, has applied for a 4.04-acre shellfish bottom and water column lease in Rose Bay.
• Oasis Oyster Co. LLC, Maxwell A. D’Amelio, has applied for a 4.09-acre shellfish bottom and water column lease in Rose Bay.

Proposed lease areas will be marked at each corner as a proposed shellfish bottom lease and/or water column lease with the identifying numbers listed above.

Public hearing information, including the web conference link, call-in phone number, presentation slides and biological investigation reports, are online at deq.nc.gov/2026-03-18-hyde-county-shellfish-lease-hearing.

The public may comment on the proposed shellfish leases in person at the hearing or via Webex. Those wishing to speak via Webex should register before the hearing at deq.nc.gov/hyde-county-shellfish-lease-hearing-speaker-registration. Those who wish to comment in person can register to speak at the meeting from 5-6 p.m. the night of the hearing.

The public can submit written comments on the proposed shellfish leases up to 24 hours after the hearings online at nc.gov/hyde-county-shellfish-lease-hearing-comment-form, or mail to NC Division of Marine Fisheries, Shellfish Lease and Aquaculture Program, P.O. Box 769, Morehead City, NC 28557.

For more information, contact the shellfish lease and aquaculture program at 252- 515-5600 or SLAP@deq.nc.gov.

HERTFORD — Even as the proposed Mid-Currituck bridge project has been uncharacteristically zipping along in the planning process, a new analysis of two revenue options has cast doubts on the project’s future, with serious concerns raised about the latest estimated construction costs that hover around $1.2 billion.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation presented a report Feb. 18 to the Albemarle Regional Planning Organization comparing a traditional toll project and a “P3” toll project, as required by federal law, to determine “value for money.” With a traditional toll project, the state is responsible for financial, operational and construction-related risks. A “P3” toll project is where a private sector/single developer has responsibility for revenue, financial, operational and construction-related risks.

“The base case financial results from the comparative analysis reveal that neither the Traditional Toll Delivery nor the P3 Toll Delivery are currently financially feasible,” the report said. “The analysis highlights funding gaps of $1,005 million for the Traditional Toll Delivery and $875 million for the P3 Toll Delivery, both of which exceed the $173 million of committed STIP (State Transportation Improvement Plan) funding.”

And it doesn’t appear that sunny prospects are around the corner. “Project costs have continued to increase above inflation and any schedule delays would likely increase costs further,” the report adds.

NCDOT has scheduled another presentation to the Albemarle Regional Planning Organization of the Mid-Currituck bridge comparative analysis for 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Albemarle Commission headquarters, 512 South Church St., Hertford.

A decision on the next step must be made by the organization’s board by its April meeting.

Although the transportation department and the North Carolina Turnpike Authority, the state agency responsible for tolling, are not advocating for any particular decision, the report said, it did cite several potential options.

One option is to adjust the STIP schedule and submitting it again to compete for funding, or removing the project from the schedule all together, which would free up the $173 million bridge allocation to be used for other Division 1 projects. Other options are to continue applying for federal grants, looking for other funding sources, consider local sales or occupancy taxes, and/or request an annual state appropriation.

Despite the challenging budgetary situation, the bridge agencies are still in the fight, with both NCDOT and the Turnpike Authority continuing to advance the project toward construction, Logen Hodges, the authority’s marketing and communications director, said in an email responding to questions from Coastal Review.

So far, he said, three permits have been issued for the project, including those issued by the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s divisions of Water Resources and Coastal Management on Sept. 19, 2025, and one issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Oct. 28, 2025. While geotechnical investigations are being completed, another permit application to the Coast Guard is pending.

First identified as a need in 1975, the proposed bridge would connect the Currituck mainland at Aydlett to Corolla, on the Currituck Outer Banks. The 4.66-mile-long bridge would cross Currituck Sound and a 1.5-mile-long bridge would cross Maple Swamp on the mainland side about 25 miles south of the Virginia state line.

But the project, which has a timeline of five years for design and construction, has been rife with conflict, budget shortfalls, waning and waxing political support and repeated legal challenges. Dare and Currituck counties, and most of their respective towns and villages, have been pushing for the bridge for decades as a necessity to decrease traffic volume and improve hurricane evacuation.

At the same time, vocal opponents, many of them residents from both sides of the proposed bridge, have maintained that the bridge would be a costly boondoggle that would damage the environment and increase traffic.

Legal challenges were filed by the Southern Environmental Law Center, which challenged the permit issued by DEQ on different fronts.

“The timeline for resolution of this legal challenge is uncertain,” Hodges wrote. “Due to the pending legal challenge of an environmental permit and additional project funding needs, the project schedule will remain uncertain. To reflect this, the project construction let date has been extended by one year and may continue to be adjusted until a project schedule is determined.” 

On behalf of No Mid-Currituck Bridge, a citizens’ group opposed to the bridge, and the Sierra Club, an environmental nonprofit group, the SELC submitted a Petition for a Contested Case Hearing to the state in November that challenged the DEQ’s Coastal Area Management Act, or CAMA, permit. 

The petition argues, among others, that the bridge will bring adverse effects and disrupt communities on both sides.

“The permit for the construction of the Bridge Alternative would induce dramatic increases in traffic and development on both the mainland and Outer Banks, strain already overburdened coastal wastewater and drinking water infrastructure, permanently harm estuarine waters, wetlands, and other surface waters,” the document states.

In a separate action, the law center submitted a petition for judicial review to the state in December, also challenging the issuance of the permit by Coastal Resources Commission and DEQ.

To the community on the northern Outer Banks and the southern end of mainland Currituck County, as well as for visiting property owners and tourists, the summer traffic crossing the Wright Memorial Bridge back and forth from Currituck to Dare counties is an annual headache, with bumper-to-bumper traffic clogging roads to and from Corolla every weekend and holiday.

According to a September 2025 traffic and revenue report, more than 1 million vehicles crossed the Wright Memorial Bridge in July 2023, the highest count to date. 

“The proposed (Currituck bridge) is expected to provide significant distance and time savings to residents and visitors, particularly to those that travel to the most northern portion of Dare County and the Currituck County portion of the Outer Banks,” the report said. “The (bridge) will reduce peak season congestion for trips to the south, facilitate planned growth north of the (Wright bridge), and improve emergency evacuation for those residing on all parts of the Outer Banks.”

Tolls would be charged starting in 2032, according to the report. Minimum tolls in 2023 dollars for cars would be $6 each direction, with discounts for tolls paid by transponders and future increases reflecting the inflation rate. Trucks and other heavy vehicles will pay proportionally higher tolls.

The report also states that the optimal toll rate of $15 would generate 90% of the maximum forecasted toll revenue. In the numerous models, calculated rates were as high as $40. 

But Hodges cautioned that the models are not just that.

 “While estimated toll rates were used for the purpose of the analysis, all toll rates are set by the North Carolina Turnpike Authority Board of Directors,” he wrote in the email. “Formal toll rates for the Mid-Currituck Bridge would not be established until closer to the facility’s opening.”

The $173 million in committed division funds represents about 20% of the total STIP funding for Division 1, Hodges said. Depending on the outcome of the project schedule, the DEQ permits would not expire on their own, he said. The Corps’ permit, however, is set to expire iis set to expire on Dec. 31,2030, unless an extension is granted.

But if the Albemarle Regional Planning Organization decides to move the project to the last five years of the STIP, he said, it could potentially be eligible for funding at statewide, regional impact funding and division needs tiers.

“Ultimately whether the project is funded and programmed for construction would be dependent on available funding at each tier and how the project scores relative to other projects submitted for prioritization,” he wrote.

Whatever its fate, it’s taken a lot of resources for the Mid-Currituck Bridge proposal to finally reach the runway, only to be stalled indefinitely — or eliminated. 

“Since the early 1990s when the project was first conceived,” Hodges wrote, “approximately $60 million has been spent on early project work, including preliminary engineering, environmental analysis and initial right-of-way acquisition.”

Archaeologists and historians are going to share their evidence of mixed Elizabethan-Algonquian material culture at sites on Hatteras Island during the March installment of the “Science on the Sound” series.

“The Smoking Gun?: New Radiocarbon Dates and Hunting Practices Linking Hatteras Island to Fort Raleigh in the Sixteenth Century” is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, March 26, at the Coastal Studies Institute on the East Carolina University Outer Banks Campus.

The public is encouraged to attend the program being offered at no charge or view the presentation via YouTube. “Science on the Sound” is a monthly, in-person lecture series highlighting coastal topics.

The nonprofit Croatoan Archaeological Society and the University of Bristol have uncovered evidence that “strongly suggests Hatteras was the location where at least some of the ‘lost’ colonists re-settled when they went missing between 1587 and 1590,” organizers said.

“These objects have been cautiously interpreted, however, since European objects may have been traded long after those who originally brought them to the Carolina coast had passed away,” they continued. “Here we summarize past findings and describe the clearest evidence to date that the 1587 colonists were present on Hatteras Island: biogeochemical, radiocarbon, osteological, and metalwork evidence that demonstrate the presence of late sixteenth century firearms and hunting practices on Croatoan land.”

Beth Scaffidi, Mark Horton and Scott Dawson are presenting.

Scaffidi is an assistant professor of Anthropology and Heritage Studies, director of the Skeletal & Environmental Isotope Laboratory, or SEIL, and co-director of various archaeological field research programs in Peru. She uses bioarchaeological isotopes, palaeopathology and spatial analysis to investigate how interactions between ritual, landscapes and resources co-constitute human and environmental health.

Horton is the pro vice-chancellor of Research and Enterprise and professor of historical archeology at the Royal Agricultural University of England. He specializes in landscape archeology and archaeological science methods as applied to maritime and Colonial contexts around the globe and emphasizes public outreach and conservation of material culture.

Dawson is an area historian, director of the Croatoan Archaeological Society, and owner of the Lost Colony Museum in Buxton. He has been co-directing archaeological excavation of Cape Hatteras sites with Horton and society volunteers for over a decade.

Coastal Resources Commission members last week held off on addressing oceanfront septic tank system rules in order to give environmental and health officials the opportunity to collaborate on the process.

During the commission’s Feb. 26 meeting in Atlantic Beach, staff with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Coastal Management, which implements the commission’s rules and policies, asked for extra time to work with the state’s Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS regulates permitting, design, installation, operation and maintenance for on-site septic systems.

The failed septic system issue had been forefront for the commission in the early 2020s, until the topic was sidelined in April 2023 when the Rules Review Commission rejected dozens of rules the Coastal Resources Commission submitted as part of the 10-year rule review process, including protections for Jockey’s Ridge, redirecting the CRC’s attention.

After the rules protecting the sand dune system on the Outer Banks were put back in place in 2025, the Coastal Resource Commission resumed the discussions on remedies for oceanfront septic system failures.

Division Coastal Policy Analyst Cameron Luck explained last Thursday that the commission directed the staff at its November 2025 meeting to find out how many septic system failures along the waterfront were caused by tidal inundation, how many coastal communities rely on septic systems, and the overlap of the commission’s rules with the DHHS’s permitting process.

Luck said that Initially the plan for the February meeting was for the proposed amendments to move forward. But, after the division, DHHS and the North Carolina Coastal Federation, met Feb. 18 to review the issue, the consensus was to pause the rulemaking process.

The plan as of last Thursday was to schedule a meeting in mid-March with the health department and other agencies and organizations. “We want everybody at the table,” to better understand how stakeholders feel about the issue and willingness to address septic tank failures through a collaborative effort, Luck said.

Under the current rules, septic tanks are grouped with houses, which precludes oceanfront septic systems from requiring a permit for repair. And, an oceanfront septic system must be relocated or dismantled within eight years of when a home becomes threatened.

Division staff proposed clarifying that new structures must meet the oceanfront setback, and if a home or septic system is relocated, all remaining debris, including the original septic system, must be removed as well.

Staff also proposed specifying that septic system repair and/or replacement is not evaluated under general statute. Instead, it requires a Coastal Area Management Act permit to replace any septic tank, pump tank, or ground absorption system component.

North Carolina Coastal Federation Executive Director Braxton Davis, who was previously director of the Division of Coastal Management, has been involved in the process for some time. The Coastal Federation publishes Coastal Review.

Davis explained to the commission that it already regulates new oceanfront septic tanks by requiring that those systems meet the oceanfront setback. However, the division currently doesn’t have rules regarding repairing oceanfront septic systems.

DHHS, Dare and septic systems

Two officials with the state health department explained to the commission the prevalence of on-site wastewater systems in the state and the role the division plays in managing them.

Deputy Environmental Health Section Chief Jon Fowlkes said that about 50% of the state relies on septic systems and that has remained consistent over the last 20 to 30 years.

“Every county in our state uses septic systems, some counties more, some counties less,” he said, with some ranging from 14% to 93%, “so it really varies on where you’re at, and we’ve had approximately 1 million septic systems installed since 1990.”

The state’s wastewater rules apply to residential and some commercial on-site septic systems.

On-Site Water Protection Branch Head Wilson Mize with DHHS told the commission that neither he nor Fowlkes worked on the coast before, and “it’s been a learning curve” for them while working with Dare, Currituck and Carteret counties.

He used Dare as an example for how the county is handling its oceanfront septic problems, particularly the scenario of when a tank that was once covered in sand is exposed during a weather event.

After every storm, environmental health staff coordinate with local building inspectors and walk the impacted beach areas, looking for damaged dwellings and determine which systems have been compromised, Mize said.

In many cases the health department’s hands are tied when it comes to not issuing permits. “Our rules don’t give the county much authority to deny that permit if it meets our rules,” Fowlkes said.

Dare County Manager Bobby Outten said the county has a similar situation, stating that they’re also required to issue a permit for septic tanks, even if they’re in the surf zone.

“If the owner can get access to his building, we have to give them the permits. And so now they’ve got a house sitting in the water, their septic tank’s on the wet sand beach, and their drain field is back in the dry sand beach and we have to permit it,” he continued.

“They do it. Two weeks later, we have a nor’easter. It knocks the top off, it dumps the septic in the ocean again, and we start the process again. The water subsides. They put a new top on it. It meets all the requirements. We permit it,” he explained. “And the cycle continues until they lose enough lot that they can’t have a drain field, or they’ve lost enough lot, or lose the tank, and they don’t have anywhere to put the tank, and we don’t have a remedy for that, and we don’t have a remedy for it once it’s all said and done.”

Outten said there are options to break the cycle, including the establishment of setbacks by the commission, or rules that the health department can enforce.

“So we’re stuck in this situation because none of the rules work together to solve what I think we all see as a problem,” he said. “If our goal is to get those tanks off of the beaches, then the rules don’t currently work to do that.”

Commission Chair Renee Cahoon recognized that there’s no easy solution, “but we know that we can’t continue to have all the septic tanks on the beach. It’s not environmentally healthy. It’s not even good business sense for the people in North Carolina, because it does impact our tourism industry and all the property owners that are invested here.”

Work is set to begin this week to repair and restore the Bodie Island double keepers’ quarters that was damaged in an electrical fire more than a year ago.

Once the damages are repaired, Cape Hatteras National Seashore plans to install new exhibits on the first floor of the building, which has been closed since the Jan. 7, 2025, fire.

“Restoring the interior of the Bodie Island DKQ, with support from Outer Banks Forever, will allow the Seashore to once again tell the stories of the light station’s important history,” David Hallac, National Parks of Eastern North Carolina superintendent said in a release.

The project is a partnership of Cape Hatteras National Seashore and its official nonprofit partner Outer Banks Forever, which is funding the repairs.

“We’re honored to partner with the National Park Service to restore this beloved, historically significant building so park visitors can have an immersive experience learning about the lightkeepers and families who played important roles in Outer Banks and United States maritime history,” Outer Banks Forever Director Bryan Burhans stated in the release.

Outer Banks Forever has received a special use permit for the project.

Guest Commentary

To stimulate discussion and debate, Coastal Review welcomes differing viewpoints on topical coastal issues. Opinions expressed by the authors are not necessarily those of Coastal Review or our publisher, the North Carolina Coastal Federation.

Early this February, the Outer Banks battled severe winter weather, a closed main highway due to overwash, and iced-over ferry terminals. But amidst the freeze, a more permanent disaster unfolded. On Feb. 1 and 2, the Atlantic Ocean claimed its latest prize: four homes in Buxton.

This brings the total number of properties lost to the ocean since 2020 to 31. While these collapses create a spectacle on social media and news outlets, for coastal managers, they are anticipated events and a reminder of our losing battle against an ever-encroaching sea.

The consequences from each collapse extend beyond the individual homeowners. Scattered debris creates hazardous conditions that close shorelines, deter tourists, and threaten the local tourism economy.

While homeowners are technically responsible for hiring contractors for debris removal, county and National Park Service crews from the neighboring Cape Hatteras National Seashore are often left to fill the gap. And until cleanup is complete, waves of nails, furniture, septic systems, and splintered wood create dangerous conditions for neighbors, tourists, and wildlife. Ultimately, we are trying to force static buildings onto dynamic barrier islands, and the islands are fighting back.

The sand subscription trap

Most of these threatened homes were built on these barrier islands between the 1970s and 1990s, originally standing hundreds of feet from the Atlantic Ocean. Today, homes in the Outer Banks cling to a shoreline eroding at rates of up to about 20 feet per year. This erosion is driven by rising sea levels, expected to increase locally by 15 to 22 inches by 2050, and intensified coastal storms.

Currently, our primary adaptation strategy is beach nourishment, the artificial pumping of sand onto existing beaches to resist erosion and protect inland structures. However, this strategy is proving unsustainable. The rate of erosion has simply outpaced our administrative capacity to fund, permit, and engineer new projects. The beach in front of the latest collapses in Buxton was nourished less than four years ago. In essence, we are signing up for a recurring subscription to sand, one that costs more every year while protecting homes for a shorter period.

The case for buyouts

What most reports on these collapses fail to highlight is that a financially viable solution exists. A 2023 Western Carolina University cost-benefit analysis of Rodanthe, a community on the Outer Banks that has seen 12 collapses since 2020, found that long-term beach nourishment would cost the municipality approximately $120 million over 15 years. In contrast, it would cost just over $40 million to proactively buy out and remove the 80 most at-risk homes.

While the recent collapses in Buxton are making headlines, Buxton and Rodanthe, as the two communities where homes have collapsed, face different realities. Buxton is largely a year-round community where erosion threatens the broader tourism-driven economy, though the collapsing oceanfront homes themselves are primarily second homes. Conversely, Rodanthe is largely composed of vacation homes with a relatively small tax base.

Further, the somewhat recently completed “Jug-Handle” Rodanthe Bridge bypassed Rodanthe’s erosion hot spot, which has mitigated need to protect that stretch of highway. The exorbitant costs of beach nourishment and limited funds make Rodanthe unlikely to afford nourishment, and make buyouts the most logical strategy.

Buyouts are a tool for managed retreat where local, state, or federal governments purchase hazard-prone homes to relocate residents and demolish the existing structures, creating open space that naturally buffers against coastal flooding.

While beach nourishment projects in this region are projected to last about five years, a buyout is a permanent removal of the risk. There is already a precedent for this in Rodanthe as well. In 2023, the National Park Service used funds from offshore oil and gas leasing earnings to buy and demolish two threatened homes before they collapsed.

Breaking the insurance cycle

Critics often point to the loss of local tax revenue as a barrier to buyouts. However, the WCU study found that property tax revenue lost from these 80 homes, valued between $7 to $10 million over 30 years, is still significantly less than the cost to maintain the beach through nourishment. Further, our current system under federal guidelines creates deep regional inequities. Reimbursement for beach nourishment projects is only available to communities that can first afford millions to construct an engineered beach.

Only when a disaster is declared does a beach become eligible to receive emergency funding for the volume of sand lost during a specific storm-related disaster. Because of the steep costs of nourishment, only affluent communities with wealthier tax bases can afford to protect their homes.

Where federal dollars don’t pay for sand, the inherent risk of living along an eroding shoreline is subsidized through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Local and federal agencies lack the authority to force homeowners to demolish their compromised properties and therefore proactive removal is entirely voluntary and costs homeowners over $25,000 out-of-pocket. Homeowners with mortgages in these flood zones are incentivized to wait for the inevitable to be eligible to receive up to $250,000 for the structure and $100,000 for contents from the NFIP only after their home has collapsed.

Congress is largely unresponsive to escalating climate risks associated with intensifying hazards and subsequent uninsurable flood risks. Even when there have been legislative reforms to the NFIP, there have been unintended consequences for homeowners who are unable to afford higher premiums and also unable to sell their properties, with disproportionate impacts on vulnerable communities. With Rodanthe consisting primarily of vacation rentals, there is a deep equity question about how to fairly allocate taxpayer funds when low- and middle-income households are disproportionately impacted by flooding nationwide.

There is bipartisan recognition that this system must change. In 2025, Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C.-3, co-sponsored the Preventing Environmental Hazards Act (H.R.3161) to address this issue. The bill would authorize advance NFIP payouts of up to 40% of a home’s value up to $250,000 to proactively help homeowners demolish threatened homes before they collapse. To build on this, experts propose a “discounts for buyouts” reform to the NFIP, offering homeowners lower premiums in exchange for their agreement to sell their home and relocate once their home is substantially damaged by flooding. In addition, by prioritizing residences valued at under $250,000, the NFIP could equitably relocate vulnerable primary homes over wealthy second-home owners.

Proactive planning over reactive cleanup

Buyout programs are not a “silver bullet” to ongoing erosion and sea level rise. They come with emotional consequences, including homeowner displacement and impacts to community identity. Also, a large-scale buyout program would undoubtedly require significant local, state, and/or federal funds to remove these at-risk properties. However, voluntary programs that give homeowners autonomy over decisions on whether to participate in buyouts can mitigate these social costs.

One of the biggest hurdles is politics. Supporting government-funded buyouts can be seen as admitting defeat to the environment and is a political liability. Andrew Coburn, the associate director of the program for the Study of Developed Shorelines at WCU, noted that it is hard to imagine that a politician would ever tell their constituents, “Well, I guess it’s time we retreated.” Instead, we let the ocean decide when retreat from the shoreline happens, often at a much higher long-term cost.

The Outer Banks is an early warning sign for the rest of the U.S. coastline. While the only option appears to be expensive and temporary beach nourishment and insurance bailouts, there is a more holistic, science-based solution where long-term benefits outweigh the costs.

The logical solution is based on the values and needs of the broader Outer Banks community, U.S. taxpayers, the long-term health of the ecosystem, and equity. In the face of the 32nd collapse, we must shift from the cycle of federal subsidies and reactive cleanups toward insurance reforms and proactive retreat programs that offer homeowners a viable way out, before the Atlantic decides for them.

Registration for the Dare County Board of Commissioners chair’s state of the county presentation is now open.

Board Chairman Bob Woodard is scheduled to deliver the state of the county presentation at 10 a.m. March 21 at Cape Hatteras Secondary School, 48576 N.C. 12 in Buxton. Doors will open at 9:15 a.m.

The program will include the same message Woodard is expected to deliver in Kill Devil Hills March 18, but is being hosted in Buxton for Hatteras Island residents and property owners so they do not have to travel to the county’s northern beaches. Registration for the event in Kill Devil Hills is full.

The theme of this year’s presentation is “Reviewing a year of Progress in the Land of Beginnings.”

Though the event is free, advanced registration is encouraged for planning purposes.

For additional information visit DareNC.gov/SOC.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s ferry system will soon increase the number of departures for the Hatteras-Ocracoke route.

Beginning Tuesday through to March 30, departures of the popular ferry route will jump from 28 to 36.

The new schedule from Hatteras will begin at 5 a.m. then every hour on the hour to 6 p.m., then 8 p.m., 9 p.m., 11 p.m., and midnight.

The first departure time of the day from Ocracoke will be at 4:30 a.m. and proceed as follows: 6:30 a.m., 7:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 5:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m., 9:30 p.m., 10:30 p.m., and midnight. 

The full schedule may be viewed and downloaded on DOT’s website.

To receive text or email notifications on schedule adjustments and other ferry information, you may sign up for the ferry information notification system.

Young learners with an interest in science, technology, engineering, art, and math can get hands-on experience at the Coastal Studies Institute at the East Carolina University Outer Banks Campus in Wanchese this summer.

Online registration opens March 2 for the camps that explore the Outer Banks. The fee is $425 a week for each camper.

Camps are 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and held every week from June 6 to Aug. 7. No camp is scheduled for the week of Fourth of July.

Themes for campers ages 10 to 13 include the following:

• “Coastal Kingdoms: Coastal Marine Biology + Ecology Camp” June 8-12 and June 15-19.
• “Shapes in Science: Art + Science Camp” June 22-26 and July 6-10.
• “Blue Horizons: Coastal Engineering Camp” July 13-17 and July 20-24.
• “Legends of the Atlantic: Maritime Archeology + Ocean Exploration Camp” July 27-31 and Aug. 3-7.

Organizers have planed a one-week camp for ages 13-17 themed “Coastal Explorers: Marine Science Technology & Remote Sensing Camp” for Aug. 10-14.

Contact Parker Murphy at 252-475-5452 for general camp questions. Contact ECU Continuing and Professional Education at 252-328-9198 about the registration process.

Led by East Carolina University, Coastal Studies Institute is a multi-institutional research and educational partnership of the UNC System, in partnership with North Carolina State University, UNC Chapel Hill, UNC Wilmington and Elizabeth City State University.

Dare County students have an opportunity to share their insights on America’s 250th anniversary and the county’s role in the nation’s history through two programs by the Dare A250 Committee.

Dare A250 is the county’s celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, part of the statewide America 250 NC coordinated by the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Students in third through 12th grade are encouraged to enter the committee’s essay contest and student art exhibit, both “designed to celebrate local history, highlight student talent and support innovative learning in the lead-up to the Dare A250 Faire” on April 18.

Essays may focus on the themes of freedom, community, innovation, and the diverse narratives that define American history, organizers said.

The top three winners in each grade group will receive a financial award. Winners will be recognized during the Dare County A250 Faire. Submit essays using the online form by March 15.

The A250 Student Art Showcase will be on display during the Dare County A250 Faire, when winners will be announced.

The art contest “encourages young artists to explore what America means to them—its history, its people, its challenges, and its hopes for the next 250 years,” organizers said.

Submissions must be entered by March 27. Use the online form.

From the starvation and struggle of the ill-fated Lost Colony to the house-snatching fury of the latest nor’easter, endurance has always been a primary occupation on North Carolina’s remote Outer Banks. Even today, with soaring bridges and ribbons of asphalt connecting the outside world, a blustery winter day can isolate a soul in relentless gray.

But for locals who call Hatteras Island home, one bite of a savory, golden brown fish cake reminds them why they choose to stay on these unsteady sands.

Sharon Peele Kennedy understood that devotion better than most. A culinary icon known through her cookbook, “What’s for Supper,” and her voice on local radio stations, she was the primary guardian of Outer Banks foodways.

For Kennedy, who passed in January 2024, a plate of fish cakes wasn’t just a meal; it was an essential starting point for stories about the traditional Hatteras way of life she cherished.

To taste a fish cake in the “Banker” style, the name locals use for the ancestral residents of these islands, is to take a bite of history. Born from the resourceful kitchens of coastal families, these aren’t the typical heavily seasoned fried patties. Just as their forebears did at least two centuries ago, cooks here hand-flake fresh, local fish and then gently fold it with mashed potatoes and not much else.

Kennedy’s own recipe was handed down through generations. Her father, Maxton Peele, was a commercial long-haul and pound-net fisherman who cooked “in the traditional island style” of barely seasoning seafood to preserve its delicate flavor, Kennedy wrote in “What’s for Supper.” Her mother, Juanita Peele, was an expert at adding “unexpected touches” to those dishes.

Kennedy started working at Hatteras-area seafood restaurants when she was just 12 and grew up to become a champion for North Carolina’s commercial fishing families.

“This is a very traditional food on these banks,” Kennedy told me while she shaped fish cakes for a 2023 fundraising dinner in Nags Head to benefit NC Catch, a nonprofit promoting North Carolina seafood. 

Usually, leftover fish was “repurposed by mixing it all together … potatoes, onions and fish,” Kennedy said. “A little salt, a little pepper and an egg. And then shape it. That’s it.”

Such simplicity was forged in an era when grocery stores were nonexistent on Hatteras and thrift was the essential lifeline for island families. The first paved road didn’t open until the 1950s, and a boat or ferry was the only access to the island until a bridge opened in 1963. As Kennedy often reminded her audiences, Bankers “used what they had … what grew in the garden.”

Fortunately, fish was plentiful and could be salt-preserved for the larder. Onions and white potatoes – long known as “Irish potatoes” along the North Carolina shore from Virginia to eastern Carteret County – were the other essentials. Both thrived in sandy coastal soil. The humble staples formed the heart of the Banker fish cake.

Those potatoes and onions hint at how fish cakes became a Hatteras Island tradition, though the local recipe’s exact origin and timeline remain a mystery. When English settlers first arrived at Roanoke Island, the British were not yet potato eaters. While Europeans were introduced to the vegetable in the mid-1500s, most did not widely accept it until the 1700s.

While some credit Scandinavian sailors with the invention of potato-based fiskekaker, others point to the coastal traditions of Ireland. There, boiling potatoes in seawater to serve alongside the daily catch was one kind of survival meal, a flavor profile strikingly similar to the fish cake.

Regardless of who first mashed the two together, the concept found a perfect home on the Outer Banks.

For decades, the threat of piracy and the memory of the Lost Colony kept many settlers away from those shores, but by the mid-1600s, potato and onion farming had taken root in the nearby Albemarle region. As piracy dissipated in the early 1700s and more settlers moved to the barrier islands, they brought “Irish potatoes” and onions with them.

All the ingredients were finally lined up for an Outer Banks fish cake. While Kennedy’s cookbook also offered variations made with rice or hush puppy batter, the basic recipe many Hatteras locals use has remained unchanged: a modest, resourceful marriage of the garden and the sea.

As Kennedy shaped fish cakes for that NC Catch dinner at Basnight’s Lone Cedar Café in Nags Head, her son Jeffery Kennedy stepped in to grab a full tray. He gently laid the plump fish cakes into a deep fryer behind his mother. The pair’s easy cadence made it clear that this was not the first time the family had cooked fish cakes together.

Sizzling in oil, the fish cakes sent up a mouthwatering aroma. As Jeffery lifted the golden-brown disks from the fryer, his mother advised that any leftover fish would do – drum, bluefish, speckled trout, mackerel, whatever was available – whether baked, broiled or boiled. Throughout the process, she repeated how easy fish cakes were to prepare, offering not a hint of how utterly delicious they would be.

“Show her Jeffery,” Kennedy told her son. He picked up one of the hot patties and split it open with his hands. Inside, flaked white fish mingled with mashed potatoes, sending up a delectable fragrance. Meaty and substantial, the cake somehow maintained a pillowy texture that contrasted beautifully with its crisp exterior. One bite and I wished I could stay on the Outer Banks forever.

Fish Cakes

4 cups of cooked fish

3 cups of mashed potatoes

1 small onion diced or 1/3 cup chopped green onions

2 eggs, beaten

Salt and pepper

Flake fish in a bowl with mashed potatoes, add onions and beaten eggs, season to taste. Shape into small patties. Fry in about ¼-inch (deep) medium hot oil, until nice and brown.

Source: “What’s for Supper” by Sharon Peele Kennedy

Note: Because cooks often rely on leftover fish for fish cakes, the patties are traditionally enjoyed for breakfast. Try them in place of English muffins, use fried eggs instead of poached on top and skip the bacon for a delicious “eggs Benedict.”

A two-week recreational fishing season will open next month for Gulf flounder in ocean waters off the central and southeastern North Carolina coast.

The North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries announced Monday that it is opening the season March 9-22 in ocean waters between the north end of Portsmouth Island (south of Ocracoke Inlet) to the South Carolina line.

Gulf flounder may only be fished by hook and line during the season. There is a bag limit of one fish per person per day, and a size limit of no less than 15 inches in length.

Other specific information is available in the division’s proclamation.

State fisheries officials included in an amendment to the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan an opportunity for recreational fishers to harvest summer and Gulf flounder during a time when they are less likely to catch southern flounder.

North Carolina has historically managed southern, summer and Gulf flounder as one in the recreational fishery.

Strict regulations limiting recreational southern flounder catch remain in place because, according to the latest stock assessment, this species of flounder is overfished and overfishing is occurring, according to a fisheries release.

North Carolina’s recreational 2026 and 2027 season for summer flounder, which is jointly managed by the federal Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management County and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, must align with the fall flounder season.

While summer flounder range in distribution from Massachusetts to Florida, the species is most abundant from southern New England to Hatteras Island.

Gulf flounder range from North Carolina through the Gulf and are more abundant the further south you go, which is why the division chose the area it did for recreational Gulf flounder harvest, limiting the probability of summer flounder catch.

Physical characteristics that distinguish the three species of flounder are available on the division’s flounder identification webpage.

Under a new state harvest reporting requirement law, anglers must report their harvest of flounder, striped bass, spotted seatrout, weakfish (gray trout), and red drum to the division.

This report has been updated for clarification.

Dominion Energy’s 2.6-gigawatt offshore wind project based in Hampton Roads, Virginia, which was ordered by the Trump administration to stop work right before Christmas, has resumed the project and is now on track for completion by early 2027.

But the 26-day shutdown of Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, also known as CVOW, came at considerable cost to the company, its customers and the nation’s energy needs. 

According to its Jan. 30 project update, Dominion tallied the current total project cost at $11.5 billion, reflecting $228 million for increases associated with the suspension, as well as $580 million related to actual/estimated tariffs. Dominion’s update in May 2025 had the project cost at $10.8 billion.

“It’s a terrible time to be restricting any source of new energy and especially sources of new clean energy that can be constructed in places that otherwise have limited ability to add new generation, whether that might be a new gas plant or a new coal plant,” Katharine Kollins, president of the Southeastern Wind Coalition, told Coastal Review.

When fully operational, CVOW’s 176 wind turbines will generate enough energy to power up to 660,000 homes, making it the largest offshore wind farm in the U.S and one of the largest wind energy production facilities in the world. Dominion, which provides electricity to 3.6 million homes and businesses in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina and natural gas service to 500,000 customers in South Carolina, said the wind project is critical to its “diverse energy supply strategy” to meet growing regional demand.

“I think from the wind industry’s perspective, this is an industry that has been operating for over 20 years and has shown that there’s an ability to put a significant amount of new clean energy on the grid every year — when the free market is at play and when they are able to construct in areas where it makes sense to have wind,” Kollins said.

Citing risks to national security, the U.S. Department of Interior issued the suspension order on Dec. 22 to CVOW and four other offshore wind projects in varied stages of development on the East Coast. The following day, Dominion sued the federal government.

In the action, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Dominion argued, in part, that it had worked extensively with military interests while developing the project to ensure that any concerns about radar, training or operational readiness were addressed. Not only did the agency director lack the “generalized authority” under the lease regulations to order the suspension “at whim,” the lawsuit said, the government did not cite an “applicable trigger” to halt construction.

“Our nation is governed by laws, and a stable legal and regulatory environment is essential to allow regulated public utilities like (Dominion)  as well as other businesses, contractors, suppliers, and workers, to invest and support our nation’s energy needs and associated jobs,” according to the lawsuit.

“Sudden and baseless withdrawal of regulatory approvals by government officials cannot be reconciled with the predictability needed to support the exceptionally large capital investments required for large-scale energy development projects like CVOW critical to domestic energy security, continues the legal document. “That is true regardless of the source of energy.”

Based on a 2022 agreement with regulators on cost-sharing, for project costs beyond $10.3 billion up to $11.3 billion, the company and the customers each pay 50%, and from $11.3 billion to $13.7 billion, the company pays 100%, according to Dominion’s Jan. 30 project update.

Customers in Virginia, but not North Carolina, currently pay about $11 a month to cover CVOW costs, said Jeremy Slayton with Dominion media relations in a Feb. 10 email response to Coastal Review. Cost recovery, which influences rates, is updated annually, he added, and the October 2025 filing is still before the Virginia State Corporation Commission.

On Jan. 16, the court granted Dominion’s request for a preliminary injunction that allowed construction at CVOW to resume while the lawsuit is resolved. Courts have now allowed all five stalled offshore projects to operate for the time being.

“While our legal challenge proceeds, we will continue seeking a durable resolution of this matter through cooperation with the federal government”, Dominion Energy said in a press release.

The company didn’t waste time getting back to work. According to information provided by Slayton, project construction was by late January about 70% complete, with the facility expected to deliver its first power to the grid by the end of the first quarter of this year.

“Our U.S-flagged wind turbine installation vessel Charybdis completed the first turbine installation today,” Slayton wrote in the Jan 27 email. 

So far, he added, all 176 monopole foundations have been installed, and 119 of the 176 transition pieces — the yellow parts that connect the foundations to the turbine towers — are in place.

Also, two of the three offshore substations have been installed, the deepwater offshore export cables installation has been completed and the nearshore export cables installation is about 60% completed. And about 67 miles of an estimated 231 miles of inter-array cables, which carry energy created by the wind turbines to the offshore substations, has been installed.

Onshore electric transmission construction is expected to be completed in early 2026. Before the abrupt stop-work order, CVOW, which started construction in 2024, had expected to flip the power switch on by that date, and be fully operational by the end of 2026.

In addition to the obvious benefit of clean, plentiful energy, the project has brought millions in economic value to the region, including many jobs and dollars while under construction.

“Offshore wind, in particular, provides the United States with a generational opportunity to supply large amounts of affordable, reliable power while spurring investment and creating U.S. jobs,” Dominion argued in its filing.

According to Dominion, the completed project will create 1,100 direct and indirect jobs annually in Hampton Roads, equaling about $82 million in pay and benefits, $210 million in economic output, $6 million in revenues for local governments and $5 million in state tax revenue.

Since Donald Trump’s reelection, the president has focused on dismantling renewable energy-related projects — solar, wind, battery storage, even grid modernization —  in the U.S, and replacing it with fossil fuel and nuclear power. But he has reserved his strongest animus for offshore wind, apparently based on his objection to 11 wind turbines in the water off his Aberdeenshire, Scotland golf course.

Shortly after he purchased an estate there in 2006, according to a July 29, 2025, article published online by the BBC,  Trump “soon became infuriated at plans to construct an offshore wind farm nearby, arguing that the ‘windmills’ — as he prefers to call the structures — would ruin the view.”

He also insisted that the turbine blades killed “all” the birds, but surveys at the site have to date not found a single bird strike. In addition to calling wind energy “a scam,” as quoted in the article, the president regards wind power as “very expensive, very ugly energy”.

Despite Trump fighting the plans through the Scottish courts and ultimately the UK’s Supreme Court, construction of the “monsters” went ahead in 2018.

“It clearly left him smarting and he’s not had a good word to say about wind power since,” the article said.

According to an Audubon study, most bird deaths are caused by striking buildings, especially tall ones with large windows, and cats eating them. On land, building collisions alone are estimated to kill over a billion birds each year in the U.S., the report said.

“On the open ocean, birds can be killed or injured when they collide with ships or offshore oil platforms,” the report stated. “Similarly, offshore wind infrastructure — including turbine blades, towers, electrical platforms, and construction equipment on boats — all pose potential threats.”

The report goes into much detail, but best practices were summed up as “Avoid, Minimize, Offset and Monitor.”

Dominion states on its website that it uses the latest technologies to protect birds and other wildlife, such as time-of-year restrictions, installation of anti-perching devices and acoustic monitoring.

Typically, offshore wind production is generated by three-bladed rotors attached to a ocean-worthy structure that houses a generator insider turbines attached to elevated platforms. Cables from the generator deliver the energy to the bottom of the tower to the underwater transmission cables to onshore power stations. 

But technology has evolved considerably since the first offshore turbine was built in Denmark in 1991.

“As turbine technology continues its rapid evolution — with units now reaching 26 (megawatts) — and floating wind advances toward commercial scale, the industry finds itself at a critical juncture that will shape its trajectory for years to come,” Power magazine reported in a Feb. 9, 2026, article published online.

Global offshore wind capacity reached 83 gigawatts at the end of 2024, the article said, and it appears that the 2025 report will show it was another banner year for the industry, with new construction “positioning the sector for accelerated growth through the decade.”

Significant projects have been constructed or are planned in European and Asia-Pacific regions, the magazine said. Meanwhile, the U.S. offshore wind industry is sputtering, resulting in a severe impact to the market. The International Energy Agency, according to the article, forecasts a 60% downward revision from 2025-2030 for U.S. wind energy, equaling 57 GW of both onshore and offshore capacity “that is now unlikely to be built.”

It appears the U.S, for now, may be left in the dust.

“Offshore wind technology continues its relentless march toward larger, more powerful machines,” according to the article. “The average capacity of turbines installed offshore in 2024 reached 10 MW, according to (the Global Wind Energy Council), a figure that would have seemed implausible a decade ago. Yet, the frontier has already moved well beyond that threshold.”

Still, in the long run, the realities of market forces and the limitations of dirty or destructive energy resources can make an unlimited, clean energy such as wind an unavoidable choice. Offshore projects may be a younger industry in the U.S., but it is considered a powerful renewable resource to tap. While land-based wind projects are less costly, wind speeds are generally higher and more constant offshore, allowing turbines to generate more electricity for longer periods.

In the U.S., solar and wind have often been the most affordable energy resource, but they are also compatible grid partners, Kollins said, with wind at its peak when the sun is not.

“Generally, wind turbines have higher generation factors in the winter and in evenings, and those are two times when solar has less output,” she said, “So if you have a lot of solar on the grid, you can add a lot of wind before you really need storage.”

Once all five of the offshore projects are operating at full capacity, she said, that’s when people will see the benefits of having more electricity produced, when they need it — such as the recent weekend deep freezes along the East Coast.

“These things are going to be generating their full output all weekend when everybody’s got their heat turned on and is using max electricity load,” Kollins said, adding: “Offshore wind is highly correlated with winter storms.”

There is an increasing demand overall for electricity, Kollins noted. And construction of gas turbines and nuclear power is many years down the road.

“These electrons are needed so badly,” she said.  “We are in a period of rapid economic growth, and in order to continue fueling that growth, we need every resource available.

“And offshore wind provides one of the only ways to build a significant amount of new energy generation in the near term.”

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is accepting public comments on the 2026-27 migratory game bird hunting seasons for waterfowl, webless migratory species and extended falconry.

Comments may be submitted through the WRC’s online comment portal through 5 p.m. March 4.

The commission may choose hunting season dates within guidelines established by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service each year.

The season frameworks for waterfowl and webless migratory species, extended falconry guidelines and Canada goose and duck hunting zones are available on the commission’s comment portal.

Submitted comments will be considered along with staff-recommended season dates and bag limits before the final season dates are approved. Wildlife Resources commissioners are expected to set the dates during their April 16 business meeting.

Season dates being considered include compensatory days, or those allowed for states that do not allow migratory bird hunting on Sunday, for waterfowl and webless migratory species.

In other business, the the commission continues to track highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, in birds across North Carolina. New cases of this illness occur because of the large numbers of migratory waterfowl that congregate throughout the winter in the state, particularly in the Outer Banks, according to an agency release.

So far, suspected or confirmed cases of the bird flu have been reported in 25 of the state’s 100 counties during the 2025-26 sampling season. But the number of cases in wild birds are down compared to this time last year.

“Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza will continue to circulate through our bird populations, however, more birds are developing antibodies against the virus which creates a ‘herd immunity’ which means we will likely see fewer impacts to bird populations from the flu,” Miranda Turner, a Wildlife Resources Commission wildlife health biologist, stated in a release.

Birds most likely to be found with avian influenza include waterfowl, raptors and shorebirds. Cases can also occur in songbirds and wild mammal species.

To help prevent the spread, remove food sources that encourage birds to congregate in one location.

To report dead wild animals, especially five or more dead birds in one area within a week, contact the N.C. Wildlife Helpline at 866-318-2401 between 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Mon.-Fri. or anytime by email at HWI@ncwildlife.gov.

A beach nourishment project expected to begin this summer on Buxton’s ocean shoreline will be the topic of a public meeting scheduled for Feb. 11.

Officials with Dare County, which is hosting the meeting at 6 p.m. in Buxton, will be joined by several representatives from the National Park Service – Outer Banks Group to provide general information and answer questions from the community about the upcoming project.

The meeting will kick off with a brief discussion about the nourishment project, including its expected timeline and duration, after which time the public may ask questions.

The meeting will be held in person at the Fessenden Center, 46830 N.C. Highway 12 and will also be livestreamed on the Dare County YouTube channel.

Those who are unable to attend the meeting may submit comments or questions via email to DareCountyPR@DareNC.gov no later than Sunday.

Additional information about nourishment projects in the county is available at MoreBeachToLove.com.

Budding birders and seasoned ornithologists alike are invited to join Coastal Studies Institute educators for a guided winter birding experience at Lake Mattamuskeet.

Participants are to meet at the institute at 7 a.m. Monday. Transportation to and from Lake Mattamuskeet will be provided. The group is expected to return to the institute around noon. Registration for the program is required and can be done online. Cost to attend is $25 per person.

“This field-based program will introduce participants to the remarkable diversity of ducks, swans, geese, and other wetland birds that gather here each winter,” organizers said about Lake Mattamuskeet, calling the geographical feature “one of North Carolina’s premier waterfowl habitats and a critical stopover along the Atlantic Flyway.”

Participants are welcome and encouraged to bring personal cameras, binoculars, spotting scopes, and guidebooks. Appropriate attire for extended time outdoors is also encouraged.

“Expect plenty of time in the field with scopes and binoculars, great photo opportunities, and an engaging, place-based learning experience in one of the state’s most iconic wildlife refuges,” organizers added.

The Coastal Studies Institute on East Carolina University’s Outer Banks Campus in Wanchese is a multi-institutional research and educational partnership of the state’s university system and also includes N.C. State University, the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, UNC Wilmington, and Elizabeth City State University.

Contact John McCord at mccordr@ecu.edu or 252-475-5450 with questions.

While North Carolina residents are dealing with the inches of snowfall in the aftermath of this weekend’s winter storm, National Park Service officials on the Outer Banks are also dealing with the debris left behind by four more houses collapsing on Cape Hatteras National Seashore’s beaches.

National Park Service Public Affairs Specialist Mike Barber told Coastal Review Monday that Cape Hatteras National Seashore officials were notified that a house in Buxton collapsed earlier in the day, around 9 a.m. It was the fourth unoccupied house to collapse since Sunday morning.

The first house at 46201 Tower Circle Road collapsed early Sunday morning. Overnight, two more unoccupied houses at 46215 and 46219 Tower Circle Road fell, then the fourth house, which was at 46285 Old Lighthouse Road, Buxton. These four bring to 31 the total number of houses to collapse on the seashore’s beaches since 2020.

“Cape Hatteras National Seashore advises everyone to stay away from the collapse sites and the surrounding beach area, due to potentially hazardous debris. The beach is closed in front of the entire village of Buxton,” Barber said.

The Outer Banks, like much of the coast, continued to experience compromised roadways Monday and people were advised to stay off the roads unless necessary.

State transportation officials closed N.C. Highway 12 Saturday evening between the Basnight Bridge and Rodanthe, as well as on the north end of Ocracoke. They said Monday that the road would remain closed, “as we continue to see ocean overwash from this weekend’s nor’easter. Overwash also occurring at Buxton corner and on Rodanthe secondaries. Crews will be out working to clear today.”

N.C. 12 experienced ocean overwash and dune breaches on Pea Island Sunday morning, as well in Buxton and in Hatteras.

Additionally, all ferry routes were suspended Friday and remain suspended until conditions are deemed safe for operation, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

NCDOT crews said they were making progress Monday clearing interstates and highways, but dangerous icy spots may remain because temperatures remained low. Gov. Josh Stein’s office and transportation officials urged people to stay off snow- and ice-covered roads and warned people to beware of black ice, which forms when ice and snow melt and then refreeze overnight into hard-to-see slippery patches.

As of late Monday, there were 2,500 NCDOT employees and contractors working to plow snow and spread salt on the highways and secondary routes. Since the storm began affecting the coast Saturday, crews have spread more than 23,000 tons of salt and plowed thousands of miles of roads.

Stein said that the state was “working around the clock to clear roads and get people back to their daily lives as quickly and safely as possible, but because temperatures will remain low overnight, this process takes time. We ask for your patience, and if you need to be on the roads this week, I urge you to slow down, give extra distance, and use caution while traveling.”

His office reported that the sunshine Monday, with temperatures reaching the upper 30s to lower 40s, allowed for snow that fell over the weekend to melt. However, that water will likely refreeze after sunset Monday evening because temperatures are forecast to fall into the teens and 20s.

Temperatures will warm into the low to mid 40s Tuesday before a cold front approaches the region.

The National Weather Service said Monday that for parts of eastern North Carolina, a light wintry mix of snow and freezing rain was possible Wednesday night.

“Please continue to remain vigilant as we are still experiencing extremely cold temperatures across the state,” NC Emergency Management Director Will Ray said in a statement. “As a reminder, several hazards remain, such as the risk of freezing pipes in homes. There are many people in our communities that are especially vulnerable to prolonged cold temperatures, so please check on your friends, family, and neighbors.”

Currituck County Emergency Management, in a social media post around lunchtime Monday, said that NCDOT crews were actively out working on the primary roadways throughout the county.

“While some roads are improving, many side roads remain covered with snow and ice, and freezing temperatures are keeping conditions slick. As temperatures drop and the sun goes down tonight, please be alert for black ice: a thin, nearly invisible layer of ice that forms when moisture refreezes on road surfaces. Black ice is especially common on bridges, shaded areas, overpasses, and low-lying roads, and can cause vehicles to lose traction with little warning,” they warned. “If you must travel, slow down, increase your following distance, and use extra caution. If you can stay home, that remains the safest option.”

Carteret County sent out a similar message Monday.

“Some roadways still have several inches of snow coverage, and partially melted snow and ice are expected to refreeze overnight, creating dangerous travel conditions. Residents are urged to stay off the roads if possible. If travel is necessary, exercise extreme caution, as icy conditions may make driving at posted speeds extremely dangerous and cause vehicles to lose traction with little warning,” according to Carteret County government officials. “Secondary and less-traveled roads are more likely to remain untreated and pose additional risks. Remaining off the roads also allows first responders and emergency management staff to continue their work safely.

Largely because of travel concerns, most county government offices were closed Monday because of the weather, and several had announced plans to close Tuesday as well, including Beaufort, Carteret, Gates, Pamlico, Dare and Hyde counties.

Record snowfall in coastal counties

Assistant State Climatologist Corey Davis, in a blog on this weekend’s snow storm, called the accumulated snow that fell all across North Carolina, “our most widespread wintry event in more than a dozen years, and the biggest snow for some areas in several decades.”

For parts of eastern North Carolina, this was the snowstorm of a lifetime, he continued.

“More than a foot fell over the central Coastal Plain, surpassing every other wintry event so far this century. The 12.5 inches in New Bern and 15 inches in Newport made this the first foot of snow for both areas since December 1989. The highest totals in the state came along the Crystal Coast, including 19.5 inches in Peletier and 17 inches in Swansboro,” he wrote.

In Cape Carteret, near whiteout conditions were observed on Saturday, Davis continues, bordering on blizzard criteria. Beaufort reported three consecutive hours with visibility of a quarter-mile or less, wind gusts of 35 mph or greater, and heavy snow falling or blowing.

Northeast North Carolina from Friday to Sunday experienced between 6 and 10.5 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service Wakefield, Virginia, office, which provides the forecast for the region that includes Ahoskie, Elizabeth City and Currituck County.

Mainland Hyde County experienced a widespread swath of 8 to 12 inches, with localized snowfall totals in some townships exceeding 12 to 16 inches. For Ocracoke Island, “reliable totals” range from 4 to 6 inches, and that accumulation was coupled with “significant coastal flooding and inundation,” county officials announced Monday.

Heading south, centrally located counties including Beaufort, Carteret, Craven, Dare, Pamlico, Onslow and Tyrrell saw between 2 and 19 inches. Dare experienced the least amount with 2 to 11 inches and Carteret, Craven and Pamlico had areas getting hit with more than 18 inches, according to the Weather Service office in Newport.

“Most remarkably, along the Pamlico River in Beaufort County, this was the first foot of snow in more than 67 years, since December 1958. In that region, reported totals included 17 inches in Bath, 15 inches in Bayview, and 13 inches in Belhaven,” Davis explains in the blog.

“Along with having a strong, moisture-laden low pressure system just offshore, a key factor in ramping up the snowfall amounts was the cold air that created unusually high snow-to-liquid ratios for this part of the country. While Wilmington only measured 0.32 inches of liquid precipitation, that yielded 5.8 inches of fluffy snow – the heaviest snow there since 1989 – at an impressive 18-to-1 ratio,” Davis wrote.

In a Monday morning announcement, Holden Beach officials in Brunswick County warned residents that, although the bridge to the island had reopened, roads on the island were “treacherous.”

Holden Beach’s neighboring island to the west, Ocean Isle Beach, was covered in a whopping 15 inches of snow, according to estimated totals based on National Weather Service reports and local observations.

Farther north in Brunswick County, Leland, Bolivia and Southport all received a reported 9 inches of snow.

Brunswick County announced its offices and facilities will reopen at 10 a.m. Tuesday. The Brunswick County Commissioners meeting postponed Monday had not been rescheduled as of this report.

In New Hanover County, a reported 9 inches of snow accumulated in Carolina Beach. Wilmington saw less with a little under 6 inches of snow.

And, in Pender County, Hampstead received 10 inches of snow, while farther north, areas of Onslow County got upwards from 13 inches accumulation.

From a science perspective

Davis explained to Coastal Review that the coast was hit so hard because, “to put it simply, this was a strong nor’easter setup that happened to be cold enough for snow.”

He said that anytime the state gets these low-pressure systems right off the coast, whether they’re tropical storms or winter storms, “we know they’re capable of some major impacts. And we saw a lot of those typical impacts in this event, including the gusty winds and high surf that has already claimed a couple more houses along the Outer Banks.”

Davis compared this system and the nor’easter that moved up the coast October 2025.

The main low-pressure center started to deepen at pretty much the same location just south of Cape Fear, and the minimum pressure observed at Hatteras was nearly identical: 998.8 millibars in October, and 998.4 millibars during this storm. A millibar is a metric measurement of atmospheric pressure.

“If this had happened at any other time of year, we would have been talking about similar impacts, but with rain instead of snow. Having such cold temperatures in place so far south meant that it fell as all snow, and the snow-to-liquid ratios were off the charts compared to what we’re accustomed to. That let a lot of snow add up very quickly, and with the wind added in, that snow covered everything, and deep,” Davis continued.

When it comes to climate change and storms like these, Davis noted that a “common, or at least vocal, misconception about climate change is that it can and will make cold and snow impossible.”

He explained that while warming temperatures do make some wintry events — like the one from this previous weekend — more marginal for anything frozen, cold and snow are still a part of the winter climate, and big events like this can and do still occur.

“Of course, we’ve also seen the flip side of that, with a nearly three-year stretch with no measurable snowfall across much of the state, the average annual snowfall nearly cut in half in places like Charlotte and Raleigh, and steady warming in our wintertime low temperatures at the rate of about a degree per decade. All of those things — warming with snow events becoming rarer, along with seeing an occasional big snowfall — can still be true,” Davis explained.

“As a scientist, I think it’s important to acknowledge our certainty about climate changes and future projections. We’re very confident that the overall warming trend, especially in our nighttime low temperatures, will continue into the future, and that will continue to reduce our overall snow totals and snow event frequency. We’re less certain about how coastal winter storms like this one may change in the future,” he continued. “We often think about these climate trends as clearly pointing in one direction, but that’s really not true for projections of coastal storms like this, and there are competing forces that may affect how they evolve.”

He said that on one hand, these systems originate in tropical areas and strengthen over the warm ocean, which we know is warming at an even faster rate than the atmosphere, letting these coastal lows strengthen faster and pull in more moisture. But, on the other hand, it’s getting tougher to get temperatures cold enough over land to see all-snow events. These lows tend to bring in warm air in the mid-levels that causes precipitation to transition from snow to sleet, freezing rain, or regular rain, like we saw a couple of weekends ago.

“You might say that this storm offered up the best — or worst, depending on your perspective — of our past and future climates. We had that deep layer of cold air like we saw during our big storms back in the 1970s and 80s, but also a rapidly intensifying coastal low in a very warm and moist ocean environment that was able to drop extreme snowfall amounts,” he said. “That doesn’t mean this sort of event will get any more common in the future. It is now, and always will be, a rare collision of circumstances to bring such a major winter storm over such a large part of the state.”

Though there’s piles of snow out there, Davis said to keep in mind that, in terms of the liquid precipitation totals, most areas saw less than an inch of total liquid during this event, which he said is “a surprisingly low amount, given how much snow we received.”

That matters because it may mean the state sees less drought recovery than expected.

“Most of eastern North Carolina is still in moderate to severe drought, and even after the storm, places like Wilmington, Greenville, and Fayetteville are more than 10 inches below their normal precipitation over the past six months,” Davis said. “We may see some small improvements this week based on that precipitation, and the gradual snow melt may bring a slow recharge in streamflow and soil moisture levels over the next few weeks. But this winter is still tracking as a dry one overall, and we could use some more precipitation in any form before the end of the season to keep from entering the spring and the growing season with a bad drought still going on.”

Presented in cooperation with the Pea Island Cookhouse Museum on Roanoke Island.

Of the many documents associated with the Freedmen’s Colony on Roanoke Island, a letter signed by Richard Etheridge and eight others, and with 58 other names shown, each marked with an “X”, is particularly important.

The undated letter, received on Dec. 25, 1867, is noted by the academic and author, Patricia Click in her scholarly book about the colony, “A Time Full of Trial.”

There will be two opportunities to visit the Pea Island Cookhouse Museum Feb. 28, from 10 a.m. – noon, or 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.  During each, at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., the latest version of our short video, “A Checkered Past: The Story of Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers” will be shown. This 15-minute video, based on two events held during Black History Month in 2023, was recently revised to include additional information about our organization.  It features Pea Island Preservation Society Inc. board members, youth volunteers, and descendants of the Pea Island lifesavers who were interviewed.

For our organization, Black History Month is a reflective time, and especially to think about the Freedmen’s Colony on Roanoke Island and the U.S Life-Saving Service (and later, the early U.S. Coast Guard station) at Pea Island.  Both are important to fully understand the history of the Outer Banks.

Keeper Richard Etheridge, who grew up enslaved on Roanoke Island, is perhaps most known for his leadership and the legacy associated with the Pea Island station.  Following his death in May 1900, the station remained staffed primarily with Black surfman crews until it was deactivated in March 1947 and officially decommissioned two years later.

Etheridge’s association with two letters about the Freedmen’s Colony are not as well known.  The first is a letter he co-authored in 1865 with a fellow solider, William Benson, protesting the mistreatment of those left behind at the Freedmen’s Colony.  A framed typed version of it hangs at the Cookhouse. 

The second letter, a photo of one page included here, shows Etheridge’s signature and eight others.  This page is one of two signature pages that accompanied the undated letter.  The full letter includes the names of fifty-eight men with an “X’’ mark, a practice used to indicate a person was illiterate.

Often when the Freedmen’s Colony story is told what many focus on are the several missionary teachers who arrived from the North and the sawmill provided to build 500 small homes, each with a small portion of land to raise crops.   Also frequently mentioned are the churches and schools freedmen also helped to build to have their own places to worship and be educated. 

This undated letter reminds us of another important, yet unfortunately often overlooked part of the story – that in the end thousands who came to the Roanoke Island colony and other Freedmen’s Bureau locations established during the Civil War were ordered to leave – sometimes forcefully, and sometimes cruelly and even brutally.  

On Feb. 28, during the morning and afternoon, the Cookhouse Museum will be open to visitors. This year Cathy Steever a researcher and friend to our organization will join us. Cathy has been uncovering the remarkable story of the Freedmen’s Colony on Roanoke Island for several years. She is especially drawn to the colony’s everyday realities — work, schooling, housing, faith resilience and hard choices families faced during and after the war. Lately, she and I have been collaborating on research findings, especially the stories that best reflect the challenges and difficulties those who lived on the Freedmen’s Colony faced, and lesser known stories.

The complete undated letter will be read and interpreted on Feb. 28. The noted letter portrays what life was like for the freedmen and their objections to being forced to leave. 

Those who had hoped to see the “First Light of Freedom” as the memorial at the Fort Raleigh site reads, pleads for a short extension of time to stay and for leniency “having been thrown out without shelter” as the noted letter received on Christmas Day in 1867 reveals.

Given the small size of the Cookhouse, those interested in visiting are requested to RSVP indicating if the morning or the afternoon session is preferred.  Those who have a special connection or interest in this history are especially encouraged to come.  Those who plan to visit are also requested to RSVP us at: friends@peaislandpreservationsociety.com. Given the small size of the Cookhouse, RSVP’s are requested soon so we can plan accordingly.

‘Cookhouse Chats’

As director of outreach and education, I am also pleased to announce this special opening on Feb. 28 is also the start of PIPSI’s latest initiative, “Cookhouse Chats”.  These selected chats will focus on less known or newly discovered stories as well as potential future collaborations with interested parties.  

The next planned chat, one about research findings pertaining to “checkerboard crews,” or mixed-race crews, will be announced in the spring. 

Presently, by email request the Cookhouse is “open by appointment only” preferably for group visits and special events.

A critically endangered North Atlantic right whale that a team of responders attempted to disentangle from fishing gear nearly two months ago was found dead earlier this week off the North Carolina coast.

The 4-year-old male, identified as “Division,” died from injuries caused by being entangled.

An aerial survey team on Tuesday spotted what was left of Division’s carcass floating about 25 miles offshore of Avon, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

On Dec. 4, 2025, responders from NOAA Fisheries, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission took to the sea to join forces with a Georgia-based aerial survey team from Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute in an effort to document Division’s entanglement and monitor his behavior.

At that time, Division was off Georgia’s coast near St. Simons Island.

An aerial survey team from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission later relieved the first aircraft. Aerial and on-water teams consulted partners at the Center for Coastal Studies to plan the response operations.

The on-water response teams were able to successfully cut a line passing over the left side of Division’s head and blowholes, according to NOAA. The line was cutting into and trailing from the whale’s left flipper.

Responders were also able to shorten a line exiting the right side of the whale’s mouth and reattach a telemetry buoy to the remaining entangling gear.

Unsafe weather in the days after response teams made initial contact with Division thwarted them from being able to attempt to remove the remaining gear.

They were able to track Division’s trek north into waters off of New England, then back south. During that time, aerial teams observed the whale in declining health, his injuries worsening from his entanglement.

Weather conditions and the whale’s distance from shore prevented teams from conducting further disentanglement efforts.

“Recently, the satellite track began showing a movement pattern more consistent with drifting than active travel,” NOAA wrote in an update Friday. “Although this is not the result we wanted, our dedicated partners made every possible effort to save this whale.”

There are only around an estimated 380 North Atlantic right whales, including 70 breeding females, in existence.

The leading causes of death to these whales are vessel strikes and entanglement in fishing gear.

According to Oceana, roughly 1 million fishing lines sprawl across the whales’ migration routes and feeding areas off the Atlantic coasts of Canada and the United States.

“Fishing gear from these two countries entangles an estimated 100 right whales each year, with about 86% of all right whales having been entangled at least once,” the organization said.

In a statement Friday, Nora Ives, a marine scientist for Oceana in the United States, blamed the government for Division’s death.

“Humans have caused preventable pain and suffering for these critically endangered animals for long enough,” Ives said in a release. “What will it take for our elected officials to finally implement solutions like on-demand fishing gear and slowing vessels down to prevent further tragedies like this one? Continuing to ignore this issue will guarantee more right whale deaths. We need urgent action now. Oceana challenges policymakers to right this wrong, stand up for marine life and for the health of our oceans by adequately funding and staffing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), advancing stronger protections for right whales, and supporting bedrock laws like the Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act before another whale washes up on our coastlines.”

Popular sites and attractions along the North Carolina coast are closing Friday in anticipation of a winter storm expected to bring this weekend snow, blustery winds, dangerously cold temperatures and some coastal flooding.

The National Parks Service announced Friday morning that it is closing all of its visitor facilities at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site and Wright Brothers National Memorial through at least Monday morning.

Oregon Inlet and Ocracoke campgrounds were to close at noon Friday.

Portions of the beach in Rodanthe and Buxton already have been closed because the presence of threatened oceanfront structures.

In Rodanthe, the beachfront is closed from East Point Drive south to Surfside Drive. Buxton’s ocean shore is closed from the north end to near off-road vehicle ramp 43.

The North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort, which has been closed since November 2024 for renovations, has rescheduled its reopening from Saturday to Feb. 21 because of this weekend’s forecast, officials announced this week.

The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher in New Hanover County will close to the public Saturday and Sunday. Updates, including plans for Monday, will be provided on the aquarium’s media pages on Facebook, Instagram and Threads.

Powerful winds, sound-side flooding, and the potential for as much as 1 to 1.5 feet of snow is expected to impact areas along the coast begging late Friday into Saturday. Residents are being urged to make preparations for the storm by Friday evening.

The combination of snow, cold and wind are expected to create life-threatening conditions.

The National Parks Service will provide operational updates its Outer Banks Group’s severe weather webpage and social media accounts.

The National Park Service has approved a project to stabilize about a mile of rapidly eroding shoreline at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site.

The 513-acre site located on the northern end of Roanoke Island in the Albemarle Sound was established in 1941 to preserve where Sir Walter Raleigh established colonial settlements between 1581 and 1591.

National Park Service leadership signed on Jan. 14 a finding of no significant impact to install a combination of rock revetment and rock berm to sections of the shoreline. A finding of no significant impact confirms that a proposed action won’t significantly affect the environment.

When the National Park Service announced the project’s approval Jan. 15, officials also released the mandatory floodplain statement of findings, which explains why the project must take place in a floodplain, along with any associated risk, and flood mitigation strategies.

The announcement opened up a two-week comment period that ends Friday on the findings. Instructions on how to comment are on National Park Service’s website.

The floodplain statement of findings concludes that the proposed rock revetment and berm to prevent ongoing and future shoreline erosion at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site “is necessary and consistent” with federal rules on activities in floodplains.

On the same day, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Coastal Management announced and opened up a public comment period for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-requested federal consistency determination for the proposed rock berm and revetment combination project.

The determination is to “ensure compliance” with the Coastal Zone Management Act, a national policy for managing coastal resources.

“Specifically, the National Park Service proposes installing rock berms and rock revetments along approximately 1,100 linear feet of shoreline on the western end of Roanoke Island to reduce erosion, protect infrastructure, and enhance long-term shoreline stability,” per the state. “The State’s review of the submitted federal consistency determination request will determine if the proposed project in Dare County is consistent with the enforceable policies of North Carolina’s Coastal Management Program.”

To read the shoreline stabilization federal consistency determination request and comment, visit NCDEQ’s website.

Since becoming a national historic site, erosion along the property’s shoreline has been a management challenge. The shoreline is estimated to have eroded a quarter-mile or more since the late 16th century, according to the National Park Service.

Previous efforts have been made to slow shoreline loss but erosion has continued at an estimated 1 to 5 feet per year, impacting both cultural and natural resources at the site as well as the adjacent, privately owned Elizabethan Gardens, documents explain.

Michael Flynn is the physical scientist and certified floodplain manager for the Outer Banks Group of National Parks, which consists of Fort Raleigh, Cape Hatteras National Seashore and Wright Brothers National Memorial.

Flynn told Coastal Review that wind, wave action and currents have eroded the shoreline over time and threaten facilities, infrastructure and cultural resources such as the Waterside Theater, where the “Lost Colony” out door drama is performed every summer, and a family cemetery on the property.

“This has caused loss of archeological resources and upland forested areas,” Flynn said. “In the 1980s, the park installed stabilization measures including rock berm and rock revetment. Erosion is especially prevalent at the edges of these stabilization measures in an effect known as flanking.”

In recent years, park staff have been developing the stabilization and erosion control plan approved earlier this month and the associated environmental assessment, which identifies any potential effects of the proposed project.

The plan and environmental assessment released in July 2025 detailed three possible projects: a rock revetment, a rock berm or a combination of the two. The environmental assessment that was out for public review July 21, 2025, to Aug. 20, 2025, identified as the preferred action the combination of the two.

“After evaluating the potential impacts of three action alternatives, NPS selected the preferred alternative: a combination of rock revetment and rock berm in areas of the shoreline that are the best fit due to existing topography, land use and constructability,” according to the press release.

Flynn said the combination was chosen because of the variable topography along the shoreline. The approach also offers flexibility for engineered designs for different environmental conditions.

For example, the rock revetment alternative will be placed in locations where existing steep and high embankments range from 5 to 15 feet or higher, he said.

“For areas with rock revetment, the application of appropriately sized rock will prevent the bluff from sloughing. The rock berm alternative will be placed in areas with no or minimal embankment heights. For areas with rock berm, the application of appropriately sized rock will protect the low-elevation sand beach areas from erosion caused by wave action,” he explained.

Flynn said that the environmental assessment for the proposed project was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act, NEPA, and Department of Interior NEPA regulations.

Because the National Park Service issuing earlier this month the finding of no significant impact, often referred to as a FONSI, officials determined that the preferred alternative identified in the environmental assessment, or EA, will not have a significant effect on the human environment. If the environmental assessment does not support a finding of no significant impact, then the park service must prepare an environmental impact statement and issue a Record of Decision before taking action on the proposed activity.

“In short, Fort Raleigh may now proceed with implementing the preferred alternative described within the EA. The park will stabilize the shoreline for erosion control once NPS officials finalize the accompanying Floodplain Statement of Findings,” Flynn said.

The floodplain statement of findings is necessary because of two executive orders that require the National Park Service to evaluate the likely impacts of actions in floodplains.

It is park service policy to preserve floodplain functions and values, minimize potentially hazardous conditions associated with flooding, including threats to human health and safety, risks to National Park Service capital investment, and impacts on natural and beneficial floodplain values, he said.

That means a floodplain statement of findings “is prepared when a proposed action is found to be in, or affecting a floodplain, and relocating the action to a non-floodplain site is considered not to be a viable alternative. This is the case with implementing shoreline stabilization measures for erosion control,” Flynn continued.

Flynn noted that the floodplain findings factor in climate change effects. When data are available, the climate-informed science approach detailed in one of the executive orders is the preferred way to develop the floodplain statement of findings.

The climate-informed science approach incorporates the use of best-available data on water movement and methods that integrate current and future changes in flooding due to the increasing severity and frequency of precipitation, sea level rise, tidal cycles, land use change, yielding the most accurate elevation and flood hazard area, Flynn said.

Once the public review and comment period closes Friday, park staff are to revise the document accordingly and send it to the National Park Service’s Water Resources Division for review and signature. After that, the plan goes to the regional office for review, signature and approval to move forward, he explained.

Love horses? The N.C. Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve has an offer for you!

Applications are now being accepted for the Pony Patrol, a volunteer-driven program that helps raise community awareness, protect wild horses and promote compliance with wild horse guidelines at the Rachel Carson Reserve and Shackleford Banks in Carteret County.

Candidates who are selected will receive training in visitor communication, the importance of allowing wild horses to remain wild, and skills required to protect the safety of visitors and horses.

Volunteers serve three- to four-hour shifts patrolling and talking with visitors about ways to respectfully experience the wild horses and their natural behaviors. Volunteers are expected to serve a minimum of three times a month.

Last year’s volunteers conducted 260 patrols and engaged with about 3,900 visitors at both the Rachel Carson Reserve and Shackleford Banks, according to the N.C. Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve, which partners with Cape Lookout National Seashore and the Foundation for Shackelford Horses Inc. to offer the program.

Applicants must be at least 18, a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, and physically able to walk through sandy terrain in conditions to include intense sun, heat, humidity, wind and insects.

Applicants who want to volunteer for Rachel Carson Reserve and Shackleford Banks must apply to both locations.

Positions are limited and therefore competitive.

The online application will close at 11:59 p.m. Feb. 23. Candidates who are selected will be contacted for interviews in late February or early March.

Note: The Feb. 7 event described below has been rescheduled for Feb. 21 because of weather-related issues.

Those who know me best often hear me say I wear two hats. One is to help raise awareness of the story of Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers. The other is to raise awareness of my father and his family who have deep ties to Roanoke Island and a remarkable record military service.

I am thrilled to speak of both on Feb. 7 and to help celebrate a momentous occasion, the fifth anniversary of The Water’s Edge museum.

The accompanying mini-exhibit will be the first outside exhibit there.

An invitation to speak at this event is something I would have never imagined when I first visited Oxford, Maryland, on March 29, 2025. The Water’s Edge had opened just a few years earlier and was new to me. I had never heard of or seen it before.

My niece, a frequent visitor to the Eastern Shore and an avid reader, happened to come across an article about the museum during a stay nearby. During a trip I made to Maryland last year, she urged me to visit the Oxford museum with her and her mother, my sister. Little did I know then what would lie ahead. I still feel the joy I experienced walking in The Water’s Edge for the first time.

I was immediately reminded of the Pea Island Cookhouse Museum on Roanoke Island. Many know me for my connection to this museum. I have helped manage, operate and raise awareness of this museum’s history for several years. Simply known as “the Cookhouse” this museum is a small structure built in the 1930s at the Pea Island station where surfmen cooked and ate their meals.

This historic station was the only U.S. Life-Saving Service (USLSS) station in the country with an African American commander and an all-Black crew. My great-great-uncle served under Keeper Etheridge, as did my great-grandfather. My great-uncle, father and other relatives also served at the Pea Island station. The station was staffed primarily with Black commanders and surfmen crews from January 1880, when Etheridge took command, until March 1947, when my father, Herbert M. Collins, the last surfman left in charge, closed its doors for the last time.

The USLSS station at Pea Island is most known for the Oct.11, 1896, rescue of an all-white contingent on board the shipwrecked E.S. Newman during a fierce hurricane and in the middle of the night. Etheridge and his crew were posthumously awarded the prestigious U.S. Coast Guard Gold Lifesaving Medal for this daring and heroic act in March 1996, some 100 years later.

Another captivating fact is that before becoming a surfman and commanding the Pea Island station, Etheridge grew up enslaved. He had also served with the 36th Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops during the Civil War, enlisting with other men on Roanoke Island to join the fight for freedom. By the time the war ended he had earned the rank of sergeant.

As a visual learner, when I first entered The Water’s Edge I was immediately moved. The colorful images on the walls, particularly the portraits and scenes of daily life in Oxford made me think of my father, grandparents, great-grandparents. The scenes reminded me of my father growing up on Roanoke Island during a time when church, community gatherings, and services were so important to the small community in which he lived.

I imagined him as a young child sitting in the church with his parents, grandparents, cousins, and friends. I imagined a community gathering with food, music, dancing and well wishes as he and his twin brother left Roanoke Island together at just 17 years old, and at their father’s urging, to join the Coast Guard. I imagined the smiles and the sorrow, particularly my grandmother’s likely tears as she watched them leave knowing there was little opportunity for them to succeed if they stayed.

When I returned to my home on Roanoke Island, I quickly sent The Water’s Edge more information, including a video. I also invited members of their staff to come to Roanoke Island to learn more. That resulted in staff members visiting the Cookhouse and staying at my home this past summer.

My talk will include showing the short video, “A Checkered Past: The Story of Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers.” There will also be other images including three, 4-foot-square oil paintings associated with my father’s career, part of my family’s collection, on display for the first time. The artwork is part of an ongoing family creative effort to preserve my father’s life story, and in a creative way, a project we began after his death in March 2010.

I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity on Feb. 7 to wear my “two hats,” one to tell the story of the historic Pea Island station and the other, the story of my father and his family. As a kid, my father and superhero grew up longing to wear a surfman’s uniform.

The picture on the event flyer was commissioned by the late portrait artist John de la Vega. It is based on a photograph of my father shortly after he first reported to Pea Island and as he told me, before his uniform arrived. Thankfully that uniform did arrive, which I am sure put a big smile on his face. He often recalled growing up as a kid longing to wear a Coast Guard uniform one day.

In March 1947, he left Pea Island proudly wearing that uniform. He would serve for 34 years, the longest of anyone in his family.

Why do sheepshead have a mouthful of human-like teeth? Fisheries ecologist Dr. Jim Morley will explain that and more during this month’s “Science on the Sound” Lecture Series.

Morley, an assistant professor in the biology department at East Carolina University, will present, “Investigating the Life History of Sheepshead, North Carolina’s Toothiest Fish,” starting at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15, at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus in Wanchese.

The public is encouraged to attend the program being offered at no charge. The talk will be livestreamed on the CSI YouTube Channel and archived for later viewing.

Though sheepshead are a popular species among anglers throughout the state, their life history is one of the most poorly understood, according to the university. “Recently, researchers have uncovered important aspects of sheepshead biology relating to reproduction, movement patterns, and habitat use. However, as with all good science, new questions emerge.”

Morley has been investigating the life history of marine and estuarine species in North Carolina for more than 20 years. He is interested in how human-caused disturbances and climate change interact with the life cycles of aquatic species.

Science on the Sound is a monthly, in-person lecture series with the Coastal Studies Institute that brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in northeastern North Carolina.

North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division has scheduled four career events along the coast to recruit temporary and seasonal employees to staff its ferries, terminals and shipyard.

Officials said that the seasonal employees are a key part of the ferry system’s service, and they are often the first considered for permanent roles.

“In fact, a majority of last year’s temporary hires transitioned into permanent roles,” Ferry Division Director Jed Dixon said in a statement.

The career events are all from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on the following dates:

• Jan. 14 at NC Works Career Center, 3813 Arendell St., Morehead City.
• Jan. 21 at Hatteras Ferry Operations Center, 59063 N.C. 12, Hatteras.
• Jan. 28 at Southport Ferry Operations Center, 1650 Ferry Road, Southport.
• Feb. 4 at Pamlico River Ferry Operations Center, 229 N.C. 306 North, Bath.

At the events, applications will be accepted for temporary, seasonal employment at all experience levels, from general utility worker to experienced boat captains.

Those looking for permanent employment can learn more about open positions and how to obtain a Transportation Worker Identification Card or a Merchant Mariner Credential for the application process. 

Benefits of year-round, full-time permanent employment with the division include competitive salaries, health insurance, retirement benefits, and paid vacation, holiday and sick leave.

For a list of the Ferry Division’s current job openings, visit the state jobs website​ to create a profile and apply for permanent positions. For more information, call 252-370-5573.

Coastal oceanographer Dr. Reide Corbett will speak later this week on how the Outer Banks are changing during the first OBX Green Drinks of the year.

He is to give his talk, “Science, Shorelines, and Tradeoffs: Understanding What’s Happening Along the Outer Banks Coast,” at 6 p.m. Thursday at Waverider’s in Nags Head. The program is offered at no charge, food and drinks are available for purchase.

Corbett is the executive director of the Coastal Studies Institute and dean of Integrated Coastal Programs, both at East Carolina University Outer Banks campus in Wanchese, and professor in the Department of Coastal Studies at East Carolina University.

Corbett will explain what the science is showing about shoreline change, coastal dynamics, and the tradeoffs that come with decisions about managing and protecting the coast.

OBX Green Drinks is a monthly speaker series held October through March at Waverider’s in Nags Head. Organized by the North Carolina Coastal Federation, which publishes Coastal Review, the program brings together the Outer Banks community for an evening of networking, presentations on local environmental topics, and enjoying good food and drink.

Performances by a newly formed youth choir made possible, in part, with funding from a Dare County-based public charity, have been lined up well into the New Year.

The Outer Banks Youth Choir will perform at the 10:30 a.m. worship services at St. Andrew’s By-the-Sea Episcopal Church on Feb. 22, March 22, and May 10.

The choir, which continues to accept new members ages 9-19, is also scheduled to hold a spring concert on June 7.

The youth choir, which received a grant from the Outer Banks Community Foundation, or OBCF, performed its inaugural Yuletide Concert on Dec. 14 at the church and led by Dare County Schools music teacher John Buford.

In 2023, St. Andrew’s Rector Nathan Finnin approached Buford about directing a youth choir at the church. But the idea was put on hold while Buford battled cancer, according to a foundation release.

Upon his recovery, Buford revisited the idea, this time proposing that the choir be opened to children across the Outer Banks, “fulfilling his goal of leading a group that included all of the ages that he loves to teach,” the release states.

“There’s something about a child’s voice that’s so pure and beautiful, so when you combine it with the older voices, it sounds really good and it works wonderfully,” Buford stated in the release.

“Being able to partner with OBCF not only showcases the good work they do, but it gives us a wider audience because now, people who are plugged into the work of the Outer Banks Community Foundation, are able to learn about us,” Finnin stated in the release. “It’s really a mutually beneficial relationship.”

The choir practices once a week at the church and provides worship music during Sunday services once a month. Additional information, including how to join the choir, is available at https://sites.google.com/view/outerbanksyouthchoir/home. 

Grants from the foundation help fund local needs in Dare County as well as across all Outer Banks communities, from Corolla to Ocracoke Island.

OBCF encourages nonprofits to visit the foundation’s website for guidelines, eligibility criteria, and the application portal. Staff may be contacted at 252-423-3003.

The foundation’s next grant application is for Community Enrichment Grants. The application deadline is Jan. 30.

Early submissions are encouraged to allow time for review and feedback.

The Sarah Owens Welcome Center/Rest Area on U.S. 64 on Roanoke Island will be temporarily closed for a renovation project beginning Dec. 31.

Renovations will include an upgrade and installation of electrical, HVAC and plumbing systems, and general construction and landscaping in and around the building, according to a N.C. Department of Transportation release.

A.R. Chesson Company of Elizabeth City was awarded a $1.4 million contract for the project, which is expected to be complete by mid-May.

Alternate state-owned welcome centers and rest stops in the region include the Aycock Brown Welcome Center on U.S. 158 in Kitty Hawk, and the Tyrrell County Welcome Center on U.S. 64 in Columbia.

BUXTON – Faced with devastating destruction across a significant segment of its beachfront, this small Outer Banks village is seeking help for coastal solutions, including measures that could require potentially controversial legislative action by the state and federal governments.

Since September, 15 houses have collapsed on a stretch of beach in Buxton just north of Cape Hatteras, the distinctive point of land midway along the East Coast that juts far into the Atlantic. Adaptation to storms and natural forces have fortified the community since its establishment in the late 1800s, but now stunningly rapid erosion is endangering its future.

“Today, small areas of our oceanfront have deteriorated to the point where we can no longer shoulder these challenges alone,” Dare County Board of Commissioners Chairman Bob Woodard wrote to members of the North Carolina General Assembly in November. “With your support, we can preserve our coastline, protect public infrastructure, and sustain the economic engine that benefits all of North Carolina.”

The county is one of the few “donor counties” in North Carolina, with more than 3 million people annually visiting Dare’s beaches and national parks and generating significant state tax revenue, he said. So far, he added, the county has spent about $275 million for beach nourishment as well as additional millions to maintain inlets, with little state or federal assistance.

In addition to a beach nourishment project in 2026 for Buxton, the county is planning to repair a purportedly half-intact groin, one of three installed in 1969 to protect the former Navy base constructed in 1956 near the original location of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.

Dare and Hyde counties also have asked the state Division of Coastal Management to lift the 1985 state ban against hardened structures so the remnants of the two deteriorated groins at the site can be replaced.

But beach stabilization of any sort on the Outer Banks, with its extraordinarily high-energy coastal conditions, is becoming more challenging in a changing climate with quickly evolving and often unpredictable consequences: Sea levels are increasing faster than projected, storms are intensifying, rainfall is heavier.

In recent years, Hatteras and Ocracoke islands on the barrier islands’ southern end have been suffering dramatically increased shoaling in its inlets and far worse erosion at numerous hot spots along N.C. 12, the island’s only highway. Over wash, loss of dunes and road damage is becoming more frequent and difficult to mitigate, sometimes resulting in loss of vehicular access for hours or days. 

People say things feel different. Residents — from old timers to long-time transplants — have noticed places flooding where they never did before, shoaling in waterways that had never clogged before, and erosion consuming an entire shoreline that had been wide and stable just a few years before. And this fall and winter, even seasonal nor’easters have switched to overdrive, with the storms coming in one after another and more often than some ole salts say they’ve ever seen. 

“When we really developed these islands in the ’70s and ’80s, it was a different system, and we need to recognize that, acknowledge it, and plan accordingly,” Reide Corbett, executive director of the Coastal Studies Institute and Dean of the Integrated Coastal Program at East Carolina University, said in a recent interview. “We can’t let self-interest lead the way. We need to understand what this looks like, and we need to get behind better policy. And it starts with how we develop.”

Responding to increasing numbers of house collapses in Buxton and Rodanthe, the Hatteras Island’s northernmost village, state leaders are urging Congress to pass legislation introduced by Rep. Greg Murphy, a Republican from North Carolina’s 3rd District, that would authorize proactive Federal Emergency Management Agency flood insurance payments to remove threatened oceanfront houses before they fall.

While the proposal has garnered bipartisan support, FEMA is currently understaffed and targeted for downsizing, reorganization or even elimination, and its flood insurance program is woefully underfunded.

A delegation representing local, state and federal officials toured the damaged area in Buxton on Nov. 24, where dozens of additional oceanfront houses are scattered willy-nilly, awaiting near-certain demise. Numerous members of the group expressed shock at the disarray and destruction at the scene.

Meanwhile, North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Reid Wilson has directed the Coastal Resources Commission’s Science Panel to analyze shoreline stabilization options, including the potential effectiveness or negative impacts of groins.

Erosion on Buxton’s oceanfront has been a persistent problem for many decades, at least to the infrastructure on the beach, such as the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.

“It was quite obvious to everybody that in the course of time the lighthouse would topple into the Atlantic Ocean and the thousand acres of park land, upon which no tree and scarcely any blade of grass grew, would be swallowed up by the warring ocean currents that swirl around the point of Cape Hatteras,” author Ben Dixon MacNeill wrote in an article published on July 30, 1948, in the Coastland Times. At that point, he noted, in just the lifetime of a middle-aged man, erosion had already whittled away 1,500 feet of beach. 

Despite the 1937 congressional directive to the National Park Service to preserve what would later become Cape Hatteras National Seashore as a “primitive wilderness,” until the early 1970s, according to park documents, the agency spent more than $20 million to stop the “natural process” of barrier island movement. Projects included installing in 1930 steel sheet pile groins along the beach by Cape Hatteras Lighthouse; installing in 1933 additional sheet pile groins at the lighthouse; nourishment of the beach in 1966 near the Buxton motel area with sand dredged from Pamlico Sound; and in 1967 placement of revetment of large nylon sandbags in front of the lighthouse.

In addition, the U.S. Navy built three reinforced concrete groins in 1969 to protect its facility near the lighthouse; the beach near the Buxton motels was nourished again in 1971 with material dredged from Cape Point; and the beach near the Navy operation was nourished in 1973 with Cape Point sand. 

Those actions were in addition to construction and repeated reconstruction of sand dunes, as well as beach fences and planting grasses, shrubs and trees to hold the dunes. 

Finally, in 1973, the National Park Service acknowledged the futility and unsustainable costs of stabilization, and abandoned its efforts. The agency, however, did continue various attempts to protect the lighthouse with riprap, offshore artificial grass, sandbags and a scour-mat apron. With the sea by then lapping at its base, the lighthouse in 1999 was relocated a half-mile inland.

In a letter dated Jan. 9, 1974, from the U.S. Department of Interior to a Buxton resident, the agency promised that all available data would be analyzed before determining future beach stabilization management decisions in the Seashore, including relative to the groins.

“The most reliable scientific data we have obtained thus far offer no evidence that the existing jetties or groins at Buxton provide acceptable protection from ocean forces,” the department added. “While some stabilizing effect may be gained in the immediate area, the jetties actually cause more erosion in adjacent locations.”

A report the year earlier published by University of Virginia coastal scientist Robert Dolan, et. al, to analyze the effects of beach nourishment in Buxton, in fact, said that the groins — short jetties extending from a shoreline — rapidly increased erosion by the motel area, causing dune destruction and ocean over wash into private property.

“The groins, somewhat unexpectedly, are trapping sediment at the expense of the beaches to either side and as a result of their success, the reach protected by the groins has become stable,” the report said, adding that the localized erosion problem at Buxton had followed construction of the groins.

Barely more than four years after they were built, the groins were damaged by storms and required repairs with new sheet piling. Patches and reinforcements continued until the Navy in 1982 abandoned the base, apparently leaving the groins to the elements.

By the time heated discussions kicked in about whether the lighthouse should be saved in place or moved, the community tried to persuade the federal government to not only maintain the by-then-deteriorating existing groins, but also to add a fourth groin. The petition was soundly rejected, and the Navy, the Park Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers appeared to want nothing to do with the groins.

Today, the county sees the sand trapping barriers — even a single groin — as a way to prolong the effectiveness of a $50 million beach nourishment project, and importantly, as a way to buy time while consultants determine a long-term strategy for Buxton.

Dare County Manager Bobby Outten reported in March that, according to Coastal Science & Engineering, the firm hired to do the beach nourishment and groin work, the southern-most groin would meet the state’s 50% rule that allows repair of an existing structure that has 50% or less in damages. The county is currently awaiting approval from the state, as well as acknowledgement that the application meets the exemption criteria for an exemption from the hardened structures statute, he said.

If the groin work is approved, contractors estimate the $2 to $4 million project would take up to two months to complete this summer and involve about 640 feet of repairs, using steel sheet pile and riprap scour protection within the original footprint.

As Outten summed up the current dilemma facing Dare and other North Carolina coastal communities: There are two extremes, either hold the coast in place as it is, and build sea walls. Or let nature take its course, let the houses fall and see the economy crumble.

“And neither one of those extremes is acceptable,” he told Coastal Review. “To anybody.”

The national memorial on the Outer Banks that honors the accomplishments of Wilbur and Orville Wright is celebrating Dec. 17 the 122nd anniversary of the brothers’ first heavier-than-air, controlled, powered flight.

Starting at 8:30 a.m. at the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, the National Park Service will be joined for the celebration by Dare County Schools, and the nonprofit organizations, the First Flight Society and Outer Banks Forever. The First Flight Society promotes awareness of the history and future of flight. Outer Banks Forever is the official nonprofit partner of the Wright Brothers site, as well as the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site.

Park entrance fees are waived for the day.

As part of this year’s program, the First Flight Society will induct at 9 a.m. William P. Lear (1902-1978) into its Paul E. Garber Shrine, a portrait gallery located inside the memorial’s visitor center that honors those who have achieved significant firsts in aviation. Lear was an American inventor and businessman, best known for founding Lear Jet Industries. His portrait will be installed inside the gallery at 11 a.m.

The First Flight Society established the shrine in 1966 and named it after the curator and historian at the Smithsonian Institution who played a key role in the 1946 National Air Museum.

An introduction Wright Flight Academy is at 9:10 a.m. The two-year program began in 2023 as part of Dare County School’s Aviation Program, which offers juniors and seniors an opportunity to learn about aviation, science, and engineering while building a workable airplane on the memorial’s grounds.

At 10 a.m. as part of the celebration, students plan to unveil their completed airplane built during the academy. The build is the second airplane ever constructed on the historic site, “following in the footsteps of the Wright brothers’ and carrying their legacy into a modern classroom,” organizers said.

“The project underscores how Career and Technical Education, strengthened by community partnerships, can inspire the next generation of aviators and engineers. In a true full-circle moment, students are carrying forward the same spirit of innovation that launched the world’s first flight on the very ground where aviation history began,” organizers continued.

Throughout the day there will be demonstrations with the replica 1903 Wright Flyer, and the Wright Brothers Monument will be open for visitors to view the lower atrium, weather dependent. Ranger-led educational programs outside of the visitor center are scheduled for 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.

The First Flight Society‘s annual luncheon that commemorates the flight anniversary will be from 12:30 to 3 p.m. that afternoon at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head. The organization invited to speak from the Lear world, Bill Lear’s daughter, Shanda Lear-Baylor, and Jeff Coggins, chief pilot and assistant director of operations for the Phoenix Air Group. Lunch will be served and there will be a silent auction. Tickets are $60 each before Dec. 10 or $75 after, and available on the website.

Four critically endangered North Atlantic right whales were spotted last month off the coast of Ocracoke.

The aerial sighting triggered what is known as a dynamic management area in the vicinity where the whales were spotted Nov. 18 during an aerial survey. Dynamic management areas are voluntary and used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, to notify vessel operators to slow down to avoid right whales.

“Maintaining speeds of 10 knots or less can help protect right whales from vessel collisions,” according to NOAA’s website.

Vessel strikes and entanglements in fishing gear remain the leading causes of death and serious injury to North Atlantic right whales, of which there are fewer than 400.

The 2024 population is estimated at 384 individual whales, a slight, 2.1% increase over the 2023 estimate, according to numbers released in October by the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium.

And while the latest estimate shows a continued slow, upward trend in growth over the last four years, marine scientists caution that strong protective measures are crucial to the recovery of the species.

“The North Atlantic right whale is in such peril that even a single human-caused death threatens the recovery of the species and its chances at avoiding extension,” Michelle Bivins, Oceana Carolinas Field Campaigns representative, said in an interview on Thursday.

Right whales migrate seasonally, spending their spring and summers in waters off New England and farther north into Canadian waters, to feed and mate.

In the fall, the whales travel south, sometimes more than 1,000 miles, to their calving grounds off shore from the Carolinas to northeastern Florida.

In 2008, NOAA created a speed rule limiting vessels 65 feet or longer to travel no more than 10 knots in seasonal, mandatory and voluntary slow zones.

“I think it’s important though to emphasize that history does show boats smaller than 65 feet can also harm and kill North Atlantic right whales,” Bivins said. “In February 2021, a calf died from propeller wounds, broken ribs, and a fractured skill from a collision with a 54-foot recreational fishing vessel that was not subject to the speed requirement.”

That calf was found off the Florida coast.

In March 2024, a dead calf washed ashore on Georgia’s coast with fatal injuries caused by a boat estimated to be between 35 feet and 57 feet in length, Bivins said.

Earlier this year, NOAA announced its withdrawal of a proposed speed limits for vessels under 65 feet in length through designated North Atlantic right whale seasonal management areas in the northeast, mid-Atlantic, and southeast. The agency “encourages” smaller vessels to 10 knots or less.

In the meantime, scientists are calling for additional measures to aid in the right whale population’s recovery, including the use of ropeless or on-demand fishing gear for crab fishing to reduce whale entanglements.

Coastal Resources Commission members will hear from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Reid Wilson before settling in for the two-day regular business meeting this month, when they will be updated on the latest rules review objection to designating Jockey’s Ridge as an area of environmental concern.

The meeting is set to start at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 19, when Wilson is on the agenda to speak. The meeting will resume at 9 a.m. Nov. 20, ahead of the public input and comment period scheduled for 9:05 a.m. At the chair’s discretion, comments may be limited to three minutes per person. The public may attend the commission meeting in person or join online.

Jockey’s Ridge, the centerpiece of Jockey’s Ridge State Park, is located in Dare County and is home to the tallest living sand dune system on the East Coast, according to North Carolina State Parks.

Development in and around the state park boundaries has been regulated by Coastal Resources Commission rules since the designation of Jockey’s Ridge as a Unique Geologic Feature Area of Environmental Concern in 1984, according to state documents.

During the periodic rules review process in October 2023, the rules designating Jockey’s Ridge as an Area of Environmental Concern, or AEC, and establishing use standards were returned to the agency by the Rules Review Commission and removed from the North Carolina Administrative Code.

In response, the Coastal Resource Commission adopted emergency and temporary rules that went into effect Jan. 3, 2024, to reestablish the AEC and use standards. The rules expired May 13, 2024, when the Rules Review Commission objected to the temporary rule.

The commission moved forward with permanent rulemaking on April 25, 2024, and adopted the permanent rule on Nov. 14, 2024. The Rules Review Commission on Dec. 19, 2024, objected to the rule “on the basis of failure to comply with the public noticing provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act” and staff have taken the necessary steps to be in compliance and satisfy this objection, according to meeting documents.

The Coastal Resources Commission on Aug. 27 of this year adopted permanent rules designating Jockey’s Ridge as an AEC with use standards that are “nearly identical to the original 1984 standards,” document state.

The Rules Review Commission objected On Oct. 30 to paragraph a “Description,” which they deemed as “unnecessary and is not the same as a ‘designation’ as required” under general statute.

The Coastal Resources Commission must respond to the objection by Dec. 1. Members can either amend the paragraph to address the Rules Review Commission’s concerns or submit a written response indicating that the rule will not be amended.

Other action items include to consider approving:

• The Topsail Beach Management Plan.
• Variance requests for artificial turf in the 30-foot buffer at Carolina Beach, and for sandbag alignment and size on Ocean Isle Beach.
• Proposed amendments to rules on septic tanks seaward of the vegetation line, and on alternative sandbag design use to protect public roads.

Also on the agenda are updates on the boundary recommendations, erosion rates and setbacks for Inlet Hazard Areas, information on the 2025 hurricane season, and have a discussion on threatened structures.

The in-person only Coastal Resources Advisory Council will meet ahead of the commission at 10 a.m. Nov. 19 at the hotel.

A full meeting agenda and briefing materials are available on the commission’s website. Times indicated on the agenda for individual items are subject to change.

Organizers say the inaugural Duck Turkey Trot 5K set for Thursday, Nov. 27, is giving youth runners a new event, filling a void in the community, and bringing a beloved tradition back to the Dare County town.

Hosted by the nonprofit First Flight Track Club in partnership with the town, the event is to be the first Turkey Trot since 2021, despite Thanksgiving Day being the nation’s most popular running day. It also fits neatly with the work of OBX Go Far, a volunteer-run program that trains elementary and middle school students on the Outer Banks for a 5K or fun run.

“We all love running, and we are all invested in growing the running community, especially for kids,” said First Flight Track Club President Gray Berryman Thursday in a press release. “Thanks to the great work of OBX Go Far and outstanding middle and high school coaching programs, we have a deep pool of very talented student runners here. It’s one more really cool thing about the Outer Banks that most people don’t know and wouldn’t necessarily expect. So, we are working to grow this community by supporting teams and encouraging youth participation in running.”

The race is open to runners and walkers of all abilities and registration is open online.

The club formed in spring 2024 with a mission to support youth runners in Dare County. 

“At Thanksgiving last year, I wanted to run in a local Turkey Trot, but I waited too long to sign up and they were all booked a few weeks before Thanksgiving,” said Berryman. “This made us realize that there is a need for more Turkey Trots on the Outer Banks, and we have the right Board of Directors with deep roots in Duck to bring a race back to the community at the level our participants expect.”

The club has established an endowment fund with Outer Banks Community Foundation to support student athletes with financial need.

“Each Dare County running sport team (cross country or track, high school and middle school) has a fund they can use to purchase items for students in need,” said First Flight Track Club Secretary Amy Denson, who also serves as the First Flight Middle School head track coach and the First Flight High School assistant cross-country coach, who added that racing shoes are expensive for students who must also pay for their uniforms.

The track club has given coaches the ability to provide those, as needed, she said.

The club also provided summer camp scholarships for athletes, including a distance-running camp and a throwing camp for shotput and discus athletes.

Berryman said a main goal for the club to partner with the Outer Banks Community Foundation to create a college scholarship fund.

The North Carolina Coastal Counties Fisheries Coalition is scheduled to have its third meeting at 1 p.m. Wednesday to discuss current issues, hear from its subcommittees and consider next steps.

The meeting will take place in the Crystal Coast Civic Center on the campus of Carteret Community College in Morehead City.

Dare County Chairman Bob Woodard founded the coalition this past summer after a proposed rule to ban shrimp trawling in certain North Carolina waters made its way through the Senate. The House decided not to take action on the bill.

The first meeting took place Aug. 5 to establish objectives for the coalition made up of elected officials and staff representing Beaufort, Brunswick, Carteret, Camden, Chowan, Craven, Currituck, Dare, Hertford, Hyde, Onslow, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington counties.

During the second meeting Sept. 16, the coalition prioritized:

• Consumer marketing and education.
• Catch limits and water quality.
• Transparency from the Marine Fisheries Commission and sharing of data and moving of the director of Marine Fisheries to the Department of Agriculture.
• Testing for restaurants to back up local seafood claims.
• Predation management.

The agenda and more details about the coalition are on the Dare County website.

A Republican lawmaker for most of the Outer Banks has pressed the governor’s office to declare a state of emergency for sections of the barrier islands that have suffered in the last several weeks from what he calls “catastrophic shoreline collapse” and the associated infrastructure damage, particularly to N.C. Highway 12.

Sen. Bobby Hanig, who represents District 1, which consists of Bertie, Camden, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Hertford, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans and Tyrrell counties, penned a letter to Gov. Josh Stein’s office dated Friday, Oct. 31, requesting a state of emergency be declared, for the “affected Ocracoke area (Highway 12, encompassing Hatteras and Ocracoke) and activate all state resources.”

In his letter to the governor, Hanig explained that the Buxton community “has suffered catastrophic shoreline collapse, resulting in the loss of sixteen homes and over two hundred feet of shoreline. NC Highway 12, south of Oregon Inlet — the only access route for residents, emergency services, and visitors — has been washed out by ocean waters, isolating families and placing lives at risk. Local emergency management and county resources are fully exhausted and cannot effectively respond without state support.”

He also requested that the state coordinate with federal partners to secure emergency assistance, and authorize emergency shoreline and infrastructure protection where “state and federal interests intersect.”

A spokesperson with the governor’s office said Monday in an email response to Coastal Review’s request for comment that “The images of homes being swept away are deeply unsettling. The state of the North Carolina is working closely with Dare County and state and federal partners in the area to make sure that North Carolinians remain as safe as possible.” 

The North Carolina Department of Public Safety explains on its website that “when a governor or local body declares a State of Emergency, emergency managers are provided with the legal means they need to deploy resources and immediately respond to a crisis to protect lives and property.”

This means that government officials can bypass certain procedures that are typically required, such as, for example, the budget approval process to access emergency funds, or the bidding process to hire a contractor to perform cleanup.

Arrr! you worried you won’t make it to the Ocracoke Pirate Jamboree because of the ongoing closure of a section of N.C. 12 on Ocracoke Island?

Well matey, we’ve got some good news for you.

You can still walk the plank onto the passenger-only ferry that runs from Hatteras to Ocracoke or walk on the sound class vehicle ferries from Cedar Island or Swan Quarter to get to the jamboree, one sure to immerse visitors in Ocracoke Island’s pirate lore and the legend of Blackbeard.

“We encourage our visitors to hop on the passenger ferry or walk-on from the mainland,” Ocracoke Access Alliance Executive Director Justin LeBlanc said in a release.  “Our village is quite walkable, there are bikes and golf carts available for rent, and we hope to have our public tram running for the weekend.”

All ferry terminals offer free parking on a first-come, first-served basis.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation continues to work to clear N.C. 12 on Ocracoke with the hope of re-opening one lane of the road by 5 p.m. Friday, though “much depends on any additional overwash of the road during the next high tide,” scheduled for later today, according to a release.

Vehicle ferry operations, which have been suspended because of the closure of N.C. 12 at the north end of Ocracoke Island, will resume once the road reopens.

“We appreciate the efforts of the NC Ferry Division to provide access to the island during this difficult time,” LeBlanc said.  “Folks who choose the passenger ferry will be returned to their vehicles in Hatteras at the end of their visit to our wonderful island.”

Passengers of the Ocracoke Express, which bypasses N.C. 12, are delivered directly into the village where the festival kicked off Friday. A round-trip ticket is $15 and reservations may be made in person or by calling 1-800-BY-FERRY.

NCDOT’s Ferry Division personnel will decide whether to extend weekend service later Friday afternoon, according to a release.

An evening round trip on the Ocracoke-Swan Quarter vehicle ferry has been added Friday, departing at 7 p.m. with a return trip from Swan Quarter at 10:30 p.m., according to a DOT release.

For a full schedule, visit the N.C. Ferry Division’s webpage.

Updated 7:15 p.m. Tuesday.

Five unoccupied beachfront houses in Buxton collapsed within hours Tuesday, resulting in layers of lumber, siding, section of decks and other building materials to be spread along Cape Hatteras National Seashore beaches.

The first house collapsed at 10:45 a.m. at 46002 Ocean Drive, then the unoccupied structure at 46223 Tower Circle Road fell about 15 minutes later. At 12:45 p.m. the house at 46003 Ocean Drive fell, followed at 1 p.m. by 46016 Cottage Avenue, states the National Park Service’s Threatened Oceanfront Structures webpage.

The fifth home at 46213 Tower Circle Road, collapsed around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Island Free Press reported.

Including the five houses from Tuesday, 15 houses in Buxton and Rodanthe have fallen since mid-September, making the total 27 structures to collapse since May 29, 2020.

National Weather Service’s Morehead City office meteorologists expect the strong winds, large waves, coastal flooding, ocean overwash and other hazards that began Monday to continue through Wednesday.

Officials warn that the ongoing combination of strong surf, elevated tides, and shoreline instability could lead to further damage or additional home collapses in the coming days.

The ocean overwash has already resulted in North Carolina Department of Transportation officials closing Tuesday sections of N.C. 12.

The state agency around lunchtime Tuesday posted on its social media that the roadway was closed between the Basnight Bridge and Rodanthe, on the north end of Ocracoke between the park service’s Pony Pens and the ferry terminal, and at the Buxton turn, from just north of Buxton to Old Lighthouse Road.

“But even where open, there are spots with sand and standing water on the road. It’s an ideal day to stay home, but if you must drive the open sections of NC12, slow down and drive with EXTREME caution,” the agency wrote.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries recently certified a new state record for almaco jack, or Seriola rivoliana.

Henry Barksdale of Sutherland, Virginia, caught the 60-pound, 8-ounce fish Sept. 18 off Cape Hatteras. The previous state record was 56 pounds, 4.8 ounces, and was landed earlier this year in the same area.

Barksdale was fishing with Capt. Shaun Dunn out of Teach’s Lair Marina in Hatteras Village. He landed the fish with a jig attached to an Okuma Cedros rod and Daiwa Saltist LD 50 reel with 80-pound braid.

Barksdale’s fish measured 46 inches fork length, or from the tip of the nose to the fork in the tail, and had a 32-inch girth. The fish was weighed at Teach’s Lair Marina and confirmed by staff in the Marine Fisheries Division’s Manteo office.

Fisheries officials note that almaco jack can be easily mistaken for other amberjack species, such as the greater amberjack, aka Seriola dumerili, or lesser amberjack, aka Seriola fasciata.

The almaco jack can be distinguished by the tall and elongated second dorsal fin and anal fin, darker body color, gill raker count and alignment of the maxilla (upper lip) relative to the eye. Lesser amberjacks are also much smaller with the current International Game Fish Association’s world record weighing 12 pounds.

For more information on state record fish, go to the division’s State Saltwater Records webpage or contact the North Carolina Saltwater Fishing Tournament staff at saltwater.citations@deq.nc.gov.

Post has been updated.

The nor’easter that swept up the East Coast this past weekend stripped ocean beaches of sand, inundated areas with floodwaters and pushed seawater over dunes and roads along North Carolina’s coast.

The Outer Banks suffered much of the brunt of the powerful system that brought wind, rain and coastal flooding.

On Saturday the North Carolina Department of Transportation closed sections of N.C. 12 on Ocracoke. Overwash forced officials to close portions of the road Sunday on Hatteras Island, where crews spent the weekend pushing sand and water from the road and rebuilding the dune line that divides the beach from the road.

As of late afternoon Tuesday, N.C. 12 on Ocracoke was the only road closed and the Hatteras-Ocracoke Ferry service remained suspended, NCDOT’s Assistant Director of Communications Jamie Kritzer said in an interview.

N.C. 12 is closed on the north end of Ocracoke Island between the ferry terminal and the National Park Service Pony Pens.

“This afternoon, we’ve been forced to close N.C. 12 again on Pea Island from Marc Basnight Bridge to Rodanthe, due to ocean overwash,” Kritzer said. “The stretch on Pea Island was reopened at 5 p.m. (Monday) but the wind increased this afternoon and we saw overwash around high tide.”

Kritzer said that NCDOT crews were continuing to push sand and water from N.C. 12 and restore the protective dunes on both islands.

“Our ability to reopen N.C. 12 will depend on whether the dune holds through the next high tide cycle,” he said.

In addition to NCDOT’s highway crews, the state’s Ferry Division played a critical role during the response to this weekend’s nor’easter, Kritzer said.

“At one point, all seven ferry routes were suspended this weekend. However, when the winds subsided, the ferries were able to make a special run to take Ocracoke visitors back to Swan Quarter,” he said. “The Hatteras-Ocracoke ferry have helped transport highway crews and equipment between Hatteras and Ocracoke, so the crews could work on clearing N.C. 12.”

Cape Hatteras National Seashore Superintendent Dave Hallac told Coastal Review early Tuesday afternoon that there has been a lot of coastal erosion in certain areas of the national seashore.

At the time of the interview, the National Weather Service forecast much of the Outer Banks to experience flooding through Wednesday. Hallac said that he expects oceanfront flooding as a result, which could make driving on the highway through the seashore hazardous.

“The beaches continue to remain hazardous, especially the beachfront in the Buxton area and the beachfront in the Rodanthe area due to the waves and high-water levels battering many threatened oceanfront structures,” he said.

Between Sept. 30 and Oct. 2, eight unoccupied beachfront houses fell in Buxton, five of which collapsed within 45 minutes of each other. Another unoccupied house gave way on Oct. 3 in Buxton, bringing the total number of houses that have succumbed to encroaching ocean waters to 21 within the past five years.

As of Oct. 3, nine homes on Hatteras Island have toppled into the sea, “but there are a number of significantly threatened oceanfront structures, and you know, collapse is definitely possible,” Hallac said. “Even if collapse doesn’t occur, pieces and parts of those homes have broken off over the last couple of days, including large structures like decks. So that’s the reason that the entire beach front in the village of Buxton remains closed.”

He recommended travelers avoid taking N.C. 12 during the high-tide window, adding that there’s a likelihood of some minor soundside flooding as the winds are switching more to the north and northwest.

“That could also make some of our access points on the sound side flooded, and also make highway driving hazardous,” he said.

Conditions were less dire further south along the state’s coast.

Carteret County’s Public Information Officer Nick Wilson said that the county didn’t see any significant damage from last weekend’s coastal low.

“Most of the impacts were primarily in the Down East,” he said, where some roads in Cedar Island and a few other areas experienced overwash.

“A couple of our convenience sites were closed on Sunday for safety but were back to normal on Monday,” he continued. “There haven’t been any reports of building damage or injuries. The high tides over the weekend, combined with king tide conditions, did cause some flooding in low-lying spots, but it quickly receded once the low passed.”

Carteret County Shore Protection Manager Ryan Davenport said Wednesday morning that Most of Bogue Banks fared well during the recent storm.

“We did see moderate erosion and some dune escarpments in western Pine Knoll Shores, Indian Beach, and Salter Path, but the impacts were no worse than what we typically expect from a winter storm. We remain on track for the island-wide nourishment project scheduled to begin in fall 2026,” he said.

Town officials from North Topsail Beach in Onslow County to Holden Beach in Brunswick County reported experiencing some erosion and escarpment.

North Topsail Beach officials assessed the town’s little more than 11-mile stretch of ocean shoreline throughout Monday and found most erosion to have occurred along the northern end of town toward New River Inlet.

“We noticed our typical hotspots had erosion,” North Topsail’s Town Manager Alice Derian said Tuesday. “There’s some escarpment there. There was some scarping south, but the dunes are still intact.”

All of the town’s public accesses remain open.

Topsail Beach’s ocean shoreline “held up well except at the very south end,” Topsail Island Shoreline Protection Commission Chair William Snyder said.

He said that there is some escarpment to the natural dunes that front a portion of the undeveloped southern tip of the island.

New Hanover County Coastal Protection Coordinator Bryan Hall said in an email Tuesday afternoon that Wrightsville, Carolina and Kure beaches all experienced some erosion over the weekend. Wrightsville Beach’s ocean shoreline also suffered some escarpments.

“As far as I’m aware, there was no significant public or private infrastructure damage or significant established dune damage, which is a testament to the well-established dunes and the County’s Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) projects,” Hall said.

Officials in Brunswick County beach towns that responded to Coastal Review’s requests for comments also reported minor erosion, including Bald Head Island and Oak Island.

“Honestly, I think we fared pretty well,” Ocean Isle Beach Town Manager Justin Whiteside said Tuesday afternoon.

One end of a privately maintained road that runs through a gated neighborhood at the eastern tip of the island has been partially eaten away.

Whiteside said roughly half of the cul-de-sac within The Pointe, a relatively new development of luxury homes, is gone.

“They’re sandbagging around the perimeter of where the cul-de-sac was,” he said.

“There have not been any reports to us of damage besides some flooding caused by tides and winds,” Holden Beach Town Manager Bryan Chadwick said in an email Tuesday afternoon. “We do feel fortunate because it could have been a lot worse.”

Storm recap

Warning Coordination Meteorologist Erik Heden with the National Weather Service office in the Newport/Morehead City office said that with this last storm, “we wanted to make sure people knew that despite it not having a name,” nor’easters can produce the same winds, flooding and rain as hurricanes.

There have been multiple offshore storms that have beaten and battered areas of the state’s coastline, particularly the Outer Banks, where N.C. 12 on Ocracoke and Hatteras islands has been closed for most of the last few days and Down East Carteret County has experienced high-water levels.

There was also a king tide, which means at certain times of the year the tides come in higher and go out lower than normal, that began early last week, leading to some flooding, which was not storm related, in Beaufort, Buxton and other spots on the Outer Banks, Heden said.

The combination of higher water levels with a king tide, a storm with gale-force winds, large waves and swells, and 3 to 4 inches of rain made everything worse, especially in low lying areas, he said.

Flooding occurred up the Neuse and the Pamlico rivers, pushing water levels in New Bern to their highest since Hurricane Ophelia in 2023.

Down East Carteret County had a “tremendous amount of water on the roads,” but nothing they haven’t experienced before, Heden said. The Outer Banks experienced significant ocean overwash, especially at the March Basnight Bridge southward to the Pea Island Visitor Center, where the man-made dunes are built.

Heden said that while the coast will experience slow improvements and fall temperatures the remainder of this week, some areas will continue to experience issues with water, especially at high tide.

“Today’s Tuesday, and we’ve got this advisory through Thursday, so it’s not going to be worse than it was this weekend. We don’t have the wind, we don’t have the swell, but it takes a while for that water to calm down,” he said.

​It was well into what we now call hurricane season in 1879 when the Atlantic Hotel on the Beaufort waterfront began filling with hundreds of guests ahead of the North Carolina Press Association’s annual meeting taking place there in late August.

Visitors from across the state, including the then-governor and his wife, made the lengthy trek to the hotel, most arriving around Aug. 15, of that year, about the same time as rumors began to circulate that a hurricane was causing damage in the Caribbean.

“But nobody in Beaufort was too bothered by that. In fact, the hotel manager was told about it, and he said, ‘we haven’t had a bad storm here in over 20 years. Everyone’s going to be fine,’” Assistant State Climatologist Corey Davis explained when he began his talk on “Lessons Learned from Recent Statewide Storms” at the Down East Resilience Network’s fall gathering.

Davis is with the State Climate Office of North Carolina based at N.C. State University in Raleigh, and was one of the speakers at the get-together held Sept. 23-24 in the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center on Harkers Island.

A project of the museum, the network meets there a few times a year to share and discuss with scientists, decision-makers and residents the latest research on the threats to Carteret County’s coastal communities such as nuisance flooding and hurricanes, and opportunities to address the aftermath.

Davis continued, fast-forward to a few days later, and warning signs began to appear that a storm was coming. “It’s the fishermen, the locals, that are the first ones to take notice.”

Then a Coast Guardsman stationed at Fort Macon on Bogue Banks began to receive telegraph transmissions from Florida and Georgia about the storm making its way up the coast.

The Coast Guardsman rushes to Beaufort to tell the hotel manager that a hurricane is on its way, Davis narrated, “and this hotel manager just scoffs. He said, ‘Nobody from the U.S. government is going to tell me how to run my hotel. Now you go back and do your job. Everybody here is going to be fine for the night. Well, as you can guess from the foreshadowing, they were not fine,” Davis said. “By 3 a.m. the rain had picked up. The wind was blowing even harder. The floodwaters along the ocean from the storm surge had risen to waist high by that point.”

A local then sounded the alarm to alert everyone that they needed to seek safety. The bottom floors of the hotel were already flooding, but not many people took notice.

“Now, I wish I could tell you that this story had a happy ending, but it doesn’t. This is a tragedy in our state. This is the story of the great Beaufort hurricane of 1879. It was a Category 3 storm at landfall right here in Carteret County. And in total, 46 people in North Carolina and Virginia lost their lives during the storm,” Davis said.

The hotel was rebuilt the next year on the Morehead City waterfront, only to burn to the ground in 1933.

He opened his talk with ​that history to give “a perspective of how these storms were perceived 100 and some years ago. Largely, that’s that hurricanes were primarily coastal events.”

Prompting him to ask what has changed when it comes to learning about hurricane behavior and forecasting, as well as why tropical storms and their hazards getting worse, and putting more folks at risk.

One change, for the good, is that forecasting has improved since the early 1970s. “What we saw back in the late ’70s, early ’80s is that the average track error at 72 hours was something like 400 nautical miles. That’s basically the distance between right here on Harkers Island and Knoxville, Tennessee,” Davis said.

Track error is the difference between where a hurricane is expected to go and the path it actually travels.

As science, modeling and forecasting have improved in the decades since, track error has decreased. “Over the last five to 10 years, that 72-hour error is under 100 nautical miles,” he said.

Another area of improvement, which he thinks should continue to improve, is communicating to the public the storm forecast and associated hazards.

Past messaging has focused on winds being the primary hazard, especially for coastal areas, but in recent years forecasters have emphasized rain amounts, flooding and storm surge, as well as hazards people in inland areas should expect.

One of the changes “that we don’t have a whole lot of control over” is background climate, which includes increasing global ocean heat content, or the total amount of heat the ocean has absorbed and stored.

“We know by now that the oceans have really absorbed the brunt of the warming that’s happening, especially over the last 50 to 60 years,” he said, and there’s been a steady increase since the late 1960s or the early 1970s.

This increase has had a few different impacts on tropical storm and hurricane events.

“No. 1, when you’re seeing that much warm water present, it means more seasons will be favorable for tropical activity. Even though there can be some other environmental oceanic factors that you have to worry about, if the ocean is warm enough, you can pretty much always get storms to form,” Davis said.

Another big impact is rapid intensification, like when a storm goes from a Category 1 to a Category 4 in 18 hours, as did Hurricane Erin earlier this summer.

“Obviously, that does add to the punch that those storms bring when they get to land,” Davis said.

As for atmospheric factors, a warmer atmosphere is similar to a bigger sponge and is “able to soak up more moisture, and it tends to wring out that moisture all at once, and it is able to do that even farther inland as well. So storms are getting wetter overall,” Davis said.

Hurricane Florence in September 2018 dumped “36 inches of rain in parts of southeastern North Carolina, just unheard-of amounts.”

Researchers looking at hurricane trends have found that, especially since the early 1970s, the storms are slowing down and even stalling when reaching land, and that’s primarily for the coastal Carolinas.

“That means we see storms like Florence. They get to our coast and just slow to a crawl; they sit over us for days and drop even more rainfall than we’ve ever seen,” he said.

Another consequence of these changes is that more people are in harm’s way from these storms. Davis cited a study from a few years ago that found for every house in North Carolina that was removed due to floodplain buyouts, another 10 had been built in those floodplain areas.

Another study determined that from 1996 to 2020, 43% of the flooded buildings in the state were outside of the Federal Emergency Management Agency-designated floodplains, and of all the buildings that have flooded in the state during this 25-year window, 23% flooded multiple times.

Storms look different now than they did in 2010, Davis continued, referencing a map showing the major storms most people consider the worst they experienced.

From the mountains, east, the storms were: Frances in 1916, Ivan in 1940, Hugo in 1989, Hazel in 1954, Fran in 1996, Floyd in 1999 and Isabel in 2003.

Davis then moved to a new map his office created showing the state’s worst tropical events as of September, which looks drastically different from the 2010 map.

“Carteret County is a really good example,” Davis said. “You’ve got one of those classic coastal monster storms. Hazel in 1954, a big event, storm surge in Morehead City and other parts of the coastline.”

But for the North Core Banks and Ocracoke Island, 2019’s Dorian caused soundside storm surge like those areas had never seen before. “Most of the rest of Carteret County and most of southeastern North Carolina would now show Florence as the worst.”

Fifty other counties have seen their worst storm come during the last 10 years.

Looking at the scale of some of these events, Florence can now be considered the worst storm from Cape Lookout to the suburbs of Charlotte. “That is a massive footprint that we just didn’t see historically for those sorts of storms,” Davis said.

Davis said there are things to be learned from these storms.  

“The first is what I’ll call action at a distance,” which essentially means that an area can experience big impacts even if the eye of the storm remains far away.

“I know this area saw that with Erin earlier in the summer, 200 to 300 miles offshore, but you still saw the rip currents and the overwash as if it was literally right in your backyard,” Davis said.

Another takeaway, he continued, is that you can’t just look at the strength of the winds or the category to understand what a storm will do.

Tropical Storm Chantal in early July was a weak tropical depression when it moved over central North Carolina, but the 8 to 10 inches of rain over a 12-hour period was far beyond what those areas had seen before.

Davis said he’s “firmly in the camp” of if we don’t learn from history, we’re doomed to repeat it, and one of the big tragedies in eastern North Carolina was after Hurricane Floyd came through in 1999. Residents were told that it was a thousand-year event, leading people to believe a storm of that magnitude wouldn’t happen again in their lifetime, their children’s lifetime, or their children’s children’s lifetime, so they rebuilt the same as before.

“It wasn’t until we got the next storm with Matthew and the next storm with Florence, that they realized it’s probably not a great idea to have a house here, because this is not a once-in-a-lifetime event,” he said, adding that has to be emphasized to people. “If it happens once, it’ll happen again.”

More than $4.6 million will go to coastal conservation efforts such as property acquisition and living shoreline projects out of $36 million in statewide grants through North Carolina Land and Water Fund, the state announced earlier this week.

The fund gets appropriations from the N.C. General Assembly to support projects by local governments, state agencies, and nonprofit organizations that restore and protect the state’s natural and cultural resources.

“North Carolina is home to remarkable natural beauty,” Gov. Josh Stein said in a release. “These grants will help preserve that beauty.” 

These projects, which “will support North Carolina’s $28 billion outdoor recreation economy,” are broken up into four types: acquisition, stormwater, planning and restoration, the North Carolina Department of Natural and Coastal Resources said in the announcement.

Property acquisition projects selected for the coast are:

• $1.57 million to Kill Devil Hills for land at Nags Head Woods.
• $1.06 million to North Carolina Coastal Land Trust for land at Powells Point on the Albemarle Sound.
• $1.27 million to the town of Leland for the Silver Timber Tract – Nature Park.
• $752,000 to the North Carolina Coastal Federation for land in Carteret and Onslow counties.
• $3.5 million to Unique Places to Save for the St. James — Boiling Spring Lakes Wetland Complex, however this is a provisional award and depends on if the funds are available before July 1, 2026.
• $335,000 to The Nature Conservancy for land in Onslow and Pender counties. One of the three awards is provisional as well.

In addition to property acquisition, the Coastal Federation, which publishes Coastal Review, has been selected for just shy of $1 million for the following projects:

• An update to the Oyster Blueprint for Action Restoration and Protection Plan.
• A stormwater plan for the Ocean City Jazz Festival site on Topsail Island.
• The second phase of a living shoreline for Jockey’s Ridge State Park.
• A living shorelines cost-share program.

Sound Rivers Inc. has been awarded $243,200 for a stormwater wetland education site in Craven County and nearly $30,000 for a watershed plan for a section of Slocum Creek.

A North Carolina State University-sponsored program in Onslow County has been awarded $234,241 for a stormwater infrastructure maintenance robot.

New Hanover County has a $75,000 grant for a Pages Creek feasibility plan.

A statewide list is available online.

Previously the Clean Water Management Trust Fund, the fund was put in place in 1996 to protect the state’s drinking water sources. The General Assembly expanded the fund’s mission to include conserving and protecting natural resources, cultural heritage and military installations.

During this month’s Science on the Sound lecture series learn how surf forecasters bring real-time ocean and wave conditions and surf reports to a beach near you.

The Coastal Studies Institute is scheduled to host “Predicting Surf on the Outer Banks with the Surfline Forecast Team” at 6 p.m. Thursday at East Carolina University’s Outer Banks campus.

Join Surfline’s forecasting Vice President Kurt Korte, Rob Mitstifer, forecast data lead, and Tim Kent, lead forecaster, as they discuss surf forecasting basics and why the Outer Banks is a unique surf destination.

Surfline provides surf conditions and forecasts for beaches and surf spots around the globe.

Presenters will delve into the tools and technology they use to observe and predict the surf.

Science of the Sound brings perspectives from all over the state to highlight coastal topics in northeastern North Carolina. The program is free.

To join the event via live-stream visit the CSI YouTube channel.

Reprinted from an Island Free Press report dated Oct. 6.

Cleanup efforts are continuing this week in Buxton and Rodanthe following the collapse of nine oceanfront homes last week — eight in Buxton and one in Rodanthe — as National Park Service crews, area organizations, and volunteers work to remove large volumes of debris scattered along the shoreline.

In Buxton, cleanup teams have already hauled away roughly 140 truckloads of debris from the beach as of Sunday, said Cape Hatteras National Seashore Superintendent David Hallac.

Large piles remain, including one near the former Navy base site that may contain a similar amount of material. Another pile near the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse measures about 100 feet long, 35 feet wide, and 5 feet high. Crews have been separating plastic, large lumber, and small lumber to facilitate disposal, and Dare County has reported eight septic system washouts in the Buxton collapse area.

“The odors from sewage were noticeable in several beachfront locations,” Hallac said. “And north of the jetty, petroleum odors were so strong on Sunday that we made the decision not to clean up in that area for safety reasons.” Petroleum smells were also strong on Saturday, but had briefly diminished enough to allow heavy equipment into the area.

Related: ‘Messy situation’: Buxton beach closed after 8th house falls

The cleanup zone in Buxton remains challenging due to its dense neighborhood layout, which caused debris to become trapped between collapsed structures, pilings, and sandbags when the homes fell. This has created a more concentrated debris field compared to Rodanthe.

“In Buxton, the water line was so high when these houses collapsed, and the area is so dense, that many of the homes and pilings and sandbags trapped this debris,” Hallac said.

Hallac emphasized that National Park Service crews have been working long hours daily alongside local partners to make progress.

“I’m extremely proud of all the National Park Service staff who have been working on this, some for hours a day, every day, and extraordinary thanks for the incredible efforts of the North Carolina Beach Buggy Association, Cape Hatteras United Methodist Men, and many community members who have come up to help,” he said.

In Rodanthe, the debris field from last week’s single home collapse extended around 18 miles, although most of that distance contained light debris, such as polyester filling, carpet padding, and small bits of wood that washed south to around Ramp 32. The initial few miles nearest the collapse site contained heavier material.

Cleanup in Rodanthe has benefited from a swift response by the homeowner, who began working on the beach the morning after the collapse and has remained actively involved. “He has worked continuously, and we worked as a team with him,” Hallac noted.

Over the weekend, the Rodanthe homeowner used an excavator to remove the remnant structure from the beach, which prevented additional debris from washing away. The North Carolina Beach Buggy Association also played a major role in the Rodanthe cleanup effort, according to Hallac.

While significant progress has been made, continued cleanup is expected in both locations.

In Rodanthe, National Park Service crews will use a mechanized beach rake to remove debris that has become buried in the sand. In Buxton, seashore staff are assessing remaining debris south of Ramp 43 to develop the next phase of the cleanup strategy.

Beachgoers are urged to use extreme caution in these areas, as nails, sharp debris, and other hazardous materials may be buried beneath the sand.

This story is provided courtesy of the Island Free Press, a digital newspaper covering Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. Coastal Review is partnering with the Free Press to provide readers with more environmental and lifestyle stories of interest along our coast.

Update Oct. 10: Duck officials announced Friday afternoon that the 2025 Duck Jazz Festival slated for this weekend has been canceled due to expected weather conditions.

Original post dated Oct. 3: Get ready to immerse yourself in the sounds of swing and rhythm at this year’s Duck Jazz Festival, a free, two-day event showcasing regional and local jazz musicians.

The town-sponsored festival now in its 16th year will kick off with a Concert on the Green-style event from 4-6 p.m. Oct. 11 featuring guitarist, producer and composer Adam Hawley on the main stage, 1200 Duck Road, in Duck Town Park. Hawley has performed with the likes of Natalie Cole, Lalah Hathaway, Jennifer Lopez and The Manhattan Transfer.

Several artists will be showcased on two different stages during a full day of music Oct. 12. Gates open at 10 a.m.

Vocalist Shayna Steele will kick things off at 11 a.m. on the main stage followed by a lineup to include:

• First Flight High School Honors Jazz Band at 12:10 p.m. on the amphitheater stage.
• Gerald Veasley at 1:10 p.m. on the main stage.
• David Esleck Trio featuring Jordan Garrett at 2:20 p.m. on the amphitheater stage.
• Brass Queens at 3:25 p.m. on the main stage.
• The Hot Lanes with Bobby Jasinski at 4:30 p.m. on the amphitheater stage.
• Tito Puente, Jr. at 5:25 p.m. on the main stage.

The festival will be held rain or shine. Chairs are available for rent onsite from Just for the Beach and attendees are invited to bring food, coolers, chairs, blankets, and well-behaved dogs.

Food and soft drinks will also be available for purchase from Duck eateries.

Umbrellas and tents are not permitted and video recording is prohibited.

The park is smoke-free and plastic, aluminum, and glass recycling receptors are available onsite, but guests are asked to consider taking glass containers home to recycle for the safety of the event’s volunteers.

A children’s story time and rhythm play, movie on the green, community concert on the green and a live jam at the Bluepoint will be hosted Oct. 10.

For further details, including the environmental policy for the event, visit the town’s website. “As part of the Town’s vision, a commitment to environmental stewardship is one of our unifying principles,” according to the website.

Live music and other special activities will be taking place at Duck businesses around town.  For event updates, follow Duck Jazz Festival on Facebook and Twitter.

Update 11 a.m. Thursday: The seventh oceanfront house in Buxton to collapse in less than 48 hours fell around 8 p.m. Wednesday at 46207 Tower Circle Road, Cape Hatteras National Seashore officials reported on its website. This remains a developing story.

Update 10 a.m. Wednesday: An unoccupied house collapsed overnight at 46203 Tower Circle Road, bringing the total to six since 2 p.m. Tuesday, per an update from the National Park Service on its threatened oceanfront structures webpage.

Original report of 5 p.m. Tuesday follows below:

Five unoccupied houses in Buxton collapsed into the Atlantic within 45 minutes of each other Tuesday afternoon, and officials warned that there could be more because of conditions associated with two hurricanes offshore.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore officials said that, as of 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, they were unaware of any bodily injuries associated with the collapse of the structures on Cottage Avenue and the two on Tower Circle Road.

Including the five that fell between 2 p.m. and 2:45 p.m. Tuesday, 17 privately owned houses have collapsed since 2020.

The entire beachfront from northern Buxton to the northern section of off-road vehicle, or ORV, ramp 43, is closed for public safety. ORV drivers using ramp 38 should avoid traveling to the south and anyone using ramp 43 should avoid traveling north.

The street numbers for the structures on Cottage Avenue are 46001, 46002 and 46007, and 46209 and 46211 for those on Tower Circle Road.

The National Park Service urges visitors to avoid the closed areas where the structures collapsed and to use caution along the beach south of the sites because of potentially hazardous debris.

“This is an ongoing incident; further collapses are possible due to the ocean conditions,” national seashore officials said.

The National Weather Service office in Newport, in a 3:45 p.m. Tuesday briefing, forecast a long duration and impactful swell event for coastal North Carolina associated with Hurricane Humberto, with added impacts from a strengthening Hurricane Imelda.

“Coastal flooding impacts have already begun and are expected to continue. We still expect the peak impacts to be focused through Thursday, with the greatest impacts occurring around high tide Wednesday afternoon,” forecasters said. Dangerous surf conditions are expected through the rest of the week.

The park service said plans are to announce on the national seashore’s threatened oceanfront structures webpage, go.nps.gov/cahatos, any additional collapses during the storm period.

Two heavily shoaled channels used by state ferries to Ocracoke Island are expected to be dredged next year, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The Corps’ Wilmington District announced Wednesday its award of a contract for maintenance dredging of Rollinson Channel, also known as the Hatteras Ferry Channel, and the Big Foot Slough portion of Silver Lake Harbor at the opposite end of the island.

Chesapeake, Virginia-based Cottrell Contracting Corp. was awarded the $11,778,000 contract to restore the channels to their authorized depths, “which is vital for the safety of mariners, navigation, and the local economy that relies on waterborne commerce and recreational boating,” according to a Corps release.

“This effort will help ensure the continued navigability of these important waterways and support the essential work of our stakeholders at the North Carolina Ferry Division,” the release states. “The Wilmington District is committed to working closely with the contractor and local stakeholders to minimize disruption and ensure a successful project completion.”

The North Carolina Division of Coastal Management has issued a permit for the proposed mid-Currituck bridge that would connect mainland Currituck County and its barrier island beaches.

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality on Friday announced that the division had issued a Coastal Area Management Act dredge and fill law permit and that, in a separate action, the agency’s Division of Water Resources had issued a Clean Water Act Section 401 water quality certification for the toll road and 6.7-mile-long bridge.

The project will connect the mainland at U.S. Highway 158 near Aydlett to the Outer Banks near Corolla with two-lane bridges spanning the Currituck Sound and Maple Swamp.

As previously reported in Coastal Review, the project has received wide support from Dare and Currituck counties and most Dare towns, though residents of Currituck County communities on either side of the bridge have expressed concerns about the impacts of more traffic on the neighborhoods’ infrastructure, environment and quality of life.

The N.C. Department of Transportation/North Carolina Turnpike Authority submitted the CAMA permit application one year ago. The Division of Coastal Management accepted the application as complete early this year.

CAMA Major/dredge and fill law permits must be obtained for projects that cover more than 20 acres, include activities that require other state or federal permits, or for construction covering more than 60,000 square feet.

Clean Water Act Section 401 water quality certification determines whether a project complies with state water quality standards.

The Division of Water Resources issued a certification for the project with conditions, which include an agreement to offset unavoidable impacts to wetlands by creating, restoring or enhancing wetlands elsewhere from the construction area.

The applicants are also required to mitigate unavoidable impacts to submerged aquatic vegetation by monitoring for the effects of shading and replacing or restoring impacted vegetation as close to the area as possible.

“The certification also includes a condition that the applicant must submit an update to the project stormwater management plan prior to construction,” according to an NCDEQ release.

The Outer Banks Association of Realtors announced this week that it had awarded eight $1,500 scholarships to graduating seniors from Dare County and Ocracoke Island.

The association said Tuesday that the awards reflect its “commitment to supporting the next generation of leaders” along the Outer Banks.

The association’s 2025 scholarship recipients include the following students:

• Julian Alvarez Isidoro – Manteo High School.
• Kristin Bennett – Cape Hatteras Secondary School.
• Samuel Cage – Manteo High School.
• Dresden Jackson – First Flight High School.
• Mya Kelly – Manteo High School.
• Audrey Kramer – Cape Hatteras Secondary School.
• Caroline Stocks – Ocracoke High School.
• Spencer Twiford – Manteo High School.

The association’s scholarship committee chaired by Tricia Driscoll of Coldwell Banker Seaside Realty selected the recipients.

“The selection process is both humbling and inspiring,” Driscoll said in the announcement. “So many students had incredible stories. We’re proud to help our community by recognizing this year’s recipients, and we should all look forward to seeing the impact they’ll make.”

Scholarships were presented at each school’s awards night.

“Seeing these students walk the stage was incredibly rewarding,” Outer Banks Association of Realtors President Christi Bryant in the statement, adding that it was a privilege to support them on behalf of the association’s members.

Since the 1990s, the association has awarded over $300,000 in scholarships to more than 200 local students. These scholarships are made possible through the association’s annual Surf, Turf, and Roll initiative, a series of three fundraising events, including a surf fishing, golf, and bowling tournament, which invites the community to donate and support the association’s charitable funds. 

For more information on how to donate to these funds or how to get involved, visit www.outerbanksrealtors.com.

The historic Whalehead Club in Corolla, a Currituck Banks landmark, will turn 100 years old next month and ticketed events commemorating the centennial are on sale.

Completed in 1925, the Whalehead Club, the majestic 21,000-square-foot art nouveau mansion and centerpiece of Historic Corolla Park, was completed after three years of construction. Its $383,000 price tag at the time is about $7.1 million in 2025 dollars.

The 33 years that Currituck County has owned the property is the longest period it has gone without changing hands.

After more than three years of negotiations, the county purchased Whalehead in November 1992 from Howco Residential Development Inc., which had foreclosed on the property in 1989. That was after the failure of two savings and loan institutions, which had previously owned the property, according to a 1992 report in the Coastland Times.

Although Whalehead is now again a symbol of wealth and opulence on Currituck Banks, at the time of the county’s purchase, it was dilapidated and a shell of what it had been when construction finished 67 years earlier. Its 1992 price tag of $2.8 million included the building and 28.5 acres, and the purchase was extraordinarily unpopular with county voters. Every commissioner on the 1992 board that bought the property lost their reelection bid after the purchase.

“Most people didn’t understand what we were doing,” Jarvisburg resident Jerry Wright, who was a county commissioner at the time, recently told Coastal Review.

Whalehead was like nothing the Outer Banks had ever seen.

Multimillionaire industrialist Edward Collings Knight built the mansion as a vacation getaway and hunting refuge for himself and his wife Marie-Louise LeBel.

It had an elevator and a basement. Elevators were unheard of here, and the basement was an engineering feat for a building so close to sea level. Two Delco-brand generators provided electricity at all times.

The Knights named their Currituck Banks getaway cottage Corolla Island, a reference to the artificial island that was created by dredge and fill so the ground could support the massive building.

“The main house was erected on a hill formed by the earth dredged to create the moat. The hill made it possible for Whalehead to have a full basement that rests on sunken wood pilings, a feature that is considered extraordinary for a coastline structure,” notes the 1978 Register of Historic Places documentation.

Until 1922, the 2000-acre property had been owned by the Lighthouse Club, one of Currituck Sound’s most exclusive hunting clubs of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Although there are legends that Knight bought the Lighthouse Club after his wife, who was an avid hunter, was not permitted to hunt because of her gender, there is no evidence to support the claim.

According to a 1986 letter provided by the Whalehead Club and written by John B. Litchfield, Corolla Island was built by a local contractor and the plans for the building were somewhat vague.

“Mr. Knight, who had had training in art, drew the plans for the house,” Litchfield wrote. “He did not, however, include any specifications. I do not know who recommended my father as a builder, or how they got together. At any rate, Mr. Knight contracted with my father, J. A. Litchfield of Poplar Branch, N.C. to build the house.”

Litchfield’s observation that Knight’s plans did not “include any specifications” is consistent with the belief that Knight did not use an architect to design the house, in spite of the project’s complexity.

The Knights stayed at Corolla Island for extended periods over the next nine years, entertaining a number of guests. The last entry Edward Knight recorded was Nov. 24, 1934. Edward Knight died on July 23, 1936, and his wife Marie Louise died three months later.

This was during the Great Depression and Knights’ heirs had no interest in maintaining a vacation getaway and hunting lodge on the Outer Banks. They auctioned off many of the one-of-a-kind Tiffany designs in the houses and other art nouveau objects and started looking for a buyer.

Rep. Lindsey Warren, who represented northeastern North Carolina at the time, told his congressional colleagues about the property, and New York Rep. William Sirovich agreed to purchase it for $175,000. The closing date was to be Dec. 17, 1939, the same day Sirovich died suddenly.

Ray Adams, a Washington, D.C., meat packer with considerable political connections, instead bought the property for $25,000 in early 1940.

It was Adams who gave the property its name.

“According to tradition, in the process of clearing land for the air strip that would facilitate transportation of guests, a whale bone was found which prompted Adams to rename his estate Whalehead Club,” the National Register of Historic Places notes in their documentation.

Although a whale bone may have been found when an airstrip was being built, there is reason to believe the area was already sometimes referred to as “Whalehead.”

An August 1926 article in the Elizabeth City Daily Advance headlined “Currituck Girls Enjoyed Camping Trip” reported that the young women had “just returned from their summer camping trip at Corolla, that part of the beach known as Whalehead.”

Adams had big plans for his newly purchased property. Although interested in hunting, “his major motivation for acquiring the 2000-acre estate was to use it for entertaining the government officials who controlled the contracts that provided the bulk of his business,” according to Historic Register documents.

Adams on Nov. 1, 1940, formed Whalehead Club Inc. with 10 shares mostly held by Adams and his wife.

Knight’s plans for an entertainment center, though, were put on hold when the United States entered World War II and the Coast Guard needed a training and patrol site.

In 1942, Knight agreed to rent the Whalehead Club to the Coast Guard. Barracks were built, which no longer exist. At one time, up to 300 Coast Guardsmen were stationed at Corolla.

Adams, concerned about protecting his property, included a provision that his club superintendent, Dexter Snow, be made a chief bosun’s mate and be stationed at Corolla to look after his interests.

After the war, Adams threw himself into his plans to create a luxury resort on Currituck Banks.

“He was kind of promised a toll road that would go … like a Route 12, but all the way up to Virginia along the beach,” said Whalehead Club Curator Jill Landon. “He wanted it to be like a Myrtle Beach or kind of like an Ocean City, Maryland. We’ve got the plans drawn up with like a Ferris wheel and all sorts of infrastructure up here.”

Using his government contacts, Adams began lobbying for a beach toll road.

Adams’ plans relied on the toll road to make the project feasible, but the concept he had in mind was extensive.

The plans are on file with the Olmsted Archives at Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site. Listed as Job No. 10031, Whalehead, the documents drawn for Adams by Olmstead Brothers Landscape Architects clearly show a planned toll road with a 100-foot right-of-way, a yacht basin, shopping center and fishing pier, among other amenities.

The Carolina Virginia Turnpike Authority, or CVTA, was formed, but problems soon emerged.

Dare County Rep. Bruce Etheridge introduced a bill in the House for the “five-year-old beach toll-road project,” reported the April 17, 1953, edition of the Coastland Times.

The bill was doomed. The authority had been given powers of eminent domain, but the state Supreme Court, the article noted, had “opined that the Legislature could not give a company municipal powers nor the right to condemn private land.”

The authority also found there was little appetite in the bond market for a toll road that would cross state lines and require approvals from two states. In December 1954, the Coastland Times reported that “The sponsors of the Nags Head-Virginia Beach toll road still have not sold their bonds.”

The problem, CVTA authorities explained, was “the fact that two separate authorities and two states are involved has created legal problems which must be clarified before the bonds are sold.”

Two years later, in August 1956, it had become clear that the toll road was not going to happen. Adams’ dream of creating a sprawling resort community along the Currituck Banks was never realized.

The last entry in the Whalehead Club log recorded “that Adams died there suddenly at 6:10 p.m.,” according to the Historic Places documentation. That was Dec. 31, 1957.

The heirs to the Adams estate were able to quickly find a buyer. Portsmouth, Virginia, contractors MacLean and Wipp paid $375,000 for the estate and in turn leased the building and immediate grounds to the Corolla Academy.

The Corolla Academy had a clear vision of how the education of young men should proceed.

The Historic Places document quotes from a brochure to parents: “Corolla Academy is the result of the firm conviction that summer study for boys of secondary level is a rewarding and enjoyable experience. The time has passed when American boys can afford to waste the three months’ interval between the end of school in June and the resumption of classes in September.”

It’s not clear if it was location, philosophy or some other reason, but the Corolla Academy closed after three years.

What followed may be one of the more intriguing uses of the Whalehead Club.

The United States was in a frantic race in 1961 with the Soviet Union to be the first nation to land on the moon, and Atlantic Research Corp. was in the thick of it, designing rocket engines for NASA. The Soviet Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, or USSR, existed from 1922 until 1991 in eastern Europe and northern Asia.

The corporation, or ARC, leased the estate from Wipp and MacLean with a $1.25 million option to buy that was exercised in 1964. For ARC, the Whalehead Club was ideal for its purposes.

ARC was experimenting with beryllium as a fuel for the Poseidon rocket engines. As a fuel, beryllium has some real advantages. It’s very powerful and it’s relatively stable, although it is extremely toxic.

It became apparent that beryllium was not going to be a practical fuel, and in 1972, ARC sold the property to local Norfolk real estate developers Kabler & Riggs for more than $3 million. That firm subdivided the property but left the 35 acres around the Whalehead Club building intact.

The building was left vacant for 20 years, but as noted in the Historic Places 1978 report, the building, with its I-beam construction and 18-inch-thick walls, had been “successfully constructed to withstand the most severe coastal storms.”

Obligated to pay off the loan for the 1992 purchase of the property, Currituck County was not able to begin a full restoration of the building until 1999, when 25% of occupancy tax collections could be used.

In 2002, 10 years after the property had been purchased, the Whalehead Club opened to the public.

The original custom Steinway piano was inside and some of the original Tiffany sconces were still intact. Careful research of auction records had enabled the team working on restoration to track down a surprising number of original furniture pieces. By the time it opened to the public, the county had spent more than $1 million in restoring the building.

The Whalehead Club is available for tours. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling 252-453-9040 ext. 226, at the site or online.

The North Carolina Ferry Division, under the N.C. Department of Transportation, announced on Friday that four of its ferry routes will adjust for the off-season.

The Ocracoke Express passenger ferry will end its seasonal service on Sept. 15. The 2025 season for the ferry that transports up to 129 passengers between Hatteras and Ocracoke’s Silver Lake Harbor began May 13.

The motor-vehicle ferries traveling between Southport and Fort Fisher, Swan Quarter and Ocracoke, and Cedar Island and Ocracoke are to begin Tuesday adhering to the following off-season schedules:

Cedar Island to Ocracoke: 7:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Ocracoke to Cedar Island: 7:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Swan Quarter to Ocracoke: 10 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Ocracoke to Swan Quarter: 7 a.m., 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Southport to Fort Fisher during the week: 5:30 a.m., 7 a.m., 7:45 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1 p.m., 1:45 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:15 p.m., 4 p.m., 4:45 p.m. and 6:15 p.m.

Fort Fisher to Southport during the week: 6:15 a.m., 7:45 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:15 p.m., 1:45 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:15 p.m., 4 p.m., 4:45 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Southport to Fort Fisher on weekends: 7 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 10 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:15 p.m., 1 p.m., 1:45 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:15 p.m., 4 p.m., 4:45 p.m. and 6:15 p.m.

Fort Fisher to Southport on weekends: 7:45 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 10 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:15 p.m., 1 p.m., 1:45 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:15 p.m., 4 p.m., 4:45 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Visit the website for a complete schedule of all state-run ferries.

Longtime Outer Banks politician Sen. Bobby Hanig, R-Currituck, has launched a campaign to represent northeastern North Carolina at the federal level.

“I’m proud to announce that I am running for the United States Congress and the 1st congressional seat of the great state of North Carolina,” Hanig said Wednesday morning on “Talk of the Town” with Henry Hinton, a radio show on TALK 96.3 & 103.7 FM and streamed YouTube. He made the announcement on his website and social media, as well.

Hanig is running for the state’s 1^st District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, which covers Bertie, Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Edgecombe, Gates, Granville, Greene, Halifax, Hertford, Lenoir, Martin, Nash, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell, Vance, Warren, Washington, Wayne and Wilson counties.

So far, Hanig’s only opponent in the Republican primaries being held in March 2026 is Rocky Mount’s two-term mayor, Sandy Roberson. The winner of that race will face in the November 2026 election the incumbent Congressman Don Davis, a Democrat serving his second term representing the district, if Davis goes uncontested.

Hanig decided to run because “more people in North Carolina need someone that’s going to fight for their constituents and the ‘America First agenda,’ and we don’t have it,” he told Hinton, referring to the Trump administration’s plans under the reconciliation act passed in June.

Hanig is an Army veteran and small business owner in his second term in the North Carolina Senate. He represents District 1’s Bertie, Camden, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Hertford, Northampton, Pasquotank, Perquimans and Tyrrell counties until his term ends Dec. 31, 2026. Before becoming a senator, Hanig served two terms in the state House and as chairman for the Currituck County Board of Commissioners.

In a statement from his campaign Wednesday morning, Hanig said he is a “proven leader who has always been a fierce advocate for my constituents and our shared values and beliefs. I will continue that fight when I get to Washington. I believe in President Trump’s America First Agenda and my record in the legislature backs it up. I’ve cut taxes for North Carolina families, toughened border control in the state, stood up for life, and defended our Second Amendment rights.”

Hanig said during the radio interview with Hinton that he had decided to run before his very public fight against a proposed bill that would prevent shrimp trawling in state waters a few months ago.

“I love eastern North Carolina, and this is my home. These are my people. I’m blessed to do what I do. Serving in the General Assembly has been an absolute honor, privilege and just opportunity in the lifetime,” he said, adding what he thinks he’s learned from serving as a county commissioner and in the House and Senate “has brought me to this point, and I’m ready to move on to the next level and really give northeast North Carolina what they deserve, which is good leadership to protect our values, our heritage and our way of life.”

The Coastal Resources Commission on Wednesday afternoon unanimously adopted a rule that restricts development within Jockey’s Ridge State Park.

The rule the 13-member commission adopted mandates how and where sand may be moved within the park and establishes the park’s area of environmental concern, or AEC, boundaries.

AECs are areas of natural importance that the division designates to protect from uncontrolled development.

Under the rule, a Coastal Area Management Act, or CAMA, permit is required if more than 10 cubic yards of sand is moved in one year within the AEC. Sand that is removed must be placed within an area of the park designated by the N.C. Division of Coastal Management in consultation with the state Department of Natural Cultural Resources’ Division of Parks and Recreation.

And, sand within the AEC cannot be altered or prevented from moving freely by development activities “except when necessary” to maintain or construct a road, residential or commercial structure, accessway, lawn, garden, or parking area unless approved by the park’s management plan.

The rule will now go to the state Rules Review Commission for approval.

In the fall of 2023, that commission removed the rule along with more than a dozen other CRC-adopted longstanding rules from the North Carolina Administrative Code and kicked them back to the coastal commission, a move that triggered a legal fight between the two commissions.

Earlier this year, a Wake County Superior Court judge ruled all 30 rules be returned to the administrative code.

The coastal commission adopts rules for the state’s Coastal Area Management Act and Dredge and Fill Act, and establishes policies for the North Carolina Coastal Management Program.

Featured Image

People on Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head watch as waves generated by Hurricane Erin crash into the concrete structure that’s part of the North Carolina Aquariums system. The storm’s center was about 260 miles east of Cape Hatteras at midday Thursday and moving out to sea, but hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 105 miles and tropical-storm-force winds extended up to 320 miles from the sprawling but weakening storm’s eye. Life-threatening surf and rip current conditions will likely continue as storm surge and flood risks subside. The pier’s website provides information on current conditions and live webcam views. Photo: Kip Tabb

The North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission will consider next week adopting proposed boundaries of the area of environmental concern for Jockey’s Ridge State Park.

The commission is scheduled to meet at the Tryon Palace History Center, 529 S. Front St. in New Bern at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 27 with a public input and comment period scheduled for 3 p.m. The meeting will resume at 9 a.m. Aug. 28.

During the coming meeting, the commission is expected to vote on whether to approve the boundaries of Jockey’s Ridge AEC, a designation that creates strict development rules to protect the tallest active sand dune along the Atlantic Coast.

Under the designation, the removal of more than 10 cubic yards of sand in one year within the boundary of the park’s AEC will require a Coastal Area Management Act, or CAMA, permit. Sand that is removed must be placed within an area of the park designated by the N.C. Division of Coastal Management in consultation with the state Department of Natural Cultural Resources’ Division of Parks and Recreation.

The rule would also prevent sand within the AEC from being altered or prevented from moving freely by development activities “except when necessary” to maintain or construct a road, residential or commercial structure, accessway, lawn, garden, or parking area “unless by allowed by the park’s management plan.

Last year, the CRC unanimously approved a permanent rule identifying Jockey’s Ridge as a unique geologic feature AEC, a designation that has received overwhelming public support.

The commission will also consider adopting amendments to urban waterfront rules and exceptions within ocean hazard areas, and approving the Bogue Banks Beach Management Plan.

The full agenda and briefing materials are available on the CRC website.

The public may attend the meetings in person or join online on the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s YouTube channel.

A long-operating, family-owned motel in the heart of Ocracoke was sold at an auction earlier this week.

The Silver Lake Motel & Inn and former Jolly Roger Pub & Marine sold July 29 for $4.1 million to Greenville-based property management company ABC Family, LLC, according to a report in the Ocracoke Observer.

Dewey Dunn, Country Boys Auction & Realty Inc.’s vice president of real estate and marketing, told the Observer that the property was sold to a regional, family-owned group, one, he emphasized, that would uphold the island’s character and community values.

Dunn told the publication that the new owners plan to overhaul the motel and inn by bringing new infrastructure and amenities and restoring the Jolly Roger to its former charm.

The motel and inn remain in full operation.

The North Carolina Maritime Museums‘ three locations on the coast house maritime history, coastal heritage and marine environments.

The Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras, the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Beaufort and the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Southport each offer unique exhibits and programs designed for all ages.

The museums highlight maritime and coastal culture including fishermen, boatbuilders and decoy carvers, as well as presents exhibits tell the tales of painters and pirates, shipwrecks and sailboats and marine life and maritime habitat protection. 

“See relics pulled from the deep, build a boat, follow Civil War battles fought along the coast, cast a line and learn about the state’s seafood industry, sail or paddle along waterways, and retrace Blackbeard’s voyages and ultimate demise,” according to the website.

Graveyard of the Atlantic August programs

The Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras is named in honor of the thousands of shipwrecks that rest in the waters off North Carolina’s coast and is dedicated to the preservation and presentation of the state’s coastal and shipwreck history.

Located at at 59200 Museum Drive in Hatteras, the museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Admission is free, though donations are appreciated. For more information, visit graveyardoftheatlantic.com or call 252-986-0720.

The programs are being offered at no charge and registration is not required.

Kids Crafts 10:30 a.m. to noon Aug. 4, Aug. 11, Aug. 18 and Aug. 25. Join staff and volunteers from the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum for free crafts on Mondays in the museum library/education space located off the lobby.

Salty Dawgs Lecture Series are held at 11 a.m. every Tuesday and feature presentations on North Carolina maritime history and culture.

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Aug. 5. Join National Park Service Ranger Ann-Marie to learn about the 1870 Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, which “protects one of the most hazardous sections of the Atlantic Coast,” according to the National Park Service.

Jockeys Ridge State Park Aug. 12. Join North Carolina Park Ranger Austin Paul to learn about the tallest living sand dune system on the Atlantic coast and is located in Dare County.

“Shipwreck Rescues of the Outer Banks” Aug. 19. Join historian James Charlet for the final program in a three-part presentation on his new book, “Shipwreck Rescues of the Outer Banks,” which chronicles the United States Life-Saving Service’s missions and rescues off the North Carolina coast.

“Changing Sands and Rising Seas: The Future of Maritime Heritage” Aug. 26. Maddie Roth, a doctoral candidate in East Carolina University’s Integrated Coastal Sciences Program will discuss opportunities to better understand and preserve shipwreck sites, aids to navigation, and the maritime traditions of the state’s coast.

Beaufort’s August programs

During summer break, the museum offers Summer Science School courses designed to give children hands-on experiences with North Carolina’s environment, history, and culture. Some courses take place outside the main museum building and may involve travel. Advance registration is required, which can be done online.

Summer Science School: Seashore Life II is set for 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 5-7. For fifth and sixth graders, students will investigate estuarine habitats, plants and animals through field and lab studies. The course includes a field trip to the Rachel Carson Reserve, water quality testing, plankton identification and other activities. Class fee is $120, or $108 for Friends of the Museum

Summer Science School: Pirates! 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 7-8. Youngsters entering first and second grades will be able to learn about life at sea and how pirates lived. The crew will build their own boats, set the rules of the ship, and go on a treasure hunt to find the hidden treasure. Class fee is $90, or $81 for Friends of the Museum.

Limited scholarships are available. Email courtney.felton@dncr.nc.gov or call 252-504-7758 for more information.

Though the North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort is currently closed for construction, the Carteret County-based facility will continue to offer programs in the Harvey W. Smith Watercraft Center across the street in the downtown area and other nearby locations.

Build a Boat in a Day 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Aug. 2, Aug. 16 and Aug. 22 in the watercraft center. Teams will assemble a 12-foot-long, flat-bottomed plywood boat from a prepared kit suitable for paddling. Minimum age is 8 and the teams of no more than four people must include at least one adult. Course fee is $650, or $585 for Friends of the Museum members, which sponsors the program. Course size is limited, and registration is required and can be done online or by calling 252-504-7758.

Introduction to Wooden Boat Building 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Aug. 9-10. Participants will learn about planking methods, both carvel and lapstrake, and use of appropriate fasteners. After two days, you will have the knowledge, skill, and confidence to choose a design and style of boat to build on your own.  Class fee is $200, or $180 for Friends of the Museum. Minimum age is 16. Course size is limited, and registration is required.

Kids’ Cove: Whales 9 to 11 a.m. Aug. 13. The drop-in program for ages 5 and younger and their caregivers takes place in the Beaufort Train Depot at 614 Broad St. Participation is free but registration is preferred.

Hiking and History on Shackleford Banks 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 19. The guided hike on Shackleford Banks, a part of Cape Lookout National Seashore in Carteret County, is for ages 12 and older. Participants will take a ferry to an undeveloped barrier island where they will hike about 1.5 miles along sandy terrain. All those under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Cost is $35 and $31.50 for Friends of the Museum. Register online by noon the day before the program.

“By Hook or By Crook, Women Pirates Anne Bonny and Mary Read” 11 a.m. Aug. 21. Associate Education Curator Christine Brin will share what is known about the lives of these women, how they came to be pirates, and their fates. This program is part of the museum’s Maritime Heritage Lecture Series that features talks about the rich maritime history, coastal environment and culture. The in-person only talk will take place in the Fort Macon Coastal Education Center in Atlantic Beach. Admission is free. Registration is not required. 

Kayak the Salt Marsh 9 a.m. to noon Aug. 26. Basic kayak instruction and safety lessons on shore are followed by a 1.5-mile paddle through the salt marsh in sit-in cockpit touring kayaks, or bring your own. The program is for ages 12 and older. Participants under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. All must know how to swim and some kayak experience is recommended. Cost is $35 or $30 if you bring your own kayak and $27-31.50 for Friends of the Museum. Register online by noon the day prior to the program.

Southport August programs

The North Carolina Maritime Museum at Southport, which collects, preserves and interprets material culture pertinent to the maritime history of the Lower Cape Fear region.

The location has two public programs scheduled for this month.

Go Fish! is set for 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug. 2. part of the Skipper’s Crew series at the Southport facility, which features hands-on activities and take-home crafts focusing on combining arts and history. Participants can fish for a wooden fish swimming in a sea of blue tissue paper, then decorate your fish and take it home. The program is for all ages, but specifically geared toward younger visitors.

Lights will be dimmed and interactive displays muted during the first two hours to provide a calmer environment for those with sensory sensitivities.

Maritime Weapons of the 18^th Century 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug. 16. Join a costumed interpreter at the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Southport to learn about weapons used at sea during the 1700s. The program is part of the museum’s Deep Dive into History series. The free drop-in program is designed to give visitors a deeper understanding of our shared past. Visitors can interact one-on-one with the presenter at any time during the program.

For more information on either program being offered at no charge, visit ncmaritimemuseumsouthport.com or call 910-477-5151.

The official tourism authority for Dare County’s Outer Banks will soon begin accepting applications for grants to boost programs that draw visitors to the region.

Only Dare County nonprofits and governmental agencies are eligible to apply for the event grants through the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau starting Aug. 1. Deadline is Aug. 15.

Grants must be applied for no less than four months ahead of an eligible event scheduled for Sept. 7 through June 15, which is outside peak tourism season.

The visitors bureau also plans to begin accepting applications for tourism grant impact awards starting Sept. 1 from county-based nonprofits and governmental agencies. This grant assists with programs or services needed due to tourism impacts. The 30-day application period ends Sept. 30.

Tourism grant impact awards of more than $50,000 require a match. Grants are disbursed on a reimbursement basis.

Applicants must contact the grant administrator, Diane Bognich, before submitting an application to describe the project and determine whether the project is eligible. Bognich may be reached at bognich@outerbanks.org  or by calling 252-473-2138

The Outer Banks are known for vast, uncrowded beaches, towering lighthouses, and unique cottages, and while these features beckon millions of visitors, some Outer Banks communities are not as well-known.

Rather than towns, most communities here are unincorporated villages, each home to residential homes and unobtrusive tourist accommodations, a few businesses, and a post office. Hatteras may be one of the best known of these villages.

While it is much smaller than incorporated coastal towns like Beaufort or Edenton, Hatteras is home to centuries of history and a number of notable sites, particularly on the southwest tip of its namesake island.

Hatteras Island was populated in the 16th century by the Croatoan Native Americans. They hunted, fished and ate oysters, depositing the shells in massive middens that are one of the few remaining visible indicators of where they lived. They were one of the many Native peoples that the Roanoke Colony interacted with in the 1580s.

The Croatans allied with the Europeans and counted among their numbers Manteo, the first Native American christened by the English in the New World. They factor into the story of the Lost Colony, since Hatteras Island was one of the many areas where the colonists were rumored to have gone after leaving Roanoke. Due to the shifting sands of Hatteras and the lack of definitive records, the fate of the colonists remains a mystery to this day.

Europeans returned to the area in the middle of the 17th century. Historian David Stick notes in his book, “The Outer Banks of North Carolina,” that the first documented English settlers on Hatteras Banks, Patrick Mackuen and William Reed, likely arrived there by 1711. People on Hatteras lived by fishing, farming, and piloting boats. They also took cargo from the many shipwrecks that regularly washed ashore from the Graveyard of the Atlantic.

Despite a growing number of families living on Hatteras, the area was slow to develop as a proper town. Isolated and accessible only by water, Hatteras did not abut one of the major inlets that was open during the colonial period. As a result, it was ignored by the same legislative assemblies that facilitated town construction at nearby Portsmouth and Ocracoke islands. Although numerous people resided on the southwestern portion of the island by the late 18th century, colonial maps often showed just the empty banks and the cape. The area known today as Hatteras Village finally gained its first post office in 1858.

Hatteras remained mostly isolated through the 18th and early 19th centuries. But while it did not have obvious economic importance, it did have military significance to any group wanting to approach or protect North Carolina by water. This led to the construction of Confederate forts Hatteras and Clark on Hatteras Inlet in 1861.

The forts were surrendered to Union in the first combined action of the Army and Navy during the Civil War. This success, the first by Union Gen. Ambrose Burnside, helped the Union gain control of the North Carolina coast and allowed for future invasions of Roanoke Island and the eastern part of the state.

The post-Civil War period saw the emergence of coastal life-saving stations. These buildings housed crews organized to rescue victims from shipwrecks using the latest technology, such as the Lyle gun used to shoot rescue lines.

Three U.S. Life-saving Service stations lined Hatteras Island by 1905, from Durants near the village to Cape Hatteras at the eastern end of the island. Along with greater lifesaving capabilities came a new effort at political organization. Dare County, one of the last counties formed in North Carolina, was created in 1870 from what had been parts of Currituck, Hyde and Tyrrell counties to help administer the far-flung islands of the Outer Banks. Its southern boundary was the western tip of Hatteras Island.

The modern village of Hatteras began to develop in the early 20th century. Locals built a string of houses such as the Ellsworth and Lovie Ballance House, circa 1915, one of the oldest structures in the village and a survivor of numerous hurricanes over the past century, according to state historic preservation records. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

Growth came mainly from tourism. Greater rail and automobile transportation helped more and more visitors reach the beach from such areas as Raleigh, Charlotte and northern cities. More tourists meant an increase in ferry traffic and the growth of roads that made those ferries accessible, such as the highway that became U.S. 264 connecting Belhaven, Swan Quarter and U.S. Highway 64 near Manns Harbor.

In the 1930s, the conservation movement also brought nature tourism to the island through the authorization of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore in 1937, one of the first seashore-protection programs in the country. Conservation protected a unique ecosystem that continues to bring thousands of birding, fishing, and native plant enthusiasts each year. 

With these dynamics in place, Hatteras became a popular vacation destination. Thousands flocked to the coast every summer and engaged in new recreational activities such as surfing and kiteboarding. Demand led to new transportation outlets. The state began to pave roads on Hatteras Island in the 1950s, but it was the completion of the Herbert S. Bonner Bridge in 1963 that provided a direct land connection between Hatteras and the rest of the country.

Soon, the island became home to shops, restaurants and hotels, as well as the familiar fishing shacks and isolated tourist cottages. A 1990 New York Times travel article that praised Hatteras Island’s beach as “one of the loveliest on the East Coast,” also singled out the village for offering “the color of a commercial fishing hub.”

Hatteras has become one of the most popular tourist destinations on the East Coast, growth that has fundamentally altered life in the sleepy fishing village. About 500 residents now live in Hatteras Village fulltime. There are about a dozen restaurants, several seafood markets, general stores, visitor centers, and the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum. A number of these businesses operate year-round and cater to both locals and the summer influx of tourists.

Despite these changes, residents largely are thankful that Hatteras retains much of its village charm.

Patricia Peele, a lifelong resident of the island, told Coastal Review that as recently as 15 years ago, it was like “they used to roll the streets up at 9 p.m. on Labor Day.”

Now, there are always tourists, filling a plethora of mini-hotels across the island. But Peele said that despite the changes, she knows that Hatteras is still secluded compared to the rest of the Outer Banks. It is “not built up like a lot of other places are,” and with the protections provided by the National Park Service, growth will likely remain limited.

Still, Hatteras Village faces many of the same challenges as the rest of the Outer Banks, including those related to rising sea levels, limited resources and strong coastal storms.

The Basnight Bridge, which replaced the Bonner Bridge when the 2.8-mile, $254 million project was completed in 2019, keeps Hatteras Island connected to the mainland, and no matter the challenges, people of Hatteras will likely continue to adapt to life on their ocean sandbar — just as they always have.

The public can hear an update on the work taking place to clean up the former Buxton Naval Facility site during the next Restoration Advisory Board meeting.

Doors open to the public at 5:15 p.m. and the meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, July 17, in the Cape Hatteras Anglers Club, 47231 Light Plant Road, Buxton.

The public will be able to ask questions the last 15 minutes of the meeting, starting at 7:15 p.m. People from the community are encouraged to submit questions to CESAS-FUDS@usace.army.mil.

Now called the Buxton Formerly Used Defense Site, the area around the Buxton beach access on Hatteras Island was a base for both Navy and Coast Guard operations from 1956 until 2010, when it was returned to the National Park Service. The Formerly Used Defense Sites Program manages the environmental restoration, or cleanup, of properties formerly owned or occupied by the U.S. Defense Department.

Back on Sept. 1, 2023, officials with the Cape Hatteras National Seashore announced that the beach beside the former military site had eroded, uncovering potentially hazardous infrastructure associated with the military’s previous use. This was after surfers and visitors reported a strong smell of petroleum.

Gayle Garland, project manager of the Buxton FUDS property for the Army Corps of Engineers, is to provide an update about the current property environmental restoration projects during the meeting.  

The Corps said last fall that it had removed nearly 4,600 cubic yards of petroleum-laced soil; nearly 100,000 gallons of petroleum-contaminated water; 278,000 pounds of concrete; 1,153 feet of pipe; and 1,088 feet of metal cable and wire.

The section of beach was closed in 2023 because of health and safety concerns related to petroleum contamination and potentially hazardous remnant military infrastructure, until it reopened in June.

This is the second meeting of the advisory board that was selected March 25. The first meeting was April 10. The board does not make decisions, but allows for the community to take part in the cleanup process.

Before composing over two dozen volumes of poetry, before becoming a professor at the prestigious Cornell University in upstate New York, and long before winning any of his numerous national literary awards, Archibald Randolph Ammons was a poor boy working on his father’s Columbus County farm during the Great Depression.

Ammons would eventually achieve fame under the byline “A.R. Ammons,” a heralded poet noted for his beautiful but also scientifically precise descriptions of nature. However, with those who knew him personally, including those who knew him during his formative years in coastal Carolina, he went by the less precise but more identifiable name “Archie.”

‘Alluvial country’

Archie Ammons was born in his family’s farmhouse just outside of Whiteville on Feb. 18, 1926. The fields he helped his father plow during his youth were 6 short miles from Lake Waccamaw and only 35 miles from the Brunswick County beach communities his family would travel to for the occasional fish fry or oyster roast. Ammons spent these hardscrabble years mostly behind hitched mules, furrowing the soil in which he and his father grew corn, tobacco, peanuts and other cash crops so typical of eastern North Carolina agricultural districts.

Though he would not begin writing poetry until some years later, his experiences on the farm and in what he called the “alluvial country” of the coastal plains impressed him deeply and would eventually find voice in his writing.  

For instance, in the poem “Silver,” about a mule his family owned during his childhood, Ammons remembers how he and Silver would “fall soon again into the slow requirements of our dreams / how we turned at the ends of rows without sense to new furrows and went back / flicked by / cornblades and hearing the circling in / the cornblades of horseflies in pursuit.”

In the poem “I’m the Type,” Ammons would look back at his early life on the farm in light of his later career as a famous writer and note how he “misses the mules and cows / hogs and chickens, misses / the rain making little / rivers, well-figured with / tributaries through the / sand yard.” Ammons learned in his childhood to be attentive to the living world around him, including not only the plants and animals but also the physical forces that shape living things. They entered his imagination as a boy and stayed with him the rest of his life.

From the South Pacific to the Outer Banks   

According to Roger Gilbert, a professor of English literature at Cornell University who is writing a biography of his former colleague, the Ammons family farm was not particularly successful, so a young Ammons sought employment in the largest nearby city.

“He had been working in the shipyards in Wilmington after high school and one day he came home and the farm had been sold,” Gilbert said in a recent interview. “That farm had been his world growing up. So when that was gone, when it was no longer a place that belonged to him, I think he felt he’d lost that sense of having a home.”

This bitter loss began a whirlwind period in Ammons’s life. American involvement in the Pacific theater of World War II was ramping up just as he graduated high school. With no more family farm to tend, Ammons enlisted in the Navy. He was deployed as a sonar operator aboard the destroyer U.S.S. Gunason, on which he sailed through the South Pacific, listening for the pings of reverberating soundwaves that could signal the underwater presence of enemy vessels or weapons.

It was also during this time, on the long voyages at sea, that Archie began writing his first poems. He was training the precision of his ear in more ways than one.  

When the war ended, the poor country boy from Whiteville took advantage of the GI Bill to attend Wake Forest College. Ammons graduated in 1949 and left town with a Bachelor of Science and, more importantly, a courtship with his future wife, Phyllis.

He moved almost immediately to the Outer Banks village of Hatteras, where he would spend the 1949-50 academic year as principal of tiny Hatteras Elementary School — and where Phyllis would join him after their wedding during Thanksgiving break.

Though he was only on the Dare County island for a year, the dramatic seascapes of the Outer Banks entered his poetic imagination just as the sandy farmland of Whiteville had. In an unpublished poem written during his first summer on Hatteras, and kindly provided by Professor Gilbert out of the Ammons archive at Cornell University, Archie tried to capture in words the strange magic of the Banks at night: “Night has come to this small island, / Drowsing on the golden dunes cool-mist opiates. / Far out at sea, a ship’s sea-lantern sways / And a lost gull screams.”

Gilbert noted that Ammons, by this point, had not yet found his unique poetic voice. But “the Hatteras landscape stayed with him and influenced some of those early poems,” he said.

A Second Vision of Land and Sea

By “those early poems,” Gilbert was referring to Ammons’s first collection of poetry, “Ommateum,” which he self-published in 1955. By this point, Ammons was living in New Jersey and working at his father-in-law’s manufacturing firm, which made glassware for laboratories.

In “Ommateum,” Ammons began to dabble in the scientific specificity and abstraction that would later become a hallmark of his style. More central to his first book, however, is one of Ammons’s mainstay themes: the transience of nature and human life.

In fact, the very first poem in “Ommateum” draws on the windswept ecology of Cape Hatteras to show us a narrator, Ezra, seeking his voice amid a powerful vortex of natural forces. Reworking many of the specific images and themes of his unpublished poem from his year in Hatteras, Ammons describes how Ezra speaks his name to the sea, “but there were no echoes from the waves / The words were swallowed up / in the voice of the surf.” The protagonist has to turn away “from the wind / that ripped sheets of sand / from the beach and threw them / like seamists across the dunes.”

Finally realizing the futility of fighting the wind, Ezra decides instead to adapt to and even become part of the landscape. “So I Ezra went out into the night,” the poem ends, “like a drift of sand / and splashed among the windy oats / that clutch the dunes / of unremembered seas.”

The poem sets the tone for the rest of the volume and, in a way, for the rest of Ammons’s career. It is somehow fitting that a poet from coastal North Carolina would begin his first book looking for meaning in a sea squall.  

According to Alex Albright, a retired professor of creative writing at East Carolina University and the editor of the indispensable Ammons volume “The North Carolina Poems,” “There’s a journal entry from when (Ammons was) in the Navy that provides a controlling metaphor for his life.”

“He sees off in the distance the fine line of the horizon,” Albright said in a telephone interview, “and as he gets closer and closer to it, it’s not really a straight line. It’s that second vision that he brings to a lot of his landscapes.”

Becoming a classic

“Ommateum” sold barely any copies when it first appeared. But little by little, Ammons began making inroads into the professional poetry establishment. Individual poems started getting picked up by journals and magazines here and there throughout the 1950s, and in 1964 he was hired to teach poetry writing at Cornell University, where he would later become a full professor and befriend Roger Gilbert.

The same year also saw the publication of his second collection, “Expressions of Sea Level,” this time by a major university press. From that point on until his death in 2001, Ammons would never go more than four years without releasing a new volume.

From the 1970s through the end of the 1990s, Ammons’s star rose without cease. He won the National Book Award for one collection of poetry in 1973, then the prestigious Bollingen Prize for Poetry for a different collection in 1975. It was around this time that the influential literary critic Harold Bloom said that “No contemporary poet, in America, is likelier to become a classic than A.R. Ammons.”

As if to prove Bloom’s point, Ammons released a volume in 1981 that received the National Book Critics Circle Award, and another volume 12 years later that won him his second National Book Award.  In October 2000, just five months before his death at age 75, he was inducted into the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame.

Albright, who knew Ammons personally through their work together at the North Carolina Literary Review, pointed out that the shy, affable farm boy from Whiteville was aware he had a gift.

“He knew that he was in a rare class,” Albright said. “He had a Southern way of deflecting praise, but there were very few poets that he imagined were as good as he was.”

Not Deep down but across

Ammons is by no means omnipresent in Whiteville today, but neither is he or the world of his childhood totally forgotten. His family home was torn down years ago, but Whiteville High School has a couple of old buildings he would have sat in as a student in the 1930s, and the Pentecostal church he attended with his parents still stands out by Spring Branch. There is no plaque for him in town, but the Reuben Brown House, a historic preservation group in Columbus County, runs an annual poetry contest in his honor.

The fields and swamps he roamed as a boy are in a similar state of in-between. “Until very recently he would have recognized the Columbus County landscape,” Albright said. “The bridges are a little better, but it’s still swampy. There’s still bugs, it’s still quiet, and you’re still really close to the coast out there.”

According to Albright, even the Brunswick County beaches of Ammons’s youth have not yet been totally transformed.

“There’s a little place when you go to the right on Ocean Isle, that’s where they went for their oyster roasts,” he said, “and on the back end, you can sort of forget that the high-rise bridge is going over to Ocean Isle, and it can feel very isolated.”

Still, Ammons was powerfully attentive to and protective of the natural world. The poet would likely have some strong opinions about the lack of care taken for the soil, water, trees and animals of southeastern North Carolina if he saw it today.

“He could be looked at as an early environmentalist,” Albright said of his old friend. “His feel for the land was just something. And part of what he would see would be heartbreaking. The factory tree farming, especially.”

In “Making Fields,” one of his most moving poems about his North Carolina roots, Ammons describes the give and take between the land and his ancestors who worked that land going back to his father’s father.

The life he presents to readers in this poem is a hard one, and it unfolds overtop a thin coastal soil stratum that doesn’t always offer bounty and wealth. But at the end of the poem, Ammons can still clearly see and hear his connection to the place of his birth.

“… the land is not deep down but across, as into time” he writes. “the runs, the / ditch banks, the underbrush, the open fields with a persimmon tree / or wild cherry call, they call me.” 

Indigenous advocate and author Gray Michael Parsons of Frisco is scheduled to speak this weekend on the “Balance, Resilience, and Indigenous Wisdom,” second in Coastal Carolina Riverwatch‘s Cultural Perspectives Series.

His talk is from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday at Promise Land Market in downtown Morehead City. The nonprofit is offering the community event at no charge, but space is limited and advance registration is required to attend.

Parsons is a descendant of the Machapunga-Mattamuskeet people of the North Carolina Inner Banks and founder of the Secotan Alliance … and Beyond, a nonprofit formed in 2023 to honor Indigenous heritage, promote environmental stewardship, and uplift traditional Earth ethics. He is author of two books, “Hope on Hatterask” published in 2013 and “Pampico Blue” published in 2025.

The Secotan Alliance organization is named in honor of Chief Wingina, who led the Roanoke-Secotan tribe that occupied almost all of what is now called the Albemarle Peninsula, which includes Dare, Hyde, Beaufort, Washington and Tyrrell counties, when the English first made contact in the 1580s, according to the Secotan Alliance website.

“Parsons will speak on the significance of Indigenous ecological knowledge, the legacy of the Secotan people, and the enduring values of leadership, land connection, and community. Attendees will have an opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue and informal conversation with Parsons following the talk,” organizers said.

Coastal Carolina Riverwatch is an advocacy organization dedicated to protecting and enhancing the waters in the White Oak River Basin.

Update 4:30 p.m. Tuesday: The Ocracoke fireworks have been canceled due to the threat of thunderstorms and high winds forecast for Wednesday, July 2. The pre-fireworks gathering at the National Park Service docks has also been canceled.

Original post:

There are two fireworks shows planned for this week in celebration of the Fourth of July holiday on Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

A permitted show is scheduled for 9:15 p.m. Wednesday at the south end of Ocracoke Island and at 9 p.m. Friday at the Avon Fishing Pier.

Seashore officials are taking the opportunity to remind the public that it is illegal to detonate fireworks, or have fireworks in your possession, on all seashore beaches, including those on Ocracoke Island and in Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, Avon, Buxton, Frisco and Hatteras Village.

“In addition to fireworks being illegal and a significant fire risk to local communities, the personal use of fireworks can be a considerable nuisance to humans, pets and wildlife,” officials said, adding that seashore law enforcement are to patrol beaches throughout the holiday week.

The new Cape Hatteras Lighthouse multiuse pathway in Buxton was officially opened Thursday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The 1.25-mile-long, 10- to 12-foot-wide, accessible concrete pathway connects Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and Old Lighthouse Beach. There are interpretive signs along the path explaining the history of when the lighthouse was moved to its current location in 1999, the seashore’s ecology and its distinction as a watersports destination.

Outer Banks Forever is the official nonprofit partner of the seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and Wright Brothers National Memorial and began raising funds to build the pathway in the fall of 2022.

Outer Banks Forever and Cape Hatteras National Seashore held the ceremony for the pathway that “quietly opened to the community in the fall of 2024,” and “hundreds of parkgoers have been using it for walking, biking, strolling, dog walking, and more, now safely separated from traffic,” according to the nonprofit.

Outer Banks Forever and the seashore are currently working to build and install an accessible restroom and shower facility at the Old Lighthouse Beach Access, with a target completion date of early 2026.

Donors to the nonprofit, a Tourism Impact Grant from the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, and grants from the Federal Highways Administration helped fund the pathway.

Outer Banks Visitors Bureau Executive Director Lee Nettles announced that the Dare County Tourism Board was proud to support the project.

“Dare County tourism is a $2.15 billion industry representing 46% of the jobs within our county, but visitor spending also provides funding for the Tourism Board’s grant programs,” Nettles said in a news release. “The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Pathway project is an example of how tourism can improve safety and the quality of life for both visitors and residents.”

HATTERAS — Long famous for its bountiful fishing, Hatteras Island now has a new state-of-the-art processing and packing facility that keeps Outer Banks fish local from sea to plate, while also enabling local fresh catch to be shipped directly to customers.

And it’s owned by a local fishing family, to boot.

“The thing was, all this fish used to go to Virginia to get processed,” owner Jeff Aiken said during a recent tour of Jeffrey’s Seafood, situated along Back Creek in Hatteras Village.

The business officially opened May 21 during a ribbon-cutting celebration.

At a time when commercial and charter fishing enterprises face multiple challenges, the new facility is especially good news, Lynne Foster wrote in a message to Coastal Review.

“Jeffrey’s brings vitality to our Working Waterfront,” said Foster who along with her husband Ernie Foster run the Hatteras-based Albatross Fleet. “It also offers hope to the fishing community as well as the island community, which include many supporting businesses that rely on a vibrant fishing fleet and the sale of their catches.”

Working nearby in the chilly, 55-degree fish-cutting room, with heavy metal music seeming to set the pace, Aiken’s son Kelsey, 35, skillfully sliced through fish, one after another, cleaning and filleting. Along with another four or so people, they work their knives swiftly on large tables from early morning hours until about noon.

“As soon as we cut it, it gets bagged, we vacuum seal it and then it’s placed in a box to be shipped,” Kelsey Aiken said. Delivery drivers transport fish to local restaurants and markets from Hatteras to Avon, and sometimes to Rodanthe and Ocracoke. Fish awaiting processing are packed in ice, or stored in large freezers.

In addition to a temperature-controlled fish cleaning and cutting area, and rooms for packing, freezers and storage, the 11,000-square-foot facility also includes Hatteras Seafoods, the new retail market on the ground floor. Additional space remains for a small restaurant that is being planned, with the idea of serving local seafood favorites as well as beer and wine.

Proper cooling is provided by on-site freezers as large as walk-in closets, and the flash freezer — 30 degrees below zero — includes three gigantic fans to keep the air moving. There is also a chute from an ice machine on the upper floor to an “ice room” below.

“This is the brand-new vacuum sealer,” Jeff Aiken said, pointing to a long, steel machine with a pressing device on top. “That’s a $35,000 piece of equipment,” he added, as Kelsey Aiken demonstrated on a rockfish, using a 4-milliliter bag.

Nearby, there is the shrimp grader, another huge machine that not only pinches off the shrimps’ little heads, but also sorts them by four different sizes.

Jeff Aiken said that the business buys most of its shrimp from Native Seafood in Ocracoke, which has a deepwater inlet.

Although the warmer water from climate change has created boom years for shrimpers from Florida to Virginia, Jeff Aiken said, most of the local catch has to be processed in Engelhard and Swan Quarter because of depth limitations for the 60-foot shrimp trawlers. But he said that he hopes they’ll be able to get smaller shrimp boats into Hatteras for processing in the near future.

The retail store displays whole fish on ice in the glass cabinet, as well as filleted fish. A large window offers the customers in the retail store a view into the remarkably shiny and clean cutting room, showing the men, all wearing gloves and waterproof overalls, as they worked.

“I wanted them to see what’s going on,” Jeff Aiken said.

Fish scraps are returned to the water, to be happily “recycled” by other sea creatures, he added.

The facility also has an upstairs area for offices, meetings and storage, with an outside deck that boasts a wide view of the creek, the Pamlico Sound and lovely sunsets. Once the new website is up and running this winter, fresh-frozen filleted fish and shellfish will be able to be ordered online and shipped next-day air directly to consumers.

Jeff Aiken, along with his then-partners, founded the original fish house at the Hatteras docks in the 1980s, soon expanding to a wholesale business that involved driving a refrigerated truck packed with fresh Outer Banks catch to Hampton, Virginia.

Over the years, Jeff Aiken’s business adapted and evolved along with the fishing industry, as numerous local fish retailers and processors downsized or closed entirely.

But it was the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when supply chain disruptions left local chefs without fish to serve, that led to the dramatic expansion of Aiken’s business.

“They said, ‘Hey, you got the fish. Can you cut the fish?’” Jeff Aiken recalled. “So from that point, it spread by word of mouth and they kept coming.”

By then, Kelsey Aiken and his wife, Kelly, had joined Jeff Aiken in the business.

Jeff Aiken said he had purchased the fish house from Lee Peele, who had owned it when it was called Quality Seafood. It is also where he worked for $5 an hour when he first came to the Outer Banks in 1981.

“We were finally out of that little space out of Hatteras Harbor and we were cleaning all the fish for the charter vessels,” he recalled.

Jeff Aiken, who is from Hampton, Virginia, where he still has a home, credits his daughter-in-law Kelly, the company’s retail manager, with securing grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2021 to renovate and enlarge the facility with the goal of improving efficiency and capacity. The business had to pony up about a third of the matching funds.

“We’re in it for a million and they’re in it for two,” Jeff Aiken said. “And they got what they paid for.”

Now local chefs at local restaurants can ask for the fish they want to be filleted to order, Kelly Aiken said. Whenever possible, she said, the fin fish as well as seasonal oysters, shrimp and crab are local catch, and Jeffrey’s continues to partner with Ocracoke and Wanchese fish operations. The business also works with a distributer to bring its fresh fish — frozen and labeled — to North Carolina farmers markets to sell.

But Jeff Aiken said while their business sells almost all North Carolina product, and would never buy foreign shrimp, it’s impossible to guarantee that all their fish is strictly from the Outer Banks since fishers work within the realities of fisheries ecosystems and seasons.

“Fish have fins and tails and they swim,” he said. “They go where ever they want.”

And some fish they sell aren’t local at all, such as salmon from Norway or Scotland.

Jeff Aiken said that they buy most of their shrimp from Native Seafood in Ocracoke, which has a deepwater inlet. Although the warmer water from climate change has created boom years for shrimpers from Florida to Virginia, he continued, most of the local catch has to be processed in Engelhard and Swan Quarter because of water depth limitations for the 60-foot trawlers. But he added that he hopes they’ll be able to get smaller shrimp boats into Hatteras for processing in the near future.

Any customers looking for a brief history of Hatteras fishing can walk to the hallway behind the retail store to view a collection of historic to contemporary photographs of fishermen, including Jeff Aiken, with their boats, their family, their friends and the fish they caught.

“We call it the Hall of Fame,” he said, adding with a laugh: “Or, the Hall of Shame.”

One prominent picture is of the Ada Mae, a skipjack built in 1915 by Ralph Hodges and named after his then 13-year-old sister, who was Jeff Aiken’s grandmother.

The vessel, a former oyster dredge boat that is believed to be the last surviving skipjack in the state, has been restored. Today the boat is moored in New Bern and has participated in the reenactment of Blackbeard’s battle on Ocracoke Island, with Jeff Aiken onboard.

“All of those guys are local fishermen,” Jeff Aiken said, in between telling numerous fish tales about the various scenes lining the walls. “These pictures kind of bring the life to commercial fishing.”

Outer Banks Visitors Bureau Executive Director Lee Nettles and Community Engagement Officer Jeff Shwartzenberg are scheduled to speak about long-range tourism plans during the next “Science on the Sound” Lecture Series.

The two are to present “Finding Balance: The Outer Banks Long-Range Tourism Management Plan” beginning at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 19, at the Coastal Studies Institute on the East Carolina University Outer Banks Campus in Wanchese.

Recently, Dare County’s Outer Banks tourism spending “has reached record levels, surpassing more than $2 billion in visitor spending in 2023, an all-time high and ranking fourth among North Carolina counties behind only Mecklenburg, Wake, and Buncombe. However, with that economic success also comes impacts that can negatively affect a community,” officials said in a statement.

Nettles and Schwartzenberg are expected to highlight recommendations on how the power of tourism can help improve the quality of life for residents, while protecting the delicate natural environment and preserving the unique history and culture of the area.

The public is welcome and encouraged to attend the program. The program will also be livestreamed on the institute’s YouTube channel for those who cannot make it in person.

This monthly, in-person lecture series brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in northeastern North Carolina.

After a delay, the two vehicle ferry routes that cross Pamlico Sound to Ocracoke are now operating on the previously announced summer schedule.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division announced earlier this week the increase in trips for the Cedar Island-Ocracoke ferry and the Swan Quarter-Ocracoke ferry.

NCDOT in May alerted travelers that moving to the expanded schedule as planned on May 20 had been postponed while Army Corps of Engineers dredged Bigfoot Slough, the ferry channel near the village’s Silver Lake Harbor.

On Tuesday, ferries on the two routes began adhering to the following schedule:

• Cedar Island-Ocracoke: 7:30 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
• Ocracoke-Cedar Island: 7:30 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
• Swan Quarter-Ocracoke: 7 a.m., 10 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
• Ocracoke-Swan Quarter: 7 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 12:45 p.m. and 3:45 p.m.

During the busy season, officials strongly recommend reservations, which can be made online at www.ncferry.org, or on the phone at 1-800-BY-FERRY.

The village is only accessible by boat or private airplane.

There are two ways to reach Ocracoke from Hatteras: the Ocracoke Express passenger ferry or the Hatteras-Ocracoke vehicle ferry. The express ferry takes reservations, the Hatteras vehicle ferry does not.

For real-time text or email updates on weather or mechanical delays, sign up for the Ferry Information Notification System at www.ncdot.gov/fins. 

Second in commentary photo-essay series, Tabb’s Trails, with coastal reporter, photographer and hiking enthusiast Kip Tabb.

It was a close thing, whether Jockey’s Ridge would be leveled for a development five decades ago.

If you find yourself at what is now the 426-acre Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Dare County, head north out of the parking lot and up one of the steepest dunes there.

In about a quarter mile, the disintegrating asphalt of a 50-year-old road is stark evidence that, if the late Carolista Baum had not stood in front of a bulldozer on Aug. 15, 1973, to prevent the sand dune system from being developed, a truly unique geological treasure would not exist today.

The North Carolina State Park System in 1975 established Jockey’s Ridge, what it calls the tallest living sand dune system on the Atlantic Coast. The Friends of Jockey’s Ridge State Park has organized a four-day, family friendly event starting Thursday to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the state park. The friends group supports the state park in Nags Head.

Related: Take a hike Saturday to celebrate National Trails Day

Details and the itinerary for all programs being offered at no charge can be found on the nonprofit organization’s website.

Jockey’s Ridge is a remarkably complex environmental wonder.

It is a harsh environment. Where the sand is deepest and most active, nothing grows. But one of the ironies of what is left of the road is the roadbed stabilized the sand, and as the asphalt cracked, opening the soil to the elements, small thickets of pine took root.

There are self-guided trails in Jockey’s Ridge State Park.

The Soundside Nature Trail is a 1.2-mile loop that begins at the main parking lot by the visitor center, and the Tracks in the Sand Trail is a 0.6-mile loop trail beginning at the Soundside parking lot.

Depending on where the hike is going, the conditions can be strenuous. Hiking conditions are fine sand and steep inclines. It’s not necessary to be an athlete, but reasonable physical condition is important.

Visitors can explore all areas of Jockey’s Ridge State Park, but there are some things to know while there.

Take water with you, especially in the summer as conditions can be extremely hot and there is no drinking water anywhere, and insect repellant is a good idea.

When hiking in the thicket at the base of the main dune, be respectful of nature. There are a surprising number of trails and no need to create a new one.

Among the dunes where the soil has stabilized, flowering plants thrive and insect life is abundant.

There are a surprising number of flowering plants that flourish in Jockey’s Ridge, perhaps none as spectacular as a mound lily yucca.

As the flowers come into full bloom this time of year, pollinators and other insects swarm to the plants, such as the trumpet vines, which are prolific on the hillocks throughout the park.

The trumpet vines are just one of many flowering plants in Jockey’s Ridge where pollinators can be spotted, including red-spotted purple butterflies.

As the foliage thickens in spring and into summer, the sound of songbirds, like the gray catbird, is a constant chorus. Usually deep in the foliage, they are heard but not seen, but sometimes they’ll make an appearance.

Following a prescribed burn in April of this year, the largest thicket, which could almost be considered a small maritime forest, is showing signs of regeneration as summer approaches.

The wooded area on the Roanoke Sound is in the wind shadow of the largest dune in Jockey’s Ridge, and extends a little over a half mile from the parking lot and recreational beach at the southeast corner of the park.

The colors of a blue grosbeak spotted on a branch in the burn area, according to Cornell University’s All About Birds website, indicate a breeding male. The species is “uncommon but widespread across the southern United States.”

If the hike is going to be fairly long and include the Roanoke Sound shoreline, there is considerable underbrush and walking through while barefoot can be painful.

Waterfowl are a frequent sight as well. In a cove off the trail, two mallards shared a quiet moment. The drake kept bringing its foot to its head in what appeared to be an attempt to scratch something by his beak.

The North Carolina Mountains-to-Sea Trail crosses the state, connecting the eastern terminus in Jockey’s Ridge State Park on the Outer Banks and the western terminus in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The nonprofit partner for national parks on the Outer Banks has opened its annual program that allows supporters to symbolically adopt sea turtle nests along Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

Outer Banks Forever, a a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and the official fundraising partner of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site and Wright Brothers National Memorial, organizes the Adopt A Sea Turtle Program raises funds for projects at the national seashore, which protects more than 30,000 acres from south Nags Head to the Ocracoke Inlet.

A donation of $100 or more reserves a 2025 sea turtle nest. Nest assignments begin in early June and will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.  

As nests become available for adoption, the donor will be assigned a nest and will receive an adoption certificate by mail or email with initial information about the nest.

When the nest hatches later in the summer or fall, the supporter will receive a personalized update in the mail with information National Park Service rangers collect about your nest, including the number of hatchlings that made their way out to sea. The average incubation time for our nests is 61 days.

National Park Service rangers monitor the 70-plus miles making up the seashore and gather data about the hundreds of sea turtle nests laid each season.

Leatherback, loggerhead, green, Hawksbill and Kemp’s Ridleys are the five species of sea turtles that typically nest on national seashore beach. There were more than 300 sea turtle nests in 2024 along the national seashore, including rare Kemp’s Ridley and Leatherback sea turtle nests.

“No individual or group who participates in this program can claim ownership of a sea turtle nest, eggs, or hatchlings. Nature is also unpredictable. If your adopted nest is lost to a weather event or damaged by some other means, we will assign you a new nest that may or may not be shared with another individual or group,” organizers said.

Contact Development & Adoption Programs Manager Nicole Erickson at nicoleerickson@obxforever.org with questions.

Visitors to Ocracoke Island this summer can learn a little about the cozy village during the Ocracoke Preservation Society’s 2025 Free Porch Talk Series.

The society was founded in 1983 with the goal to “provide access to education, research, and exploration of the island’s rich history and culture through programs, events, and exhibits,” its website states.

The nonprofit organization has maintained since 1992 a museum in the David Williams House built around 1900, where the porch talks will be held at 49 Water Plant Road. Parking is available at the National Park Service docks. Attendees are encouraged to bring drinks, snacks and their pets. Offered at no charge, the nonprofit organization welcomes donations.

Organizers have announced the June talks and plan to publicize each on its social media.

The following is the June schedule:

• 10:30 a.m. Thursday, June 5: “Stories on the porch” No. 1 with Donald Davis and his Ocracoke storytelling workshop participants.
• 1 p.m. Tuesday, June 10: Ocracoke lighthouse history, details and “My Most Memorable Climb to the Top of the Ocracoke Lighthouse” book signing with author Philip Howard.
• 1 p.m. Thursday, June 12: “Ocracoke A.D. (After Dorian)” with authors Ann Ehringhaus and Heather Johnson.
• 1 p.m. Tuesday, June 17: Ocracats Inc. Rita Thiel will discuss the clinic that manages the village’s feral cat population.
• 10:30 a.m. June 19: “Stories on the porch” No. 2 with Donald Davis and his Ocracoke storytelling workshop participants.
• 1 p.m. Tuesday, June 24: “Language and Life on Ocracoke” with authors, Jeff Reaser, Candy Gaskill and Walt Wolfram.
• 1 p.m. Thursday, June 26: Seashells of Ocracoke Island with North Carolina Shell Club member and island resident, Charlie DeCarlo.

The society is currently working on the series schedule for the remainder of the season. Contact admin@ocracokepreservationsociety.org to give a talk on a Tuesday or Thursday afternoon.

Visitors to the Rachel Carson Reserve in Beaufort are being reminded to keep a safe distance from wild horses that call the reserve home after human disturbance led to a foal being separated for hours from its mother earlier this month.

A 6-day-old foal was separated May 10 from its mother “following disturbance by humans on foot and boats,” according to a North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality release.

Several days after the foal was reunited with its mother, the young, wild horse and its social group were coaxed by a visitor on the reserve.

“Although these visitors likely did not mean harm, their behavior is illegal and can be dangerous for both the horses and visitors,” Paula Gillikin, the division’s horse herd manager for reserve, said in the release. “In particular, survival of foals can be compromised by disruptions to their natural behaviors such as nursing and resting. The first few years of a wild horse’s life are critical to their long-term survival.”

Visitors to the reserve should maintain a lawful distance of at least 50 feet away. More distance is recommended when a foal is present. Similar rules apply around wild horses roaming Shackleford Banks.

“We realize visitors and boaters are excited about seeing the new baby, but we need your help to ensure it can survive,” the reserve posted on social media.

Beaufort also has an ordinance prohibiting the harassment of wild horses and coming within 50 feet of the animals.

“While these instances are occurring more and more and being posted to social media, the most effective way to immediately address this situation is to contact my staff by call 252-726-1911,” Beaufort Police Chief Paul Burdette said in the release. “Timely identification is critical in not only protecting the horses, but for effective enforcement up to and including the issuance of citations.”

The presence of horses on the Rachel Carson Reserve goes back to the 1940s, when a local resident brought the animals to the area, where they eventually became wild, living primarily on saltmarsh cordgrass. They dig for fresh water.

Coastal Reserve staff and volunteers continually monitor the wild horse herd. Locals help protect the horses by reporting harassment, educating visitors, and participating in the volunteer Pony Patrol program.

Visitors who witness a violation on the Rachel Carson Reserve or Shackleford Banks are encouraged, if it is safe, to take a photo of an incident, including boat registration numbers, and report to the Beaufort Police Department.

North Carolina Turnpike Authority officials plan to install traffic counting devices along a section of U.S. 158, the only highway crossing the Currituck Sound, as part of the Mid-Currituck Bridge Project.

Crews were expected to begin installation at 9 a.m. Wednesday on the overhead sign on U.S. 158 near the Duck Woods Drive intersection in Kitty Hawk.

“The purpose of these devices is to gather traffic data on the number of vehicles entering the Outer Banks that are currently equipped with toll payment transponders,” officials said. “This information will be used for the authority traffic and usage forecast models, which will help in planning and managing transportation needs.”

Lanes will be closed on U.S. 158 near Duck Woods Drive one at a time while the traffic devices are installed. The work is expected to be complete by Thursday morning but is subject to change and weather dependent.

Motorists traveling during the installation are advised to be aware of the single-lane closures, exercise caution and expect potential minor delays.

To alleviate congestion, transportation officials are developing the mid-Currituck Bridge Project.

The 7-mile toll project includes a two-lane bridge spanning the Currituck Sound that connects the Currituck County mainland to the Outer Banks. The project also includes a second two-lane bridge that spans Maple Swamp on the Currituck County mainland, connecting Aydlett to U.S. 158, the North Carolina Department of Transportation website states.

BUXTON — As anyone who owns an old house knows, repair projects often reveal unfortunate surprises. Such is the case with the first complete restoration of the 155-year-old Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, but the remedy will be considerably more complex.

Halfway into the $19.2 million project, potentially dangerous cracks in critical structural components of the tower’s ironwork have been discovered deep in the tower’s upper wall, creating inevitable project delays and unbudgeted cost increases.

In an update on the project provided Thursday during a virtual presentation, Lindsay Gravel, project manager for North Brookfield, Massachusetts-based contractor, Stone & Lime Masonry Restoration Services Inc., detailed recently uncovered degradation of iron support brackets near the top of the 198-foot-tall lighthouse.

Signs of deterioration had been first detected in 3D scans done in August, and engineers decided that further investigation was warranted inside the wall, Gravel told a small group of media.

“After we did this first round of exposure, we had the architectural and engineering team come out on site, and they had some concerns,” she said. “So with the shoring in place, we decided it was beneficial to expose the entirety of these brackets, each and every one.”

Out of the 16 brackets, 13 were severely cracked on the interior flange, and 15 had cracks on the exterior elbow, which engineers determined to be a structural concern. Looking deeper, more cracking was found in the interior web.

“So this has a large crack in this exterior component,” Gravel said, pointing to a slide showing the bracket. “And this is where the observatory deck plate sits on top. So this is where visitors will be walking, which is why these brackets are such a large component of the lighthouse for visitor safety.”

Gravel later added that each of the brackets weigh 2,200 pounds, while each deck plate weighs 1,000 pounds. “So 16 of those brackets, and 16 of those deck plates, it’s a lot of weight up there,” she said.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore Superintendent Dave Hallac said that the National Park Service has not yet determined what the additional work will cost. After a structural engineering model is developed to determine the cause of the cracking, recommendations will be devised for proposed repairs.

“And once we know what that repair prescription looks like, we will develop an estimate to do that work,” he said. “And then once we know what that total is, we’ll determine how we’re going to fund it.”

While he was not happy about the kink in the restoration plan, Hallac emphasized that he is pleased with the overall work.

“We actually have not seen a lot of unknowns in this project,” he said.

The project, which began in late 2023, was initially supposed to be completed in about 18 months.

The unexpected is to be expected during restoration of historic structures, Hallac said, and he lauded Stone & Lime for their expertise.

“They have made incredible progress on this project and done a really good job of working with us as a team to work through the challenges that have come up,” he said. “Because no project on a structure like this that’s unique and over 150 years old is going to move forward without some surprises.”

During her comprehensive review, Gravel provided a brief history of the lighthouse, followed by a head-spinning recitation of the work that has been completed, is underway, and is upcoming.

An overview

First, 25 levels of scaffolding were installed around the lighthouse. Then coatings on the exterior, including the famed swirled black-and-white day mark, and interior, including stairs, hand railings, landing beams, window sills, were removed. Metal components were primed to prevent rust. Mock-ups of new day marks were developed to test how they weather in different lighting.

Also about 700 bricks have been replaced, and 75 bricks repointed with natural cement, the historic stockade fence that went around the keepers’ buildings is being installed, the ornamental fence that had once encircled the lighthouse is being replicated, and landscape plantings have been installed.

Extensive work has also been done on many of the 269 lighthouse steps, parts of which had signs of corrosion, Gravel said. After a small crack was detected in one stair tread, the 255 stairs up to level 10 were surveyed, as well as some others. More than 100 stair treads will be repaired, and 44 treads, four brackets, 200 bolts, 120 nuts and 75 spindles will be replaced.

Gravel showed a photograph taken high up on the spiral staircase, with a missing step providing a dizzying peek of the black hole at the bottom — a view most lighthouse climbers would prefer to avoid.

“It’s not every day that you get to see the lighthouse with a missing tread in it,” Gravel said.

By incorporating the project’s modeling and precision molds created for components, Gravel said the technology helps the contractor’s team streamline its workflow, prevent errors and accurately capture the as-built conditions.

“This result is a high modern, high value approach that supports long term preservation efforts and leaves a detailed digital record to use for the future,” she said.

In 1999, the lighthouse was moved 2,900 feet inland to protect it from the Atlantic Ocean that swirled at its base. Although the dramatic and successful move protected the tower from being taken by the ocean, the historic 1870 lighthouse structure itself was not restored. But after the move, there were projects done to replace degraded stair treads, according to an email from the Park Service, responding to questions from Coastal Review.

After a chunk of metal fell in 2001 from a bracket on the lower staircase, the lighthouse got more attention.

Most of the stair treads were replaced in 2002 and 2008, the Park Service wrote. The current project will install tread replacements to replace those that were not originally replaced and those that are damaged, according to the information. The stair system’s spindles and bolts that hold them and the treads onto the stair stringers have corroded over time and “will be repaired or replaced based on their condition,” the email said.

Cracking in a couple of brackets had been known from investigations in the 1980s, the email said.

“At that time, architects and engineers recommended leaving the damaged lighthouse brackets alone because the load paths — the way that forces on the metal was routed from the top of the lighthouse to other areas — had likely been reestablished through the masonry following the cracking,” the email said. “In other words, any downward forces on the structure from the weight above was now being held up by the bricks in the limited areas where the cracked brackets were observed.”

Though potential cracking was anticipated, the email continued, the extent could not be known without removing multiple layers of brick.

“With substantially more cracking being observed now, bracket repairs or replacements will be necessary for the long-term structural integrity of the tower.”

Typically, about 1,500 visitors a day between April and October climb the lighthouse, the tallest brick beacon in the nation. The lighthouse is likely not going to reopen before 2026, or later depending on the bracket repair timeline. Meanwhile, Cape Hatteras National Seashore is currently developing new plans for climbing, the Park Service said.

“We expect that at least the same number of people will be able to climb annually,” according to the email. “There may be fewer people in the lighthouse at a time to help reduce crowding, but we expect at least the same number of people to be able to climb annually through expanded climbing opportunities throughout the day and year.” 

The Cape Hatteras Light Station store, restrooms and portions of the grounds remain open to visitors.