Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Welcome to the audio-described version of Cape Hatteras National Seashore's official print brochure. Through text and audio descriptions of photos, illustrations, and a map, this version interprets the two sided color brochure that Cape Hatteras National Seashore visitors receive. The brochure explores the history of the park, some of its highlights, and information for planning your visit. This audio version lasts about 27 minutes which we have divided into sections, as a way to improve the listening experience.

Sections, In Pee Es Black Banner, through, G.A. Kohler, cover the front of the brochure and include information regarding the history of the park and the natural environment. Sections, Exploring Cape Hatteras, through, Visitor Information, cover the back of the brochure which describes a large map of the park, goes over highlights of places to visit, and recreational opportunities. 

The Cape Hatteras National Seashore is a preserved stent of land belonging to the National Park Service. The park is located on a unique set of barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina, USA. The Cape Hatteras Seashore is proudly the first established National Seashore across the country. The establishing date is January twelfth nineteen fifty three. 

Over two million visitors travel to this coast to enjoy the less developed beaches and local wildlife. People have enjoyed this seashore for centuries, beginning with Native Americans who came here to fish and hunt. Since the seventeen hundreds, many families have called this seashore home, forming close knit fishing communities and maintaining a direct lineage to this day. Come enjoy feeling the soft, fine sand beneath your feet and a crisp, salty breeze brush your face.

For those seeking to learn more about your visit go to the Body Island, Cape Hatteras, and OhKraCoke visitor centers for real time presentations by rangers. Enjoy tactile models of the lighthouses at each visitor center as well.

To find out more about what resources might be available or to contact the park directly, visit the "Accessibility" and "More Information" sections at the end of this audio-described brochure.

The front of the brochure includes text and photo sections that are all overlain on a transitioning background of three separate beach scenes on the seashore. All photos are light in colour and the text is black.

The text sections give general overviews of the parks setting, activities for visitors, local wildlife, seashore history, and the importance of preserving the seashore.

DESCRIBING: graphic banner atop brochure,

SYNOPSIS: White text to the left and a brown National Park Service arrowhead logo to the right against a black background. Text to the far left reads "Cape Hatteras" in large letters. Four lines of text to the right reads "National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, National Seashore, North Carolina" in smaller letters beside the brown textured arrowhead, point down, featuring a bison in front of a mountain and trees.

IN-DEPTH DESCRIPTION: The arrowhead logo features text and images. At top right, white text, National Park Service. At left, a tall tree. At bottom, a white bison stands on a green field ending in a distant tree line, a white lake at right. A snow-capped mountain towers behind.

Descry bing, 

A coloured panoramic photograph of a lighthouse.

SYNOPSIS:,

The photograph shows an overview of a rural field. The grass is dry, and dark green bushes and shrubs stand at the horizon. A light breeze delicately flows, caressing the grass and the frondage. In the background, a lighthouse towers beyond the field, on the right.

in depth DESCRIPTION: 

The lighthouse is tall, its spire almost touching the top of the photograph. Its fa sod is painted with white and dark blue stripes. The sky is clear and the colours fade from pale blue to soft yellow towards the horizon. Puffy white clouds cover the sky. In the middle of the field, a wooden boardwalk snakes and curves slightly to the right until it reaches the horizon, leading to the distant lighthouse.

CREDIT: NPS / Kurt Moses

A thin, broken strand of islands curves out into the Atlantic Ocean and back again, in a sheltering embrace of North Carolina’s mainland coast and offshore sounds. For thousands of years these barrier islands, the Outer Banks, have survived on slaughts of wind and sea. Their long stretches of beach, marshes, sand dunes, and woodlands,  today known as The Cape Hatteras National Seashore, offer you solitude, discovery, wildness, and excitement.

Walk the beach and feel the ocean breezes, some gentle, others buffeting. Visit lighthouses,  monuments to our encounters with the sea. Go surf fi shing, beach combing, swimming, snorkeling, sailing, and more. Learn about plants and wildlife, like the green sea turtle, below, and piping plover. Part land, part sea, diverse experiences await you at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

DESCRIBING:

 Collage of color photographs.

Synopsis: 

two rows of four photographs with captions. Top row features, from left to right: "Green sea turtle hatching," "Least tern chicks," "Relaxing near Cape Hatteras Lighthouse," and "Seashells." Bottom row features, from left to right: "Family beach day," "Hiking," "Sunrise surf fishing," and "White-tailed deer."

DESCRIBING: 

A color photograph.

SYNOPSIS: 

 A small green sea turtle hatchling is depicted making its way across wet sand.

in depth DESCRIPTION, In this color photograph, a green sea turtle hatchling is positioned in the center as it crawls across smooth, wet sand. Its dark, almost black, oval shell contrasts with its pale underbelly and lighter, textured limbs. The hatchling's small, round head emerges prominently, with glossy, beady eyes reflecting light as it focuses ahead, moving towards the right of the image. Its front flippers are stretched forward, propelling it across the damp surface, leaving a faint trail behind in the wet sand. Around the turtle, delicate foamy bubbles cling to the sand, remnants of a recently receding wave. The wet sand glistens slightly in the pale sunlight, suggesting either dawn or dusk. 

CAPTION: Green sea turtle hatchling.

CREDIT: In Pee Es

DESCRIBING: 

Vertical, coloured photograph of a baby bird.

SYNOPSIS: 

A close up, profile of a hatched, shore bird chick laying in a sea shell. 

IN-DEPTH DESCRIPTION: A freshly hatched, least tern chick lays dramatically in the centre of the photograph. The angle of the photo is from the side, as if the camera is set on the ground beside the baby bird. The bird is covered in downy feathers, much like the chick of a chicken, giving it a fluffy look. It's coat has a salt and pepper colouring.

Exhausted from the task of hatching, the chick lies on its stomach with shut eyes. It lays in a piece of broken, creamy orange sea shell. The sea shell is con caved, taken on a cradle like shape for the baby bird. To the lower left of the photo, slightly in the foreground of the shell, lays the chicks discarded egg shell. The egg shell also takes on a mottled, salt and pepper colouring. The egg shell is mostly intact. A large hole in it, gaping upwards, shows where the chick had just escaped. Left stuck inside the egg is one feather. 

Large grained sand makes up the ground underneath the chick and its sea shell cradle. The sand is a greyish tan, littered with pebble sized, rounded chucks of orange and pink sea shells. The sand at some points matches the mottled texture of colours on the egg and the chick, making for great camoflawge.

CAPTION: Least tern chicks.

CREDIT: NPS

DESCRIBING: A colored horizontal photograph.

SYNOPSIS: An elderly couple relaxes on a sun lit beach with the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse towering in the background. 

in depth DESCRIPTION: In this color photograph, two elderly people relax on a sun lit beach, with the striking Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in the background. The lighthouse, with its bold black-and-white spiral design, rises against a clear blue sky in the upper left. Its cylindrical shape tapers slightly as it ascends, culminating in a black lantern room and gallery. The strong sun light highlights the left side of the tower, making the white bands appear especially bright, while the opposite side is cast in soft shadow. Though prominent, the lighthouse appears slightly blurred, positioned in the background beyond the dunes, adding a sense of depth and distance to the scene.

Below it, rolling sand dunes dominate the lower half of the image, coming sharply into focus as they approach the foreground. Their golden surface is textured with wind-sculpted ripples, each crest and trough catching the sunlight differently, creating a play of highlights and shadows. Patches of sparse, tall grasses emerge from the sand, their delicate stalks casting thin, wavering shadows. The warm, golden light suggests it is either late morning or early afternoon, with the sun high enough to cast distinct but slightly angled shadows. Some of these grasses rise high enough to partially obscure the base of the lighthouse. 

A well-trodden sandy path snakes through the dunes, its compacted surface standing out against the softer, undisturbed sand around it. This path leads toward the foreground, where, at the base of the dunes in the lower right corner, an elderly couple reclines in beach chairs, both wearing dark sunglasses that shield their eyes from the bright sun. The man, dressed in an orange shirt and jeans, leans back with his face directed forward, seemingly resting but still aware of his surroundings. His sunglasses conceal his eyes, but his relaxed posture suggests a quiet, peaceful moment. Beside him, the woman, dressed in a lavender blouse and white caprees, sits comfortably with her gaze turned upward, as if admiring the sky or the towering lighthouse in the distance. Her sunglasses reflect the sunlight, hinting at the bright, cloudless day. She appears at ease, either engaged in quiet conversation or lost in thought as she enjoys the moment.

CAPTION: Relaxing near Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.

CREDIT: NPS / Kurt Moses

DESCRIBING: A vertical color photograph,

SYNOPSIS: The photograph shows a scattered assortment of seashells lying on a sandy beach. The seashells are of various colors, shapes, and sizes, with a particularly striking red and brown shell in the center.

in depth DESCRIPTION: The image captures a diverse collection of seashells spread across coarse, golden sand, illuminated by natural sunlight. Soft but short shadows stretch from the shells, adding depth and highlighting their varied textures. Dominating the foreground is an elegant scallop shell near the center with alternating vivid red and brown stripes. The delicate grooves running from its hinge to the outer edge create a striking contrast between its shadowed valleys and sunlit ridges. Surrounding this central shell are smaller more subtle specimens in creamy whites, soft yellows, and muted grays, some partially embedded in the sand while others rest lightly on the surface. In the sand, delicate, meandering trails extend outward from where these embedded shells lie, as if etched by the retreating tide. Tiny fragments and pebbles glisten where the sunlight reflects off their smooth surfaces, enhancing the richness and complexity of the scene.

CAPTION: Seashells.

CREDIT: NPS

DESCRIBING: colored vertical photograph, 

SYNOPSIS: A man and little girl are playing with a toy bucket at the beach.

in depth DESCRIPTION: A man and a three, or, four year old girl stand barefoot, close to the water on a beach with the lapping waves in the background. To the right of the picture, the mid-sized man is bent at the waist, over a neon... green.. toy bucket with a blue handle, peeking out from the indented... sand. The man is tan with short black hair and balding from the crown. He is wearing black sunglasses and a white muscle tee that shows off the tattoos he has on both biceps of his arms and an aqua, light blue, swimming short, with a dark blue waist. His right arm which has an indistinguishable oval hoop tattoo, is pressing down on the bucket and, on his wrist, he is sporting two thin bracelets, one red, one gray. Tattooed on his left arm that is supporting himself on his knee, is an indistinguishable grid of images. From his propped hand you can see a black ring on his ring finger, a black watch with a red strap and a stacked black bracelet on his wrist. To the left of the picture, also looking down at the bucket is the young girl who has her arms bent at the elbow and fingers spread apart. She has light wispy brown hair with a short ponytail at the top of her head. She has a blush pink short sleeve shirt on with a turquoise skirt. 

CAPTION: Family Beach Day.

CREDIT: NPS

DESCRIBING: a horizontal, colored photograph,

in depth Description: A photo of two hikers from behind as they walk away from the viewer down a flat trail. They are in the center of a warm brown, pine need ell laden path that is canopied by deep green tree foliage. The foliage arching over them appears small and waxy. The trees are a mix of evergreen trees like short, gnarly live oaks and tall, straight loblolly pine. 

CAPTION: Hiking.

CREDIT: NPS / Kurt Moses

DESCRIBING: A colored photograph of two people fishing at sunrise,

SYNOPSIS: Two people fish in ocean ways during cold weather.

in depth DESCRIPTION: The two people are standing on the shore, far from one another, their feet in the water. They are wearing sweatshirts, thick overalls, and boots, and holding a fishing rod in their right hand, held firm by the left hand. The sea reflects the sky light, glimmering in soft gray-green and peach tones, the white foam glistening.

 In the foreground, the first person has short, straight, mahogany coloured hair. The person is wearing a light grey sweatshirt with a hoodie, a beige overall, and dark boots. In the background, the second person, a man, is wearing a dark green cap, a cerulean sweatshirt, a dark green overall, and dark boots. He has a black, thick beard, and dark, short, curly hair.

CAPTION: Sunrise surf fishing.

CREDIT: NPS / Kurt Marx

DESCRIBING: Vertical colored photograph.

SYNOPSIS: A white-tailed deer looking off into the distance.

in depth DESCRIPTION: An in focus white-tailed deer stands alert mid stride with its ears perked facing the viewer. Blurred behind it is trees and branches with short yellowy-green shrubbery on the edge of a field of dead grass.

CAPTION: White-tailed deer.

CREDIT: NPS / Kurt Moses

Cape Hatteras is at the ocean’s edge, But no well defined boundary marks where sea ends, and land begins. A dynamic relationship exists between land and sea. They share many valuable resources, but the sea rules the barrier islands, and few places escape its influence.

Near the sea, shore birds forage for food. Some catch small fish or crabs carried by the waves, others probe the sand or search under shells for clams, worms, or insects. Dwarfed, odd shaped trees are severely pruned by salt-laden winds, another example of how the sea affects living things.

In the maritime forests, woodlands of oak, cedar, and yaupon holly grow in the islands’ broader, higher, and somewhat protected areas. Red holly berries and vivid wildflowers in liven the otherwise green, brown, and blue landscape.

The landscape appears peaceful, but shifting sands, island migration, and sea level rise are slowly occurring, constantly changing the landscape. Sometimes storms batter the islands with fierce wind, waves, and storm surge, often resulting in rapid, drastic change.

For sea turtle hatchlings, survival is hard. Artificial lights, pollution, ghost crabs, birds, and fish are challenges they face. They survive to maturity only to return to the same beaches and face another challenge, laying a clutch of their own.

The ocean and sounds harbor a bounty of life, including red drum, blue crab, Spanish mackerel, shrimp, and clams. Wintering snow geese, ducks, Canada geese, and other bird species populate the islands, especially during fall and spring migrations and in the winter.

Salt marshes provide food sources for birds and other animals year round. Here, the sound waters meet the marsh twice each day as tides come and go, exchanging and replenishing nutrients.

Each visit to Cape Hatteras National Seashore is always on the threshold of a new experience.

DESCRIBING: Horizontal colored photograph.

SYNOPSIS: A panoramic view of small waves lapping onto a beach.

in depth DESCRIPTION, Extending from the left side of the picture to the right, is ocean water lapping onto a beach. There are small waves crashing in the distance with smaller waves building as they approach the shoreline. White foamy water lines the shoreline and even extends to the edge of the picture. The tan sand is just visible in the bottom right corner and in the distance above the sand peeks out some green shrubbery. It is a sunny day, and the cloudless sky fades into the body of text above.

CREDIT: Copyright Kevin Adams

Treacherous waters off the coast of the Outer Banks bear the name Graveyard of the Atlantic, a grim but fitting epithet. Over 600 ships wrecked here as victims of shallow sandbars, storms, and war. Diamond Shoals, a bank of shifting sand ridges hidden beneath a turbulent sea off Cape Hatteras, has never promised ships a safe passage, but seafarers often risked the shoals to take advantage of the north- or south-flowing currents passing nearby. Many never reached their destination.

Hurricanes and fierce winter nore e sters have driven many ships aground, like the schooner G. A. Kohler, below, in nineteen thirty three. Other ships were lost in wars. In World War two, German submarines sank so many Allied tankers and cargo ships here that the waters earned a sobearing nickname, Torpedo Junction.

In the past four hundred years the graveyard has claimed many lifes, but island villagers have saved many. As early as the eighteen seventies, villagers served in the US Life Saving Service, below, and staffed lighthouses built to guide mariners. When rescue attempts failed, villagers buried the dead and salvaged shipwreck remains. Few ships wreck today, but storms still uncover the ruins of old wrecks that lie along the beaches of the Outer Banks.

DESCRIBING: A horizontal black and white photo.

SYNOPSIS: It is highly contrasted and appears to be capturing a moment from the eighteen hundreds. Pictured is a group of people inside or beside a small white wooden boat labeled "U.S. Life Saving."

in depth DESCRIPTION: The boat is at the sandy shoreline, with its front end in shallow ocean surf... Large wooden oars are tucked inside the boat.

The group consists of around fourteen individuals... Nine of them are adult men wearing life vests made of what appears to be either canvas or cork, typical of early life-saving equipment. They are also wearing helmets and boots suitable for wet conditions, suggesting they might be rescuing workers. They are engaged in helping carry or support several people to get inside the boat. These five people, possibly rescued individuals, appear to be a mix of men and woman dressed in typical civilian clothing for the time. Each individual seems to be soggy from water, their clothes clinging to their sides and the womens' long hair hanging heavily.

The background shows a calm sea and an overcast sky. There is a person far away that appears to be rowing in a personal boat like a canoe towards the right side of the image. Further in the background on the horizon line seems to be a large ship like a steamboat or fishing boat.

CAPTION: Island Rescue Crews.

CREDIT: NPS. 

related TEXT: In the eighteen hundreds, island rescue crews returned shipwreck survivors to safety in small oar, powered boats. Now, the US Coast Guard patrols the islands with helicopters and other modern craft.

The highest honor for saving a life during peacetime... the Gold Lifesaving Medal... has been awarded to many Hatteras rescuers for their heroic deeds.

DESCRIBING: Collage featuring an historic black and white photograph of a ship superimposed atop a modern colored photograph of a sandy beach. 

SYNOPSIS: The ship appears moored on the tan sand, as a couple lines extend faintly from the ship and appear to be anchoring it to the shore. White sea foam tops the blue water. The wavy edges of lighter sand shows that the waves rolling in had approached the ship, but that the ship remains safely out of their reach. The front of the ship states "G.A. Kohler Baltimore" in faded letters. The tilted ship has four tall masts, the back three rising higher than the one in the front.

in depth DESCRIPTION: The image of the ship is tilted to the right. Only the front and right side is visible.

Each mast is secured to the side of the deck and ship by taught ropes and ladders, at least one on each side of the mast. One support cable for each mast appears to extend past the deck, down the side of the top two thirds of the ship, leaving three dark thick vertical stripes on the side.  

There are no visible sails, but bunching at the top of the tall masts suggests sails may have been put away, wrapped around their tops. 

Beneath the slats that line the bow of the ship deck... is a large dark horizontal oval, with two rows of light lettering, that lists the name of the ship along with its city... G.A. Kohler and, beneath it, Baltimore. 

CAPTION: G. A. Kohler was salvaged for iron during World War two.

CREDIT: NPS

The back of the brochure includes a top section of text, a large map, then a bottom section of text.

The top section of text has a graphic of the three lighthouses on the Cape Hatteras Seashore. The text explains the difference between each lighthouse, the corresponding visitor centre, and camping located on the seashore.

The middle map is vertical and coloured. It takes up a majority of the back of the brochure.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore stretches north to south over seventy miles of beach. The Hatteras Inlet ferry and NC highway twelve, narrow but paved, link the islands. The highway goes through ate villages, rich in Outer Banks history, that pre date the park. Stop at any park visitor center for information and activity schedules. For places to camp, fish, swim, and hike, see map below.

Body Island. Not technically an island, Body features a lighthouse, open for climbing seasonally, built in eighteen seventy two with its original first order Furnel lens. View marsh waterbirds from a platform nearby. See the sportfishing catch of the day at Oregon Inlet Fishing Center when offshore boats return in late afternoon.

Hatteras Island. Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, open for climbing seasonally, built in eighteen seventy, is the world’s second tallest brick lighthouse at one hundred ninety eight point five feet. Nearby Buxton Woods Nature Trail whineds through maritime woods. Multiple access areas to Pamlico Sound let you explore marshes and wetlands.

O Cra Coke Island. This isolated island and its small harbor village retain much of their early charm and character. Visit the Pony Pen to see descendants of a horse herd that once freely roamed the island. O Cra Coke Lighthouse, built in eighteen twenty three, is North Carolina’s oldest operating lighthouse, open seasonally for viewing. Because it is close to the Gulf Stream, this island offers excellent shelling opportunities.

Camping. Camp only in designated areas. The four park campgrounds are Oregon Inlet and O Cra Coke, open year-round, and Cape Point and Frisco, open seasonally. Check the park website for opening and closing dates. Reserve sites, for a fee, at w w w dot recreation dot gov, or call, ate seven seven. four four four. six seven seven seven.

All campgrounds have drinking water, tables, fire grills, and restrooms. Oregon Inlet has 47 sites with electric and water hookups and warm water showers, the other three have cold-water showers. Dumping stations are near Oregon Inlet, O Cra Coke, and Cape Point.

Sand and wind conditions require longer than normal tent stakes. Shade awnings and insect netting will make camping more enjoyable.

DESCRIBING: A style ized drawing shows three types of lighthouse that can be found at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

SYNOPSIS: The background is a soft blue, with black-and-white lighthouses and grey foundations and balconies. From left to right: Body Island Lighthouse, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, and O Cra Coke Lighthouse.

in depth DESCRIPTION: The Body Highland Lighthouse, the first one on the left, has a smooth raised foundation, and its pha sawed is painted in straight black and white stripes. A grey balcony surrounds the four sides, framed by a black railing, and the lighthouse's glass walls are divided by black window frames. 

In the middle, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is the tallest one. Its black and white stripes are diagonal and resemble the spiral pattern of candy canes. Its raised foundations are textured and the lighthouse is surrounded by a single glass wall. The black balcony railing surrounds the little house.

The third lighthouse, the last on the right, is the OhKraCoke Lighthouse, the shortest of the three. Its shape is linear, with no raised foundations. The triangular surface is wide at the base and narrows at the top, where it ends with a white circular balcony, also surrounded by a black railing. The walls are white, with two small black windows on each floor. The small house at the top, with its black roof, is the smallest of the three lighthouses.

CAPTION: Body Island Lighthouse, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, and Oh Kra Coke Lighthouse

describing.

Vertical, coloured photo of a flat, illustrated map.

SYNOPSIS.

The map represents the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. It shows a chain of islands stretching vertically on the map. Water is on the right and left of the island chain, making the majority of the photo blue. 

in depth DESCRIPTION.

The image is a detailed map of a chain of islands which make up the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.  The components of the map that will be discussed are, The Legend, The Map layout, then Significant locations.

The Legend.

The maps scale shows an inch on the map is 5 miles in reality. The map itself is fourteen and three fourths' inches tall by eight and one fourth inches wide. North is the top of the map.

Continuing with the legend there are two color keys. One key is for land and the other key is for water. The first key, land mass, is colored either tan, green, or purple. These colors show who manages that piece of land. Green belongs to the National Park Service, purple belongs to the Forest Service, and tan is privately owned or undetermined ownership. The second key, bodies of water, are either white, pale blue, or dark blue. White is the shallowest, being under six feet deep. Pale blue is water over six feet deep. Dark blue is used to signify ocean water. Roadways are marked by a red line. Each section is labelled with the corresponding interstate or highway number. Ferry routes are marked with dark blue dashed lines.

Map Layout:

The island chain cuts the map vertically in half. The islands run off the page at the top and the bottom of the map, signifying that they continue. On the left side, or west of, the island chain there are pale blue bodies of water that all connect. These bodies of water are six different Sounds, the largest being the Pamlico Sound. On the right side, or East of, the island chain there is a dark blue body of water which is the Atlantic Ocean. 

To the left, or East of, the island chains are two other land masses. Separated from the island chain by a pale blue water mass named the Roanoke Sound, Roanoke Island is located at the northern third of the map. The island is approximately ten miles long by three miles wide and takes on the shape of a rounded crescent moon. Most of the island is colored tan besides a small square of green at the northern tip where The Fort Raliegh National Historic Site is located. 

Continuing to the left the next land mass is separated from Roanoke Island by a light blue body of water named The Cro ah tan Sound. This land is all shaded tan and is considered part of mainland North Carolina. The land mass takes up approximately a half of the left side of the map and extends off the map margins towards the West. The visible area is marked as The Alligator River Refuge. 

Returning to the island chain system. They are thin with most areas no wider than two miles. They extend from the top of the map straight down, or southward, for about four fifths of the map. At the bottom they turn to the left at a cape named Cape Hatteras, then extend to the lower left, or South East, corner of the map. This causes the islands to take on an arm like shape, bent at the elbow, the cape being the elbow. The top and bottom of the map cuts off at what would be the arm's shoulder and wrist. Islands are disconnected by waterway openings called Inlets. 

Significant Locations:

We will begin at the top, or North section, of the island chain. We will travel along the listed highway, N C Highway twelve, from each island and list important landmarks.

The top island is colored tan and are often called the Core Islands. There are the cities Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head. A square of green near Kill Devil Hills marks the Wright Brother's National Memorial Park. The Jockey's Ridge State Park is marked near Nags head. 

Southward you then encounter the entrance to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Park at a location named Whalebone Junction Information Station. There is not a break in the landmass, but this section of the island is now considered Body Island. The entire section of land is colored green. At the southern end of Body Island, specific locations include, in order travelling southward, the Coquina Beach access, Bodie Island Visitor Center, The Oregon Inlet Campground, and The Oregon Inlet Fishing center. 

There is then a break in the islands by an ocean inlet named Oregon Inlet. The road continues as a bridge and enters the next island. This is the Pea Island National Wildlife refuge, and the entire island is colored purple. Halfway down the purple section, the Pea Island Visitor Center marked. 

The highway continues into a tan and green area that begins Hatteras Island. The tan area marks the towns of Rodanthe, Waves, and Salvo which stretch for about five miles southward. The island is completely then colored green for about fifteen miles. Continuing South the next tan area marks the town of Avon for two and a half miles and an ocean side fishing pier. 

South of Avon the map is colored green for about two and a half miles and there is the Haulover sound side access. At the elbow of the island chain the land mass is split vertically down the middle with the colors tan and green. The town of Buxton is the tan side while the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and Museum of the Sea Visitor center is the green half. Within the green there is also the Cape Point campground and the Frisco campground. The highway continues to the town of Frisco then passes the Frisco beach access and the Sandy Bay sound access. 

Lastly on this island is the town of Hatteras where the U.S. Weather Bureau Station Visitor Information is marked. At the end of Hatteras Island, the ferry terminal is marked with two ferry routes. The Hatteras Inlet then seperates hatteras island from OhCraCoke island. 

The next land mass is named OhCraCoke Island and is colored the majority in green, the island itself being about fifteen miles long. Highway twelve continues on the island southward. The pony pens are first marked, followed by the OhCraCoke campground, OhCraCoke Beach Access, OhCraCoke Island Airstrip. The town of OhCraCoke is shaded a square of tan and also marks the OhCraCoke Island Discovery Center and the OhCraCoke Lighthouse. The southern ferry terminal is marked with three ferry routes. The OhCraCoke Inlet then begins. 

Finally, a small green outline marks the Cape Lookout National Seashore at the edge of the map, extending outside the margins.

Credit: NPS

We strive to make facilities, services, and programs accessible to all. For information, go to a visitor center, call, ask a ranger, or check the park website.

More Information.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

1401 National Park Drive.

Manteo, NC two seven nine five four.

call. two five two. four seven three. two one one one.

w w w dot n p s dot gov slash c a h a... 

For text alerts, text N P S O B X to three three three one one one.

Follow us on social media.

Use the NPS App to guide your visit.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore is one of over 400 parks in the National Park System. Learn more at w w w dot n p s dot gov.

National Park Foundation. Join the park community. w w w dot national parks dot org

Access. To reach the park from the north, use US one fifty eight. From the west, use US sixty four and two sixty four. Two mainland toll ferries serve O Cra Coke. From Swan Quarter, NC, via US two sixty four, the ferry ride is two and a half hours. From Cedar Island, NC, via US sevety, the ferry ride is two and a quarter hours. Reservations recommended. Call eight zero zero, two nine three, three seven seven nine.

Safety. Strong ocean currents can make swimming dangerous. Rip currents can pull you straight out into the ocean. If caught in a rip current, call for help. Do not fight the current to return to shore. Instead, swim parallel to the shore until you are out of the current, then swim to shore. Never swim alone or during thunderstorms. Swim at lifeguarded beaches during summer months. Breaking waves at the shore’s edge can throw you into the sand head first, resulting in a broken neck or dislocated shoulder.

Every evening, remove umbrellas, canopies, and chairs, and fill in any holes or pits dug in the beach. This helps prevent injuries to nighttime beach goers, including sea turtles. Always use sunscreen. Use repellent for mosquitoes and ticks, use netting for camping. Protect feet from hot sand and spiny plants. In winter, wear warm, wind resistant clothing. Winds and high humidity intensify the cold. Take all storms seriously, as NC highway twelve may overwash. Check weather forecasts and warnings daily. Heed official notices and evacuations. Hurricanes can occur June through November.

Regulations. Pets must be on a six foot leash and under your control at all times. Pets are prohibited on designated swim beaches and in wildlife closures and buildings. Do not leave pets unattended, and clean up after your pet. Park your car in designated areas so it does not get stuck in soft sand. Bicyclists must use extreme caution, there are no established bike trails. Permits required for off road vehicle use are available at w w w dot recreation dot gov. Permits required for beach fires are available online and at campgrounds and visitor centers. Fireworks and metal detectors are prohibited. Use of un piloted aircraft, drones, and personal watercraft, pee w see, is prohibited. For firearms regulations visit the park website. Beach areas may close for wildlife protection or safety. Closures for nesting shorebirds and sea turtles may shrink or expand given wildlife behavior and protection requirements.

Emergencies, call nine one one