North Carolina's Outer Banks Part 1

Is it just me or are the lifeguards getting younger and younger?

When to visit the Outer Banks

The Outer Banks are barrier islands that jut out into the Atlantic Ocean from the coast of North Carolina.  The waters off these islands are known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic due to the numerous shipwrecks, frequent rough seas, and treacherous, often shifting shoals.  The maps of wrecks you can buy throughout the Outer Banks show many sunken ships just off these shores. This means the sea lanes for cargo ships and cruise ships lay far enough off the coast so for the most part you won’t see the big ships passing by far out at sea from the Outer Banks.  That means when you look out to sea after sunset, it is usually peaceful and dark with only the sound of waves and the lights of the stars overhead. Just keep in mind it also means that, for the most part, the Outer Bank beaches are not great shelling beaches. However, they are great beaches for walking.  If you had enough energy and time you could walk for miles on the beach, from Corolla in the north all the way to Nags Head further south. On the Hatteras National Seashore you can walk the southern Outer Banks for a long way without seeing much except the beach, ocean, dunes, and birds. So a visitor to the Outer Banks can experience beaches stretching out for miles, sand dunes, wild horses on the beaches north of Corolla and on Ocracoke Island, turtle nesting spots, and tons of birds.

Most people go to the Outer Banks off the coast of North Carolina during the summer months. That is when the weather is hot, lifeguards guard the beaches, all the restaurants and bars are open, stores are fully stocked, and there are lots of people enjoying themselves everywhere.  However, if you can visit the Outer Banks during spring, April or May, or in the early fall months of September or October, you will experience the Outer Banks in mostly pleasant weather with fewer of your would be best friends around.  One drawback to those months is there are fewer open amenities, but you can still usually find a good place to eat or drink. The weather is usually so pleasant during those shoulder season months that beach walks are a favorite activity any time of the day or evening.

If like most people, you plan to go to the Outer Banks in June, July, or August be prepared for the weather to be hot and humid.  Most Outer Banks summers have rain crash the party once in awhile, but it is unusual when rain persists all day or for more than a day or two.  That leaves plenty of time during a week long visit to sun and swim in the ocean and/or the pool and enjoy the long lazy days of summer and pleasant summer evenings.

Taking a stroll along the beach is the best way to end a long summer vacation day.

Which Outer Banks to visit?

The Outer Banks consists of a series of narrow islands strung out in sort of like a bending point from the North Carolina coast for about 200 miles.  Choosing which of these places to stay can be a challenge if you don’t know them. Depending on where you pick to set up house along that 200 mile stretch for a week or two, you can have some town amenities or a more solitary experience.  By the way, most if not all, hotels on the Outer Banks require a minimum stay of three nights or as much as a week to book them during the summer season.

There are two essential choices of where to stay on the Outer Banks: either the northern beaches or the southern beaches.  Both northern and southern beaches are strung out along Route 12, either on 12N or 12S. It is also possible to stay in Manteo, a pleasant small town over the causeway from the mainland on Roanoke Island which is located between the Outer Banks and the mainland. However, most people want to stay as close to a beach as possible.  So which should it be? Northern or Southern? I’m going to focus on the northern part of the Outer Banks in Part 1. Tune back in for Part 2 and the southern part of the Outer Banks coming next week.

Nothing beats those walks on the beach during summer.

The Northern Beaches

The Northern beaches include the well established towns of Nags Head, Kill Devil Hills (KDH), and Kitty Hawk. These towns have both 12N (aka, the Virginia Dare Trail or beach road) closer to the ocean side along with the larger inland four lane Croatan Highway that can zip you through these towns.  Going further north from Kitty Hawk on 12N are Southern Shores, Duck, and the village of Corolla. Going even further north past Corolla, beyond the paved road (access is driving on the beach itself) is Carova, an area of humongous homes on sand streets and older fisherman cottages on inlets off the Currituck Sound.

Coming from Virginia or points north, you drive south toward the Outer Banks on Route 168.  In North Carolina, that road turns into US 158 East and is the road that goes over the bridge into the Outer Banks. Once over the bridge you arrive on the Outer Banks at the northern edge of Kitty Hawk and the southern edge of Southern Shores.  Once there you go straight to the intersection of Route 12 and the Croatan Highway (you can’t miss it and you can’t go east any further). You turn right there onto the Croatan Highway to travel south through Kitty Hawk, KDH, and Nag’s Head.  After Nag’s Head, then you leave the Croatan Highway and you can either turn onto the bridge going west toward Roanoke Island and return that way to the mainland or merge onto 12S heading toward the southern Outer Banks. If you turn left off of US 158 once you are over the bridge and on the Outer Banks at the intersection of Route 12 and the Croatan Highway, then you are on 12N heading toward the more northern Outer Banks towns.

Traffic on 12N can become a real problem late in the afternoon on a Saturday.

Summer month visitors should know that 12N, the main road going north (and south) through Southern Shores toward Duck, Corolla, and Carova, experiences very heavy traffic congestion on Saturdays and Sundays during the summer months. On Saturdays in the summer try to not get caught in that essentially non-moving north-south traffic.  You will be sorry if you do! It can, quite literally, take two or more hours to travel just four miles. On those Saturdays, the traffic coming over the bridge into Kitty Hawk and then turning left to go north on 12N is bad from about 9AM until at least 3PM.  Sometimes the horrible traffic starts even earlier and lasts longer! It’s all the cars arriving on Saturday for their vacation week in Southern Shores, Duck, Corolla, and Carova trying to fit into one two lane road at the same time. Note, that those turning right onto the Croatan Highway on their way further south to Kitty Hawk, KDH, and Nags Head do not have the same experience.  However, on those Saturdays, the traffic while still on the mainland US 158 before crossing over the bridge to the Outer Banks also backs up due to the 12N congestion so everyone using that route to the beach gets caught somewhere in stop and go traffic. If using US 158 East to get to the Outer Banks on these summer Saturdays, I recommend going early and making sure you have plenty of gas in your car well before you get near to the bridge.

Regarding Kitty Hawk, KDH, and Nag’s Head, remember that choosing a location is all about easy beach access.  You want to stay as close to the beach as you can possibly afford. You don’t want to have to cross Route 12, a two lane but well used road, if at all possible.  Still many places in between Route 12N and the Croatan Highway in Kitty Hawk, KDH, and Nags Head are not far from the beach access points or too far to walk to the beach easily.  Do not stay between the Croatan Highway and the Sound unless you are prepared to bike or drive to the beach, including crossing over an extremely busy 4 to 5 lane highway. You can find cheaper accommodations there, but it is at the expense of being pretty far from the beach and dealing with lots of traffic every time you go out.  And when I say heavy traffic, I mean really, really heavy traffic during the summer months. During June, July, and August in 2018, about 212,036 people visited just one tourist site, the Wright Brothers National Memorial. So you can see that lots of people visit the northern Outer Banks towns during the summer. Just about every one of those visitors comes by car which makes these northern beach towns crowded with cars and people traveling Route 12 and the Croatan Highway.  However, even with all that hassle of getting to a beach access point, some people do like to find a place on the soundside in KDH or Nags Head. Doing so gives them the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful sight of the sun setting in the evening to the west over the sound.

The OBX beaches can get very busy during the summer.

Kitty Hawk  

Kitty Hawk is the oldest beach town in the northern Outer Banks.  Many of its homes and buildings reflect that.  Because of the older age of many of the homes and buildings, it does offer many places to stay at possibly the most reasonable price in the Outer Banks.  But, be aware the beach is rather narrow in many places and, in my opinion, is not as visually appealing as in the other northern beach towns.  Kitty Hawk does offer public beach access walkways and some public parking spots. However, the walkways to the beach in Kitty Hawk usually have people walking right through the dunes without a protective boardwalk or other way of keeping the dunes from being harmed. A good plus for staying in Kitty Hawk is it can save you some money while still allowing you to be within a short driving distance of many things to do.

Kill Devil Hills

Kill Devil Hills, also known as KDH, lies in between Kitty Hawk and Nags Head.  It offers many comfortable homes and apartments for rent along with a few hotels here and there.  KDH offers a nice beach with various public access points, some public parking spaces (not really enough to meet the summer demand) on the access points, and public parking lots.  When looking for public parking spaces in KDH and Nags Head, look for the blue and white signs with an orange sun in the middle. These indicate public beach access and some parking.  Most homes in KDH that lie between 12N and the Croatan Highway are not that far from the beach and can offer a good compromise between paying large amounts to be right on the beach and not being too far away from the beach.  KDH also offers visitors plenty to do: the Wright Brothers National Memorial; easily accessible grocery shopping; miniature golf; a YMCA, movie theaters; a golf course; specialty shopping, breweries, wine stores, and plenty of good restaurants and bars.  If you are or have young adults (drinking age or above) in your party, then KDH or Nags Head are good choices for you. There is plenty to do other than beach activities and enough variety of nightlife activities and places to keep people active and happy.

A woman and her dogs exploring Jockey’s Ridge State Park as a summer storm rolls in.

Nags Head

Nags Head is also a fairly well developed town and offers many choices of places to stay.  The beaches in Nags Head are good and are also being replenished after suffering from some severe storms in the last few years.  There are many types of places to stay including homes, hotels, apartments, and condos at different price points. Again, it is probably best to pick your location as close to the beach as possible and make sure the busy Croatan Highway is to the west of anywhere you pick.  Nags Head also offers several public beach access points, some public parking spaces (in many places still not really enough to meet the summer demand) on the access points, and public parking lots. During the summer months it is probably best to grab your beach parking spot before 10AM or 11AM as most public parking fills up quickly.  I recommend checking out the lovely Nags Head beach area of Coquina Beach. It’s at the town’s southern end and has soft sand, a wide area between the dunes and the water, facilities, and a public parking lot. But remember, during the summer months on the Outer Banks your best bet is to rent somewhere where you don’t need to drive in order to get your beach access.  Nags Head has many fast food places, wonderful restaurants and bars, the Outer Banks outlet mall, the Outer Banks hospital, a golf course, movie theater, miniature golf, a ropes course, and Jockey’s Ridge State Park. Jockey’s Ridge State Park is where the tallest natural sand dunes in the East Coast are located and is a fun spot for hang gliding or watching the sun set in the west.  Located just over the bridge going west from Nags Head on US 64 is Manteo where it can be fun to stroll the downtown, see the historic sights and aquarium, and stop for a beer and lunch. If you are going to Nags Head or the Outer Banks from North Carolina or further west pick up US 64 in Raleigh, NC and take it all the way east until you reach Nags Head. Congestion on US 64 is nowhere as bad, even on summer Saturdays, as it gets for those using the Route 168 to 158 route up further north to get onto the Outer Banks.  Going south from Nags Head on Route 12S takes you to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and then on further south to the southern beaches.

Southern Shores

Southern Shores is the town just north of Kitty Hawk, above KDH and Nags Head.  The island through here is fairly narrow along 12N, although there is a lovely residential area between 12N and the sound.  Southern Shores is a mostly quiet residential beachfront community. Be aware, as stated earlier, that 12N going through Southern Shores gets very congested on summer Saturdays.  The beaches at Southern Shores are accessible through public access walkways for those not staying right on the beachfront; however, there is no public parking for beach access use in Southern Shores.  Also, parking is not allowed on any street in Southern Shores.

I really recommend checking out Duck Donuts next time you’re in Duck.

Duck

Duck is the next town going north past Southern Shores. In my humble opinion, Duck is the nicest beach town of them all.  The village of Duck has a lovely 11 acre Town Park with a public green, playground, trails, picnic areas, and amphitheater for outdoor gatherings.  The park offers weekly summer activities including free music concerts one night a week, often daily yoga or an exercise activity in the early am, along with some weekly children’s activities.  The town’s boardwalk is a bit over a mile long on the Currituck Sound with access to the town park and the many shops and places to eat along the sound front. Don’t forget to stop and get your donut from Duck Donuts just off the boardwalk.   Also, there are several good places to shop, either along the boardwalk or just across the street under the many shaded outdoor shopping areas. Duck has a great selection of restaurants and shops. It offers a good selection of rentals from condos, timeshares, resort hotels, and homes.  Many places to rent between 12N and the beach can be expensive, but some timeshare or condos may offer reasonable availability. Plan ahead to snag those places. Duck has a great beach - wide enough to walk on even when the tide is in. There are lifeguards on the beach during the daylight hours. The further north you go on the Duck beach, the fewer people there are to share the beach with you.  Duck does not offer any public beach access. But if you stay in Duck, your place will offer beach access. There is a shared public pedestrian and bike-way that extends along 12N from Southern Shores through Duck up to Corolla.

Driving on the beach just north of Corolla can be a lot of fun.

Corolla

Corolla is an old village, but is the most recently developed northern beach town.  It is centered around a fishing village core, but has spread out along the beach and 12N in recent years.  Corolla offers a beautiful wide beach in most places, eight public access beach parking lots, and lots of different types of places to rent.  Corolla also has a fun real grass miniature golf course, a community pool area with gym access, a shopping center, movie theater, and some good restaurants scattered throughout the area.  The wonderful old Whalehead Club sits beside a golf course. The Whalehead Club offers public wine tastings most Wednesday summer afternoons, public building tours, and other programing. Once you get north past Corolla and into Carova, there are the wild horses to see.  People are not allowed to get too close to the horses, but there are several companies which provide good tours to see the wild horses. Close to Corolla village is the red brick Currituck Beach Lighthouse which offers climbers (220 steps) panoramic views of the village and beaches from its top.