This past week I had the opportunity to head up to Hatteras, North Carolina for a little rest and relation as the summer draws to a close. Five good friends of mine and I left Charleston at 1 am on Sunday morning and arrived at Cedar Island Ferry at 6:45 am. The ferry ride cost $15.00 and took just over 2-hours. (Note: Advanced reservations are recommended for this ferry call1-800-By-Ferry). The ferry ride gave us plenty of time to recharge the batteries and eat a little breakfast that we had packed. We landed on Ocracoke Island, drove across the island and hopped a free 30-minute ferry from Ocracoke to Hatteras Island. By noon we were at the historic Buxton Lighthouse where we jumped in the water and surfed till dinner time.
While our primary focus of the trip was surfing, we all packed the surf tackle as the outer banks are the surf capital of the world. As the left over swell from topical storm Danny faded on Tuesday; we switched gears and went by a local tackle shop and purchased a 10-day out of state saltwater fishing license for $10. (Note: The licenses are required even if fishing from land based structure such as a pier or the beach.)
Over the years beach access by vehicle has been an ongoing fight between several large fishing groups and bird preservation groups. Fortunately the fisherman have been able to compromise with the preservation groups and almost all areas of the beach are still open to vehicle traffic with the exception of several large nesting areas that are closed just during nesting season. Beach accesses are numbered and well marked from the highway and beach so it is fairly easy to navigate from access to access.
Four wheel drive with some ground clearance is a must on the beach and lowering your tire pressure to 20 pounds is highly recommended. Popular areas such as “The Point” at Buxton are traveled regularly so the pathways are well packed and easily navigated. Some of the more remote areas, such as Avon and Salvo are a little harder to navigate and you definitel