Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Cape Hatteras National Seashore

The News from Cape Hatteras

Seven Sea Turtle Nests Remain on Outer Banks

The National Park Service says seven nests of endangered sea turtles remain on beaches along the Outer Banks, where driving restrictions were imposed in the spring to protect birds and turtles.

Park service officials said Thursday that no new restricted areas will be erected on Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. There still are restrictions around the remaining nests.

Popular N.C. Beach Reopened for Vehicles

A popular beach on North Carolina's Outer Banks that has been closed to off-road vehicles has been reopened by the National Park Service in time for Labor Day weekend visitors.'

The Cape Hatteras National Seashore said Thursday the area known as Bodie Island Spit is open to give fishermen access to Oregon Inlet.

Areas of Ocracoke beach reopen - as nesting allows

While summer's steamy weather has encouraged a record number of sea turtle eggs to hatch in Cape Hatteras National Seashore this year, the bird nesting season is winding down.

Beach areas that had been completely or partially closed to protect shorebirds are starting to reopen to off-road vehicles and pedestrians.

On Wednesday, just as South Point, a popular Ocracoke Island beach for fishing, was about to be reopened, another least tern chick and adults were spotted about 1.5 miles south of Ramp 72, according to the National Park Service.

Park service, groups publish beach driving guide

MANTEO, N.C. --A new brochure to help visitors to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore understand beach driving restrictions has been published by the National Park Service and several fishing associations.
The new off-road vehicle brochure includes a map that gives visitors tips for beach driving and regulations that govern it.

Park service officials worked with the North Carolina Beach Buggy Association, the Outer Banks Preservation Association and the Cape Hatteras Anglers Club to produce the brochures.

Brochures are available on the Internet or at visitor centers at the Outer Banks.

National Park Travel: Cruisin' Cape Hatteras

Apparently, Cape Hatteras National Seashore is a better tourist attraction than the tallest brick lighthouse in the US. North Carolina's Outer Banks is home to both, but the area earned the nickname "The Graveyard of the Atlantic" thanks to all the ships that have been lost off the shore.

Visitors are free to bring their vehicles onto the sand and shore to find the perfect spot for a summer afternoon. As of this May, though, drivers can only practice sand time trials between the hours of 6 am and 10 pm. The new rules are in effect in order to protect the nesting areas of the sea turtle and shore bird populations in this area.

Shore Bird Buffers Close 3 Popular Outer Banks Beaches

Sometime before or on Thursday morning, a shorebird called a least tern laid a single egg in Cape Hatteras National Seashore. A National Park Service ranger spotted it at the end of Ramp 45 to Cape Point, a corner of the Outer Banks well known for surf fishing.

Buffers were quickly installed around the nest, making the road behind the dunes inaccessible to off-road-vehicle traffic. Even though much of Cape Point technically remains open, there is no way to get to it anymore.

Thursday's move was one of several closings of shore areas this week to protect birds, leaving beach drivers stunned at how much access has been limited barely a week after an agreement to keep beaches open, with conditions, was signed.

Beach driving deal at Hatteras questioned by federal judge

The National Park Service has answered seven questions posed by a federal judge, but he still is demanding more details about new beach driving rules proposed for Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

In a series of filings Tuesday, the Park Service submitted a 15-page response to U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle's April 18 order directing the agency to answer questions about off-road vehicle use at the seashore.

The judge's inquiry was concerned with controls at beach accesses; locations of access ramps; vehicle counts and restrictions; permitting, qualifications and safety screening of drivers and vehicles; and pedestrian safety.