Nags Head Outer Banks Adventure
Looking for pirates, shipwrecks, massive sand dunes, lighthouses, and, oh, by-the-way, just a little bit of history that changed the world? It's all in an hour drive from a beachfront basecamp on the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
The little spit of land that protects the North Carolina mainland from the torrents of the Atlantic is known locally as the OBX --- Outer Banks. Not more than a few hundred feet wide in some places, it's a wonder that it is still there and habitable given how many forces of nature are constantly bearing down on her.
What would the world be, once bereft
Of wet and wildness? Let them be left,
O let them be left, wildness and wet,
Long live the weeds and the wildness yet.
~Gerard Manley Hopkins
Oregon Inlet Campground
What the campsite at Oregon Inlet Campground lacks in privacy, it more than makes up for in convenience to some prime attractions – both natural and historical – and access to the Atlantic. If coastal fishing is part of a great holiday, then you may never have reason to leave camp. A short hike through the dunes is all that stands between you and the migratory fishing waters of the Atlantic Gulf Stream.
Camping at the Outer Banks is often a challenge in both the rapidly changing weather and the relentless wind that comes off the Atlantic. Have a good plan for tethering down your tent and a well-practiced one before you attempt setting up in 20-30 mph wind. It's best to use all the tie-downs that your tent has available as the wind can shift from hour to hour. Also, don't leave anything out overnight --- it may be in the next county by the time you wake in the morning.
Three loops with a tent-only loop (Loop A). Non-site specific reservations mean that early arrivals get the best selection.
