Life and Lifestyles


Island Dining:  The Breakwater in Hatteras village

Some restaurants are known for their food, others for their atmosphere.  At the Breakwater, a family owned and operated Hatteras Island tradition, you get the best of both worlds.   Read more






Island Cooking:  Spring is the time that we wait for our softshell crabs

The most eagerly anticipated springtime seafood is the delectable softshell crab that usually begins to appear in April and peaks in May.  This is a life phase of the familiar and tasty blue crab, Callinectus sapidus, whose name means “beautiful swimmer.” Here are some recipes for softshells with suggestions for springtime accompaniments.  
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Island Dining:  Island Perks Coffee Shop and Café


On Hatteras Island, it’s strange to see a crowded parking lot in January. But Island Perks, the small restaurant at the north edge of Buxton, has been staying steady, with cars zipping in and out, since the doors opened in December.  
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Island Dining: Pop’s Raw Bar and Grill

Pop’s Raw Bar and Grill in Buxton is open year round and is the place to go for seafood or a burger in a casual setting.  And now there is a Pop’s in Elizabeth City.        Read more







ISLAND BOOKSHELF: ‘The Sheltering Cedar’ is an Ocracoke Christmas story for children

Anne Marshall Runyon, who, as a child, spent her summers on Ocracoke, has written a children’s book about where wild creatures seek shelter in a storm.  The storm in her story is a Christmas Eve northeaster.     Read more









Historic Ocracoke house is featured in new book

Philip Howard’s Ocracoke house, which has been in his family for several generations and which he recently renovated, is featured in “The Southern Cottage: From the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Florida Keys.”       Read more






Kitty Mitchell’s season of creativity

“I can’t step out my door without seeing a hundred beautiful things, and I’m in a feverish frenzy to paint them all,” said the Ocracoke artist about her summer’s work.      Read more











Photographer and artist Jennifer Johnson had what it takes after all

In college, Jennifer Johnson’s photojournalism professor encouraged her not to pursue photography.  Today she owns The Blue Pelican Gallery in Hatteras village that showcases her art, including photography.       Read more









Featured artist

Kim Mosher first visited Hatteras Island in 1985 with a photography class from Virginia Commonwealth University. After her graduation, she moved to Hatteras and never looked back. She finds the Outer Banks a wonderful place to live if you happen to be an artist. The constantly changing colors and the abundant wildlife are the perfect templates for the artistic mind. The history and heritage of Hatteras has always entered on fishing, which inspired Kim to sketch many of the inshore fish in their natural habitat. Eventually, the colored pencil became her tool of choice. Her artwork is available through limited edition prints, tile, and fabrics. Her Web site is www.kimmosherdesigns.com.










Island gardening -- or how to plant stuff in sand while losing your mind in the process

Normal women have shoe fetishes. They will go into a store flat broke and come out with three pairs of shoes they don’t need and a hefty credit card debt that will follow them after they die. But as I’m sure we’ve all figured out by now, I am by no means normal. Instead of investing hundreds of dollars in shoes, I have somehow funneled all my money into a different obsessive fetish, on the complete opposite end of the fetish-spectrum. My fetish is plants. I buy lots of them, most of which die slowly and painfully.  
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Five reasons why winter is great on Hatteras Island

Writer Joy Crist counts the reasons why winter on Hatteras is a magical time of year.  And her reasons might not be what you are expecting.  
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The Ocracoke Quilters welcome new members

The Ocracoke Needle and Thread Club, also known as the Quilters, has been meeting since the mid-1970s to plan and create traditional patchwork quilts, and to pass on their wisdom and skill to newcomers who join the group.  They also raffle their quilts to raise money for island non-profits.  All are welcome to join or just come to watch and talk.    
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Ocracoke Child Care: Working to look after the youngest islanders

Ocracoke’s child care center is filled to capacity with 38 busy children who a looked after by a hard working staff.    Read more







Ocracoke Journal:  Letters from 1984 and 1985

Columnist Pat Garber remembers her life on Ocracoke when she first moved there in the mid 1980s.    1984 Letters           1985 Letters





The Island Doctor:  Understanding and preventing influenza

Flu season is upon us, but there are some things you can do to protect yourself and your family against this potentially deadly infection.    Read more








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