After years of planning, a new multi-use pathway in Buxton took a big step forward on Wednesday, November 15, as stakeholders celebrated the imminent construction of the first 1.25-mile-long phase of the project with a groundbreaking ceremony steps away from the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. In 1984, the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CHNS) prepared a General [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

The sea turtle nesting season is winding down, but with 378 nests recorded along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CHNS), 2023 boasts the third-highest number of turtle nests reported since data collection began. The top three years for sea turtle nesting activity within CHNS have all occurred within the past five years, and are as [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

National Park Service law enforcement ranger Mike Henry has been named as the new chief ranger at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and Wright Brothers National Memorial (Outer Banks Group). Henry’s promotion from the Outer Banks Group’s deputy chief ranger to chief ranger occurred Oct. 22. The chief ranger position at [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District, has completed its initial analysis of historical documentation and information gathered during site visits and soil samples since peat balls containing petroleum appeared in September on a section of shoreline in Buxton, N.C., near the former U.S. Navy facility. The Savannah District’s Formerly Used Defense Site Program [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

Seasonal ORV routes along the beaches in front of the villages of Hatteras Island and the Ocracoke Campground will reopen for the off-season on Sunday, October 15. These routes, which run parallel to the villages of Hatteras, Frisco, Avon, and the Tri-villages, open to ORVs annually in the winter months when the visitor population is lower. [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

Seasonal educational programs at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CHNS) have been extended through November 11, 2023, per a recent announcement from CHNS. These programs include special talks and presentations on unique aspects of the islands’ history, and all programs are free and open to the public. Fall visitors can view the operating hours for [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

By Rachael Graf, Community Engagement Coordinator, Outer Banks Forever Since last October, Outer Banks Forever, the official nonprofit partner of the three Outer Banks national parks, has been working with the National Park Service and the local community to create a new experience at Cape Hatteras National Seashore: the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Pathway. Each year, [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

2023 will end up being the second or third busiest year on record for nesting sea turtles within the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CHNS), with a total of 377 nests reported as of the end of September. 2019 has the highest number of nests recorded within CHNS by far with 479 nests, but 2022 boasts the second-highest [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

The National Park Service awarded a $3.6 million contract to Terra Site Constructors LLC (Front Royal, Virginia) on Sept. 25, 2023, to raise and make repairs to the Double Keepers’ Quarters and other structures at Cape Hatteras National Seashore’s Ocracoke Light Station. Built in 1823, the Ocracoke Light Station is comprised of the historic Ocracoke Lighthouse, Double [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

The National Park Service recently awarded two contracts for work in Cape Hatteras National Seashore’s Hatteras Island District in Buxton, North Carolina. Construction activities along Lighthouse Road and at the Cape Hatteras Light Station are expected to begin in the coming months. Cape Hatteras Lighthouse A $19.2 million contract was awarded to Stone & Lime Historic [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

The Dare County Department of Health & Human Services in conjunction with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, Cape Hatteras National Seashore, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are issuing a precautionary advisory due to impacts from petroleum contaminated soils likely exposed by recent beach erosion near [...] Seashore News |  Full Article

Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site and Wright Brothers National Memorial are reopening all facilities, except for the Cape Point Campground in Buxton, at normal times on Sunday, Sept. 24, following a temporary closure due to Tropical Storm Ophelia. Cape Point Campground is flooded and may reopen in the coming days. Reservations [...] Seashore News |  Full Article