Shooting The Breeze

One of the more unique aspects of living on a barrier island is that your hometown tends to make the international news on a semi-regular basis. Five years ago, the Outer Banks graced the global headlines for the happy formation of a new and very temporary island – Shelly Island – which appeared off of [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

Our wonderful co-founder and editor, Irene Nolan, had a relaxed tradition of posting an annual list of beach etiquette guidelines for new and longtime visitors alike. First published decades ago when she was the editor of the now-defunct Island Breeze, Irene’s guide was a smart and timely list of the dos and don’ts when exploring [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

Hatters Island has multi-use pathways running parallel to N.C. Highway 12 in five of its seven villages. Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, and Avon had a pedestrian-and-bike friendly pathway installed roughly a decade ago, while Hatteras village wrapped up its pathway project in late 2021. But what about Buxton and Frisco? A multi-use pathway for these busy [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

Securing safe navigation in the channels of Hatteras Inlet is not a new issue. Ever since a series of storms in the early 2010s reconfigured the channels in the inlet, (including 2011’s Hurricane Irene and 2012’s Hurricane Sandy), the need for timely and effective dredging to keep the channels open has been constant and crucial. [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

The Island Free Press is celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2022, and like the last decade and a half, 2022 is already off to a busy start. There are some years where our future headlines are somewhat fuzzy and uncertain. It’s not clear whether a new project will come to fruition, (like beach nourishment or the [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

  Our Co-Founder and beloved Editor, Irene Nolan, would always do a wrap-up of the top stories of the year as her December “Editor’s Blog.” Since she passed away in March of 2017, it’s one of her many traditions that we have carried on, because we always want to remember her, but also because she [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

The other day, a colleague was asking me about the projected opening date of the new Jug Handle Bridge, and casually asked how long we had been covering the “New Bridges” story. I thought about it for a minute, and the answer surprised us both – about 31 years. And when you think about it, [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

“What was the worst hurricane in your lifetime?” This is one of the most interesting questions to pose to any Outer Banks local resident, because it will generally clue you in on three things: 1) What section of the Outer Banks they call home 2) How long they have lived on the Outer Banks and [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article

The Outer Banks is breaking records when it comes to visitation, and this is a trend that has been going strong for months. The first six months of 2021 saw the highest number of visitors to Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands since data started being collected decades ago, and this popularity shows no sign of slowing [...] Editor's Blog |  Full Article