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Nature AdventuresNorth Carolina Estuarium The first of several major facilities completed by the nonprofit Partnership for the Sounds, the estuarium teaches kids and grown-ups about the threat of pollution and why marine species couldn't survive without clean estuaries. In addition to the two 130-gallon terrariums and five 130-gallon to 650-gallon aquarium tanks, there are a number of educational exhibits, including a salinity drip where you can actually sample the saltiness of different types of water bodies; a model of animal skulls that asks you to guess which animals are represented; a working model of wind and tide, where fans are manipulated to move a miniature waterway; and a movie about estuaries that gives an emotional sense of the importance of the system to the coast. The estuarium also features a nursery area with minnows, shrimp, and flounder, plus exhibits with snakes, turtles, lizards, and other creatures that live in estuarine areas. A glass-enclosed front room overlooking the Pamlico River is available for special educational workshops. Pontoon boat rides on the Pamlico River are available seasonally. The North Carolina Estuarium is open year-round Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 A.M.to 4:00 P.M. Hours may be extended in the summer months. Admission is $3.00 for adults, $2.00 for school- age children, and free for preschool children.
Merchants Millpond State Park Less than a two-hour drive from the Outer Banks, Merchants Millpond is an isolated, undisturbed wonderland like no other place in the world. This scenic backwater swamp boasts family and wilderness campsites, miles of well-marked hiking trails and canoe runs, and some of the best largemouth bass fishing in eastern North Carolina. Picnic tables, ranger programs, fishing, and at least 201 species of birds inspire people to flock into these boggy lowlands from early spring through late fall. More than 85,000 visitors tour the site each year. Poisonous snakes, mosquitoes, and ticks also inhabit the area-so beware. Campers are welcome on a first-come, first-served basis at 20 drive-in campsites with drinking water and grills. Three- quarters of a mile from the boat-launching ramp are seven rustic canoe-in sites, and 3.5 miles into the woods are five primitive backpack sites. These sites offer more secluded camping and steel fire rings. The park also has three walk-in and three canoe-in sites 1.25 miles from the launching site for organized groups of up to 50 members. Primitive camping permits are sold at the ranger station for $9.00 per family. The tent and trailer area, which has hot showers, costs $15 per night. Campsites are closed December 1 through March 15, but primitive camping is available year-round. North Carolina requires anglers to have freshwater fishing licenses, and these are sold at nearby bait shops. Even inexperienced boaters can manage to maneuver canoes around these serene, scenic waters. Canoes rent for $5.00 for the first hour and $3.00 for each additional hour. Canoes can also be rented overnight at canoe campsites for $20 for 24 hours. Both Merchants Millpond and the adjoining Lassiter Swamp, about a two-hour paddle away, have miles of water trails well-marked by brightly colored buoys. The park is best observed by boat, but it's easy to get lost in this eerie area after dark. There's plenty of free parking at the canoe launching and picnic areas. The rangers supply paddles, life jackets, and trail maps. You must bring your own food and drinks into the park, although there is a snack and beverage machine on-site if you run out. Don't forget your camera-the strange sights in this secluded swampland speak thousands of unwhispered words. Merchants Millpond State Park's new entrance includes a picnic area with a shelter, tables, and a bathroom. Large groups can reserve the area for $50. The park is open from 8:00 A.M.to 7:00 P.M. in March and October. Evening hours extend to 8:00 P.M.in April, May, and September and to 9:00 P.M. June through August. It closes at 6:00 P.M.November through February and is closed Christmas Day.
Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge On the Dare County mainland off U.S. Highway 64 between East Lake, Manns Harbor, and Stumpy Point, about a half- hour drive west of Manteo, Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge stretches across the Hyde County line into Alligator River. The U.S. Air Force owns a 46,000-acre Dare County Bombing Range in the center of the refuge, but the rest of this sprawling preserve is federally protected. Endangered species-including the peregrine falcon, red-cockaded woodpecker, and the American alligator-roam freely through the preserve. Dozens of red wolves, extinct in the wild less than two decades ago, have been reintroduced into this region (see our Natural Wonderschapter). The refuge also is reputed to have one of the biggest black bear populations in the mid-Atlantic region. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has called the Alligator River Refuge one of the largest and wildest sections of land left on the East Coast. The entire 151,000-acre refuge is accessible to four-wheel-drive vehicles, and jeep trails traverse much of the flat, sandy marshlands. Two half-mile hiking trails and 15 miles of well-marked canoe and kayak trails also are open. Activities are free and available year- round throughout daylight hours. Parking is available at the well-marked Milltail Road paved lot or at the end of the dirt Buffalo City Road off US 64. Two houses still stand alongside this dusty path leading to Milltail Creek, but only remnants of human existence remain. Once the Albemarle's largest logging town, Buffalo City had two hotels, a school, general store, scores of moonshiners, a tavern, and more than 3,000 people. Today, there are a variety of ways for visitors to see the refuge. About 4 miles west of the US 64/U.S. Highway 264 split, travelers can stop at a wooden kiosk and pick up brochures about trails, wildlife, and flora. Behind the kiosk there's a paved 15-space parking lot, where the old, dirt Milltail Road ends. Here, a half-mile paved walkway with a boardwalk overlooking the water begins. This Creef Cut Wildlife Trail and Fishing Area is wheelchair accessible. It opens at a public fishing dock and culminates in a 50-foot boardwalk atop a freshwater marsh. Interpretive plaques depicting the area's unusual flora and fauna are nailed along freshly plowed pathways. Beaver cuttings, wood duck boxes, rare sundew flowers, and warbler nesting areas are among the hidden attractions. Refuge workers estimate that there are about 100 alligators in this preserve, which marks the northernmost boundary of the American alligators' habitat. On Milltail Creek Road, there's a platform winding around the creek. The waters surrounding that platform are supposed to be among the gators' favorite haunts. If you wait quietly, you might catch a glimpse of a scaly, dark green snout. Sandy Ridge Wildlife Trail is a little more rugged. It starts where Buffalo City Road dead-ends off US 64 about 2 miles south of East Lake. Rough wooden pallets help hikers traverse swampy spots, but if rain has fallen during the past week, walkers are bound to get wet. Sweet gum, maple, and pine trees reach 30 feet high around this path. Canoe and kayak trails through Sawyer Lake and connecting canals include four main routes marked by colored PVC pipe. Trails range from 1.5 to 5.5 miles, all along a wide waterway that is smooth with no rapids. You can bring your own boat in and paddle for free. On the Outer Banks, several rental outlets lease canoes and kayaks by the day (see our Water Sports chapter). Guided canoe tours are also offered at the refuge. Call Pea Island Visitor Center at (252) 987-2394 for schedule and prices. Several times a year and regularly in the summer, the refuge staff holds Wolf Howls, leading visitors deep into the refuge at night to hear the red wolves howl (see our Attractionschapter for more details).
Lake Mattamuskeet
National Wildlife Refuge Nearly half of the nation's tundra swans swoop into this rare wilderness refuge to feed, nest, and wait out the winter. From November through March, Lake Mattamuskeet is filled with thousands of the regal white birds. Watch them and you'll be amazed. Each fall, an estimated 100,000 tundra swans make a cross- continent trek from the wilds of western Canada and Alaska to the warmer waters of North Carolina and the Chesapeake Bay. Lake Mattamuskeet, a world of isolated flatlands surrounded by 400 acres of wheat farms, is North Carolina's most popular roosting area. Between 20,000 and 40,000 swans winter here every year. Photographers, bird-watchers, and people with only a casual curiosity can drive through the refuge, across the lake on a two-lane causeway, to get a good glimpse of the birds. Swans usually swarm around the water at sunrise and sunset. They spend their days eating in the nearby fields. Besides these big birds, which can live 20 years or longer, you'll also see a huge variety of ducks, Canada geese, and snow geese. If you can't get here in the winter, come anyway. The refuge is beautiful year-round, and you will always see a variety of birds, including wading birds, shorebirds, raptors, and bald eagles, depending on the season. You can walk the roads along the lake or on the designated trail or stand atop two observation towers for a sweeping view of the flatlands. The lake is also famous for its blue crabs. The crustaceans creeping around this waterway in the summer can grow twice as big as the Outer Banks variety. Some say that's because the crabs feed off the unusually rich lake bottom, which was cultivated farm land at one time. If you make the trek to the refuge in the summer, be sure to buy some crabs at an area seafood shop and sample them for yourself. The lake and nearby canals have significant fishery resources, including largemouth bass, bream, white perch, crappie, and herring. The lake is open to public fishing from March through November, and three boat ramps give anglers access to the lake. The old pumping station near the center of the refuge was built between 1915 and 1918. The pumping station was used to drain the lake so that people could farm the lake bed. The lake was drained and farmed on three occasions, but each company that did this went bankrupt. The pumping station was then sold to the U.S. Government, and the lake was converted into the Lake Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge, a division of U.S. Fish and Wildlife, in 1934. The Civilian Conservation Corps renovated the building, adding rooms, bathrooms, and balconies and turning it into a hunting and fishing lodge. It was closed in 1974. Public hunting opportunities are available in fall and winter for deer (October) and waterfowl (December and January). The refuge has 16 blinds that are assigned by a drawing for two-day hunts. Call the refuge office for details. A popular event at Lake Mattamuskeet is Swan Days, held the first weekend in December. The Swan Quarter Service Group, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the staff of the Lake Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge, puts on the celebration to welcome the thousands of tundra swan and other waterfowl. The event, which began in 1994, offers a variety of activities for the whole family, including guided tours of the refuge, workshops and lectures on a variety of wildlife and history topics, local arts and crafts, kids' activities, and delicious food. Many of the guided tours and workshops require reservations, so make plans early by visiting the Web site or calling the refuge and asking for a brochure.
Edenton National Fish Hatchery A waterfront walkway and pier at the facility provide access to Pembroke Creek for people with disabilities. The 15-acre area also gives nature lovers a look at some of the native wildlife and waterfowl indigenous to the surrounding wetlands. The Hatchery expanded in 2001. Inside, groups of aquariums house fish native to local waters. Kids love seeing three alligators in one tank. A question- and-answer computer touch screen teaches about the fish and environment. The most popular attraction, "Pathway to Fishing," a 12-station, one-hour tour, teaches youngsters the basics of fishing. Included are brief talks on angler ethics and safety, live bait and lures, ecology, rods and reels, knot-tying, casting, and local fish species. The fish hatchery is open from 7:00 A.M.to 3:30 P.M. Monday through Friday in the off-season, and Monday through Sunday from 8:00 A.M.to 5:00 P.M. April through August, free of charge.
Cape Lookout National Seashore These remote sand islands are untouched by development and linked to the mainland and other barrier island beaches only by private ferries or private boats. (Call the listed number for ferry schedules and reservations.) In 1976 they came under the control of the National Park Service when a separate national seashore was established south of the Cape Hatteras holdings. Each year, more than 300,000 nature lovers visit these sparse strips of beach. If you have your own boat, you can get to Cape Lookout by launching from ramps at marinas throughout Carteret County or from Silver Lake on Ocracoke. The easiest access to Cape Lookout is from Harkers Island. Concession ferries and private boats for hire also are available from Harkers Island to the Cape Lookout Light area, from Davis to Shingle Point, from Atlantic to an area north of Drum Inlet, and from Ocracoke to Portsmouth Village. Boats are also available from Beaufort. There are no roads on these islands, but four-wheel-drive vehicles can cruise on the Core Banks or Portsmouth Island. There are few facilities along this sparse stretch of sand; however, the islands are perfect for primitive camping year-round, four-wheel driving, fishing, bird-watching, and photography. Stay alert for sudden storms, because there is little shelter. To help foreshadow bad squalls, call the National Weather Service, (252) 223-5327, before you set out on an excursion. Visitors must supply their own water and food, and pets are not allowed. Deer ticks, chiggers, deer flies, mosquitoes, gnats, and other annoying insects are abundant around the islands, so bring repellent and wear long sleeves even in the summer months. Water is available from pitcher pumps around Cape Lookout, but campers are encouraged to bring their own supplies. Primitive camping is allowed throughout the park, but there are no designated sites. The Cape Lookout grounds include a lighthouse that was first illuminated in 1859, a lighthouse keeper's quarters that has been converted to a visitor center, and a Coast Guard station that is no longer active. Cape Lookout is closed Christmas and New Year's Day. Portsmouth Island, site of the only ghost town on the Eastern Seaboard, is just a 20-minute boat ride south of Ocracoke Island. What was the biggest, most bustling town on the Outer Banks for more than a century is now uninhabited, except for two volunteer rangers. Owned by the National Park Service since 1976, the 23-mile-long, 1.5-mile-wide isolated outpost attracts about 10,000 visitors a year. Most come to camp, watch birds, scan for seashells on miles of wide empty beaches, or just hike through the remnants of the historic village and reenter a long-deserted world. Two dozen cottages, a weather-beaten post office, and an old church still remain of the former shipping community that was populated by more than 700 people in its prime before the Civil War. Rudy Austin ferries visitors to Portsmouth Island most of the spring, summer, and fall. For reservations and further information, call (252) 928-4361 or (252) 928-5431. Whichever way you visit this remote land, bring plenty of bug spray, snacks, and drinks. For more information about Portsmouth Island and Cape Lookout National Seashore, call or write the National Park Service, Cape Lookout National Seashore, 131 Charles Street, Harkers Island, NC 28531. Also, pick up a copy of the Insiders' Guide to North Carolina's Central Coast from any area bookstore or order one online at www.InsidersGuide.com.
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