Ocracoke

Just 26 miles from the North Carolina mainland lies an island where time stands still.

No mansions mar Ocracoke's 15 miles of unspoiled beaches, home to seabirds and sea turtles, wild ponies-and some of the best fishing along the Atlantic coast.

Ocracoke residents

Year after year, "Dr. Beach" (actually Dr. Stephen Leatherman, director of Florida International University's coastal research lab) declares Ocracoke one of the top 10 beaches in the United States, based on its natural beauty, lack of pollution and visitor-friendly features.

The Travel Channel, in its March 2006 show "Best Beaches" went further, naming Ocracoke's shores the best beach in America, beating out every stretch of sand in Hawaii, California, Florida and even the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Brown pelicans

All the publicity raised Ocracoke's profile-and bragging rights-but has done little to change the island's laid back character.

This is a destination isolated from the bustle of other beach resorts with no mini golf, no fast food, no restaurant row rush hour.

Isolation is one of Ocracoke's splendors. You cannot drive to this island; you must fly in by small plane, or come by boat. The North Carolina Ferry System connects Ocracoke to Hatteras in the north, Swan Quarter to the east and Cedar Island, near Beaufort, to the south.

The ferry from Hatteras Island

Bring your car, if you like, but once you settle in Ocracoke Village, the only town, located at the southern end of the island, you may just leave it parked. Transportation down the village's tree-shaded lanes is best accomplished by bicycle, and several places around town rent bikes by the day or week.

"This is definitely the place to vacation if you want to get away," says Jackie Myers, general manager of Ocracoke Island Realty. "Our visitors are more laid back, less stressed out than you find at other beaches."

Her company handles more than 300 rental properties on the island, ranging from simple cottages to sound-front houses with docks and hot tubs.

A typical rental cottage on Ocracoke

"We don't have oceanfront houses on Ocracoke," Myers says. "There's no construction at all on the beach."

Winter population in Ocracoke hovers around 800, but in the summer season that swells to about 15,000, mostly weekly renters.

All commercial and residential development clusters at the south end of Ocracoke, near the ferry docks to Cedar Island and Swan Quarter. The National Park Service manages the rest of the island as part of Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

Except for a park service campground and some wild ponies, the miles of dunes and marshes are largely uninhabited, shaped by wind and water.

An Ocracoke pony at the NPS pens.

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Surf fishing the day away

Recreational activities focus on the water. Four-wheel drive vehicles can navigate a number of roads which lead to the beach, where surf fishing is a popular activity along with shelling.

Experts consider the fishing in these waters some of the finest in the world, with both the ocean and Pamlico Sound easily accessible. The large charter fishing fleet docked in the village's harbor can reach the Gulf Stream and its big game fish more quickly than from any other port in the Outer Banks.

Ocracoke may not have a movie theater, but there's plenty to do between leisurely breakfasts and lazy sunsets. Outfitters on the island teach surfing, lead kayak tours and take visitors for a high-flying tour of the harbor via parasail.

One popular day excursion goes across the inlet to Portsmouth, once a thriving village but now a ghost town preserved by the National Park Service as part of Cape Lookout National Seashore. Austin Boat Tours runs a shuttle boat from Ocracoke harbor to the Portsmouth dock, a trip enlivened by the captain's local yarns told in an authentic Orcracoke brogue, a unique dialect studied by N.C. State University.

Above, Capt. Austin on Portsmouth Island

Capt. Austin, whose family goes back many generations on the island, also offers tours to nearby brown pelican rookeries.

But many choose to spend the days strolling the village's shady lanes, discovering galleries, shops and restaurants half-hidden among moss-hung live oaks.

Evening on Silver Lake Harbor

Above the tree line rises the white column of the Ocracoke Light. Built in 1823, it is the oldest lighthouse still operating in North Carolina.

Throughout its history, Ocracoke hosted many colorful characters looking for a quiet getaway.

Blackbeard the pirate was one, but here his luck ran out. Just outside the harbor lies Teach's Hole, site of his final, fatal battle with the British.

One of the best places to get in touch with the old pirate's spirit is aboard the schooner Windfall. Capt. Rob Temple sails his 57-foot vessel, flying Blackbeard's pirate flag of a skeleton and a bleeding heart, out of Ocracoke harbor on a daily sunset cruise May through October.

Above, Capt. Rob Temple aboard the Windfall

As the sun slides down into Pamlico Sound, Temple tells many tales about Blackbeard, including the story of a mysterious goblet said to be made from the pirate's skull. National Geographic recently came to Ocracoke looking for Blackbeard lore and ended up featuring Temple's tales in its July 2006 issue and on its website.

The captain, a North Carolina native himself, says he understands the attraction that brought Blackbeard and so many others back to the island: "Once you get away, all you think about is coming back."

For more information on Ocracoke, visit:
www.ocracokevillage.com