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It has been since October of 2009 when I first heard of Ocracoke Island that I became enamored with the idea of visiting the island. In more than one conversations about possible boating trips I would slip in the name Ocracoke. I talked and dreamed about going and it became somewhat of a joke and Ron would smile when I would bring up the idea of going to Ocracoke. We are in New Bern, NC and to get to Ocracoke we have to boat across the Pamlico Sound which is a large body of water and the conditions need to be in our favor; not much wind so that we are not fighting waves for such a long distance. We had a trip planned this month to Cape Look-Out just south of Beaufort, NC with some boating friends from New Bern. These friends have boys in High School / one going to college and after conversations they decided they wanted to take them to Ocracoke so there would be more for them to do. I was smiling, I knew that I had my window of opportunity… Ron said yes, lets go. We left for Ocracoke on Monday July 25 and boated to Oriental. We got up early on Tuesday morning and left for OCRACOKE….. oh yes I was so excited! We had calm seas across the Pamlico Sound and into the inlet of Ocracoke Island.

The only way to reach Ocracoke Island is by ferry, boat or private plane. The lack of a bridge gives the island a remote feel. Most of the island is un-developed and part of Cape Hatteras National Seashore. The island has beautiful beaches, a maritime forest, campgrounds and a population of wild ponies. Most people ride around town on bicycles, golf carts or walk. We had our bikes on board Pale Moon and we bike all over town and to the beaches. The island has many rental places, there are water sports, a historic museum and a hiking trail.

I was not disappointed, the island was well worth the wait. We stayed at the National State Park Docks. Many of Ocracoke’s attractions are simple and unfettered, not so many of the usual tourist trappings. We took walks on the beach looking for sea shells, we visited the working Ocracoke Lighthouse, bike to the coffee shop in the mornings, walked to the center of town in the evenings and listened to the different genres of music coming from the different restaurants. You get the idea…. Now I am thinking about when we can plan our next trip to Ocracoke…..

Ocracoke is called the “Pearl” of the Outer Banks and we can see why.

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