One of the most iconic sites on North Carolina’s Outer Banks is Cape Hatteras lighthouse – probably because it’s America’s tallest and most recognizable, due to its distinctive “barber pole” exterior.
In 1999, Cape Hatteras lighthouse attracted national attention when it was successfully moved more than half a mile – 2,900 feet in all – to prevent its collapse due to erosion resulting from the westward shift of the sandbars that comprise the Outer Banks. The move took a year, with the structure traveling just 12 inches per 24-hour day – half an inch an hour. Climbing Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is permitted from the third Friday in April through Columbus Day. Photo credit: National Park Service.
One reason for its fame is how long it’s been in service. December 16, 2020 marked exactly 150 years since Cape Hatteras “light” (as the locals call it) first warned passing ships of the dangers of the treacherous waters that surround the Outer Banks.
Another reason for Hatteras Light’s fame is that Cape Hatteras is the point at which currents traveling in a southerly direction from the north collide with those traveling in a northerly direction from the south. The collision of these currents creates particularly rough seas, doubling the dangers that the Outer Banks’ infamous sandbars pose to passing ships. These conditions also make for spectacular surf, which in part accounts for the eagerness of visiting surfers to surf “right at the lighthouse”.
While Hatteras Light is certainly America’s most iconic – it is only one of a chain of lighthouses built to warn passing ships of the dangers of the sandbars that abound in North Carolina’s coastal waters.
Traveling north to south, the lighthouses easily accessible by car along the Outer Banks include those at Currituck, Bodie Island, Cape Hatteras, Ocracoke Island, Cape Lookout, Oak Island, and Bald Head Island, the latter replacing the original steel-structure lighthouse at Cape Fear.
For those interested in exercise – or those simply curious about the unique view from hundreds of steps above these otherwise low-lying sandbars – climbing is permitted at all of the above structures except that at Ocracoke Island.
While climbing Ocracoke Lighthouse is not permitted, visiting its grounds is well worth the effort, particularly since virtually all of tiny Ocracoke Village is accessible by bicycle. Note Ocracoke Light’s distinctive white-washed exterior, which distinguishes it from all other Outer Banks lighthouses. Photo credit: National Park Service.
To avoid geographical confusion by passing ships – particularly during daylight hours – the exterior of each of the Outer Banks lighthouses is painted in a distinctive pattern. The lighthouse at Currituck is made of solid red brick, in contrast to Ocracoke’s solid white exterior. Bodie Island Light sports alternating horizontal black and white stripes, while that at Oak Island is painted black on top, and unpainted at the bottom.
For avid lighthouse enthusiasts or those simply intent on completeness, the above list of North Carolina’s lighthouses you can visit is by no means exhaustive. Inland lighthouses mark treacherous locations in Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, as do the state’s numerous river lighthouses. In terms of travel time from The Inn at Gray’s Landing, the most accessible river lighthouses are the Roanoke River Lighthouse now re-located to Edenton’s waterfront, 28 miles away, and its newly constructed replica at Plymouth, just 23 miles south of The Inn at Gray’s Landing.
North Carolina’s river lighthouses have a shape and style all their own. Most resemble the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse, which appears in the photograph below.
North Carolina’s river lighthouses are typically stabilized by arms that extend horizontally outward from the structure, providing stability when the surrounding waters are rough due to passing hurricanes.
Without doubt, the least accessible North Carolina lighthouse is that at Frying Pan Shoals, which is located offshore, 39 miles east of the Outer Banks. Serious lighthouse buffs should contact the North Carolina Lighthouse Society for a complete list of North Carolina lighthouses.
In addition to identifying its location, Cape Lookout Light’s distinctive black and white diamond exterior allows navigators to verify that they are in fact sailing in a northerly or southerly direction by noting the position of the diamonds – black on top vs. white on top, depending on whether they’re viewed from the east on the one hand, or from the north or south on the other. Photo credit: National Park Service.
There’s a good reason these lighthouses were constructed: these waters are dangerous. The map of the “Ghost Fleet of the Outer Banks” includes more than 200 wrecks of ships that have run aground here. Many of these shipwrecks have occurred in recent years, well after the Outer Bank’s seven lighthouses were constructed.
Maps of the “Ghost Fleet of the Outer Banks” are widely available in shops along the entire length of the Outer Banks. Avid shipwreck enthusiasts should not miss the newly opened Outer Banks Shipwreck Museum, which is located just south of the Hatteras Ferry Terminal at Hatteras Village, the most southerly point of the Outer Banks accessible by car without boarding a ferry.
If you’re going to climb Outer Banks lighthouses, be ready for nonstop spiral staircases that narrow significantly as you approach the viewing platforms at the top. Note also that none of these structures is air conditioned, which means you’ll want to dress for a hot and humid climb in June, July, August, and September. Photo credit: National Park Service.