Parking is an issue on Ocracoke and people should avoid parking partially in the street. Photo: C. Leinbach
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At the height of summer, the Hyde County Sheriff deputies on Ocracoke are in high gear.
“We are answering all kinds of calls,” said Captain Jason Daniels, who, when stopped one day around 2 p.m., noted that deputies had already responded to 29 calls.
From June 16 to July 15, he reported two larcenies (items taken from properties); two minor vehicle crashes; one injury to property, and one hit-and-run.
But golf cart infractions have kept the deputies running, Daniels said.
“We are constantly on golf cart patrol,” he said. Sometimes they have multiple contacts with the same golf cart during the day.
Brian Uarte of Kernersville is the newest deputy on Ocracoke. Photo: C. Leinbach
Daniels stressed that sometimes, if an islander spots an infraction and there’s a deputy driving behind, that deputy might have already stopped that golf cart.
Or, that deputy could be responding to a more dire call.
“We prioritize all day long,” he said.
They get a lot of calls where someone thinks a youth driving a golf cart is under the legal driving age, which is 16.
“It’s hard to tell if someone is 15 or 16,” Daniels said. “We make a lot of stops and they show us that they’re 16.”
Daniels stressed that cars should not straddle into the roadway when parked and cars should not park on curves or within 15 feet of an intersection.
“Parking is an issue all over the island,” he said.
The Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department during the same period had 10 medical responder calls and two medevacs by helicopter, assisted at a gas spill, and responded to two water rescues.
This slide from David Hallac’s slide presentation, “Science surrounding NC12 hotspots,” shows a prediction of sea level rise on Ocracoke.
Update: The Aug. 17 meeting of the Ocracoke Waterways Commission has been canceled.
By Connie Leinbach
The “longest driveway in the world,” which leads to Ocracoke, needs help.
That moniker for N.C. 12 South was coined by Ocracoke Variety Store owner Tommy Hutcherson, said Justin LeBlanc, chair of the Ocracoke Waterways Commission, which heard a presentation on the highway issues at its July 20 meeting.
Coming up with short- and long-term solutions for seven hotspots for ocean overwash along the highway, from the base of the Basnight Bridge on Pea Island to Ocracoke, will be the work of the recently launched N.C. 12 Taskforce, based in Dare County.
“The vast majority of visitors to Ocracoke come down that road,” LeBlanc said. “Every one of those overwash areas affects us as well.”
At the meeting, David E. Hallac, superintendent of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, one of several local and regional members of the task force, gave an overview of a peer-reviewed study written by him and Michael Flynn of the N.C. Coastal Federation.
Hotspots the group will concentrate on include the Canal Zone (at the base of the Basnight Bridge), the Pea Island Visitors Center, the S curves at Rodanthe, areas in the villages of Avon and Buxton, Isabel Inlet (between Frisco and Hatteras) and the north end of Ocracoke.
Scientific data, compiled by NOAA and Reide Corbett, an oceanographer and director of the Coastal Studies Institute in Wanchese, Dare County, show that with by 2030 the high tide line is on the other side of several parts of N.C. 12, including Ocracoke.
“Barrier islands move,” Hallac said. “Fixing the highway has halted this process and likely exacerbated the problems we have today.”
Data show that from the 1800s to 2009, the rate of erosion of these islands has consistently increased.
While nor’easters and hurricanes lash these fragile barrier islands, sea level rise is exacerbating the issues, Hallac said.
With an average of five feet of beach erosion per year, by 2030, the highway at the north end of Ocracoke will be under water as will all of the highway from the NPS campground into the village, Hallac said.
“Even if we fix (the hotspot at the north end), unless there’s a significant amount of road raising, a significant percentage of the roads in the village will be under water with two feet of sea level rise,” Hallac said.
He said the north end of the island is particularly concerning because there is a navigable, deep-water current right next to the island. Multiple lanes of the car-stacking area at South Dock have been under water for more than a year.
“It’s that fast, outgoing current at ebb tide that’s causing the erosion at the north end,” he said.
Randal Mathews, Ocracoke’s Hyde County commissioner, noted that funding to mitigate these issues will be a challenge.
“We’ll have to ask for federal funding because the state has said they can’t afford it,” he said. “The costs are going to be great, and the funding will ultimately decide these projects.”
Hallac said that we’re all in this together.
The task force and its subcommittee have several NCDOT feasibility studies they can use to help them prioritize plans, he said, but they have not made any decisions. The Aug. 17 meeting has been canceled.
To view David Hallac’s slide presentation on N.C. 12, visit Hyde County Public Information on Facebook.
Correction: This story was corrected since it was posted to clarify that Dave Hallac said with an average of 5 feet of beach erosion–not sea level rise– per year parts of NC. 12 will be underwater at high tide by 2030.
This slide shows the areas along NC 12 for the possibility of inlet creation.
In this shot of the north end of Ocracoke off Ramp 59, an extensive beach used to be where the water is. Photo: C. Leinbach
This week is expected to be a wet one, thanks to a train of low-pressure systems that will impact the region bringing numerous rounds of heavy rain and storms starting tonight through Saturday.
The latest forecast from the National Weather Service out of Newport/Morehead City calls for up to 6 to 10 inches of rain through the weekend, with locally heavier amounts possible.
A flash flood watch will begin Tuesday at 8 a.m. for Ocracoke and Dare beaches along with mainland areas south of the Albemarle Sound.
The NWS suggests that all have multiple ways to receive weather warnings.
Monday, Aug. 2 Hyde County Board of Commissioners meeting. 6 pm. Ocracoke Community Center and live streamed on Facebook at Hyde County Public Information. See agenda below.
Tuesday, Aug. 3 Ocracoke Civic & Business Association civic affairs meeting in the Community Center. Below is the agenda: 7 to 7:10pm: Hyde County Commissioner Randal Matthews 7:10 to 7:20pm: Questions for Randal 7:20 to 7:30pm: Ocracoke School Principal Leslie Cole 7:30 to 7:40pm: Questions for Leslie 7:40 to 7:50pm: NPS District Ranger Ed Fuller or Shane Bryan 7:50 to 8 pm: Questions for Ed/Shane 8:10pm-8:20pm: Hyde County Sheriff’s Office Captain Jason Daniels 8:20 to 8:30pm: Questions for Jason 8:30 to 8:40pm: Deputy Director NCDOT Ferry Division Jed Dixon 8:40 to 8:50pm: Questions for Jed
Ocracoke Oyster Company: Bryan Mayer, 6:30 pm
Coyote Music Den, 13 Cabana Dr: Coyote Backyard Concert, 8 pm. All concerts are sliding scale “pay what you can” at the gate. No reservations. Walk, Bike, Taxi or Tram. NO ON-SITE PARKING but the venue has a lot nearby. Visit www.coyotemusic.net for details.
DAJIO: Ray McAllister Band, 7 pm
1718 Brewing Ocracoke: Open mike, 7 to 9 pm
Wednesday, Aug. 4 Ocracoke Oyster Company: Bryan Mayer, 6:30 pm
DAJIO: Barefoot Wade, 7 pm
Coyote Music Den, 13 Cabana Dr: Coyote + Martin Garrish Backyard Concert, 8 pm. All concerts are sliding scale “pay what you can” at the gate. No reservations. Walk, Bike, Taxi or Tram. NO ON-SITE PARKING but the venue has a lot nearby. Visit www.coyotemusic.net for details.
Thursday, Aug. 5 Ocracoke Fig Festival kicks off with a Porch Talk with Chester Lynn, Ocracoke’s fig expert, at 1 pm at the Ocracoke Preservation Society Museum. Following the sold-out dinner, the Berkley Barn will be open to all to enjoy music by Aaron Caswell & Greg Howell from 8 to 10 pm. Beer, wine, soft drinks and slices of fig cake will be available to purchase.
Ocracoke Oyster Company: Barefoot Wade, 6:30 pm
Ocracoke Decoy Carvers Guild meeting, 7 pm. Ocracoke Community Center.
The Breeze: 30Three, 9 pm
DAJIO: Raygun Ruby, 7 pm
Friday, Aug. 6 Ocracoke Fig Festival continues at the OPS Museum and the Berkley Barn, starts at 3 pm. See schedule here.
Ocracoke Oyster Company: Kate McNally, 6:30 pm
The Breeze: Gravitation, 9 pm
Saturday, Aug. 7 Ocracoke Fig Festival continues at the OPS Museum and the Berkley Barn, 10 am to 10 pm. Fig Cake Bake-off judging at 4 pm with celebrity judge Vivian Howard, North Carolina PBS chef. See schedule here.
It’s 5:45 in the morning. The sky is gunmetal grey with ribbons of pink and orange and blue to the east of us beyond British Cemetery Road.
The author presides over his haul of mahi mahi. Photo by Karen Lydick
I’m carrying the 30-liter cooler, filled to the brim with ice and Gatorades and sandwiches to the dock beyond.
Captain Ernie Doshier welcomes my half-awakened family and helps us over the transom and into the cabin of the Gecko. We are going to the Gulf Stream.
It has been a year nearly to the day since our first offshore charter. For about10 years before that, we would sit in the afternoon at SmacNally’s and watch the boats come in with their catch — wide eyed as one species of fish after another was laid out onto the dock for the traditional “bragging rights” photo: Mahi, Wahoo, Snapper, Trigger, Tuna. The kind of haul you see on a Sunday morning ESPN fishing show.
A fleet of boats simultaneously slips out of Silver Lake and works its way past Springer’s Point, past Teach’s Hole towards South Point where we all “cross the bar.”
Gulls follow behind us, alongside the smaller tourist boats. Some of them are following the Gecko’s track across the bar for safety. Some are tracking the Gecko to see where its captain will fish today. We slow to let them pass impatiently to seek their bounty on their own.
Ocracoke slips past the horizon, sliding over the curve of Earth. It is exciting and unsettling to be out of sight of land.
We discover dozens of container ships and sailing and fishing boats the farther we go out. Many have been out since dawn, chasing black marlin for a local tournament. Ernie tells us that the third-place fish is 530 pounds, and today is the last day to find one that weighs 531. The VHF radio is alive with voices of men who have traveled thousands of miles to try their hands at coaxing one from the deep. First prize is over $1 million.
The water here is an indescribable blue. A liquid, clear, cobalt gem that sparkles like a set stone. I stare at it, mesmerized, as we slow down.
The gulf stream is warm and carries yellow-orange grass patties up from the Caribbean. The patties follow one another in a string, ranging in size from a bed pillow to a car-sized oval of tubular grass. Below the grass are smaller migrating bait fish. Below them are the mahi. Below the mahi – the marlins. “Bailing rods in the water!” shouts the captain from up in the tower.
We all move to the rear of the boat and drop our baited lines down into the azure water as we troll alongside the grass.
Abbey Lydick waits for a bite. Photo by Mike Lydick
“Fish on!” I shout as a 24-karat gold fish swims up and bites my bait. It flashes blue and gold and green as it leaps one to two feet out of the water. A mahi!
More fish surface. What was a quiet serene scene is now a chaotic cacophonous dance, with First Mate Daniel O’Neal moving at triple speed to pull the fish in and rebait the hooks with the dexterity and precision of an orchestra conductor.
The once empty fish box is filling fast. I tell my family how proud of them I am. We’ve done well. I cherish this living memory.
We eventually make our way back home, back across the bar, exhausted and exhilarated, sun falling on the opposite side of the sky.
The fish are laid on the dock. The photos are taken. Our trophies total nearly 80 pounds of pristine, fresh fillets to be vacuum sealed and flash frozen at Native Seafood.
I am already dreaming of next year’s trip. Wondering what will come up from the deep to meet us. Grateful for the memories of us all together at the same time once again.
Rauna and John Conner take a scud around Ocracoke. Photo: C. Leinbach
By Connie Leinbach
John and Rauna Conner don’t like the limelight, but the spotlight shone on them recently when they were among six recipients of the North Carolina Governor’s Volunteer Service Awards.
The Conners, who live in both Ocracoke and Buxton and who founded Conner’s Supermarket in Buxton, were honored for their efforts in providing meals to displaced families and assisting Ocracoke residents with storm clean-up following the destruction of Hurricane Dorian.
After Dorian had passed through Sept. 6, 2019, and done its damage, John could be seen all over Ocracoke Village helping where he could.
“We were in pretty good shape in Buxton,” he said about the aftermath. “We had water in the NAPA Auto Parts store and helped clean that up, but that was about it.”
Rauna and John Conner with their volunteer service awards. Photo courtesy of the Beaufort-Hyde Partnership for Children.
His and Rauna’s own home also was in pretty good shape, he said, so they let someone else who needed it live in their house and the couple came with their tractor to Ocracoke.
He helped first at Thurston House B&B take flooded items out to the road and then for weeks afterwards they helped wherever they could.
“We’re thankful (about the award),” he said, “But there are a whole lot of other people on Ocracoke that deserve it more than we did.”
Recently, the Conners purchased three lots along Lighthouse Road one of which they cleared for additional parking.
John is doing a little bit of clearing of the other two but has no immediate plans for them.
John and Rauna sold their supermarket to their son and daughter a few years ago.
“We’re real proud of them,” said daughter Angela Conner-Taws.
The North Carolina Governor’s Volunteer Service Awards honor citizens who have shown concern and compassion for their neighbors by making a significant contribution to their community through volunteer service.
Last October, the Ocracoke Strong Kitchen, which evolved after Dorian and went on for about three months after the Baptists on Mission left, received the award.
The award was created by the Office of the Governor in 1979.
Any person, group or entity from the public, nonprofit and private sector may be nominated for an award to their county award coordinator. Hyde’s coordinator is Kris Bowen, literacy and outreach coordinator for the Beaufort-Hyde Partnership for Children in Washington, Beaufort County.
The Governor’s Medallion Award for Volunteer Service began in 2006 to recognize the top 20 to 25 volunteers in the state.
A statewide panel reviews and evaluates all nominations to determine the award recipients.
A new parking area along Lighthouse Road at Martha Jane Road asks those using it to make a donation for the Ocracoke Interfaith Relief & Recovery Team, a nonprofit that is managing the state-funded rebuilding from Hurricane Dorian. John Conner, who with his wife Rauna, said he purchased the lot simply to do what he can to help the island. Photo: C. Leinbach
John Conner cleaning up after Hurricane Dorian with his tractor. Photo: C. Leinbach
Teresa Adams is back as Ocracoke liaison to Hyde County. Photo: C. Leinbach
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Teresa Adams is back as the Ocracoke liaison to Hyde County.
She will be in the office inside the Ocracoke Community Center, 999 Irvin Garrish Hwy, from 8 a.m. to noon Tuesdays and Thursdays where she will answer questions to help keep islanders from having to go to the mainland.
She also will attend Hyde County commissioner meetings via teleconferencing in the Ocracoke Community Center. People wishing to make comments including complaints have an opportunity to do so during these meetings.
Dr. Stanley R. Riggs, distinguished research professor in East Carolina University’s department of geological sciences, was recently awarded the 2021 Francis Parker Shepard Medal for “Excellence in Marine Geology.”
The national Society for Sedimentary Geology presented the award, which is named for the “founder of American Marine Geology.” The nonprofit organization focuses on science and education within a diversity of fields in sedimentary geology.
Nominees must have a sustained record of outstanding research contributions to marine geology or other significant aspects such as geophysics, geobiology, and geochemistry, providing there is a clear link to marine sedimentation.
Stanley Riggs
Riggs earned his bachelor’s degree from Beloit College in 1960, his master’s degree from Dartmouth College in 1962, and his doctorate from the University of Montana in 1967.
Riggs has been on the faculty of East Carolina University for 54 years. From 1967 to 1999 as distinguished professor of the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences and from 2000 to the present as an East Carolina University distinguished research professor.
He also received the Oliver Max Gardner Award in 1983 for the faculty member in the University of North Carolina system who “made the greatest contribution to the welfare of the human race.”
From 1978-1983 he was a member, and from 1984 to 1992 was co-director of the International Geologic Correlation Program 156 on Marine Mineral Resources. In 1986 he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Senior Research Fellowship in Marine Science by the Australian Minister for Science.
Since 1963, he has also focused on the coastal marine geology at the intersection of land, sea, and air. This dynamic zone of change and conflict is where the riverine, estuarine, barrier island, and continental shelf systems are integrated. He co-designed in 2000 and co-directed for over a decade a United States Geological Survey-funded, multi-institutional, cooperative study on the origin and evolutionary history of the North Carolina coastal-marine system.
Riggs served on the North Carolina Governor’s Committee on Marine Natural Resources in the 1970s, North Carolina Mining Commission-Environmental Position from 1979 to 1989, North Carolina Coastal Management Commission’s Science Panel from 1997-2016, and the North Carolina Legislative Commission on Global Climate Change from 2005-2011.
From 2012 to the present, he established and directed the nonprofit North Carolina’s Land of Water, or NC LOW, to put coastal-marine science to work within the public domain.
Riggs has lectured and led field trips for teacher-training workshops that introduce K-12 school educators to the natural sciences, published books on coastal dynamics and climate change, presented hundreds of public lectures, workshops and reports, and many documentary programs on television including NC public television.
“For more than 54 years, Stan’s rigorous research, inspirational teaching, and accessible outreach have provided major benefits to humankind and influences on coastal system management. His scientific understanding of earth resources, coastal systems, and visions concerning the dynamics of future change will continue to impact society, as well as our planet, for years to come,” according to officials.
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This post will be updated as more events become known.
Monday, July 26 Friends of the Library Used Book Sale, Ocracoke Community Library (inside Deepwater Theater), 3 to 7 pm Monday through Friday; 9 am to 1 pm Saturday.
Tuesday, July 27 Ocracoke Community Library (inside Deepwater Theater), Tails & Tales Family Story & Craft, 6 p.m. Coyote Music Den, 13 Cabana Dr.: Coyote Backyard Concert, 8 pm. All concerts are sliding scale “pay what you can” at the gate. No reservations. Walk, Bike, Taxi or Tram. NO ON-SITE PARKING but the venue has a lot nearby. Visit www.coyotemusic.net for details.
Ocracoke Oyster Company: Bryan Mayer, 7:30 pm.
Wednesday, July 28 Ocracoke Community Library (inside Deepwater Theater), Baby, Toddler & Preschool story time, 10 am; Visit from the NC Aquarium Ocracoke Community Center, 1 p.m. “A Day for Phyllis,” celebration of life of Phyllis Wall, 6 pm on the lawn of Books to Be Red.–relocated to Community Square dock Coyote Music Den, 13 Cabana Dr.: Coyote + Martin Garrish Backyard Concert, 8 pm. All concerts are sliding scale “pay what you can” at the gate. No reservations. Walk, Bike, Taxi or Tram. NO ON-SITE PARKING but the venue has a lot nearby. Visit www.coyotemusic.net for details.–canceled due to rain
Friday, July 30 DAJIO: The Wicked Shimmies, 7:30 pm. 1718 Brewing Ocracoke: Desiree Christa Ricker, 7 to 9 pm The Breeze: Trainwreck 9 pm
Saturday, July 31 DAJIO: Kate McNally, 7 pm Ocracoke Oyster Company: Brooke & Nick, The Breeze: Trainwreck, 9 pm
National Park Programs on Ocracoke The National Park Service Ocracoke Island interpretive programs on Ocracoke, unless otherwise stated, are outside the Ocracoke Discovery Center at Pilot Town Road by the south end ferry docks.
Stories of Ocracoke Island Monday to Friday from 11 to 11:30 a.m. Learn about the location and legacy of Ocracoke Island. From serving as an early port village and primary point of entry to North Carolina to Blackbeard’s final battle, Ocracoke Island possesses a unique heritage resulting from its continued remote setting.
Shaping these barrier islands: Monday to Friday from 2 to 2:30 p.m. Wars, hurricanes, winds and ocean currents have all had impacts on the shores of Cape Hatteras.
War Comes to Ocracoke Every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 4 to 4:30 p.m. Learn about the role Ocracoke Island and the Outer Banks have played in shaping our country’s conflicts.
Ocracoke Island Lighthouse Tuesday to Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit the lighthouse and discuss the details and history of this beautiful beacon. The base of the lighthouse will be staffed and open on dates and times listed above from June 2 through Aug. 13.
Banker Ponies Every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 10 to 10:45 a.m. at the Pony Pen. Come meet the ponies who once roamed as a wild herd and learn about their living history on Ocracoke Island.
Explore the Shore Every Wednesday from 9 to 9:45 a.m. Meet outside at the beach access parking area adjacent to the Ocracoke Campground. Take an easy beach walk with a ranger and learn about what calls the beach its home.
The overturned plane at the Ocracoke airport. NPS photo
From our news services
After landing at the Ocracoke airport at about 1:30 p.m. today, a small plane flipped over onto its roof without apparent injuries.
The pilot of the airplane and passenger did not require transport to the hospital after the plane came to rest in the grass near the north end of the runway, according to a press release issued today (July 25) by the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, on whose land the airport is situated.
Hyde County Sheriff’s Department and Hyde County Emergency Medical Services personnel responded to the accident.
The NPS has notified the Federal Aviation Administration. No further details were available.
The overturned plane at the north end of the Ocracoke runway. Photo by NPS
