• Brown Pelican taking off.

    Cape Hatteras

    National Seashore North Carolina

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  • New Off Road Vehicle Regulations

    New off road vehicle (ORV) regulations are now in effect. Please check here for information on how to get your ORV permit More »

  • Beach Fire Permits are required

    Beach Fire Permits are now required. These permits are free. Please check here for information on how to get your Beach Fire Permit More »

Places

Along the over 70 miles of the nation’s first national seashore from Nags Head to Ocracoke are fishing villages, historic structures, and tiny cemeteries that have helped shape the unique history and culture of the area. Visitors and locals alike often find their favorite places here, even if it is simply a spot on the beach where the pounding surf, the cry of the gulls and the whipping wind conjure up images of a past that has made the seashore and its places what they are today.

  • Lighthouses are the Icons of the Seashore Lighthouses are the Icons of the Seashore

    Learn about the historic light stations at Cape Hatteras National Seashore Read More

  • World War II British Cemeteries World War II British Cemeteries

    Two British cemeteries are located on the islands of Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Read More

Did You Know?

This artist's rendering shows the U.S.S. Monitor foundering in a storm off of Cape Hatteras in December 1862.

The U.S.S. Monitor sank off Cape Hatteras during a storm in December 1862.  The wreck's location was a mystery until 1973 when a research vessel found the ship 16 miles off the cape in 230 feet of water.

In 1975, the Monitor  was named the nation’s first National Marine Sanctuary.