Hiking

Boardwalk along the Buxton Woods Trail

National Park Service

For those who want to explore aspects of a barrier island beyond the beach, try one of the three designated hiking trails found within Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

 

Buxton Woods Trail

National Park Service

Buxton Woods Trail

3/4 mile loop

Along this relatively level path you can see the diverse maritime forest ecosystem up close, practice your skill at identifying trees, listen to the call of birds, and traverse some of the highest points on Hatteras Island. The start and end of the loop is at the Buxton Woods Picnic Area.

 

Open Ponds Trail

National Park Service

Open Ponds Trail

4.5 miles one direction (9 miles round-trip)

This trail, part of the Mountains to Sea Trail, traverses dunes, shrub thickets, and maritime forests of Hatteras Island as it winds its way between British Cemetery near the Buxton Woods Picnic Area and Trailhead and the Frisco Campground.

 

Boardwalk at the Pamlico Sound

National Park Service

Hammock Hills Trail

3/4 mile loop

This trail, found just across from the entrance to the Ocracoke Campground, leads you from the dunes and scrub thickets, though the maritime forest, and to the salt marsh and views of the Pamlico Sound, before looping back through the forest.