The Outer Banks … How to Know where you are

For our regular visitors or those of us lucky enough to live here, the towns, villages and place names of the Outer Banks paint a clear picture of location. For a first-time visitor, or even someone who doesn’t come very often, it can be confusing, so let’s take a quick trip along this sandbar by the sea before organizing a week or two-week vacation.

The Basics

The Outer Banks is a string of barrier islands extending from the Virginia border to Ocracoke, about 130 miles.

The northern section of the Outer Banks is Corolla, sometimes called the Currituck Banks, more on that in a moment. To the south of Corolla are the towns of Duck, Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills, and Nags Head. That area is sometimes referred to as the northern Outer Banks, although technically that would include Corolla as well.

Oregon Inlet, south of Nags Head, separates the northern Outer Banks from Hatteras Island. Hatteras Island is a long, 48 miles, and very skinny barrier island that ends at the Hatteras Ferry dock and Hatteras Inlet. To the south of Hatteras Island is Ocracoke.

When planning a day trip or an excursion to enjoy some of the amazing things to see and do, it’s important to have an idea of the starting point and destination. As an example, for our visitors staying in Corolla, a day trip to Ocracoke would be challenging since it’s at least a three-hour trip. But for a guest staying in Nags Head, the trip is certainly feasible.

Place Names (North to South)

Currituck Banks

The northernmost area of the Outer Banks is often referred to as the Currituck Banks because Corolla and Carova are in Currituck County. It’s probably not important to know that, except it explains why the area is called the Currituck Banks.

The northern 11 miles of the Currituck Banks is referred to as Carova, and there is a small village on the Carolina/Virginia border called Carova. This is the domain of the Corolla Wild Horses, and the area is accessible by 4WD vehicles only.

Corolla is south of the 4WD area to the town of Duck, which is also the Dare and Currituck County line. Dare County is the central county of the Outer Banks.

Duck to Nags Head

Duck:

Its business district borders the Albemarle and Currituck sounds from its northern end to Southern Shores.

Southern Shores:

May be the most residential town on the Outer Banks, although it does have shopping districts. The Marketplace is off US 158 and Southern Shores Crossing is at the intersection of US 158 and NC 12.

Kitty Hawk:

For most visitors, this is the first town encountered when officially arriving on the Outer Banks. It’s a town that has a remarkable number of nature and bike trails, but for now, we’ll continue our trip south.

Kill Devil Hills:

The most populated Outer Banks town. The Wright Brothers Monument, marking where the first controlled, heavier-than-air flight took place, is here. Kitty Hawk gets to claim the first flight because in 1903 the area was called Kitty Hawk, but Kill Devil Hills incorporated in 1954, and that’s where the flight took place.

Nags Head:

South of Kill Devil Hills. One of the oldest resort towns in the United States, today it includes Jockey’s Ridge State Park, one of the most visited parks in the North Carolina system.

Roanoke Island

Manteo and Roanoke Island are to the west of Nags Head and are connected by the Washington Baum Bridge. Although Roanoke Island is not technically part of the Outer Banks, so many events and attractions are there that it needs to be listed. The fishing village of Wanchese is on the south end of Roanoke Island.

Hatteras Island (South of Oregon Inlet)

The Marc C. Basnight Bridge crosses Oregon Inlet, connecting the northern Outer Banks with Hatteras Island.

The northern 13 miles of Hatteras Island is Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, which, for good reason, is an internationally recognized birder’s paradise.

Rodanthe

Rodanthe is the first village in what is referred to as the Tri Villages: Rodanthe, Waves, and Salvo.

Avon

Avon is about 13 miles south of Salvo, is close to the center point of Hatteras Island and consequently has the largest shopping plaza, Hatteras Island Plaza, on the island.

Buxton

Buxton is the home of Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. Frisco, south of Buxton, doesn’t have a clear border, but it is considered its own community. The Billy Mitchell Airstrip is a 3,000-foot airfield located in Frisco.

Hatteras Village

2.5 miles past Frisco lies Hatteras Village, the location of the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum and the ferry dock for the Ocracoke Ferry.

The Ocracoke Ferry docks on the north end of Ocracoke Island. It’s about a 15-minute drive to Ocracoke Village.

Other Place Names (Just in Case)

Colington

Colington is an island to the west of the Wright Brothers Monument. It is almost entirely residential, although there are some, very few, but some, seasonal rentals there.

Mainland Dare County

Mainland Dare County is to the west of the Outer Banks. Sparsely populated, the three villages of mainland Dare County are East Lake, Manns Harbor, and Stumpy Point. The Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, the second-largest wildlife refuge on the East Coast, is located here.

Mainland Currituck County

Mainland Currituck County is the only peninsula that is west of the northern Outer Banks. The communities of mainland Currituck County do not have clear boundaries, but starting north and working south they are Grandy, Jarvisburg, Powells Point, Harbinger, and Point Harbor.

Some Local Jargon

It can be confusing to visitors when residents use their own terminology to describe how to get places. That’s true of just about every place, and the Outer Banks is no exception.

Most of that local language refers to the three main towns of Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills, and Nags Head.

Roads

Connecting those three towns are two major highways:

US 158 (Croatan Highway) → locally called “The Bypass”

NC 12 (Virginia Dare Trail) → locally called “The Beach Road”

The Beach Road, which parallels the ocean shoreline from Kitty Hawk to South Nags Head, got its name for obvious reasons.

The Bypass was built in the 1960s to bypass the growing congestion on the Beach Road. Generally speaking, it’s still faster to use the Bypass rather than the Beach Road, although calling the 20 miles from the Wright Memorial Bridge to Whalebone Junction, where US 158 ends, may be a stretch.

Mileposts

One of the most common ways to give a location is to name the milepost. The milepost measurements are from the foot of the Wright Memorial Bridge.

Example: “Be sure to check out the Brewing Station at Milepost 8.5 on the Bypass in KDH.”

Translation—The Outer Banks Brewing Station is 8.5 miles from the foot of the Wright Memorial Bridge in Kill Devil Hills on US 158 or the Croatan Highway.

Which is great advice, since the Brewing Station brews their own beer—and it’s excellent—and the food is very good.

Travel Tips

Even for locals, distances on the Outer Banks can sometimes catch us by surprise.

Google Maps and other map apps do a very good job of giving directions and drive times. Use them.

Local’s Tip: Summer traffic can add 20 to 25 percent onto drive times. Be aware of that, especially if plans call for being somewhere at a certain time.

Example: The drive time from Duck to Waterside Theatre, where The Lost Colony is performed, is listed as 45 minutes. Expect that to be a 55-minute to one-hour drive in the summer.