Regional Guide

Below Cape Hatteras lies Cape Lookout National Seashore, a slender barrier island with four public launch sites. A note of warning for boaters heading out on the Atlantic side: The high chop of salty seas has earned this area its name as"Graveyard of the Atlantic."

Get out of your car and hop into a sea kayak. Paddle around the barrier islands to gain a seabird's-eye view of the Carolina coast.

Float the Northeast Cape Fear River along the edge of Angola Bay State Game Preserve. Bring a waterproof camera to shoot the wide diversity of wildlife in this rarely interrupted wilderness.

Content yourself on Contentnea Creek. Just south of New Bern, smack in the middle of mainland North Carolina's eastern seaboard, lies this slow-moving, winding stream. Moss-covered oaks and cypress line the banks as the creek makes its way south to join the Neuse River.

Ride the Roanoke in an open boat. You'll love the uninterrupted views of nature in the Roanoke River National Wildlife Refuge, which is situated along the Roanoke River in northeastern North Carolina. The refuge's floodplain is considered to be the largest intact bottomland forest ecosystem remaining in the Mid-Atlantic region.