Top Eight Sea Kayaking Hot Spots

Don't just drive by it on your way to other destinations like Nags Head or Swansboro. To get the full experience of North Carolina's coastal beauty, all senses must be utilized. Taste the salt on your lips, feel the Atlantic wind through your hair and touch the shallow waters all in your ocean vehicle—your sea kayak. Because of its 4,650 square miles of sounds and estuaries, North Carolina is brimming with opportunities for sea kayaking. Choose the Rachel Carson Estuarine Sanctuary and frolick with wild ponies and tons of shorebirds. Or slide through Bear Island, home to one of North Carolina's prettiest beaches, Hammocks Beach, where the giant loggerhead turtle comes to nest. Pea Island is yet another hot destination, composed of 12 miles of pristine, unspoiled beach, dunes, salt marshes, brackish waterways, and tons of tidal creeks and bays. Wildlife abounds here so don't forget the binoculars!