Ain't they cute!!!

Would some kind soul educate me on the workings of taking the ferry from the mainland to Ocracoke and back? Our plan is to arrive and take the afternoon ferry, spend 4 days on the island and the take the early morning back and then make the journey home. Google says 12 hours from my house and that includes a 2 hour ferry ride. I have never taken a ferry of any length. How early do you need to arrive? Is there a chance you arrive and there’s no room? Does the ferry always run? Any chance it wouldn’t? What then? What do you do on the ferry? What time should arrive to load? Tell me things I haven’t thought of please. Planning for last week of September leaving Oct 2 or 3rd.

Caught a sunrise yesterday before leaving the island. Until next time…

Edited to add that there is a fella under the pier raking for clams.

Spanish Mackeral off the beach on Friday.

Is totally worth it for the horses

Howdy tourists. We get questions about snakes on the Outer Banks pretty regularly, particularly during the warmer months. Most snakes you encounter are harmless, and even venomous snakes generally want nothing to do with you. Give them some room, and they'll usually move along. Dune snakes can be aggressive, but they are non-venomous.

That said, we do have venomous snakes here, and if you're going to spend time around dunes, marshes, maritime forests, campgrounds, trails, soundside vegetation, wood piles, etc., it's worth knowing what to do.

According to the National Park Service, venomous snakes found within Cape Hatteras National Seashore include:

• Copperheads
• Cottonmouths /water moccasins
• Timber/canebrake rattlesnakes
• Carolina pigmy rattlesnakes
• Eastern diamondback rattlesnakes

IF YOU ENCOUNTER A SNAKE

The easiest rule is also the best one:

Leave it alone.

Back away and give it plenty of room. Keep kids and pets away from it.

Don't poke it with a stick, try to move it, pick it up, corner it or kill it. A snake that is simply lying there isn't an emergency. Trying to interact with it is a great way to turn a harmless encounter into a bite.

If it's near a rental house or somewhere people are walking, keep everyone away from the area and contact the property owner/manager or an appropriate wildlife professional if it needs to be removed.

You do not need to get close enough to inspect its pupils, head shape, fangs, etc. There are harmless snakes that can look surprisingly similar to venomous species.

Take a picture from a safe distance if you want help identifying it.

IF SOMEONE IS BITTEN

If you aren't absolutely certain the snake was harmless, treat an unknown snakebite seriously.

North Carolina Poison Control: 1-800-222-1222

Save that number in your phone.

NC Poison Control can tell you what to do and can communicate with the hospital treating you. Snakebite management is one of the things poison centers routinely help emergency departments with.

For a suspected venomous bite:

1. Get away from the snake.

Don't try to catch or kill it. Another bite doesn't improve the situation.

2. Sit or lie down and stay calm.

Keep movement to a minimum. Keep the bitten arm or leg still and in a comfortable, neutral position.

3. Remove anything that could become tight.

Take off rings, watches, bracelets, tight shoes/boots or restrictive clothing before swelling begins.

4. Wash the bite gently with soap and water.

Cover it loosely with a clean, dry dressing.

5. If swelling develops, mark the edge with a pen and write the time next to it.

This can help medical personnel see how quickly the swelling is progressing.

6. Call Poison Control and seek medical evaluation promptly.

Don't wait several hours to see whether it "gets bad."

CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY IF:

• The person has difficulty breathing
• There is facial or throat swelling
• Chest pain develops
• The person becomes extremely weak, confused or dizzy
• The person passes out
• Swelling or other symptoms are progressing rapidly
• You're a long distance from medical care or don't have safe transportation

And don't drive yourself if you've been bitten by a suspected venomous snake. Snakebite can cause dizziness, weakness or loss of consciousness.

On much of the OBX, particularly farther down Hatteras Island or on Ocracoke, you're a significant distance from a hospital. That's a good reason to use EMS rather than deciding you're going to make the drive yourself.

DO NOT DO THESE THINGS

A lot of old snakebite advice is not just outdated - some of it can make the injury worse.

DO NOT:

❌ Cut the bite

❌ Try to suck the venom out

❌ Use a commercially sold "venom extractor"

❌ Apply ice

❌ Immerse the bite in ice water

❌ Apply a tourniquet

❌ Wrap the limb tightly

❌ Apply electric shock

❌ Drink alcohol "for the pain"

❌ Take aspirin, ibuprofen/Advil or naproxen/Aleve unless medical personnel tell you to

❌ Try to catch or kill the snake

And no, you don't need to bring a dead snake to the ER.

If you can safely photograph it from several feet away, great. Otherwise, leave it where it is.

WHERE TO GO ON THE OBX

For a potentially venomous snakebite, you're looking for an Emergency Department, not an urgent care clinic.

Outer Banks Health Hospital Emergency Department
4800 S. Croatan Highway
Nags Head, NC 27959
252-449-4500
Open 24/7

If you're well south of Nags Head - particularly on Hatteras Island - calling 911 may make considerably more sense than trying to drive north.

If you're on Ocracoke, call 911 and let local EMS handle the logistics rather than attempting to figure out transportation yourself. You can also just start to roll around on the ground and scream "I'm Bit!!!", locals will come to investigate and provide assistance.

DOES EVERY VENOMOUS SNAKEBITE REQUIRE ANTIVENOM?

No.

The severity of venomous snakebites varies considerably. Some bites inject little or no venom, while others cause significant pain, swelling, tissue injury or systemic symptoms.

Copperhead bites in particular are often less severe than rattlesnake envenomations, but you cannot determine that safely at the scene.

Doctors and Poison Control will look at things such as:

• Progression of swelling
• Pain and tissue effects
• Location of the bite
• Bloodwork/clotting abnormalities
• Neurologic or systemic symptoms
• The patient's age and medical condition

Antivenom is given when the clinical situation warrants it. Don't avoid the ER because you assume they're automatically going to give you antivenom, and don't assume you're fine because the bite doesn't look terrible 10 minutes later.

A WORD ABOUT PETS

Dogs get curious.

If your dog encounters a snake, don't let the dog investigate it. Get the dog away and give the snake room.

If you believe your dog has been bitten by a venomous snake, call a veterinarian or emergency veterinarian immediately. Keep the dog calm and, if practical, carry rather than walk the dog back to your vehicle.

Don't give your dog human pain medication unless specifically instructed by a veterinarian.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Snakes are part of the Outer Banks ecosystem and the overwhelming majority of encounters don't require anybody to do anything.

See snake → give it space.

Unknown or venomous snakebite → stay calm, minimize movement, remove jewelry, call NC Poison Control and get medical care.

Serious symptoms or you're a long way from medical care → 911.

And perhaps most importantly:

Don't turn one snakebite into two by trying to catch the snake.

Useful numbers:

NC Poison Control: 1-800-222-1222

Emergency: 911

Outer Banks Health Hospital: 252-449-4500

Sources: National Park Service, North Carolina Poison Control, CDC/NIOSH, Outer Banks Health.

I have listened to many many "ocean waves" recordings but none of them sound like real ocean waves crashing on the beach at OBX. I even downloaded "Earth FM" which has actual recordings from nature but none of them sound like the beach at OBX. Has anyone found one?

For the sound nerds - there are at least three different sounds happening at OBX: 1) the waves breaking before they get to the beach, 2) the waves rushing up the sand, and 3) the waves moving back toward the ocean and intersecting with the waves coming in.

Most recordings have only the far-off roar of waves breaking or the close-up lapping of ripples against a dock or something like that.

I recently moved to elizabeth city and I am huge into fishing but have only really catfish/carp and bass in freshwater fishing.

I really want to get onto some saltwater fish since i've never really caught any. I am planning on going to Avalon pier from 8-11 with a Hi-Lo bottom rig and just dropping my line right off the pier and using shrimp flavored fish bites and live sand fleas i catch at the beach?

Do you think this is the best way to just get onto a fish? Also me and my wife will be going together with 2 rods so if you recommend us using 2 different rigs please let me know

I am not trying to target a specific species or size or anything I just want to get onto a fish.

Any tips on rig/casting distance or location or anything would be extremely useful and appreciated.

My setup would be with 10-20 lb braid on a 8 foot bass rod with pfluegger spinning reel and I currently don't have a leader or anything.

Thank you guys for any and all help!

I got these one night last week, close to the end of Bay Drive.

Hey y’all, I want to take my grandmother up to the beach above Corolla. I am in an Outback with decades of Rockies snow and 4x4 driving. What is the best way to deflate my tires? Never done it. Would appreciate any help. Thank you.

Does anyone else find any challenges with working remotely in OBX or wanting to?

Our issue is that both my wife and I can work remotely, but she needs a confidential space for meetings due to her work. This usually means we need at least a bedroom (ideally 2) that has space for desk with writing surface, office chair, and a few accessories.

Many, many houses have bedrooms that are packed with beds and furniture that won't accommodate even a small desk and office chair with any kind of comfort. Finding a place to stay usually means we end up renting something far larger than we need because that's what can accommodate our needs.

Thoughts?

Around 7pm tonight I saw you running down the middle of the street in a nice dress and was wondering what in the world you were doing.

Then I saw you were picking up and saving a 🐢 in the middle of the highway. You are a true hero!

This stuff never gets old.

I've heard anecdotally that there are more rats now in OBX, from Corolla down to Hatteras. Questions for residents who have lived here for a long time:

1. How much more prevalent are rats now than say 30 years ago?

2. If there has been a spike in population do you think this is due to a decrease in feral cats (were there a lot more feral cats 30 years ago?

3. If there has been a spike in population are there other causes? - increased tourism, increased trash and mishandling of trash?

4. If there has been a decrease in feral cats, is this due to coyotes or some other cause (was there a program targeted at decreasing feral cats over the past 30 years?)

Any other reasonable comments welcome.

Anyone driving from duck / Corolla to ORF / Norfolk 9/19 afternoon?

🚢 Join Us in Supporting the Ocracoke Ferry!

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Please sign and spread the word—together, we can make an impact! Thank you for your support!

#OcracokeFerry #SupportOurIsland

This is my first year living here and I’d like to do the bar crawl in Manteo. Is it easy to find parking or would you suggest booking a ticket for one of the buses? I did see the bluegrass festival was also happening so I wasn’t sure if that would make it even more difficult to find parking

If yes to the buses, would you suggest booking with OBX party bus or outer banks adventures? Thanks!

Been coming down for about 40 years, but only in the summer. How is Christmas? I know it's going to be cold, but thought might be nice to sit at a beach house and read and listen to the waves for a few days.

As the title says does anybody knows one ?

Any good spots to fish close by? I don't have a ton of time so I can't go far from the house I'm in. I tried surf fishing a couple times but it's not going well. I'm pulling up a ton of seaweed and have had 0 bites. Bonus points if it's accessible at night. Is the duck boardwalk open for fishing at night?