You Are Here-Cape Lookout National Seashore - Harkers Island NC - 'You Are Here' Maps on Waymarking.com

TEXT ON THE HISTORICAL MARKER

Horizon of Islands
Across the shallow waters of Core Sound and Back Sound a low string of islands appears to float on the horizon, barely above the waves. Those islands, along with their soundside marshes and surrounding waters, are the park—Cape Lookout National Seashore—reachable only by boat.

Out on those barrier islands you quickly discover the park’s land is but a thin edge, much of it less than a few hundred yards wide. The experience there is dominated by what lies beyond: the wild Atlantic, with winds and longshore currents that constantly reshape the islands and the life that cling there.

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(left to right)
South Core Banks—one of Cape Lookout National Seashore’s three barrier islands—stretches for 20 miles. From where you are standing you can see only about one-quarter of it.

Core Sound is deceiving. Shallow and everchanging, it demands the right boat and an experienced pilot.

Competing currents here at Shell Point are a small-scale version of the dramatic island-shaping forces that occur out at Cape Lookout.

Distance to Shackleford Banks: 3miles
Distance to Cape Lookout Lighthouse: 4.5 miles

Cape Lookout Lighthouse, a symbol of the enduring effort to guide ships through intense storms and shifting shoals, became operational in 1859.

Despite its dynamic nature, Cape Lookout has a long history of human settlement. There is much to explore, including the lighthouse Keeper’s Quarters, historic Coast Guard Station, and the surviving structures of the Cape Village Historic District.

Shackleford Banks is a wider island, with dunes tall enough to shield a maritime forest where wild horses find shelter.

Back Sound’s waters, protected by barrier islands, provide breeding grounds for a rich array of marine life.

Location Name: On the grounds of the Cape Lookout National Seashore Visitor Center. Harkers Island,, NC United States 28531

Visit Instructions:

A photo of either you or your GPS at the site is welcomed but not required.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   12/09/2022 Don.Morfe visited it