Cape Hatteras, NC

I've recently been working out of Hatteras Village on the outer banks of North Carolina. If you are not familiar with area, the outer banks are a small chain of barrier islands that stretch out to almost 50 miles offshore of the mainland United States. They culminate in a point known as Cape Hatteras (left) which is a known shipwreck location due to the many sand bar areas that extend many miles offshore, often rising to depths of only 6 feet. Anytime you have 6 feet of water many from shore...shipwrecks are certain to occur.

We were performing magnetometer and side scan sonar surveys, and located shipwreck sites near the shoals...some known, some not. The weather out here is intense...storms can blow up in as little as 20 minutes, and seas can go from 2 feet to 8 feet in the same period. The names around here give you some idea...there are reasons for names like Cape Fear, Cape Lookout, etc.

We were working from the 50 foot fishing vessel "Rebel" owned by Capt. Gene Woodbury. It is a beautiful 1960's wood hulled boat with classic lines and old school hardware. It was a perfect platform for all of our toys, and the entire project was enjoyable. We managed a little fishing on the way out, I caught a few spanish mackeral, one small tuna, several bonita, and a fairly respectable barracuda.

The outer banks are like a different world...they practically have their own English dialect out here. The people are incredibly friendly and remind me of original settlers, they have a slight european sound, and life here is generally slow-paced and rustic in nature. The fishing villages of old have been replaced by charter boats catering to tourists, but the feeling, architecture, and lifestyle are still very "early America" in nature.

One of the first American colonies was established here, the Wright brothers made their first flight here at Kitty Hawk (only a few miles from where we stayed at one point) and the area in general has more shipwrecks per square mile than most other areas due to the unpredictable weather and shallow shoals. Something tells me my time here on the Outer banks is just beginning, we certainly located wrecks that a worth a closer look, and I look forward to a return visit.