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| Nags Head Woods Preserve on NC Outer Banks © Katrena |
While visiting Jockeys Ridge State Park and climbing on the giant sand dunes, a local guy suggested that we might like to visit Nags Head Woods Preserve. The preserve is less than 3 miles from Jockeys Ridge and is located at 701 W. Ocean Acres Drive. If traveling from Jockeys Ridge, you'll go north on S. Croatan Highway. Look for a McDonalds and 7-11 store near the sign for Kill Devil Hills and turn left on W. Ocean Acres Drive. Go straight until you see the signs for the preserve.
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| Off the Beaten Path on NC Outer Banks © Katrena |
The scenery is quite different as you travel down W. Ocean Acres Drive. It almost looks like you are out in the backwoods of Southwestern Virginia minus the curvy roads. The area was definitely off the beaten path of what you might expect to find so near the hustle and bustle of the main trek of the Outer Banks. I cannot help but wonder if perhaps much of this area was like this before folks began to populate the Outer Banks.
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| Nature Preserve Near Kill Devil Hills © Katrena |
If you are traveling in warmer months, I would highly recommend bringing mosquito repellent. This is a natural area that is free of commercial landscaping. If you want to visit an area that is back to nature, I don't think you will be disappointed here.
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| Back to Nature on NC Coastal Areas © Katrena |
The parking area is right in front of two buildings. When we visited, the building on the right was locked - it looked to be a sort of nature classroom. According to their Facebook page, it looks like interpretive programs are offered on Fridays. The building on the left had several maps and information about the plants and animals on the outside wall. There were also some educational boards posted nearby that featured parts of the ecosystem.
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| Unusual Hiking Trails in North Carolina © Katrena |
The preserve includes several different hiking trails, and a lady who worked there mentioned that three of them are quite short and can be hiked in less than 10 minutes each, each with quite different ecosystems. One popular trail meanders down to the Sound. We decided to hike the short trail by the lake directly behind the two buildings.
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| The Hiking Trail Less Traveled on NC Outer Banks © Katrena |
Bridges over the water were sturdy and seemed to be well built and were wide. The trail was fairly narrow. We hiked a short part of the trail but stopped numerous times to look at animals and take pictures and then circled back the way we came.
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| Learn About Duckweed and Camouflage at Nag Head Woods Preserve © Katrena |
The water had lots of duckweed, so it was fun to watch for the frogs who were camouflaged. Some of the frogs had very unusual markings. The lady who worked there said she had seen several red bellied snakes under one of the bridges that day, but we did not see any snakes as we hiked. We did see squirrels, butterflies, dragonflies, and a lot of frogs.
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| Nature Up Close at Nags Head © Katrena |
I enjoy the beauty of nature, so this was a fun place for me. Listening for the croaking of the frogs and trying to see animals who were masters at hide and seek is interesting to me, but I know trails like this are not appealing to everyone. I found the area to be a great place to take photographs and would have loved to have stayed longer to catch more of the natural surroundings through my camera lens.
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| Unusual Ecosystems at NC Outer Banks © Katrena |
The heavily shaded area did provide some protection from the sun, but on hot summer days, the temperatures are still pretty warm and humid here. We only hiked one trail since we had several places to visit that day, but I would like to go back and hike all of the trails some day.
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| Nags Head Woods Preserve in North Carolina © Katrena |
For additional information about this preserve, including maps of the trails, brochures about the plants and animals, hours of operation, highlights, and more, visit the
Nags Head Woods Ecological Preserve web site.
Additional articles by Katrena
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Travel NC With Kids blog and feel free to post your own comments about your experiences with this preserve.
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