This Land, Your Land

The News & Observer reported today that new rules about driving on the beach at Cape Hatteras National Seashore to be released Monday will set permit fees at $90 to $150 for an annual pass and between $30 and $50 for a seven-day permit.

A 2008 consent decree requires the National Park Service to limit driving on the beach at Hatteras to times that do not conflict with nesting and spawning seasons for endangered species. The agreement, which settles a lawsuit brought by various environmental groups, also closes pedestrian access to specific areas of the seashore for bird breeding season from mid-March to mid- to late-August and for turtle nesting until early November.

Weekly closure notices are available each Thursday in season at www.nps.gov/caha/parknews/newsreleases.htm.

Most drivers taking vehicles out onto the beach at Hatteras are fishermen, a park spokesman told The N&O.

In addition to buying a permit for each vehicle you want to take out to the beach beginning February 15, "permit holders will be required to watch an instructional video," The N&O says.

The Park Service will update maps and provide other information about obtaining permits at www.nps.gov/caha in the coming weeks, according to the newspaper.

The N&O's Crosstown Traffic blog has a .pdf of the 82-page NPS final rule designating off-road vehicle routes and authorizing limited ORV use within the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

The National Park Service has confirmed that work to refurbish the Bodie Island Lighthouse will resume next month with completion anticipated in October.

Work was suspended last spring after the Park Service concluded it did not have the money to repair the extent of damage discovered after work had begun the previous year.

But this week's announcement of a $1.89 million contract award confirms Outer Banks Group Deputy Superintendent Darrell Echols' statement to the Outer Banks Voice newspaper in December that funds had been secured.

The work is to include the following renovations:

  * Restore deteriorated metal.
  * Restore components on the lantern level (support beams, masonry, railing/ladder).
  * Replace galley cornice segments.
  * Paint interior and exterior masonry.
  * Replace windows and glass on lantern level.
  * Paint all newly installed metals/wood.
  * Install fire suppression system and rehabilitate electrical power.
  * Install stair strengtheners.

The existing lighthouse, which stands near Oregon Inlet on Cape Hatteras National Seashore, is actually the third Bodie Island Lighthouse, each of which has had a troubled history.

Work on the Bodie Island Lighthouse at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, which was halted in March, could resume soon, according to a report in The Outer Banks Voice.

National Park Service Outer Banks Group Deputy Superintendent Darrell Echols told the newspaper that funding for repairs to the lighthouse has been secured and a contract to continue the restoration could be signed in a matter of weeks.

A $3.09 million project to refurbish the lighthouse that began in December 2009 was halted in January 2010 when damage that exceeded expectations was discovered. After an extra $1.6 million couldn't be found, the project was shelved in March 2011.

The newspaper's report, which focuses on protection of the tower as it sits open to the elements, provides no other details, but Echols said an announcement on the particulars would be made soon.

Delayed work on the Bodie Island Lighthouse, below, could resume soon.

The state announced today that the Buxton Woods Coastal Reserve on Hatteras Island has finally reopened to visitors following cleanup from Hurricane Irene's damages.

Buxton Woods, one of 10 coastal reserves administered by the state Division of Coastal Management, comprises 1,007 acres on Hatteras Island between the northern border of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and N.C. 12. It is part of the largest tract of maritime forest left standing on the Carolina coast.

Division of Coastal Management and Wildlife Resources Commission staff members have cleared a variety of downed trees and other debris from the woods since Irene hit the Outer Banks August 26-27, the news release says.

Kurt Repanshek of National Parks Traveler says various state and federal laws prevent Cape Hatteras National Seashore from effectively dealing with a flooding problem caused by the island park's high water table.

Cyndy Holda, the seashore's spokesman, told Repanshek that heavy rains this fall, including a drenching from Hurricane Irene, left standing water surrounding portions of Lighthouse Road near the Cape Point Campground, in the campground itself and at beach Ramp 44 (National Parks Traveler has photos). Several hundred yards of the eastern end of the road have been under 6-12 inches of standing water for weeks, she said.

Drainage ditches in the park predate the Wetlands Protection Act and other modern environmental laws, and when the National Park Service trenched some of the ditches in 2004, the North Carolina Division of Water Quality said they were in violation of state laws that prohibit draining wetlands, Holda said.

Cape Hatteras staff members will begin work this winter on an environmental impact statement about possible improvements to fix the problem, such as raising Lighthouse Road and constructing a proper drainage system underneath it, according to the report.

Ocracoke Island, home to part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore including its Ocracoke Campground, will reopen to visitors at 5 p.m. today, Hyde County officials have announced.

The island will be accessible via the Cedar Island and Swan Quarter ferries.

At last word, beaches were open but national park facilities on Ocracoke Island remain closed.

WITN reports that N.C. 12 is open and clear from the village on Ocracoke north to the Hatteras Ferry docks. Hatteras Island north to Oregon Inlet remains closed to visitors.

Hyde County officials warned that "big swells and deadly rip currents are expected Wednesday and Thursday from Hurricane Katia, though she will stay hundreds of miles offshore," WITN in Washington said. "Officials also ask people to be respectful of roadside crews working to clear debris from Hurricane Irene."

Cape Hatteras National Seashore has belatedly posted a news release stating that its Oregon Inlet Campground reopened on Saturday.

Beach Ramp 4 at the campground is also open, and the news release lists several other open ramps for OHV access to the beach.

Coquina Beach, north of Oregon Inlet, opened late last week, including the bathhouse and parking, and lifeguards are on duty during regular hours.

The three other Cape Hatteras campgrounds remain closed due to damages from Hurricane Irene, the September 2 news release says. Bodie Island Lighthouse and all other park facilities on Hatteras and Ocracoke islands remain closed, as well.

Hatteras Island south of Oregon Inlet and Ocracoke Island are closed to the public, and residents began a staggered return Sunday.

Storm damage in the park includes water damage to numerous facilities, damaged rooftops, scattered debris and tree limbs, and missing or damaged boardwalks, signs, posts and fencing materials.

Get details here of work to repair facilities and restore services at Cape Lookout, which has mostly reopened, and the National Parks Service's Outer Banks Group of sites, which includes Hatteras.

Officials with the National Park Service say they've reopened all beaches and many ramps along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore after Hurricane Irene, but note that the southern half of the island and Ocracoke Island remain closed to non-residents.

Hatteras officials have found "damaged rooftops, water intrusion either through flooding or roof leakage in numerous facilities, scattered debris and tree limbs, and missing or damaged boardwalks, signs, posts and fencing materials," a news release says.

North of the breaches in N.C. 12, Coquina Beach and all its facilities have reopened, but the Oregon Inlet Campground remains closed.

Unless signs say otherwise, beaches are open to pedestrian access throughout the park. Here is a list of ramps open to off-road vehicles.

Cape Lookout National Seashore, including the lighthouse, is essentially open for day use. Some parts of Portsmouth Village and sensitive natural areas remain closed. Shackleford Banks has reopened for day and overnight use. There's still no water in the park except for bottled water sold at the visitor center.

The Wright Brothers National Memorial and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site near Manteo reopened Tuesday.

Recreation sites in Croatan National Forest remain closed, with no new information since Tuesday.

Five of the National Wildlife Refuges on the coast - Alligator River, Cedar Island, Mackay Island, Mattamuskeet and Swanquarter - have reopened, and Pocosin Lakes was to open today. Pea Island remains closed. Various roads, trails and boat docks at each re-opened site remain closed because of hurricane damage.

No update from Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, which is administered in Virgina, was available.

Goose Creek State Park and Dismal Swamp State Park are the only coastal state parks that remain closed. At Goose Creek, the Dinah's Landing boat ramp on the western bank of the creek has reopened, the Division of Parks and Recreation says.

Still no word about the state's 10 Coastal Reserves, though five were closed prior to the storm.

The visitor center at Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills was to reopen this morning after a small fire Wednesday, the National Park Service said Friday.

A fire in an air handling unit motor at mid-morning Wednesday caused evacuation of staff and park visitors from the building. No one was injured, and the rest of the park, including the Wright Brothers Pavilion with interpretive exhibits about man's first powered flight, remained open.

The visitor center's normal hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

A little ways south, the visitor center complex at the Bodie Island lighthouse reopened Thursday after repairs to the entrance road and parking lot at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore site. The complex had closed Monday.

The Bodie Island Lighthouse visitor center is also open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

The Bodie Island Lighthouse complex, below, will close for three days next week beginning Monday morning for work on the entrance road and parking lot, the National Park Service said Thursday.

The entrance road, which is to be repaved, and parking areas, visitor center, lighthouse grounds, wildlife viewing platform, and access road to the Off-Island Hunt Club will all be temporarily closed to the public, a news release says.

The 15-acre site on the northern end of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore is to reopen as soon as work is completed.