Cape Hatteras National Seashore
North Carolina
Tonight
🌗 46% moon
7 h fully dark
Crowds
high
Open today
Open
Entrance
Free entry
Beach closure in place in front of Buxton Village
The entire beachfront in front of Buxton Village is temporarily closed to public entry due to the presence of threatened oceanfront structures.
The sound of ocean waves, the starry night sky, or the calm of the salt marshes, you can experience it all. Shaped by the forces of water, wind, and storms these islands are ever changing. The plants, wildlife, and people who live here adapt continually. Whether you are enjoying the beach, kayaking the sound, or climbing the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse there is something for everyone to explore!
Activities
Topics
No entrance fee.
Hours & seasons
The grounds of Cape Hatteras National Seashore are always open for visitors, though there are resource closures that seasonally affect different parts of the beach.
Generally open:
winterspringsummerfallHours are reported by the park — verify before you go.
📞 2524732111
✉ caha_public_affairs@nps.govConditions
Quietest months (fewer crowds): Jan, Feb, Mar, Dec
Typical crowds: high
Weather now: ☀️ Clear, 81°F
⛅ 82°/81°
⛅ 81°/81°
☁️ 82°/80°
Typical monthly recreation visits · NPS avg 2023–2025 — orange months are the quietest by crowds.
Quietest months
Relative crowds by month — lighter is quieter; ringed months are the calmest by crowds.
Jan
17%
Feb
17%
Mar
34%
Apr
49%
May
58%
Jun
93%
Jul
100%
Aug
83%
Sep
73%
Oct
50%
Nov
36%
Dec
20%
Log a sky reading
Measured the sky with an SQM meter or app? Add your reading (16 = city glow … 22 = pristine). Opt in under “Travelers like you” to share it on the community leaderboard.
Live conditions
Campgrounds
Cape Point Campground ↗ · 202 sites · dump station
Frisco Campground ↗ · 117 sites
Ocracoke Campground ↗ · 135 sites · dump station
Oregon Inlet Campground ↗ · 107 sites · hookups · dump station
Visitor centers
Bodie Island Visitor Center
Hatteras Island Weather Bureau Station
Museum of the Sea
Ocracoke Island Discovery Center
Whalebone Junction Information Center
Accessibility
4 accessible campground(s)
96 audio-described place(s)
Reported by the park — verify before you go.
Not an official safety source — always defer to NPS.gov and rangers for life-safety decisions.
By the numbers
A visual read on Cape Hatteras National Seashore — its character, trails, sky, and weather.
Park fingerprint
How this park scores across the dimensions travelers care about.
3-day forecast
Daily high and low temperatures (°F).
People & stories
Figures tied to Cape Hatteras National Seashore — each spans a cross-park journey.
Adam Gaskins
— Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Lighthouse KeeperBenjamin C. Jennett
— Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Lighthouse KeeperBenjamin T. Fulcher
— Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Civil WarBilly Mitchell
— Air Force, Cape Hatteras, World War IBlackbeard (aka Edward Teach)
— Pirate, Privateer, Ocracoke IslandCharles Haywood Fulcher
— Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Lighthouse KeeperEphraim Meekins
— Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Bodie Island Lighthouse, LighthousesJohn B. Etheridge
— Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, Bodie Island Lighthouse, LighthousesPassport stamps
Mark the stamps you've collected — they show in your memory and along your routes.
🎫 Bodie Island Visitor Center
🎫 Hatteras Island Visitor Center
🎫 Hatteras Island Weather Bureau Station
🎫 Museum of the Sea
🎫 Ocracoke Island Discovery Center
🎫 Whalebone Junction Information Center
Places to see
Avon Fishing Pier
audio
Barrow Pit Road
audio
Beach Access Ramp 1
audio
Beach Access Ramp 2
audio
Beach Access Ramp 23 (Seasonal)
audio
Beach Access Ramp 25
audio
Beach Access Ramp 27
audio
Beach Access Ramp 30
audio
Beach Access Ramp 32
audio
Beach Access Ramp 34 (Seasonal)
audio
Beach Access Ramp 38 (Seasonal)
audio
Beach Access Ramp 4
audioAudio & media
🎧
🎬
🖼
Learn more
2014 annual report on American oystercatcher (Haematopus palliates) monitoring at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
2014 annual report on colonial waterbird monitoring at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
2014 annual report on piping plover (Charadrius melodus) monitoring at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
Appendix B: Maps for the Sea Turtle 2014 Annual Report for Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
2014 annual report on sea turtle monitoring at Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
2014 annual survey report of seabeach amaranth from Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
2014 annual report on Wilson's plover monitoring from Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
2015 annual report on American oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) monitoring at Cape Hatteras National Seashore
Ranger School
Park-grounded courses you can learn with the Ranger.
How Cape Hatteras National Seashore connects
This park's activities, topics, location, and on-the-ground places — one hop in the graph. Drag to explore; click an activity, topic, or related park to follow it.
Park
Activity
Topic
State
Campground
VisitorCenter
PassportStamp
Trail
Alert
Similar parks
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