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Jerry Pillarelli | profile | all galleries >> Travel and Nature >> US Travel; by Trip, by State >> North Carolina >> Cape Hatteras National Seashore – North Carolina tree view | thumbnails | slideshow

Cape Hatteras National Seashore – North Carolina

Images of Cape Hatteras National Seashore – Eastern North Carolina, taken in August 2022.

Covering over seventy miles of the barrier islands in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, Cape Hatteras National Seashore protects most of the islands arching out into the Atlantic Ocean.

In my humble opinion the beauty of the ocean, beaches and dunes of Cape Hatteras National Seashore are only overshadowed by the majesty of the three lighthouses within its boundaries; Bodie, Cape Hatteras and Ocracoke. Normally I prefer the natural over the manmade but here I find myself drawn to the three sentinels standing above the thin band of islands protecting the coast of North Carolina.

Mind you, I did not ignore nature and found it plentiful in the park as well as at Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge and a bit inland at the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge but I spent most of my time trying to get the best possible shots of those lighthouses under the best available skies with the best possible light. Having been here twenty years ago when I took a ten-day road trip along these same island roadways, I already knew I would be spending most of my time photographing the Bodie Island Lighthouse. As lighthouses go it is typical, however, it stands in an open area which allows for viewing it at several angles; from the visitor center to the fields around it, along a boardwalk and from an elevated wildlife viewing platform perched above Pamlico Sound. And I happily took advantage of them all.

This gallery is arranged to start off before sunrise on Bodie Island and guide you through a virtual “day”; visiting Hatteras Island, taking the ferry to Ocracoke Island and ending up at sunset gazing up at the Bodie Island Lighthouse.
Clouds on the horizon lit up before sunrise on Bodie Island in Cape Hatteras NS
Clouds on the horizon lit up before sunrise on Bodie Island in Cape Hatteras NS 		Early light behind the Bodie Island Lighthouse (built in 1872; 165 ft tall) in Cape Hatteras NS
Early light behind the Bodie Island Lighthouse (built in 1872; 165 ft tall) in Cape Hatteras NS		 The Bodie Island Lighthouse prior to sunrise in Cape Hatteras NS
The Bodie Island Lighthouse prior to sunrise in Cape Hatteras NS		 Sunrise at Bodie Island delayed by distant thunderheads over the Atlantic in Cape Hatteras NS
Sunrise at Bodie Island delayed by distant thunderheads over the Atlantic in Cape Hatteras NS		 First sunlight touches the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
First sunlight touches the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Sunlight bathes the Bodie Island Lighthouse as seen from along the boardwalk in Cape Hatteras NS
Sunlight bathes the Bodie Island Lighthouse as seen from along the boardwalk in Cape Hatteras NS		 Sunrise on the marshes on Bodie Island in Cape Hatteras NS
Sunrise on the marshes on Bodie Island in Cape Hatteras NS		 Early morning view of the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Early morning view of the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 The Bodie Island Lighthouse silhouetted by the rising sun in Cape Hatteras NS
The Bodie Island Lighthouse silhouetted by the rising sun in Cape Hatteras NS		 Early morning light on the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Early morning light on the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
A Bodie Island marsh from a wildlife platform in the early morning hours in Cape Hatteras NS
A Bodie Island marsh from a wildlife platform in the early morning hours in Cape Hatteras NS		 Silhouette of an egret in the waters of a Bodie Island marsh in Cape Hatteras NS
Silhouette of an egret in the waters of a Bodie Island marsh in Cape Hatteras NS		 Full morning sunlight on the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Full morning sunlight on the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 The original first-order Fresnel lens atop the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
The original first-order Fresnel lens atop the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 Great white herons in the waters of a Bodie Island marsh in Cape Hatteras NS
Great white herons in the waters of a Bodie Island marsh in Cape Hatteras NS
The Bodie Island Lighthouse from the boardwalk in Cape Hatteras NS
The Bodie Island Lighthouse from the boardwalk in Cape Hatteras NS		 Muskrats foraging for food on the grounds of the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Muskrats foraging for food on the grounds of the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 The Bodie Island Lighthouse against a blue morning sky in Cape Hatteras NS
The Bodie Island Lighthouse against a blue morning sky in Cape Hatteras NS		 Synchronized muskrat feeding on the grounds of the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Synchronized muskrat feeding on the grounds of the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 Flower in a Bodie Island marsh lit by the morning sunlight in Cape Hatteras NS
Flower in a Bodie Island marsh lit by the morning sunlight in Cape Hatteras NS
The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse (built in 1870; 198.5 ft tall) as viewed from the beach in Cape Hatteras NS
The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse (built in 1870; 198.5 ft tall) as viewed from the beach in Cape Hatteras NS		 Beachgrass cloaks the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Beachgrass cloaks the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 Clear morning view of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, world second-tallest brick lighthouse, in Cape Hatteras NS
Clear morning view of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, world second-tallest brick lighthouse, in Cape Hatteras NS		 Historic US Weather Bureau Station on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS
Historic US Weather Bureau Station on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS		 British Cemetery, lives lost in a German torpedo attack on a British tanker in 1942 in Cape Hatteras NS
British Cemetery, lives lost in a German torpedo attack on a British tanker in 1942 in Cape Hatteras NS
Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry station in Cape Hatteras NS
Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry station in Cape Hatteras NS		 View on board the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS
View on board the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS		 Pelican on a sand bar as seen from the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS
Pelican on a sand bar as seen from the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS		 Hatteras bound ferry as seen from the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS
Hatteras bound ferry as seen from the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS		 Ocracoke ferry dock as seen from the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS
Ocracoke ferry dock as seen from the Hatteras-to-Ocracoke vehicle ferry in Cape Hatteras NS
The Ocracoke Lighthouse (built 1823; 75 ft tall) on Ocracoke Island in Cape Hatteras NS
The Ocracoke Lighthouse (built 1823; 75 ft tall) on Ocracoke Island in Cape Hatteras NS		 Closeup of the Ocracoke Lighthouse, above the trees, in Cape Hatteras NS
Closeup of the Ocracoke Lighthouse, above the trees, in Cape Hatteras NS		 The Ocracoke Lighthouse, North Carolina’s oldest operating lighthouse, in Cape Hatteras NS
The Ocracoke Lighthouse, North Carolina’s oldest operating lighthouse, in Cape Hatteras NS		 Looking up at the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Looking up at the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 The grounds of the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
The grounds of the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Metal floating staircase inside the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Metal floating staircase inside the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 1823 gate with United States Lighthouse Establishment (USLHE) initials at the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
1823 gate with United States Lighthouse Establishment (USLHE) initials at the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 The Ocracoke Lighthouse bathed in mid-afternoon sunlight in Cape Hatteras NS
The Ocracoke Lighthouse bathed in mid-afternoon sunlight in Cape Hatteras NS		 Oil container, for pre-electric operations, at the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Oil container, for pre-electric operations, at the Ocracoke Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 Sand dunes along North Carolina Highway 12 on Ocracoke Island in Cape Hatteras NS
Sand dunes along North Carolina Highway 12 on Ocracoke Island in Cape Hatteras NS
The Pony Pen, descendants of a once wild herd, on Ocracoke Island in Cape Hatteras NS
The Pony Pen, descendants of a once wild herd, on Ocracoke Island in Cape Hatteras NS		 A horse grazes in the Ocracoke Island Pony Pen in Cape Hatteras NS
A horse grazes in the Ocracoke Island Pony Pen in Cape Hatteras NS		 One of the horses in the Ocracoke Island Pony Pen in Cape Hatteras NS
One of the horses in the Ocracoke Island Pony Pen in Cape Hatteras NS		 Mid-afternoon view of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Mid-afternoon view of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 A Sandpiper in a pond on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS
A Sandpiper in a pond on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS
The crescent moon over the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
The crescent moon over the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 Dead branches reflected in a pond on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS
Dead branches reflected in a pond on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS		 The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse glowing at sunset in Cape Hatteras NS
The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse glowing at sunset in Cape Hatteras NS		 Birds on a sandbar in a pond on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS
Birds on a sandbar in a pond on Cape Hatteras Island in Cape Hatteras NS		 Bright late afternoon sunlight on the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Bright late afternoon sunlight on the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
The Bodie Island Lighthouse with a cloudy backdrop near sunset in Cape Hatteras NS
The Bodie Island Lighthouse with a cloudy backdrop near sunset in Cape Hatteras NS		 Clouds and blue skies at sunset highlight the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS
Clouds and blue skies at sunset highlight the Bodie Island Lighthouse in Cape Hatteras NS		 A crab in the waters under a Bodie Island wildlife viewing platform in Cape Hatteras NS
A crab in the waters under a Bodie Island wildlife viewing platform in Cape Hatteras NS		 Dramatic clouds over the Bodie Island Lighthouse at sunset in Cape Hatteras NS
Dramatic clouds over the Bodie Island Lighthouse at sunset in Cape Hatteras NS		 Sunset paints the Bodie Island Lighthouse and clouds in Cape Hatteras NS
Sunset paints the Bodie Island Lighthouse and clouds in Cape Hatteras NS

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Greg Temple 15-Aug-2022 14:08
Wow - from the opening sawn shot to the moody sunset color this is an evocative set of images. Thanks for sharing this great place with us!
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