Outer Banks Attendees

[sbailey4]

Please use this forum to send messages regarding the Outer Banks event in January 2009. You can ask for roommates, inquire about carpooling out there and other items pertaining to the event.

The event is full but I have started a waiting list. Email sbailey4@nc.rr.com if interested.

[debrown]

I will be traveling from Charlotte and my wife may accompany me but may be interested in a rider who wishes to carpool. Contact me if interested.

[epayne]

Does anyone know if the beach driving is similar to the conditions on Chincoteague and Assateaque Island? I looked on line and found very little information as to the condition of the sand and vehicle requirements. The NC requirements do not appear to be as strict as the ones in VA and MD. Not sure if that's good or bad?

Here is a link to what I did find:

http://www.outer-banks.nc.us/newsinfo/randr.htm

Just wondering if any of you folks have experienced driving on the beach there and if a "all wheel drive" HONDA Element would be sufficient to safely navigate the area.

Curious?

Edgar Payne
Charlotte Region

[jbwick]

Take your tires down to ( 15 lb ) and you should be fine with that vehicle, Still use caution. Don't forget your shovel !!!!!!!!!!!

[epayne]

Thanks for the information.

Do you know if compressed air is available at the beach access portals? Or do I need to get a 12 volt compressor?

Edgar Payne
Charlotte Region

[jbwick]

There is air at most places that sell gas
BUT it would be wise to bring your compressor

[kimberly]

I don't know alot about 4 wheel driving but I can tell you that I took my husband's truck last year to the Outerbanks trip and was glad I did. The "ruts" that you have to drive in can get very deep so I felt that it was good to have the extra clearance under the vehicle.

[malcolmxavier]

I'm interested in getting a carpool ride with someone for the beaches. I have an AWD Outback sport, but I am not sure if it's good for beach driving. It has some clearance, but if the ruts are deep enough for a truck to get stuck, I'm not so sure.

Thanks
-John

[jlphoto]

I actually live in Carova Beach - where the wild horses are (though Im spending more and more time down at kitty hawk where my fiance lives because its closer to Pea Island). I drive the beach pretty much every single day.

the key like Jay said was air pressure. I have 10lbs of air in my tires ... and thier big 31x10.50s. Though 15 should be fine. THe other key is clearence. Most likely you should be fine with an element as this time of the year we have coastal storms which wipe the beaches clean.

However, if the wind is blowing Northeast - do not drive on the beach with your element. Or well i wouldnt recomend it with any vehicle if you dont have to. I have no choice as the beach is the only way to get to where I live. The reason you dont want to drive durring a Northeast wind is because the ocean will be up by the dunes and you will probably have to drive through it at some point.

Down at Oregon Inlet and Cape Point there will be a whole lot more traffic on the beach and so the sand will be a lot softer and the ruts deeper than up at Carova Beach. However, there will be alot more birds down on Cape Point (thousands of them actually).

If your looking for horses - January is only so so for finding horses on the beach (May is the best month). A few will still come out but early in the morning and only if the tide isnt very high as they dont like going into the ocean. Key spots to see them on the beach are around the fire station, around washwoods coast guard station, the very north end of swan island track of the NWR, at the point where the houses sit out on the beach, at the channel marker sitting on the beach, and by the owner of the dollar tree's house (the first house you come to). The horses come out in other areas as well, these are just the most common places as it tends to be only certain groups of horses that come out regularly. In May all bets are off and you'll easily see 70 horses on the beach.

You should easily find horses if you go into the towns. Swan beach typically has horses hanging out in the open area around Luerds Hill (people call this Pennys hill but really Pennys hill was destroyed more than a century ago when it migrated into the Old Currituck Inlet). The town of Carova is where most of the horses that are accessible by vehicle live. Just drive around the roads. Be weary of private property though. If there are no tresspassing signs up - obey them. If there isnt a house built on the land and there arnt any signs then you'll be fine walking up in there.

Just remember to stay 50ft from the horses..... otherwise you run the risk of recieving a $500 citation from the sherrif or the Corolla Wild Horse Fund.

Jared

Jared

[jbwick]

The Outer Banks can have it's terrible moments and many folks have gotten stuck thru out the 30 years I've traveled these beaches, but don't let that discourage your attempts to search out locations most others won't. Always hope for the best and prepare for the worst and you will succeed. Check the weather a couple of days ahead and set up your game plan. Believe it or not when I first moved to the Outer Banks in 1978 I rarely saw any 4x4 on the beach, Most of the old timers had their everyday cars. This last year I traveled on the beaches not once using my 4 wheel drive or lowering my tires. You have to pick the right times and keep a good look ahead, not saying this is always the case just be smart about it.
OH yea, DON"T FORGET ABOUT THE TIDE>>>>

[bucklermark]

Just wanted to address some concerns regarding beach driving for the OBX outing. I live on the Outer Banks and am co-coordinating the outing there. I also drive on the beach almost daily.

First...the only planned outing that would involve driving on the beach is the trip to the northern beaches (corolla). If you've driven there in the summer...you will find that the driving is much easier in the winter (the beach profile changes seasonally). If you are an experienced beach driver you can navigate the beach just fine without letting any air out of your tires (here in Corolla)...I rarely let air out of my tires...including during the summer. However, it will make travel much easier on most people if they let air out of their tires. You should not have to go below 15 lbs. of pressure in order to successfully navigate on the beach (18-20 lbs of pressure is usually just fine). There are some basic dos and don't when trying to drive in sand and we will go over some of these on the orientation night before the outing.

all of the other planned outings are on roads accessible to 2wd vehicles. However, heavy rains or wet conditions can make some of the dirt roads at the wildlife refuges (mattamuskeet, pocosin lakes and alligator river) difficult to navigate if you have two wheel drive. The dirt road at Mattamuskeet that we will be using is well maintained and even in heavy rain is fine to drive on with any vehicle. Pocosin Lakes is the only place that you might run into problems...for the most part (at least for birds) there is very little photographic opportunity at Pocosin Lakes (lots of bears though). There is a large flock (approx 80,000 the last two years) of snow geese that hangs around the pocosin lakes area. in the past they have been easy to photograph right from the paved road...however, crop rotations and other conditions can make this unpredictable.

You are welcome to explore the many wildlife refuge roads in the area on your own. We are trying to make the trip accessible to everyone. Again the only real exception to this is the trip to Corolla (but even if you don't have 4wd...there is a lighthouse, beautiful historic home, and park that you can get great images from).

The trip to the pea island area will involve no off-road driving at all. again, You are welcome to explore the Hatteras National Seashore area via offroad if you would like, but it is not a planned trip.

I'd be happy to answer any more questions if anyone has them.

Mark

[dholstein]

Thanks Mark! This is a big help. Can't wait.

[jlphoto]

Mark,
Living up here in Carova durring the summer time, if you care anything about yoru truck - you gotta let the tires down. The daily wear and tear on the transmission alone makes it neccesary. Now since the storms have come back I'm driving with 20lbs. If you make it up to the north end of the beach - where the beach is much narrower - you still have to drive through soft stuff. But of course nothing like the summer time. With all this said though, I keep my tires extra low so I dont have to drive in four wheel drive up here unless in a real bind. Funny thing is, I use 4x4 driving down Ocean Pearl Hwy up here more than I do on the beach in the summer time.
Jared

[razalas]

I will be traveling from Greensboro and have a Dodge Grand Caravan. I am able to take up to 3 additional people comfortably or ride with someone else. I can stop in Raleigh or Durham . I would also need to hitch a ride in a 4WD vehicle at the beach for one of the outings. Give me a call at 336-674-7038

Thanks,
Paul Salazar

[jbwick]

Heads up on driving at the beach. Today I watched a guy in a 4x4 turn off the main road at Pea Island towards the dunes ( beach side ) into a narrow water ditch trying to get to the flat area on the other side and sunk up to the top of his truck tires.
Use common sense even pulling off on the shoulders. His morning began with a BUMER!!!!!!!!!!
jay

[fhurteau]

Concerning the January event, which is full, I have a procedural question. Since I simply could not plan far enough ahead to make attendance plans, I didn't register. However, if it should turn out at the last minute that I am able to make a trip out to KDH during the week of the get-together, I would like to join in with the group on some or all of the outings (I realize I can't attend the meetings/dinner/etc., but that's perfectly fine). I have a 4x4 crewcab so can travel independently wherever necessary and am as familiar with the area as any non-resident can reasonably be. So, I guess the question is.... is this okay, or should I just butt out? Don't wish to intrude, but I'd hate to miss the chance to say HI to folks if I'm in the area anyway.

[rpk717]

Concerning the January event, which is full, I have a procedural question. Since I simply could not plan far enough ahead to make attendance plans, I didn't register. However, if it should turn out at the last minute that I am able to make a trip out to KDH during the week of the get-together, I would like to join in with the group on some or all of the outings (I realize I can't attend the meetings/dinner/etc., but that's perfectly fine). I have a 4x4 crewcab so can travel independently wherever necessary and am as familiar with the area as any non-resident can reasonably be. So, I guess the question is.... is this okay, or should I just butt out? Don't wish to intrude, but I'd hate to miss the chance to say HI to folks if I'm in the area anyway.

Fred, if you are in the area and happen to run across the group in the field by all means introduce yourself. However since the meeting/reception is a small part of this event those that did pay are mostly paying for the outings. We will not be able to send you a schedule of where we will be and when. That wouldn't seem to be fair to those that paid for the weekend. Your wording "I would like to join in with the group on some or all of the outings" does sound inappropriate considering this event is an outings event that requires a payment to attend.

[sbailey4]

Hi Fred,

Thank you for posting your question online and for your interest in the Outer Banks event. The $70 is mostly to cover efforts towards the outings and not for any specific meetings.

We are at maximum for this event and have made great efforts to keep each field trip group very small. We do not allow non-shooters that have not paid the full amount either. Wildlife gets spookier the more people of course.. and we keep the groups small for the lighthouses as well since we can easily get in each other's way.

I'm sorry you weren't able to register to get into this event, but would be happy to put you on the waiting list.

Thanks,

Susan

[msjamie1]

Hi all,

I'm looking for a female roommate for the OBX Outing. I've emailed one person, but feel certain that since I've had to wait until now to look into sharing with her, she may have already gotten someone to room with her.

thanks,
Jamie Davidson
jamie@newlifephotos.com

[dianacochranjohn]

I am looking to carpool with someone on the #3 Outing, Sunday to Matt. with Mark H. I don't care whether I drive or ride, just don't want to drive alone! :( Thanks, Diana Johnson 843-650-4307 or email dedece1953@yahoo.com

[razalas]

I'm still looking for someone to carpool with, either in my van or your car. I'm coming from Greensboro and can meet you in Raleigh/Durham area.

Also, I have a room with two Queen sized beds if anyone wants to double up.

Paul Salazar
336-674-7038
psalazar@bellsouth.net

[clandrm]

If a female needs a roommate, I'd be happy to share the room I have reserved. It has two queen beds.

If interested, please send me an email.

Cindy

[cleacox]

If anyone wants to car pool from the Raleigh area, I would be interested in riding along. I can drive but my Honda CRV is not 4-wheel drive.
- Cindy Leacox

[abaldwin]

Jb,
We got stuck as soon as we hit the beach. The sand is deep and thick. We ended up hiring a tour guide with a 4 wheel drive. He had experience but it was still a rough ride.

[jlphoto]

if you ever need another guide up there, contact me. its what I do for a living.