I have been traveling to the Outer Banks just about every year since I was a kid. In all of those years however, I’ve never actually STAYED on Ocracoke Island, we’ve only just done day trips there. This year for our 2nd anniversary, we decided to go ahead and stay there for a few days before heading down to Wilmington to see my husband’s uncle. We stayed at The Captains Landing, which I highly recommend, and relaxed for about 4 days before heading off.

For those that do not know of Ocracoke Island, it is one of my favorite islands in the world. The beach here has been voted as a #1 beach by Dr. Beach and with good reason! The water here is typically about 10 degrees warmer than the rest of the Outer Banks and the waves are calmer for those kiddos to play in. The most important reason I love this beach though is the SHELLS! I have a LOT of memories of my first trip here in 1986 but my most vivid memory is of me and my dad finding sand dollars, up until then I really didn’t think they were something that was on the beach – just in trinket stores!

Ocracoke isn’t just about the beach though, there is a LOT of history here. For history nuts like myself, this is almost as good as of an attraction as the beach itself! Ocracoke was one of Blackbeard’s favorite haunts and he actually died here as well. His ghost is rumored to still haunt the island – and his hidden treasures are still reported to be on the island somewhere. In addition to the pirate aspect of the history here, there is also the many shipwrecks that have occured here. This is how their heard of wild ponies are said to have got here along with a lot of the timber for many of the old cottages. Depending on the tides and shifting sands, you can sometimes see some of these wrecks without diving to them. Or if you prefer to stay on dry ground, you can go to the British Cemetery where 4 soldiers are buried that were lost on a shipwreck. Their graves are deeded land to England, so you can technically go to England without flying.

While our trip was mostly rained out, I did manage to get a few shots in, enjoy!

The view of Silver Lake Harbor from our room.

Fishing is a big industry in Ocracoke so it’s not too surprising that there are a lot of pelicans about looking for a free meal.

The British Cemetery.

The waves were really calm when we did make it to the beach, too bad the winds out of the south gave us sandburn! YOW!

Ocracoke Lighthouse, one of the oldest lighthouses that still work!

I am a pizza lover and Jason’s pizza is pretty much awesome!

Rain moved in on our first day there at sunset and didn’t leave until the middle of the night the following day. While it ruined most of what we had planned for the trip, I do have to say the atmosphere made for some great night shots. Due to the humidity, the lighthouse had great beams rather than just a spotlight.

The lighthouse the following night at sunset just as the storms and rain moved out. Notice the light is totally different from the lighthouse now due to the lack of humidity?

Sunset over Silver Lake.