8 Water Adventures to Try on The Outer Banks

By Jason Frye
Jul. 31, 2023

From certain viewpoints on The Outer Banks — including the tall dunes at Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Nags Head and the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills — both sunrise and sunset can be seen over the water. Around here, you can cast a line, soar, surf, go sailing, play pirate without the pillaging, dive below the surface, or jump straight into the waves. You might claim a quiet piece of beach along the country’s first national seashore and spend the day in Robinson Crusoe mode, or simply sit still and let the water move your stress along with the tide.

The point is simple: The Outer Banks of North Carolina offers more remarkable ways to enjoy the water — on it, in it, and above it — than anyone could easily tally. These 8 are among our top picks.

1. Getting to Know Waves Up Close

REAL Watersports, located in the fittingly named village of Waves, serves as a hub for water-focused action sports on The Outer Banks. Visitors come for equipment, food, and lodging, too. Watermen’s Retreat, the condo lodging on the same campus, turns the place into a full surf-camp setup and a round-the-clock dive into the OBX way of life.

The surf in this area delivers reliable breaks, giving newcomers a place to learn while still offering experienced surfers something to work with. There’s plenty for non-surfers as well. To make use of the steady wind and the wide-open Pamlico Sound, try kiteboarding. For a gentler pace, paddle into the sound on a stand-up paddleboard.

For a water experience that stands apart, REAL offers foil boards. Picture a surfboard, wakeboard, or kiteboard with a hydrofoil attached underneath. It’s fast, demanding, and absolutely worth adding to an OBX itinerary.

2. Learning to Hang 10 With a Group

While REAL Watersports is geared largely toward experienced surfers and smaller parties, Outer Banks Surf School offers three- and five-day surf camps, kids’ camps, and lessons for groups of up to 10 people. Watching a whole group wipe out has its own special entertainment value.

Kitty Hawk Kites also provides surf instruction for all ages and group sizes across The Outer Banks. Once you’ve had your fill of the surfboard, they can get you into hang gliding, stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking, or parasailing. Unfortunately, 10 people still won’t fit under one parasail.

3. Spending Time on the Pier

Not every pier is Jennette’s Pier. This LEED Platinum pier, built with geothermal capabilities and three wind turbines, blends modern environmental technology with the classic character of historic Nags Head. People who live on and visit the Outer Banks have been fishing from this spot for 75 years. If fishing isn’t the plan, you can walk beyond the breakers, watch surfers work the waves, photograph a fresh catch, or settle in and watch the sky.

Jennette’s Pier belongs to the North Carolina Aquarium system, so summer visitors can find interactive and educational environmental programs on site. Inside the pier house, a large aquarium offers a closer view of the marine life moving beneath the pier.

4. Meeting the Fish Below the Surface

For a fuller look at the creatures living beneath the waves, visit the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island. The aquarium features the largest group of sharks in the state, with diving available for certified guests, along with a touch tank holding stingrays, horseshoe crabs, and starfish. You’ll also find wetland exhibits and another smaller pier on the sound.

Kids are naturally drawn to it, but adults should pay attention too: It’s air-conditioned, and the photo opportunities are strong. Between the sea turtles, alligators, jellies, and sharks, grown-ups may enjoy the visit just as much as the younger crowd.

5. Taking Flight Above the Water

The Wright brothers made their historic flight over Kill Devil Hills. Today, hang gliders take off from the high dunes at Jockey’s Ridge State Park, and the sky often fills with more kites than you can count. This may be a water-adventure list rather than an air-adventure list, but an afternoon hang-gliding lesson belongs in the conversation.

And in 2018, flight over water looks different: water-powered jetpacks, hoverboards, and Jetovators have stepped in where the biplane once ruled imagination. Each uses high-pressure water streams to lift riders into the air in ways the Wright brothers could not have pictured. Kitty Hawk Kites rents JetPacks and Flyboards. For a gentler but still exciting lift, parasailing is always available.

6. Paddling Into the Wild

On the inland side of Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge stretches across forest, marsh, and creeks. It is such a pristine expanse that even a 2.5-hour kayaking outing feels like it only begins to reveal the place.

Around the turn of the 20th century, logging camps and moonshine stills shaped this area. Now the focus is wildlife: alligators, as the name suggests, along with bobcats, beavers, black bears, and even red wolves. Bring a camera, lots of water, and bug spray, and you’ll be ready.

7. Catching Dinner for the Night

Charter fishing is a major part of The Outer Banks experience. You can head to the Gulf Stream in search of tuna, grouper, or sailfish, or stay nearer the coast and fish the sounds for drum, flounder, or trout. Whatever your experience level or fishing goals, there’s a guide who can help match the trip to you. Buying dinner is the easy way out.

Fishing is also strong from Jennette’s Pier, or from the shoreline while surf fishing for flounder and Spanish mackerel. You’ll need a valid fishing license, though some charters handle that detail, and you’ll need gear, which charters typically provide. Rods, reels, and tackle can also be rented or purchased throughout The Outer Banks.

8. Sailing the Outer Banks Waters

You probably won’t be sailing off to the Caribbean or Europe, but you can certainly cruise the sounds or head offshore for a pleasure trip, a sunset sail, or a sailing lesson. Downeast Rover blends sightseeing, wildlife watching, and a bit of Outer Banks lore during soundside sails. Sail Outer Banks takes small groups of up to six guests out along the sound, and guests may bring food and a cooler aboard. Sail Stiletto offers a faster, high-performance sailing outing that keeps pace with an active OBX trip.

You didn’t expect this to be one of those ordinary beach vacations, did you?

Author

Jason Frye first fell for The Outer Banks during the summer of 1990, when his family traveled from the mountains of West Virginia to the North Carolina coast for a change of scenery. A single week on the OBX was not enough, so when he was able to, Jason moved to North Carolina and began exploring and writing about every corner of the state, from the Outer Banks to the Smoky Mountains, though his heart remains on the coast. He now lives in Wilmington and visits the Outer Banks whenever he can, writing about travel, food, and all things North Carolina. His travel guide is Moon North Carolina Coast, and he shares his travels on Instagram as @beardedwriter.

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