Outer Banks Forever

09/01/2026

Happening on Ocracoke Island tomorrow morning! 🐢

Ocracoke Sea Turtle Nest Excavation Announcement!

Join Park Rangers and scientists as they excavate and inventory a loggerhead nest at the Ocracoke Pony Pasture parking area beach access at 8:30am on Wednesday, September 2.

Park at the Pony Pasture Parking lot by 8:00am and walk down the accessible boardwalk to the beach. Once on the beach, turn north (left) and walk about 50 yards to the site.

The weather will be hot. Bring plenty of water, sunscreen and sun protection, and join us to see science in action at America's first national seashore.

08/31/2026

Now Playing: The Wright Flight Academy Documentary! ✈️

We're thrilled to debut the Wright Flight Academy Documentary on our YouTube channel! This 27-minute-long documentary by our friends at Rayolight Productions tells the story of the First Flight High School Aviation students' (Dare County Schools) three-year endeavor to build a fully functional, FAA-certified airplane on the grounds of Wright Brothers National Memorial where the Wright brothers achieved powered flight on December 17, 1903!

The airplane, which took flight this spring, is the first aircraft to be built on this historic site since the Wright brothers changed the world 123 years ago! We're grateful for the opportunity to support this incredible project by sponsoring the Wright Flight Academy video series and this inspiring documentary!
⬇️
https://youtu.be/XehllDkKBOc?si=9ht1aLkBjupK47OS

In the words of Orville Wright, "If we all worked on the assumption that what is accepted as true is really true, there would be little hope of advance."

🎥 Rayolight Productions

We are thrilled to debut the Wright Flight Academy Documentary! T...

08/30/2026

Happy Junior Ranger Day! 🤠

One of our favorite parts of National Park Week is Junior Ranger Day! Whether you are junior or junior at heart, Junior Ranger programs help encourage learning and appreciation for our National Park sites. Fort Raleigh National Historic Site also presents a unique challenge to Junior Rangers after they complete their books. Fort Raleigh offers two different Junior Ranger badges for the same activity book. Junior Rangers then have to decide which badge they want. Some Junior Rangers even come back and do the book again so they can earn both! Which Fort Raleigh Junior Ranger Badge would you pick?

📷: NPS



Image Description: Two wooden Fort Raleigh Junior Ranger badges with unique designs. One is of the letters "CRO" carved into a tree and the other is an artistic depiction of a Native American man holding a bow.

08/28/2026

Tonight's the night! Come celebrate National Park Week with us and our friends Swells’a Brewing! 🍻

The celebration will feature live music from the band Hot Sauce beginning at 7 p.m., and there will also be a raffle for a special surfboard from Uncle Leo's Surfboards. All proceeds from the raffle will benefit Outer Banks Forever!

We hope to see you there! 🎉

Swells'a Brewing is located at 1802 S Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948

📸Swells’a Brewing

08/25/2026

Happy birthday to the National Park Service! 🥳 Come join our friends at Wright Brothers National Memorial to celebrate! 🎉

Happy, happy, happy birthday National Parks! 🎂🥳

Did you know Aug 25th, 2026 is the National Park Service's 110th Birthday? The National Park Service (NPS) was created on August 25, 1916. The mission of the NPS is to "preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations."

Come celebrate the National Park's birthday by exploring the Wright Brothers National Memorial! Aug 25th will be a fee-free day to visit the park. You can walk up Big Kill Devil Dune just like the brothers did, or you can take a photo with Wilbur and Orville at the first flight sculpture!



Learn more about the National Parks Birthday National Park Service Birthday - NPS Commemorations and Celebrations (U.S. National Park Service)
Learn more about exploring Wright Brothers National Memorial Places to Go - Wright Brothers National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)

NPS Photo: K. Calandrelle

Alt Text. A ranger flat hat in front of the granite Wright Brothers National Memorial pylon monument.

08/25/2026

It's Turtle Tuesday! 🐢 (We just made that up.)

Cape Hatteras National Seashore has had an incredible sea turtle nesting season this year! So far, 408 sea turtle nests have been found across the Seashore. National Park Service biologists have counted more than 25,000 eggs, and nearly 7,500 hatchlings have already made their way out of their nests and toward the ocean! 🎉

Have you adopted your sea turtle nest yet? If not, there's still time and plenty of nests left to adopt!

Through our Adopt A Sea Turtle Nest program, you can symbolically adopt an active sea turtle nest on Cape Hatteras National Seashore! Here's how our program works:

🎁Donate: Give a tax-deductible donation of $100 or more to adopt your sea turtle nest. Your gift helps fund important projects that protect and enhance the Seashore and the vital sea turtle habitat it preserves.

🐢Receive your nest assignment: You will be assigned a nest and will receive an adoption certificate by mail or email with initial information about your nest.

⏰Wait patiently for your nest to hatch! When your nest hatches later this summer or fall (the average incubation time for our nests is 61 days), you will receive a personalized update with information Seashore biologists collect about your nest, including the number of hatchlings that made their way out to sea!

For more information and to adopt your today nest, click the link below!
⬇
www.obxforever.org/adoptaseaturtlenest/

📸Cape Hatteras National Seashore

[Image description: Close-up shots of Loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings making their way to the ocean on Cape Hatteras National Seashore.]

08/24/2026

Happening tomorrow morning in Buxton! 🐢 And while you're there, make sure to check out the new Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Pathway!

Buxton Sea Turtle Nest Excavation Announcement!

Join park scientists and rangers as they excavate a sea turtle nest on Tuesday, August 25th at 11am at the Old Lighthouse Lifeguarded Beach.

Park at the Old Lighthouse Beach parking lot by 1030am, and walk down the access path to the beach. Walk south (right) of the lifeguard stand for 0.08 miles to the site. Bring water and sun protection. See you all out there!

08/22/2026

Our favorite week of the year is here: National Park Week! 🥳🎉🤠

From today through August 30, we are joining with park partners around the country to celebrate 433 National Park Service sites around the nation — including our three amazing Outer Banks national parks! 🌊🌳✈

To kick off the celebration, we are launching our new Outer Banks National Parks Discovery Guide, which takes you beyond the beach and into our national parks to explore what makes the Outer Banks so special.

To receive your guide, sign up for our email list!
⬇
www.obxforever.org/contact-us/sign-up-for-email-free-discovery-guide/

This guide does not cover everything there is to do at Cape Hatteras National Seashore , Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and Wright Brothers National Memorial, so we hope it will serve as an inspiration for your own discoveries.

We encourage you to get out and explore national parks this week — here in the Outer Banks, or wherever you are. And if you interact with a park ranger or volunteer, make sure to thank them for the work they do every day to protect our national parks! 💚🩶

📸Cape Hatteras National Seashore

[Image description: Children descending the steps of the Bodie Island Lighthouse.]

08/21/2026

National Park Week starts tomorrow, and we're here with a sweet announcement: We're celebrating all week long with our friends at Duck Donuts! 🦆🍩

If you stop by any of the Duck Donuts stores in the Outer Banks between August 22 and August 30, you'll have the opportunity to purchase a limited-edition "sea turtle" donut (Outer Banks stores only) and round up or add a donation at the register to support our three Outer Banks national parks: Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and Wright Brothers National Memorial!

And while you're at it, share your support on social media!
-Take a photo of your donut and upload it to Facebook.
-Tag Outer Banks Forever.
-Use hashtags: , ,
-Tell your friends!

Eat a donut, support our Outer Banks national parks - pretty sweet, right? 😋

Image credit: Duck Donuts

[Image one description: The words "Saturday, August 22-Sunday, August 30" and "Shell-ebrate National Park Week!" above an image of a donut decorated with blue icing, graham cracker crumbs, and a green gummy turtle.]

[Image two description: Ollie the Duck, the Duck Donuts mascot, wearing a pink visor and blue and white striped shirt.]

08/19/2026

Check out this awesome series from our friends at Wright Brothers National Memorial! ✈️ (PS: Entry to the park is free today in celebration of National Aviation Day!)