Bicycle Tour of North Carolina's
Outer Banks Islands

Update --

We completed this tour summer 2007. To read about our experiences and see pictures, follow this link:

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/outerbanks2007

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The Route and Itinerary

The map to the left shows the proposed route on the Outer Banks Islands.

Day 1, July 16, Monday

Depart Statesboro early (8am) for Cedar Island, NC. Google shows this route to be about 472 miles (9 hours driving).

Map of Statesboro to Cedar Island

Plan to arrive around 5pm or 6pm in the evening and camp at the

Driftwood Motel, Restaurant & Campground

Day 2, July 17, Tuesday

Up early for breakfast, pack touring gear, and move to the Cedar Island Ferry, which is adjacent the Driftwood Motel and Campground. The Ferry allows for free overnight parking, that will be car park for the trip. The ferry leaves Cedar Island at 7am, 8:15am, and 9:30am. Target the 9:30am departure. Ferry schedule can be located here:

Cedar Island - Ocracoke Ferry Schedule 

Ferry costs for bicycles: $3.

The ferry crossing from Cedar Island to Ocracoke takes about 2 to 2.5 hours, so the ferry should arrive at Ocracoke around noon. Lunch at, and explore village of, Ocracoke from noon until about 2pm, then begin ride north to Avon. Ocracoke to Avon is about 36 miles:

Map of Ocracoke to Avon

Stay the night at the Sands of Time Campground. Note that Sands of Time Campground accepts cash only. Sites are $22 to $24 for tents. (Alternatively, the Avon Motel is available with rates between $80 and $100.)

Day 3, July 18, Wednesday

Breakfast, pack, and ride north with today's destination either Kitty Hawk or Kill Devil Hills. Ride is about 50 miles:

Map of Avon to Kill Devil Hills

For camping in this area, a number of options exist:

Adventure Bound Campground (negative review)

Colington Park Campground

Joe and Kay's Campground (positive review)

Oregon Inlet (Nation Park Service Campground)  (Cold showers!)

(Alternatively, there are several motels in the area, but pricey $100+.)

Day 4, July 19, Thursday

Reverse course and ride south to Avon.

Day 5, July 20, Friday

Ride from Avon to Ocracoke, then take ferry to Cedar Island. The ferry departs Ocracoke at 12pm, 3pm, 4:15pm, and 6pm. Arrival at Cedar Island about 2.5 hours after departure. Option for Friday night is to (a) stay at the Driftwood Motel and Campground, (b) depart Cedar Island and stay the night somewhere in South Carolina, or (c) drive home Friday night.

Outer Banks Roads for Bicyclists

Wheels of Dare County provide some thoughts on bicycling the Outer Banks of NC:

Bicycling on NC's Outer Banks

In the populated areas, NC has wide bicycle shoulders or lanes, as these two pictures reveal. In other areas, especially south of Nags Head, roads may have only narrow 1-foot shoulders. However, traffic should be less dense and, since there are few obstructions, sight should be very good for on-coming vehicles. In short, the Outer Banks should be a good place to ride bicycles.

See also this page:

Bicycling the Outer Banks