Hatteras Ocracoke Ferry

Cape Hatteras, North Carolina

Once we pulled off of the Cedar Island Ferry we were in the little touristy town of Ocracoke.  It was too early for the tourist season as many of the shops were closed.  It was a neat little town with a lot of colorful fisherman shacks providing many photo opportunities.  But driving a small house along a road barely two lanes wide, it just wasn't possible to pull over and park anywhere.  I even had the foresight to pull off to the side in the loading area to allow everyone behind us on the ferry to get in front so we could just poke along, all to no avail.

The island portion of Cape Hatteras was only 14 miles long where we reached the end of the road and another ferry ride.  This ferry was free and only 55 minutes in length.  But getting on it was an ordeal itself; a true trial of one's patience.  It was only after four ferry boat departures and three hours of waiting that we finally got on.  During the waiting period I learned that a couple of the campers at the head of the line when we arrived had been waiting two days.  I found that hard to believe.  But later that day in camp the ranger lady told me we were lucky to get on when we did for sometimes the ferries are not even running for whatever reasons.  I was done with ferry rides anyway, now and in the future.

This cruise for some reason had strong currents in a certain section got us rocking and rolling fairly well.  They even told the passengers to return to their cars and stay put.  Maybe that is why some days they don't run at all, as this day was quite calm yet it got "interesting".  I can imagine what a day with some "weather" would cause a fully loaded ferry to do.  The camera was sitting on the dash of the Little House on the Highway for this video so all movement is the boat itself.  Queasy people can skip this and move on to the next video.

Some may wonder how Sinbad fared on the ferry rides, as did Felicia at Raggedy Creations.  Well at the end of this very short video (37 secs.) of my enjoying the Cedar Island Voyage from the comfort of the driver's seat, you can see what Sinbad of the Seven Seas thinks of ocean travel.