Geography | |
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Location | Southern Outer Banks, Carteret County, North Carolina, United States |
Coordinates | 34°42′23″N 76°27′32″W / 34.70639°N 76.45889°W |
Administration | |
United States
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Demographics | |
Population | no permanent population |
Pop. density | 0 /km2 (0 /sq mi) |
The Core Banks are barrier islands in North Carolina, part of the Outer Banks and Cape Lookout National Seashore. Named after the Coree tribe, they extend from Ocracoke Inlet to Cape Lookout, and consist of two low-relief narrow islands, North Core Banks and South Core Banks, and, since September 2011, two smaller islands. New Drum Inlet, Old Drum Inlet and Ophelia Inlet now separate the islands. The Core Banks are now uninhabited. However, Portsmouth, at the north end of the North Core Banks, was once a substantial port, and Cape Lookout Village, about two miles south of the Cape Lookout Lighthouse, contains the historic Lookout Life-Saving Station, a U.S. Coast Guard Station, and several island homes.
Islands can be reached by two vehicle ferries. One ferry crosses Core Sound from Atlantic to North Core Banks, and another crosses the sound from Davis to South Core Banks. There are no roads on the islands: vehicles use the beach and four wheel drive tracks. Passenger ferries also take tourists from Harkers Island to the Cape Lookout area at the south end of South Core Banks.
Portsmouth Island, on which Portsmouth Village stands, is a tidal island accessible from North Core Banks at most states of the tide.
The Cape Lookout Coast Guard Station, Cape Lookout Light Station, and Cape Lookout Village Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.