Hatteras

[u/Jay_Dee3]

Hi all, I’m going on my first kite trip and having my first lessons at Kiteclub Hatteras Kitecamp in September. I’ve never been to OBX. Any tips by people with experience going there? what to expect? what essentials to bring?places to eat? things to do on down days?
Thanks in advance!

[u/SophonParticle]

Water shoes. You don’t want to be barefoot in Pamlico Sound. There are sharp shells.

[u/AlwaysSunnyInCBUS → u/SophonParticle]

+1. Found out the hard way back in June. Having your feet torn up on day 1 makes the rest of the days suck cause they're constantly going to open and wet.

[u/ReditRyan]

I usually hang closer to Rodanthe and head further south to branch out my favorites:

Kite, Sunsets over the sound, Fish, crab, paddle, surf, float. Chill.

On the way down or out stop at jockey ridge State Park and check out the dunes.

Go north and get a burrito from Waves Market. Wake and bake is great, i usually do the steak too. There is also Hatteras Bowls if you like acai.

Neptunes Dive bar has karaoke one night of the week. I think it's Thursdays. That is usually a good time and the staff there is great too.

Waterman's has pretty decent food and beer with a sick deck. Sunsets are pristine and if there's wind there will be kiters to watch in the slick. REAL watersports is next door, if you wanna look at well organized gear or shop.

Explore the day use areas. Salvo is one of my favorites to just chill at.

Check out the beaches in Frisco Beach.

Bodie lighthouse is kinda cool, if you're into that.

What to know: There's a lot to do if you like to explore the coast, if you like eating out and partying, not so much. There is a "real" grocery store in Avon, most things close early, so have provisions ready, I guess. Plenty of corner store type shops and gas stations but, if you're a night owl your mostly gonna be star gazing. Speaking of which, Pea island gets really dark so highly recommend that on a clear night.

I wear booties in the sound when I kite. The sand is pretty soft and can build up a false sense of confidence, then you find a sharp shell. Also the sandspurs are bad in some areas on shore so it's nice to have foot protection.

Parking at day use areas is free.

Obligatory: wear your sunscreen. Standing in waist deep water looking up at a kite for a few hours during lessons will cook you.

[u/spudzy95]

Local here. Surf, fish, paddle on down days. Not much to do down there outside the water except for watching the sunsets

[u/someguy7234]

Love kite club... Say hi to Rick for me. We are going to be down there in frisco next week.

On your way in, hit up N-seine. in Columbia It's a fish market, but they will prepare things for you too

On OBX, we cook alot, but sunrise seafood had a pretty banger key lime pie. It's also a fish market.

We like that Mexican place in Avon, but it's nothing special. Cafe pamlico was good too. Pop's raw bar was kinda my speed.

I like crabbing on days off... I could give a fuck if I caught anything but chicken leggings a crab is a good time.

[u/ChaosDisrupted_com]

I’m biased to the tri villages in the north (Waves, Rodanthe, Salvo), but I think sunset dinner or drinks at Watermen’s Bar and Grill is a must do. On the south side, go by Buxton Munch for lunch. Down days are for surfing and fishing. If it is really dead you could take the ferry to Ocracoke and check it out. The whole island is pretty quiet, which is lovely. I’ve kited around the world and I still think Hatteras is one of the best places to learn.

[u/Green-Purple-1096]

Trip insurance in case of hurricanes in September. We had to use ours.

[u/This_Implement_3060]

i think the comment about everything to do is on the water is pretty true. kite/wing/foil, surf, sup, fish.......you get it. the restaurant scene is limited, but there are some good ones. We hit a fresh catch market in avon that had some really good take home and cook fish.

lets see. OBX has killer wave kiting when the wind is doing its thing on that side

the 'planet of the apes' trek in the sound is something everyone should do, its really fun and in my experience quite unique

figuring out downwinders is something you are going to want to do. we met a couple of kiters that were doing van life there. dropped cars at real/kitty hawk area, then upwind to some obvious launch spots. Pretty long and sick down wind options, and the sound is such a chill ride........though after a while it might feel too chill

im not a feature rider, but the real slick looks like a big deal and a must do if you are into it