Outer Banks This WeekArticles & Shorts

Outer Banks Articles & Shorts - Issue 39: Spring 2026

A few weeks ago, we sprang forward in time – it’s always somewhat discombobulating to me to lose an hour. I know the Monday morning after that trick of the clock is full of groans when all of a sudden your morning wake-up call comes when it’s still dark!

But it’s one of the first real-time signs that spring is arriving. In one day, there’s the shift to it still being light at 6 p.m.! (How did that happen in a mere 24 hours?!) While this time shift is a humanmade construct, I will admit that it is lovely to see the fading of the day's light get later and later. Now we can ride bikes after dinner or take a stroll on the beach well into the evening and still have enough light to hunt for shells.

This time shift does its trick on our winter-hibernating psyches. What before was the quieter, slower, cold-weather time of year is now bursting with color, the urge to fling open the windows and the desire to get moving again. It’s time to get ready for the busiest parts of the Outer Banks seasons.

Local businesses that closed for a break during the winter are now opening back up, ready to welcome patrons in. Those that didn’t take time off begin the plans to gear back up to the in-season pace.

It’s full speed ahead now – that is until that timeshift experience in late fall where somehow we add an hour to our day yet wonder at the fact that by 5 in the evening it’s already dark.

But for now, we welcome spring just as we welcome back our visitors and all the light-filled warm-weather fun.

Beth

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The Outer Banks Boating Lifestyle: Why We're Always Looking for an Excuse to Leave Dry Land Behind

By Molly Harrison
On the Outer Banks, water isn’t just the view – it’s the whole point. These narrow, wind and water-shaped barrier islands, basically just long strips of sand separated by narrow inlets, are bordered by big, blue bodies of water – the endless Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system to the... Read More

Everything Awakens: Spring on The Northern Outer Banks

The Northern Outer Banks
By Heather Frese
As the quiet veil of winter begins to lift across The Northern Outer Banks, spring breezes in with a rush of vitality, energy and adventure. From Corolla and Carova to Knotts Island and the Mainland, doors reopen at shops and restaurants, historic sites welcome visitors and adventure tours resume on both land and... Read More

Where Preservation Meets Play

Wild Horse Adventure Tours
By Heather Frese
The image of a wild horse prancing along the beach, mane flowing in the breeze, is instantly, iconically Outer Banks, something you can only see in Corolla. If your family’s bucket list includes a one-of-a-kind wild horse sightseeing excursion on the Northern Outer Banks, look no further than Wild Horse Adventure... Read More

In the Shelter of Each Other

Outer Banks Relief Foundation
By Beth P. Storie
Most of us go through our lives making daily and future plans and decisions with the expectation that life will go as we planned. We might make room in the back of our minds that it’s possible we might be thrown a curve ball … but, naaaa, probably not. At least we think that way until that curve ball hits us squarely... Read More

Elevating Outer Banks Vacation Rentals

Coast 'N Currents Realty
By Leah Wingenroth
With each passing year, the popularity of the Outer Banks as a premier vacation destination grows, and thus the demand for rental properties grows right along with it. With a goal to connect people with the beauty and lifestyle of the Outer Banks, Coast ‘N Currents Realty has positioned itself to meet the needs of... Read More