Ocracoke post Irene

[Russell]

Anyone what the status of Ocracoke after Irene? Particularly the channel into the island, which pre Irene was pretty iffy in spots already. I plan to be there in a week or two and would love to know if Irene shifted the channel around substantially and if there are new spots to be careful at.

[bill2]

Sorry I can't address any redrawn charts - but -

I just read a piece a friend passed along to the effect that the island is still in pretty bad shape - ie some reports that they had worst water damage ever - rose to levels never before recorded ( 13 ' on the bay side with alot of homes washed away ) . One story mentioned something about a " new inlet " - possibly separating northern part of the island from the southern part so it would seem there are new " features " to be careful of .

Most residents/nonresidents are still trying to get necessities - food , bug spray, building supplies .

Island was cut off from auto traffic unless on a ( two hour trip on ??? ) ferry - and even then nonresident owners reported to only being allowed back in the past few days.

Anyways - all this is from " stories " my friend got off the net - which may or may not be relied upon . . .

fwiw - if I was heading there I would want to be entirely self sufficient ( esp food fuel water ) and be very cautious - which you are already doing by asking questions .

Of course I'm 500 miles away and just relaying what I've heard - maybe rumors and maybe not . Its possible some members that are closer would have better first hand info about what you will actually find there .

Good Luck

[Cathy Monaghan]

Speaking of Ocracoke, the CDSOA's Carolinas Fleet is planning a weeklong cruise from October 8-16 on the waters in and around Pamlico Sound with Ocracoke as their final destination. If you're interested in participating in this cruise, CLICK HERE for the details.


Cathy
Webmaster -- CDSOA, Inc.
www.capedory.org

[Bob B]

From my friends on Ocracoke, they are already back on the island and are accessing the island by way of the Cedar Island and Swan Quarter ferries so the channel must be open. All is open to tourists and such. The inlet was cut in Hatteras Island and they had some houses washed away in the process. The sound-side flooding was the worst that it's been in a while. There was overwash on the north end of Ocracoke as usual and it blocked Hwy 12 for a while.

You folks heading that way in Oct. can give us a report.

Bob B.
Lancaster, SC
Formerly Ocracoke Island

[Bob B]

http://www.indyweek.com/indyweek/three- ... id=2661587
Some comments three weeks after the storm and the damage at Hatteras. Also, you can pull up Philip Howard's blog. He runs a store on Howard Street and keeps the rest of us up to date about what's going on .
Bob B.

[Russell]

Thanks all. I have been able to find out in pretty good detail the status of things on the island, some good local websites with frequent updates. Sounds in general like Ocracoke isnt in bad shape (compared to hattaras at least). Still have not found any updates on the channel though, I wuold be shocked if shoals didnt shift at least some and there were already some encroaching well into the channel before Irene.

[Bob B]

This is a site for posting waterway conditions and hazards. You can also inquire on it about conditions. It has the status of marinas in the area on as of 9-16.
http://cruisersnet.net/category/nc-north-carolina/

Bob B.