Visiting Shelly Island on Cape Hatteras National Seashore
shelly island, cape hatteras, outer banks, buxton, the point
If you haven't heard of Shelly Island yet, I'd be surprised. Shelly Island is a shoal that slowly formed off the iconic Point in Cape Hatteras. About a mile wide, Shelly Island is just close enough that excited Outer Banks visitors are using whatever means necessary to cross a dangerous channel to reach the island. Once across the channel, you'll find the island littered with broken shells, and occasionally a few prized whole shells.
On our first visit out to The Point in Buxton, we were met with cool summer conditions and storm clouds in the distance. We came early, matching our visit with low tide. We chose to view the island from afar on this trip, waiting until a warmer day to dive into the water to cross the channel. But the storm clouds offered a beautiful, almost eerie peacefulness to the quiet morning on the shore.
shelly island, cape hatteras, outer banks, buxton, the point
shelly island, cape hatteras, outer banks, buxton, the point
Later that weekend, I loaded my camera in it's waterproof housing (which I noticed really doesn't create great images out of the water :-\) and we hopped on surfboards for a paddle across the channel. The island certainly lived up to it's shelly name and we immediately wished we had brought sandals. But we pushed through and took our time beach combing, searching for shells, watching the shorebirds, and generally being in awe of the rare phenomenon.
shelly island, cape hatteras, outer banks, buxton, the point
shelly island, cape hatteras, outer banks, buxton, the point
shelly island, cape hatteras, outer banks, buxton, the point
shelly island, cape hatteras, outer banks, buxton, the point
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Virginia Beach photographer Jennifer Carr is a landscape and portrait photographer currently scheduling senior, couples, and family portrait sessions and photography lessons in the Coastal Virginia Hampton Roads area, including Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, and Norfolk.