◄ Welcome to Rodanthe / Waves / Salvo, North Carolina ►

While traveling to Hatteras Island from the north you will first cross over the Oregon Inlet bridge on Rt. 12 and then enter the Pea Island US Fish and Wildlife Sanctuary. Peaceful Rodanthe will be the first Hatteras Island village at the north end of the island. Although these three villages are each separate, it will be difficult to tell when you leave one and enter the next. One thing that can be said for sure though is that all three of our little villages have always been outdoor enthusiast friendly and they are as peaceful and quiet as you will find anywhere. Whether you prefer fishing, surfing, beachcombing, jogging, kiteboarding, shell hunting, sunbathing or just plain sitting on your lounge chair sipping a drink and relaxing, this is a place that you can do it.

For a current webcam view of Hwy 12 entering Rodanthe from the north side click on the camera.→

Village Names: This area of Rodanthe, Waves and Salvo were three distinct early settlements once referred to as the Chicamacomico Banks. Believe it or not this area was heavily wooded and these three settlements were separated by small creeks and bridges only. As of 1850 the census reported the area with 37 families with a total of 205 people.  

The villages of Rodanthe and Waves were the more closely knit of the trio. The original accepted name for Rodanthe was North Chicamacomico and for Waves it was South Chicamacomico. Salvo was originally Clarks and sometimes Clarksville and although the three villages were close knit Clarks functioned more independently then its northern neighbors.

As might be expected, the Chicamacomico Banks had many historical ties to the Manteo and Wanchese areas. Also, despite the reputation of being people from a very isolated area, the locals from this area were actually well traveled because of the area’s close connections with the US Coast Guard and their relocations all up and down the east coast. In many decades of the mid-twentieth century, Rodanthe was the northernmost stop of the Manteo-Hatteras Bus Line using sand roads. This bus line helped familiarize the southern Hatteras Island villagers with their northern neighbors.   

Rodanthe had the distinction of having the areas only man made refuge for boats in the region. In 1936 the US Coast Guard built a channel and T-shaped harbor named the Blackmar Gut built for its Chicamacomico Coast Guard Station. Today, nearly all remnants of the earlier villages have all but disappeared along with much of the original natural landscape. Visitors will be interested that there was once a wetland area called Aunt Phoebe’s Marsh in an current area now covered with a theme park, waterslide, go-cart tracks and campgrounds.               

• Fishing (surf fishing, offshore fishing, inshore fishing, pier fishing)
• Wave Riding (surfing, kiteboarding, sailboarding)
• Bird Watching
• Beach Horseback Riding
• Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras
• Fessenden Center (basketball, softball, soccer, dance, skateboard)
• Camping and RV's
• Wall Climbing (Kitty Hawk Kites - Hatteras Landing)

Currently Hatteras Island is deeply embroiled in some serious issues. Along with the fuel and housing crunch that all American's are feeling, the local businesses and citizens are also forced to take an active roll in defending the area’s right to your free and open beaches which have been the trademark of this area. Please don't forget that open beaches has always been the basis of our local economy long before the National Park Service and US Fish and Wildlife arrived with their promises to keep it that way.

If you would like to read more about the Hatteras Island "beach access" issues please refer to the NPS website and read about why the NPS felt it necessary to close public access to our North Carolina public beaches despite their own statistics showing that it was unnecessary. Please also research the opposing views presented and documented at the Island Free Press. Local Hatteras Island citizens would like for any potential visitors to be better informed before they make any decisions regarding their beach access or eventual loss of it.