City: Kill Devil Hills, NC

Category: Tours & Attractions

Telephone: (252) 441-2525

Address: Ocean Acres Drive

Description: If you’ve had a little too much sun, or if you’d like to spend time in a secluded forest on a part of the Outer Banks few people get to see, allocate an afternoon for the Nature Conservancy’s Nags Head Woods Ecological Preserve, west of US 158. The maritime forest itself is well hidden, and many rare plant and animal species live within this protected landscape. It’s one of the most tranquil settings on the Outer Banks. The Nature Conservancy, an international, nonprofit conservation organization, oversees this maritime forest. Nags Head Woods is not a park—it is an example of a successful private-public partnership between the Nature Conservancy, the towns of Nags Head and Kill Devil Hills, and private landowners.More than 5 miles of trails and footbridges wind through forest, dune, swamp, and pond habitats as well as graveyards and farm sites from the 19th and 20th centuries. Trails are open to visitors on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., while members of the Nature Conservancy are welcome during any daylight hours. No camping, firearms, picnicking, or alcoholic beverages are allowed in the preserve. Bicycling, pets on leashes, and other activities that might damage the trails are restricted to the Old Nags Head Woods Road, which winds from north to south through the woods.For more information, write to the Nature Conservancy at 701 West Ocean Acres Dr., Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948. All donations are welcome, and memberships start at $50. Monies support the preserve’s environmental education and research programs.