It’s a twist on an old idea, but it may be that the Hatteras Ocracoke Ferry will start lightering goods from commercial trucks into smaller vehicles. That, at least, is one idea that is begin floated to alleviate some of the wait to get on the ferry in the summer.
Here’s what that’s all about.
Once upon a time—18th to 19th centuries—Portsmouth Island and to a lesser degree Ocracoke served as a port for ocean going ships to offload their cargo to smaller coastal ships that could navigate the shallow waters of the Outer Banks sounds. It was process called lightering.
According to an article recently published in the Ocracoke Observer, the North Carolina Ferry Division is considering a modern version of that.
The Hatteras Ocracoke Ferry is free and in the summer somewhat overwhelmed with wait times sometimes as great as two hours to get on deck. The system the is in place gives first priority to Ocracoke residents and commercial vehicles…and in the summer there are a lot of commercial vehicles, ie. trucks.
However, for a number of those trucks, they’re at the end of their run and maybe a quarter of the original load is left, or maybe even less. If a smaller vehicle could take that load, it would increase the number of cars that the ferry could carry.
There’s still a lot of work to do on this to see if it will work, but it is an interesting idea.
A further historic note on lightering. From about 1790 to 1815, Shell Castle Island was a small manmade island in the middle of Ocracoke Inlet that was the center of the lightering trade of Pamlico and Albemarle sounds. It was so important to trade the one of the nation’s first lighthouses was constructed there.
Poorly built and maintained, when it was destroyed by a lightening strike in 1818 it was not replaced. The Ocracoke Lighthouse, first lit in 1823 took its place.
Shell Castle Island is still on shipping charts. Today it is a muddy flat that occasionally appears above the water.
There are so many things to see, do and learn about the Outer Banks that one visit is never enough. Be sure to make your reservations with Brindley Beach Vacations when planning a visit to Hatteras Island.