KAYAK & SUP TOURS

PINE ISLAND AUDUBON SANCTUARY

STARTING AT $65 PER ADULT BY KAYAK / $75 SUP
PRIVATE AND GROUP TOURS

KAYAKS AND SUPS

Between the villages of Duck and Corolla is the pristine marsh of the Pine Island Audubon Sanctuary. Miles of secluded water trails make this arguably the most intricate marsh maze on the Outer Banks (8 square miles). The National Audubon Society has preserved a piece of the Outer Banks as it was before man arrived. In their goal to save wildlife habitat they have also created a paddler’s paradise. One of the unique features of this tour is the solitude you will experience. Coastal Kayak has partnered with the National Audubon Society to offer this exclusive tour of one of the Outer Banks least traveled and most sought after wildlife sanctuaries. The tour starts with a 5 minute nature walk to our boat house on the Pine Island Audubon Sanctuary Marsh. From here your guide will lead you into the maze of islands through which only he or she knows the way.

These 2 hour kayak and SUP tours are available as either a private or group tour. Pricing starts at $65 per adult by kayak and $75 for SUP. If looking to combine kayakers and stand up paddle boarders on the same tour, please select the private tour option. This is the only location we offer SUP tours.

KAYAK TOURS

KITTY HAWK MARITIME FOREST & MARSH

STARTING AT $50 PER ADULT
PRIVATE AND GROUP TOURS

KAYAKS

Kitty Hawk Woods Coastal Reserve is one of few remaining maritime forests in the world. Over 1800 acres are protected providing a vital habitat for various migratory birds, mammals and reptiles. This tour meanders up Ginguite creek which is lined with loblolly pine and twisted live oak draped in Spanish moss. This sheltered creek remains very calm on even the windiest of days making it ideal for the first time kayaker or someone looking for a very relaxed nature filled tour. The northern route takes you into the heart of the maritime forest all the way to a covered bridge (the bridge to nowhere). This bridge was actually built by a developer who was poised to develop this desirable land. The Nature Conservancy purchased this property after the developer went into bankruptcy. Thanks to the acquisition, bald eagle and osprey, two formerly endangered species, have begun to nest here again. In season (March – August), osprey sightings are a daily occurrence. Eagle sighting are less common, but have been on the rise since we started our tours here in 1999.

The standard tour to the covered bridge is approximately 2 hours and starts at $50 per adult. If you want a shorter tour of this location select the hour long option which is available June through August and periodically through the spring and fall at a cost of $35 per person. The shorter option is ideal for those bringing small children along or for anyone who wants a shorter experience.

ALLIGATOR RIVER NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

STARTING AT $60 PER ADULT
PRIVATE AND GROUP TOURS

KAYAKS

The Algonquin Indians identified this habitat as a “pocosin”, meaning “swamp on a hill”. Bald cypress loom overhead, feeding the narrow creeks with tannins giving the water a mysterious black coloration. The winding creeks lead to mirror-image lakes where alligators can be seen as they sun on the floating grass fields (slough grass) or a protruding cypress stump. This refuge is home to the world’s only wild population of red wolves, which we sometimes hear on our wolf howlings. Last year we also had sightings of river otter, bobcat, black bear, American bittern, barred owl, and colonies of egret and ibis. This refuge is a must see. Just 20 minutes from Nags Head, down old Buffalo City Road we set out on these black waters to learn of a time when loggers and moonshiners called this place home. There is little evidence of Buffalo City or the moonshine known as East Lake Dew today, but you will get a glimpse of what it must have been like in the logging and prohibition days.

These 2 hour kayak tours are available as a private or group tour. Pricing starts at $60 per adult. Tours depart in the mornings and a few hours before sunset all year.

PETER MASHOES CREEK AT ALLIGATOR RIVER

STARTING AT $65 PER ADULT
COASTAL KAYAK ORIGINAL FROM 1999

KAYAKS

Coastal Kayak started offering this tour back in 1999 allowing our guests a chance to explore a less traveled part of the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. Unlike the swamp trails of our original Alligator River tour, this tour explores the brackish (fresh and saltwater mix) marsh creeks named after Peter Mashoes. This tour navigates some of the most interesting and complex marsh trails on the Outer Banks. Your guide will lead the way through the winding creeks to a deserted beach which we will explore on foot. Depending on the prevailing winds of the day we will either continue our paddle in the protection of the marsh or venture out into the open waters of the Albemarle Sound.

We offer this tour as a private or group tour. Pricing starts out at $65 per adult and typically goes out a few times per week in the summer (June – August). Available as a private tour in the off season (March – May & September – November).

PEA ISLAND NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

STARTING AT $60 PER ADULT
PRIVATE AND GROUP TOURS

KAYAKS

Located on the northern section of Hatteras Island, Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge consists of 5,834 acres of land and 25,700 acres of water. Kayaking is the best way to explore this “birders paradise”. The official list of birds sighted on this refuge is 365 species long. The tour starts at a location named New Inlet which closed in the 1930’s. With every passing storm and hurricane the inlet threatens to reopen. We kayak under the old wooden bridge which was built to allow car traffic to cross the inlet. Ironically, the inlet closed before its completion. Today, the remains of this structure provide a reminder of the volatility of this island and a resting spot for brown pelican, osprey, cormorants and royal tern. As we navigate in and around the many marsh islands which make up this refuge we will talk about the migrating nature of the Outer Banks and how it was formed some 12,000 years ago. This tour has the clearest waters of any of our tours, which allows us to view a wide variety of aquatic life beneath our kayaks including stingray, oysters and hermit crabs. Along our tour route it is also possible to land our kayaks on a sandbar where we can explore the shallow waters on foot or take a swim.

We offer this tour as a private or group tour from March through November. Pricing starts at $60 per adult. Tours depart from the New Inlet parking area (mile post 34) 6 miles south of the Oregon Inlet and just south of the small Captain Richard Etheridge Bridge in the mornings and a few hours before sunset.

BODIE ISLAND LIGHTHOUSE

STARTING AT $70 PER ADULT
PRIVATE AND GROUP TOURS

KAYAKS

This tour meets at the iconic Bodie Island Lighthouse in South Nags Head, and is part of Cape Hatteras National Seashore. The tour starts with a 5 minute walk down a flat easy going nature trail to the Roanoke Sound. Once on the water, this tour combines salt marsh trails, open shallow water paddling, and breathtaking views of Bodie Island Lighthouse. This tour has the potential for dolphin sightings, a wide variety of shore birds and very clear waters for viewing aquatic sea life. This tour is better suited to kayakers with some experience due to open water paddling and potential wind exposure.

This 2 hour kayak tour is available as private or group. Pricing for this tour starts at $70 per adult. Tours depart from the Bodie Island Lighthouse at the closed gate to the nature trail on the west end of the circle before the parking lot of the lighthouse from June – August and as a private tour in the spring and fall.