OUR TOWNS AND BEACHES No matter where you live now, or where you want to live next, variety is the key. With more than 85 miles of enticing North Carolina coastline, nine distinct regions, and hundreds of events and activities, North Carolina's Crystal Coast will satisfy the needs, wants and interests of even the most discriminating homeowner. In fact, you'll feel like you are on a permanent vacation....Welcome to North Carolina’s variety "Vacation Land”....the Crystal Coast! • CAPE LOOKOUT Explore 56 miles of pristine beach environment in the Cape Lookout National Seashore. Spend the day or the week. Climb the lighthouse. Bring your own tent to the campsites or stay at one of the rustic cabin rentals. Accessible only by boat, this national park is perfect for shell enthusiasts and fishermen. ​ • BEAUFORT Beaufort offers brilliant waterfront vistas, charming boutiques and delicious restaurants. Named by Travel + Leisure as "America's Favorite Town," this historic coastal community is filled with things to do for homeowners of all ages. Be sure to visit both the NC Maritime Museum and Watercraft Center as well as the Beaufort Historical site. Tours are available and many stop by Beaufort just to catch site of the wild horses across Taylors Creek. ​ • MOREHEAD CITY As the largest community of the Crystal Coast, Morehead City offers a charming waterfront downtown area with boutique shops and inviting restaurants. Family entertainment includes the NC Seafood Festival and Big Rock Fishing Tournament. You’ll find numerous consignment shops – always fun to visit -- as well as most shops needed for daily living. • NEWPORT Newport is accessible by both highways 70 and 24 and features outstanding waterfront communities such as Bogue Watch and Bluewater. Several have direct access to water for your boating pleasures. Many farms – such as Garner’s – make local shopping for fresh veggies and fruit available when you arrive in town. • ATLANTIC BEACH Enjoy a huge variety of beach sports, water sports, fishing, tours and excursion opportunities. Live oceanfront or enjoy sound side vistas. Dine at delectable seaside restaurants and eateries. The beach music festival – a local favorite -- is held in May. Don’t forget to visit Fort Macon State Park. • PINE KNOLL SHORES With wide stretches of coastline, and impressive Maritime Forest, Pine Knoll Shores is the perfect beach homeowners' retreat. Relax in charming, private neighborhoods with numerous recreation opportunities or play a round of golf at the Crystal Coast Country Club. Visit, or better yet, volunteer at the North Carolina Aquarium. • SALTER PATH Salter Path offers a lifestyle that harks back more than a century. Property owners have easy access to both the beach and sound for recreation and relaxation. Stop by the seafood market or enjoy the fresh catch cooked up by skilled local chefs at one of the many restaurants. • EMERALD ISLE Emerald Isle is the largest town on Bogue Banks, offering over 12 miles of pristine beaches and incredible views of the Atlantic Ocean and Bogue Sound. Most homes are single family and recent zoning rules aim to keep it that way. Emerald Isle is the perfect beach town for rest, relaxation and retirement. • INDIAN BEACH The small coastal community of Indian Beach is in the middle of Bogue Banks, between Atlantic Beach and Emerald Isle. Enjoy living in modern condominium complexes on both the ocean and the sound. Enjoy easy beach access, local seafood markets and restaurants. • WESTERN CRYSTAL COAST Encompassing Cape Carteret, Cedar Point, Swansboro, Stella and Pelletier, the Western Crystal Coast region offers a wealth of waterfront neighborhoods with direct access to Bogue Sound for your boating pleasures. Hwy 58 also offers direct access to the beaches at Emerald Isle. • DOWN EAST Find picturesque scenery and relaxing waterfront communities such as Bettie, Otway, Smyrna, Marshallburg, Gloucester, Straits, Williston, Davis, Cedar Island and Atlantic. All known as Down East. Travel this way on HWY 70 to catch the ferry to Ocracoke! The area's salt marshes are perfect for birdwatching, and the waters provide great clamming areas. Communities here trace their lineage back to the 1700s and some of the customs and speech date that far back, as well. Can you say, "Hoi Toider?" • HARKERS ISLAND Also a part of the Down East community, Harkers Island is located just east of Beaufort. It’s a scenic, popular residential community for anyone who loves to fish and wants a MUCH quieter lifestyle. Bring your boat for some of the finest water sports available anywhere. Home of the Core Sound Waterfowl and History Museum.

Pine Knoll Shores Pine Knoll Shores is located in southwestern Carteret County on Bogue Banks, a barrier island along the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered to the west by the town of Indian Beach and to the east by the town of Atlantic Beach. To the north is Bogue Sound, and to the south is the Atlantic Ocean. North Carolina Highway 58 passes through the town, traveling the length of Bogue Banks. To the east, NC 58 connects with a bridge to Morehead City on the mainland, and to the west, NC 58 crosses Bogue Sound from Emerald Isle to Cape Carteret on the mainland. According to the United States Census Bureau, Pine Knoll Shores has a total area of 2.5 square miles, of which 2.2 square miles is land and 0.31 square miles, or 12.54%, is water. As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,388 people, 663 households, and 453 families residing in the town. A LITTLE ABOUT THE HISTORY The state General Assembly granted the charter for the Town of Pine Knoll Shores in 1973. However, before it became an official town, numerous actions and events laid the groundwork for the community we see today. Initially, the land was cared for by members of the Roosevelt family, preceded by Alice Hoffman, and prior to her, John Royall. Before Royall, several others claimed ownership. During colonial times, the Lords Proprietors governed, and before them, the land belonged to native peoples. Despite different stewards, they all shared the trait of leaving the land mostly untouched. This changed in the 1940s when two pivotal events occurred, driving the development of Bogue Banks. The tale of Pine Knoll Shores, as we know it today, unfolds with the remarkable Alice Hoffman, who in 1918 acquired an expansive stretch of land on Bogue Banks—then known as the "Isle of the Pines." Alice made this enchanting coastal haven her home, intermittently dwelling there until her passing in 1953. Upon her death, her treasured property was willed to her beloved niece, Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., and her four spirited children. It was these visionary Roosevelts who imagined the blueprint for a thriving town, Pine Knoll Shores. With ambition and foresight, they enlisted a nationally acclaimed management consulting firm, and later, a distinguished local engineering team, to craft a meticulous plan. This strategy not only laid the robust physical foundation of the town but also sketched out a long-range development scheme—with each phase carefully allowed to mature and harmonize before the next could begin. Throughout this transformative process, the Roosevelts remained steadfast supporters, guiding and cheering on each new endeavor. In the early days, pioneering builders began their work in the easternmost reaches of the developing town, where they constructed charming vacation homes that captured the coastal spirit. By 1964, the market was bustling with opportunity, with lots exchanging hands for prices between $1,150 and $1,600. It was during this vibrant period that the first three motels—the Atlantis Lodge, the Sea Hawk, and the John Yancey—rose elegantly along the oceanfront, each promising endless vistas and the serene sound of crashing waves. As time went on, the Roosevelts noticed that this budding community was beginning to allure not only seasonal visitors but also those longing for permanent residence. Recognizing the need for foresight, they set about drafting comprehensive covenants to carefully regulate the town’s steady growth. The emerging central area of Pine Knoll Shores soon witnessed the creation of a dedicated homeowners association, known as Pine Knoll Association, Inc. This organization became the backbone of local care and coordination, diligently maintaining streets, parks, and waterways; managing essential utilities such as water; and upholding high building standards for the community. In time, the eastern section would establish its own counterpart, affectionately called PIKSCO. These two associations eventually joined forces, laying the groundwork for the town’s formal incorporation. From the heart of these property owners associations blossomed a tradition of spirited volunteerism—a quality now as intrinsic to Pine Knoll Shores as its gentle ocean breezes. The town attracted a host of distinguished citizens from the region along with retirees eager to lend their considerable talents honed in business, government, the military, and beyond. They generously contributed a wide range of services, not limiting themselves to matters of expertise. For example, The Shoreline, the town newsletter, was brought to life by its devoted co-editors—a dedicated housewife and a former librarian with a passion for storytelling. Former corporate vice presidents could be seen rolling up their sleeves to help clear public spaces, repair stubborn potholes, and even construct sturdy docks. A particularly influential force of the property owners associations lay in their steadfast commitment to fostering residential growth over commercial sprawl. The Roosevelt representatives had earlier demonstrated remarkable foresight by carefully designating distinct zones—areas preserved as lush parks, lands intentionally kept in a natural state, territories earmarked for future commercial activity, and stretches reserved for single-family dwellings. The overarching emphasis of these associations, and later the incorporated town, has always been to nurture Pine Knoll Shores as a close-knit, residential community—a vision that continues to define and delight the town to this very day.