Harkers Island
Discover Harkers Island, North Carolina
The gateway to Cape Lookout, and the heart of Down East heritage.
Harkers Island is where Down East meets the open water. A working fishing island at the southern edge of Core Sound in Carteret County, it is the mainland gateway to the Cape Lookout National Seashore, the home of the region's celebrated decoy-carving tradition, and one of the last places where the old High Tider, or Hoi Toider, brogue can still be heard. Connected to the mainland by bridge since 1941, it remains proudly its own place.
Life on the island
The island's culture is tied to the water and its history. The Cape Lookout National Seashore visitor center sits on the south side, the launching point for boat shuttles to the 1859 Cape Lookout Lighthouse, the wild Banker horses of Shackleford Banks, and miles of undeveloped barrier beach. The Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center celebrates the boatbuilding, hunting, and decoy-carving traditions the Down East villages built over generations, and hosts the annual Core Sound Decoy Festival. Fishing and boatbuilding are still a way of life here.
On the water
Homes range from working-waterfront properties and island cottages to sound-front homes and lots with deep-water and Core Sound access. Water access, docks, and flood and elevation considerations matter on the island, and they are exactly the kind of thing we walk through carefully with buyers. Explore what is available below.
Getting around
Harkers Island is reached by bridge at the end of Harkers Island Road off US-70, east of Beaufort. Beaufort, with its Maritime Museum and Front Street, is the nearest historic town, and Morehead City provides the area's larger services and hospital.
Schools
Harkers Island is served by Carteret County Schools, with the nearest high school in Beaufort.
Finding a home
Look here for working-waterfront homes, island cottages, sound-front properties, and lots with water access. It is a distinctive, limited market rooted in a real community. Explore what is available below, and reach out and we will help you understand it.
What is Harkers Island, NC known for?
Harkers Island is the gateway to the Cape Lookout National Seashore, the heart of the Core Sound decoy-carving tradition, and home to the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center.
How do you get to Harkers Island?
Harkers Island is connected to the mainland by bridge, at the end of Harkers Island Road off US-70, east of Beaufort.
What is there to do near Harkers Island?
Boat shuttles run to the Cape Lookout Lighthouse and Shackleford Banks, and the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum celebrates the area's maritime and decoy-carving heritage.
What kinds of homes are on Harkers Island?
Working-waterfront homes, island cottages, sound-front properties, and lots with water access, in a limited and distinctive market.
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