Cast your line and learn the basics needed to catch your first fish! Assemble tackle, bait your hook, identify fish species, and practice catch-and-release techniques. Bring your patience as we try our luck fishing from our Soundside Pier.
Come to this class prepared to test your luck crabbing. Participants will learn some basic biology of the blue crab and experience line crabbing firsthand at an offsite location 15-minutes away from the Aquarium.
Get an exciting start to your day at the Aquarium as you assist our staff with a morning feeding, while learning about a few of the resident species. Participants will visit a behind the scenes prep kitchen, broadcast feed the stingrays at the touch pool, and then snack on a light breakfast of “people” food in our classroom while learning a little more about stingrays!
New for 2014 we are proud to offer Humvee Adventure Tours. With exclusive access to the Wild Horse Sanctuary we take you through three distinct eco systems in search of local wildlife and the Outer Banks Wild Spanish Mustangs. Feel the ocean breeze and taste the salty beach air as you cruise through the Carova outback in our exclusive OPEN AIR Hummer tours. With more terrain no two tours are ever the same; so if you like history, ecology, adventure, and quick witted comedy we have you covered!
If you have never surfed before, or you have surfed but are still not able to catch waves on your own, this lesson is a great option for you. Before getting in the water, we will teach you the proper pop-up technique and other critical surfing techniques such as paddling, wave selection, and safety. The instructor will be in the water by your side the entire lesson, guiding you and pushing you into waves.
Discover Ocracoke Island's history, culture and breathtaking natural habitats on an evening kayak eco-tour. Trips leave from Ocracoke Harbor at Silver Lake, enters the Pamlico Sound and follows the shoreline around the marshy flats surrounding the village. Along the two hour tour you can expect to see a variety of animals including oyster catchers, great blue herons, dolphins, stingrays, and other local fish species. The group tour departs from Silver Lake Harbor and heads towards Springers Point Nature Preserve.
The OPS Museum Gift Shop is a popular destination for perusing and purchasing items related to Ocracoke history. Here you will find an assortment of music, photographs, postcards, cookbooks, & books of local interest, as well as various other mementoes. We also have an online gift shop, if you catch us at a time when we're not open!
Discover Ocracoke Island's magical side when you watch the moonrise from a vantage point on the Pamlico Sound. As this eco-tour leads you out the the marshy flats around the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, the guide shares stories of local lore and history with the group. Keep your eyes and ears out for sightings and sounds of the island's wildlife.
Take a tour through the museum to learn about Ocracoke! The Ocracoke Preservation museum is located in the restored David Williams house. The museum consists of permanent and changing exhibits depicting island life from days gone by. The gift shop is located in one of the rooms of the museum and the research library is located upstairs. Open seasonally.
Take a group tour through the scenic Pamlico Sound with a trained kayak guide. Along the two hour tour you can expect to see a variety of animals including oyster catchers, great blue herons, dolphins, stingrays, and other local fish species. The group tour departs out of Silver Lake Harbor and heads towards Springers Point Nature Preserve. From Springers, your kayak guide will lead you into the wildlife filled marsh where you will explore and then return to Silver Lake Harbor.