r/interestingasfuck • u/Endolithic • Jun 06 '25

Homes are falling into the ocean in North Carolina's Outer Banks /r/all

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u/stryker511 Jun 06 '25

The coast of N.Carolina changes much quicker than other coastlines due to the extremely strong current. There is a beach where I used to park next to a shipwrecked tanker from just 30 years earlier. Pirates would frequent this region because most ships wouldn't venture there. Great place to visit if you like nature.

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u/_perpetualparadox Jun 06 '25

Outer banks aka the graveyard of the Atlantic

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u/blueranger36 Jun 06 '25 edited Jun 07 '25

I have a map called the “graveyard of the outer banks” and it’s just locations of sunken ships

Edit: for everyone who asked, here is a cheap way to buy it: https://shop.americasnationalparks.org/products/ghost-fleet-of-the-outer-banks-map-poster

It’s call the ghost fleet of the outer banks.

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u/AgitatedSquirrell Jun 06 '25

We stayed in a house in Duck which had a map hanging on a wall with the location of all the shipwrecks.

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u/Decent-Dingo081721 Jun 07 '25

We used to have a beach house in Duck. I loved going there in my childhood. It hurts my heart to see these home going away.

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u/tarheel_204 Jun 07 '25

I know exactly the map you’re talking about- the Ghost Fleet of the Outer Banks

My grandparents have a framed picture of it too and it’s so cool to look at

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u/Starlord2230 Jun 07 '25

Stayed in Duck also. This post looks like it may be Corova no?

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u/abyssal_banana Jun 07 '25

This is probably Rodanthe

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u/NuclearSun1 Jun 06 '25

Wow, forgot I had that map when I was younger.

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u/Luvs2spooge89 Jun 07 '25

Is this due to the currents? Stuff just collects there?

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u/blueranger36 Jun 07 '25

Look at a map of the Atlantic coastal shelf. It’s the closest to the drop off so the currents are way heavier. OBX gets amazing waves and due to this they also have crazy shifting sand bars. One day you can walk straight out a hundred feet standing level the next day it’s gone. Awesome place to visit if you’ve never been

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u/[deleted] Jun 07 '25

Great waves 🌊 yep! Love surfing Hatteras

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u/Parenthisaurolophus Jun 07 '25

Kind of a collection of reasons. There are a bunch of shoals that get shifted around kind of like sand dunes out in the water which resulted in hundreds of wrecks (Diamond Shoals). Then you've got German U-Boats that went to town on ships on the east coast silhouetted against the lights of the cities and town and sunk a few hundred more (Torpedo Alley). You've also got some notable wrecks in the area like Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge, a civil war Ironclad, and a ship carrying Aaron Burr's daughter.

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u/Dingus_Khaaan Jun 07 '25

My Dad has that hung in his hallway. It was there outside my door my entire childhood and I always thought it was so cool lol

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u/BeachQt Jun 07 '25

I have one of those too! It’s hanging up in the laundry room. Granted I’m from coastal NC and still live here

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u/REUBENSACKLEBANKS Jun 07 '25

Wow childhood memory unlocked

2

u/manicpossumdreamgirl Jun 07 '25

my parents have that map in the bathroom!

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u/doebedoe Jun 07 '25

Its on my kitchen wall. Been going there for 40 years...parents have been going there for 60.

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u/DougieBuddha Jun 07 '25

Could you pm me a pic of that or a link? Cause that's kinda awesome for someone in NC that goes to the outer banks semi regularly

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u/smittenwithshittin Jun 07 '25

Theobx one looks like it’s produced by National Geographic, there’s a couple formats. Other places have similar maps like Cape Cod and the Chesapeake Bay

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u/glen_ko_ko Jun 07 '25

I would love an interactive version of these where you could click a particular wreck and read an article about the ships history, look at pictures, or watch little docs

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u/mismanagementsuccess Jun 07 '25

Is it called "ghost fleet of the outer banks?" I framed that and had it for years.

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u/Rustyboyvermont Jun 07 '25

Becoming the graveyard of beach houses.

1

u/CommonBubba Jun 07 '25

Got one hanging on my wall!

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u/DaBozz88 Jun 07 '25

Can you share it?

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u/AToastedRavioli Jun 07 '25

Didn’t Blackbeard wreck the Queen Anne’s Revenge there?

Edit: didn’t know he ran it aground on purpose. TIL

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u/blackstar5676 Jun 07 '25

Yes around Ocracoke

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u/FartNuggetSalad Jun 07 '25

Incorrect, it was sunk in Beaufort inlet

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u/stryker511 Jun 06 '25

I've always been curious about diving conditions due to the strong current. Lots of wrecks out there. I've wondered if divers get pulled away by the current.

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u/Bald_Nightmare Jun 07 '25

There are some very popular diving spots here on the NC coast, and the diving companies do a tremendous job judging when the best time is to explore certain wrecks based on the current weather conditions.

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u/toodleoo57 Jun 07 '25

How's the visibility? How far offshore? TIA for any info.

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u/trowt595 Jun 07 '25

Ive dove on this wreck before and it is definitely worth the trip if you can find a company to take you out. https://www.underwaterjournal.com/the-u-352-north-carolinas-german-u-boat-wreck/

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u/toodleoo57 Jun 07 '25

Oh wow. Thanks!

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u/gnowbot Jun 07 '25

Really! Are there lots of historic/interesting/treasure wrecks? Or is it just like 200 fiberglass yachts that ran aground after their boat-HELOC-captain had too many bloody Marys on America’s birthday?

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u/_perpetualparadox Jun 07 '25

Historic, yes. Warships from WWI & WWII and pirate ships. I don’t know of any treasure wrecks or ones that stand out as particularly interesting, not to say there isn’t any.

The outer banks is a great place to visit if you’re into history. There is the “Graveyard of the Atlantic” museum in Hatteras, Bodie island, the Wright Brothers monument & Roanoke island (the lost colony).

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u/doned_mest_up Jun 07 '25

AKA a really pretty sandbar.

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u/MacAttak18 Jun 07 '25

I had never heard of it referred to as that. I’ve only ever heard of sable island called graveyard of the Atlantic, so had to look it up. Turns out they are both referred to as graveyard of the Atlantic. TIL

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u/bbcwtfw Jun 07 '25

I thought Sable Island was the graveyard of the Atlantic. Is there more than one?

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u/mkiv808 Jun 07 '25

There’s also a shipwreck museum in Nantucket. That channel there has claimed about 800 ships.

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u/mike35745 Jun 07 '25

Namibia’s Skeleton Coast has entered the chat

1

u/Disastrous_Hunter_61 Jun 07 '25

they have an amazing museum telling the history of the outer Banks and why people live there (not just for beach front property) originally it was too build light houses to prevent shipwrecks and also have people stationed there to save the lives of those who get caught in the sandbars intense currents

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u/TabulaRazo Jun 08 '25

Because of the ships, or all the retirees?

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u/WallabyBubbly Jun 07 '25

It's not that well known, but the North Carolina coast has some of the best scuba diving in the US if you like shipwrecks. Their wrecks get a lot of sand tiger sharks too, which is a species of shark that is big and scary looking but also totally harmless (to humans at least).

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u/gonxot Jun 07 '25

Sounds like a great place to build a wooden house 🤦🏻‍♂️

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u/stubept Jun 07 '25

I mean, they literally moved an entire lighthouse nearly 3000 ft over 25 years ago because it was going to wash away.

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u/JJNotStrike Jun 07 '25

I grew up vacationing with my grandparents on the Outer Banks.

The construction process to move the lighthouse was absolutely fascinating to observe in person.

There's more info on the Relocation process on the Wiki if anyone is interested: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Hatteras_Lighthouse

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u/Ninjamin_King Jun 07 '25

And it wasn't a small lighthouse either...

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u/Bool_The_End Jun 07 '25

I was there for that! Have pics of my fam and I at the top like right before they moved it and the ocean was so close, and then of course after they moved it.

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u/temporarycreature Jun 07 '25

I remember that. I lived in Lancaster, South Carolina when it happened. It was a big deal.

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u/Available_Blood_6134 Jun 07 '25

With GPS technology, that was a waste of tax dollars.

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u/Dlock33 Jun 08 '25

Back in the 90’s a large amount of my small suburban neighborhood would get a big house in I think Corolla for a week every year. There was one house we stayed at 3 years in a row and 150yds out in the ocean there was a giant anchor that the middle and 2 of its prongs/legs were sticking out of the water a good 15 feet.

Our parents went and rented kayaks and snorkel gear and a bunch of us went out to it. It was wild, under the anchor was a sunken ship that was wooden and big. We could see sand sharks + a few others swimming all through it. We got down as close as we could but didn’t have more than a snorkel and goggles. Our parents were letting us climb up this mussel covered anchor and jump 15 into the water.

What a time. I loved going to obx every year in the 90’s and early 00’s. No cell phones and just 7-8 families (all with multiple kids) just running around.

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u/Icy_Mushroom_1873 Jun 07 '25

I almost Died™️ while swimming on Bodie Island

2

u/CODninjarin Jun 07 '25

I grew up in Bath, a small town a bit inland. It's the first town in NC and the former home of Blackbeard. Worth a visit at least once tbh, they have events in the summer too

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u/YoungHeartOldSoul Jun 07 '25

Pirates in NC??

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u/LakeExtreme7444 Jun 07 '25 edited Jun 07 '25

Yes, yes there were lots and lots of pirates in NC. The famous Blackbeard even died there.

2

u/Zadoraa Jun 07 '25

Yup it’s where the Gulf Stream and Labrador currents meet!

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u/Tiny-Metal3467 Jun 08 '25

Because the gulfstream coming up hits the outerbanks and rebounds out into the atlantic. That vortex pulls water down from the north and draws it along with it. So imagine i85 and i 75 meeting in north atlanta and sucking all the cars thru downtown to south Atlanta….but its water

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u/MaikeruGo Jun 11 '25

I'm going to have to add "Road trip the East Coast" to my list of things to do. I almost forgot how much I loved visiting the lighthouses and the pouring, summer rain as a kid (I mean sure it could be miserable, but damn does seafood seem to taste better on a rainy day).

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u/Molotov_Goblin Jun 07 '25

So basically these people were fucking stupid for sticking a house there and expecting this not to happen?

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u/Illustrious_Pea_7998 Jun 07 '25

More ignorant than stupid. There wasn't a good understanding of how the tides constantly eroded the Outer Banks when a lot of these houses were built. The Outer Banks didn't become a popular tourist destination until I want to say the 50s. Most of these houses that are built that close to the beach were probably built in the 70's

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u/NCSU_252 Jun 07 '25

The only thing ignorant and stupid is these comments.  This house isn't that old, people on the Outer Banks have understood tides and erosion as long as people have inhabited those islands.  People don't build houses like this thinking they will last forever.  They build them to make money, and because vacationing in a house right on the beach is fun.  This house made a shit ton of money for the people who owned it in the years that it was standing.  And more houses like it will be built right across the street, and those will also make someone a shit ton of money, and then the ocean will eat them too, just like it eats everything on the Outer Banks.  

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u/Molotov_Goblin Jun 07 '25

Good to know

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u/Real_Satisfaction715 Jun 07 '25

Nature? Or treasure?

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u/deprivedactivities Jun 07 '25

This is why I love Reddit, thank you sir

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u/meowthechow Jun 07 '25

What’s the name of the beach mate?

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u/bidooffactory Jun 07 '25

Or if you're a pirate apparently

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u/OxfordKnot Jun 07 '25

...and pirates

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u/Pr0ximiti Jun 07 '25

Wait, there's genuine pirates in the states?

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u/nothanks1997 Jun 07 '25

He's talking about when the states were colonies

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u/Babetna Jun 07 '25

So I guess you're a pirate

1

u/toemit Jun 07 '25

I mean really the outer banks is really just a big sandbar

1

u/[deleted] Jun 07 '25

I found Peter Santenello

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u/Ecstatic-Shop6060 Jun 07 '25

Cape Cod too. I went to see the Marconi spot where he first transmitted to Europe. Apparently the spot where the tower was eroded and in they closed it in 1920 and it fell into the ocean in 1940. The actual site is now like 400 feet in the ocean.

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u/x888x Jun 07 '25

The lost colony of Roanoke. They had a hard time during relief / rescue efforts because a series of hurricanes had completely alerted the sandbars / coastlines.

But it's the same phenomenon. Sometime in the last 75 years people started building on the coast and then they get shocked when the houses flood and blame it on climate change. It's like 2% climate change and 98% human development folly.

Places like mantoloking NJ are built entirely on ephemeral sandbars.

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u/Equal_Guitar_7806 Jun 08 '25

Great place to visit if you like nature.

Sounds like something a pirate would say.

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u/Pm_me_attractive_dog Jun 10 '25

Hey, you got any recommendations for visiting? I'm from Sweden so not very knowledgeable about north Carolina, but would love to visit, planning to road trip large amounts of the U.S

1

u/stryker511 Jun 10 '25

The only recommendation I have is definitely check out the Outer Banks- Be aware that it's not like Myrtle Beach, which is also great but a much different vibe. Outer Banks has empty beaches, there was only 1 real bar (Kellys) in the 90's & lots of nature. Myrtle Beach has golfing, an aquarium, motorcycle events & lots of hotels along the beach. Enjoy that US trip -

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u/dontpaynotaxes Jun 19 '25

That. And climate change.

1

u/Umbrella_Viking Jun 07 '25

Do you have any opinion at all about this house falling over? Is it a good thing or a bad thing? 

0

u/Internal-Ad61 Jun 07 '25

Omg do you mind sharing

0

u/slikwilly13 Jun 07 '25

So why are geniuses building houses there?