First Hammock Hills

Best Time to Visit First Hammock Hills

No specific best season is given for First Hammock Hills in the source material. The trail's mix of shrub thicket, dune, pine forest, and salt marsh boardwalk makes it a stop worth working into any visit to Ocracoke Island and Cape Hatteras National Seashore, regardless of season.

Trail Tips for Hiking First Hammock Hills

• Watch for black skimmers, northern harriers, and owls overhead, plus rabbits, black racers, skinks, and tree frogs along the path.
• Pack bug repellent, especially if you're visiting during warmer months.
• Leashed dogs are welcome on the trail.

Getting to First Hammock Hills on Ocracoke Island

The trailhead for First Hammock Hills sits on NC-12 on Ocracoke Island, directly across the highway from the National Park Service's Ocracoke Campground, within Cape Hatteras National Seashore. No other access points, mileage, or driving directions are noted for this trail, so plan to reach it via NC-12 as part of a visit to Ocracoke Island, watching for the trailhead across from the campground entrance.

What to Expect on First Hammock Hills at Hammock Hills Nature Trail

First Hammock Hills is the low forested ridge — cresting around 16 feet — that gives Ocracoke's Hammock Hills Nature Trail its name, a rare rise of high ground tucked into dune and salt marsh inside Cape Hatteras National Seashore. On a barrier island this flat, even a modest rise like this is enough for pine woods and shrub thicket to take hold amid the open sand and marsh grass that otherwise dominate the landscape. From the trailhead, the route climbs through shrub thicket and open dune stands of prickly pear, into pine forest, and out to a boardwalk platform over the salt marsh with a clear view across Pamlico Sound, where the marsh edge supports clams, crabs, and oysters along the saltmeadow hay and black needlerush. A stretch of the original loop was damaged in Hurricane Dorian (2019), so the route now runs as an out-and-back rather than a full circuit.