unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
in
Currituck County
Currituck County () , from the North Carolina Collection's website at the
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
, United States. The community, begun in the 1960s, is found on Currituck Banks, north of
Bodie Island Bodie Island ( ) is a long, narrow barrier peninsula that forms the northernmost portion of the Outer Banks. The land that is most commonly referred to as Bodie Island was at one time a true island, but in 1811 Roanoke Inlet, which had separated i ...
, and can be accessed only by boat or by
four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...
vehicle. There are no paved roads connecting Carova to the town of Corolla, North Carolina. The neighboring settlement of Sandbridge in
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...
is not accessible by vehicle from Carova. In the 1960s, when development began in Carova, there were plans to construct a paved road from Sandbridge south to Carova through the
Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge
Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Virginia is located in the independent city of Virginia Beach. Established in 1938 in an isolated portion of the former Princess Anne County, it is managed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. ...
, but these never materialized. Today, there is a permanent fence from ocean to sound to keep vehicles from crossing and, more importantly, to keep the wild horses from migrating to the Virginia side of the border. To reach Carova, four-wheel drive vehicles must drive north along the beach from Corolla into the community, as access from Virginia is limited to pedestrians and bicyclists.
The community's name derives from the portmanteau of the first syllables of ''Carolina'' and ''Virginia'', since the coastal community lies just south of the
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
-
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
state line. Thus, it is the northernmost of the
Outer Banks
The Outer Banks (frequently abbreviated OBX) are a string of barrier islands and spits off the coast of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, on the east coast of the United States. They line most of the North Carolina coastline, separating ...
communities of North Carolina. Historically the
Currituck Inlet
Currituck Sound () , from the North Carolina Collection's website at the which served as the boundary between Virginia and North Carolina existed where the community of Carova now stands. The inlet closed in 1730s.
Banker horse
The Banker horse is a breed of feral horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') living on barrier islands in North Carolina's Outer Banks. It is small, hardy, and has a docile temperament. Descended from domesticated Spanish horses and possibly brought ...
s and other wildlife roam freely on the beaches of Carova. There is an enforced law on the beach that states that no one is to get within of the horses. Carova only has approximately 50 year-round residents and commercialism is absent from this section of the Outer Banks; there are no restaurants, shops, or other attractions that often accompany beach communities. There are approximately 740 beach homes, many of which are weekly rentals, and otherwise only a fire/EMS station and a refuse station. Developers continue to build in the area.
Flooding is a continual problem that worsens with each bad storm in Carova Beach, where summer tourist traffic is heavy on roads that are little more than uneven sand paths through the dunes. Sandfiddler Road and Sandpiper Road, the two primary routes through the community, become nearly impassable after heavy rains, when large potholes fill with water.
During hurricanes and tropical storms the community can become inaccessible when the beach is awash due to storm surge.
Although some residents of Carova are opposed to a paved road being built to the community, the Currituck County Commission is in favor of constructing a paved road to Carova. They say a road is essential for the county to continue providing services like garbage collection, housing inspections, and emergency response. A road to connect Carova to the rest of Currituck County would have to cut through the 8,316 acre
Currituck National Wildlife Refuge
Currituck National Wildlife Refuge (), 32.0 °F (> 0.0 °C), at least eight months with an average mean temperature ≥ 50.0 °F (≥ 10.0 °C), at least one month with an average mean temperature ≥ 71.6 °F (≥ 22.0&nb ...
that stretches for 11 miles along the Currituck Banks between Corolla and Carova and any effort to build a road through the refuge would likely face stiff opposition from environmentalists.
Climate
According to the
Trewartha climate classification
The Trewartha climate classification (TCC) or the Köppen–Trewartha climate classification (KTC) is a climate classification system first published by American geographer Glenn Thomas Trewartha in 1966. It is a modified version of the Köppen ...
system, Carova Beach, North Carolina has a
humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
with hot and humid summers, cool winters and year-around precipitation (''Cfak''). Cfak climates are characterized by all months having an average mean temperature > 32.0 °F (> 0.0 °C), at least eight months with an average mean temperature ≥ 50.0 °F (≥ 10.0 °C), at least one month with an average mean temperature ≥ 71.6 °F (≥ 22.0 °C) and no significant precipitation difference between seasons. During the summer months in Carova Beach, a cooling afternoon
sea breeze
A sea breeze or onshore breeze is any wind that blows from a large body of water toward or onto a landmass; it develops due to differences in air pressure created by the differing heat capacities of water and dry land. As such, sea breezes ar ...
is present on most days, but episodes of
extreme heat
A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the ...
and humidity can occur with
heat index
The heat index (HI) is an index that combines air temperature and relative humidity, in shaded areas, to posit a human-perceived equivalent temperature, as how hot it would feel if the humidity were some other value in the shade. The result is als ...
values ≥ 100 °F (≥ 38 °C). Carova Beach is prone to hurricane strikes, particularly during the
Atlantic hurricane season
The Atlantic hurricane season is the period in a year from June through November when tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic Ocean, referred to in North American countries as hurricanes, tropical storms, or tropical depressions. In addition ...
which extends from June 1 through November 30, sharply peaking from late August through September. During the winter months, episodes of cold and wind can occur with
wind chill
Wind chill or windchill (popularly wind chill factor) is the lowering of body temperature due to the passing-flow of lower-temperature air.
Wind chill numbers are always lower than the air temperature for values where the formula is valid. When ...
values < 10 °F (< -12 °C). The
plant hardiness zone
A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...
at Carova Beach is 8a with an average annual extreme minimum air temperature of 14.1 °F (-9.9 °C). The average seasonal (Dec-Mar) snowfall total is < 2 inches (< 5 cm), and the average annual peak in
nor'easter
A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below), or an East Coast low is a synoptic-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. The original use o ...
activity is in February.
Ecology
According to the
A. W. Kuchler August William Kuchler (born ''August Wilhelm Küchler''; 1907–1999) was a German-born American geographer and naturalist who is noted for developing a plant association system in widespread use in the United States. Some of this database has beco ...
U.S.
potential natural vegetation
In ecology, potential natural vegetation (PNV), also known as Kuchler potential vegetation, is the vegetation that would be expected given environmental constraints (climate, geomorphology, geology) without human intervention or a hazard event ...
types, Carova Beach, North Carolina would have a dominant vegetation type of Northern
Cordgrass
''Spartina'' is a taxon of plants in the grass family, frequently found in coastal salt marshes. Its species are commonly known as cordgrass or cord-grass, and are native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean in western and southern Europe, north ...
(''73'') with a dominant vegetation form of
Coastal
The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...
Prairie
Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...