Jockey's Ridge State Park is a
North Carolina state park in
Dare County,
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 ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. Located in
Nags Head, North Carolina
Nags Head is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. It is a busy vacation spot because of its beaches and sand dunes of Jockey's Ridge. The population was 3,146 at the 2020 census.
History
Early maps of the area show Nags Head as ...
, it covers a
area, and includes the tallest active
sand dune
A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...
system in the eastern United States. It is the most visited park within the NC park system. The park is a day-use only park and has no campgrounds. Jockey's Ridge contains three unique ecosystems: the
Roanoke Sound The Roanoke Sound is a sound that separates Roanoke Island from Bodie Island of the Outer Banks. To the north of the Roanoke Sound lies the Albemarle Sound and to the south lies the Pamlico Sound. One bridge, which carries U.S. Highway 64, crosses ...
, the dune system, and the
maritime forest
A maritime forest is an ocean coastal wooded habitat found on higher ground than dune areas within range of salt spray. They can be found along the Atlantic and Pacific Northwest coasts of the United States. They can also be found in areas of So ...
. Often when it rains, water collects near the bottom of the dunes creating temporary ponds known as
vernal pool
Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds or ephemeral pools, are seasonal pools of water that provide habitat for distinctive plants and animals. They are considered to be a distinctive type of wetland usually devoid of fish, and thus allow the safe ...
s. Few
fauna
Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...
can be seen around the dunes, although some types of
flora
Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''.
E ...
, such as tall grass, may be seen near the bottom of the dunes.
The park is open year-round, except Christmas Day, and does not charge an admission, parking, or program fee. The park's entrance is located at Milepost 12 on S. Croatan Highway/US 158. Ranger-led programs are offered throughout the year. Also available are nature trails, a sound access, and picnic areas. Viewing the sunset over the sound, bird watching, and kite-flying are among the favorite activities of visitors. The park also provides outside bathrooms that are typically open from the last frost of the spring to the first frost of the fall.
During the summer months, when visitation is highest, visitors are encouraged to bring water with them. There is no fresh water available within the park. The desert-like environment can be quite harsh and temperatures can reach 110 degrees; the sand can be 30 degrees hotter.
The park's visitor center features a
museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...
about the cultural and natural history of the park, including sand dunes, plants and wildlife,
weather
Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet's atmosphere, the ...
,
pirates
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
and local maritime history. A
hang-gliding
Hang gliding is an air sport or recreational activity in which a pilot flies a light, non-motorised foot-launched heavier-than-air aircraft called a hang glider. Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminium alloy or composite frame covered ...
school provides concessionaire hang-gliding lessons in the park. The ridge area is accessed either from the back deck of the visitor center or the parking lot via a boardwalk.
History
Scientists believe that the
barrier islands
Barrier islands are coastal landforms and a type of dune system that are exceptionally flat or lumpy areas of sand that form by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a ...
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 ...
were remnants of the
last ice age, which ended approximately 12,000 years ago. They have also concluded that Jockey's Ridge itself came into being about 7,000 years ago. The process of how this came about is unclear; however, scientists believe that minerals such as
quartz
Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical form ...
were washed from the mountains of the state to the ocean, creating sand. This sand was pushed onto the beaches of the area by storms and hurricanes. Through a process known as
saltation the sand was eventually blown onto the area now known as Jockey's Ridge where something caused it to begin building the dune system.
At one time, the dunes of the Outer Banks extended all the way to the southern end of
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 ...
. Many mariners used the ridge as a landmark in navigation of the area for coastal exploration in the 16th century.
[Biggs, Jr., W. and Parnell, J. 1989. ''State Parks of North Carolina''. John F. Blair. Winston-Salem, NC 27103]
By the early 20th century, the Outer Banks had become a popular tourist area for visitors from the mainland.
This in turn led to overdevelopment of the land. As development in the area proceeded, many local people desired the protection of the dune area. Action was precipitated in the summer of 1973, when bulldozing was begun on the sound side of Jockey's Ridge.
Carolista Baum, a local resident, was made aware of the bulldozing by her children who were playing in the area. She confronted the operator of the machine and successfully demanded that it be shut down. Petitions soon began in an effort to "Save Our Sand Dune," and the organization "People to Preserve Jockey's Ridge" was formed.
On July 25, 1974, Jockey's Ridge was approved for designation as a
National Natural Landmark
The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best ...
[''Mount Olive Tribune'' 1975. Mount Olive, North Carolina. May 27, 1975.] (see
Nags Head Woods and Jockey Ridge NNL). With matching funds from the North Carolina General Assembly and the United States Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, approximately were acquired in 1975 to create Jockey's Ridge State Park.
Name origin
There are numerous theories of how the ridge came to be known as Jockey's Ridge. An early reference to "Jockey's Hill" appeared in a grant to John Campbell in 1753.
A 1953 U.S. Geographical Survey Map identified the area as Jackey's Ridge, suggesting that a family named Jackey or Jacock owned the area at one time. One popular legend concerning the naming of Jockey's Ridge results from the "Bankers" practice of capturing and racing
Spanish Mustangs
The Spanish Mustang is an American horse breed descended from horses brought from Spain during the early conquest of the Americas. They are classified within the larger grouping of the Colonial Spanish horse, a type that today is rare in Spain. ...
. The herd of horses came from the ships of explorers wrecked offshore. Riders, or jockeys, used the flats at the base of the big dune as the race course. The steep sides of the ridge served as a grandstand for spectators to view the race.
Shoreline restoration project
In 2008, Jockey's Ridge partnered with the
North Carolina Coastal Federation,
The Nature Conservancy
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US.
Founded in 1951, The Natu ...
, and the
North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries to build a natural oyster
bulkhead along the northwestern edge of the park. The purpose of this project was twofold: to restore and stabilize shoreline along the sound, and to encourage new oyster growth in the waters. Now completed, the project has used nearly 4,000 bushels of recycled oyster shells.
Wind turbine
In 2010, the park became the first state park in North Carolina to harness the wind's energy with a wind turbine. The 10 kW turbine helps offset power consumption, producing approximately 700-900 kWh/month. Funding for the project came from the
North Carolina Parks and Recreation Trust Fund.
Ecosystems
Jockey's Ridge
![Gliding off Jockey's Ridge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Gliding_off_Jockey%27s_Ridge.jpg)
The tall dune area of Jockey's Ridge is known as a ''medano''—a massive, asymmetrical, shifting hill of sand lacking vegetation.
The desert-like environment of the dunes makes life difficult here with little to no vegetation or animal life in this area. The notorious winds of the Outer Banks cause a continual shifting of sands on the dunes. Winter's northeastern winds blow stronger than summer's southwestern winds, causing the dunes to move about one to six feet to the southwest each year. The dune is, however, stabilized somewhat by the surrounding maritime forests. Scientists estimate that there are 30 million tons of sand in the park.
Maritime forest
![Brush growing on Jockey's Ridge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Brush_growing_on_Jockey%27s_Ridge.jpg)
The maritime forest is the home to most plant and animal life in the park. The forests help to stabilize the dune and in return the dune protects the forests from strong winds and harsh salt spray.
Flora
There are many species of plants that have specialized to living on the Outer Banks.
Live oaks are synonymous with the southeastern U.S. and are one of the most hardy species of tree. Shrub thickets dominated by
southern wax myrtle,
eastern redcedar
''Juniperus virginiana'', also known as red cedar, eastern red cedar, Virginian juniper, eastern juniper, red juniper, and other local names, is a species of juniper native to eastern North America from southeastern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico a ...
, live oak, and redbay (''
Persea
''Persea'' is a genus of about 150 species of evergreen trees belonging to the laurel family, Lauraceae. The best-known member of the genus is the avocado, ''P. americana'', widely cultivated in subtropical regions for its large, edible fruit.
O ...
borbonia'') are found in protected dune pockets and near the picnic area.
To the west of the dunes is a forest that consists of live and
southern red oaks,
hickory
Hickory is a common name for trees composing the genus ''Carya'', which includes around 18 species. Five or six species are native to China, Indochina, and India (Assam), as many as twelve are native to the United States, four are found in Mexi ...
,
American sweetgum
American sweetgum (''Liquidambar styraciflua''), also known as American storax, hazel pine, bilsted, redgum, satin-walnut, star-leaved gum, alligatorwood, or simply sweetgum, is a deciduous tree in the genus ''Liquidambar'' native to warm temper ...
, and
loblolly pine
''Pinus taeda'', commonly known as loblolly pine, is one of several pines native to the Southeastern United States, from East Texas to Florida, and north to southern New Jersey. The wood industry classifies the species as a southern yellow pine. ...
;
dogwood
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrub ...
,
sassafras
''Sassafras'' is a genus of three extant and one extinct species of deciduous trees in the family Lauraceae, native to eastern North America and eastern Asia.Wolfe, Jack A. & Wehr, Wesley C. 1987. The sassafras is an ornamental tree. "Middle Eoc ...
, and other small trees form a subcanopy.
Fauna
Many of the animals living in Jockey's Ridge have adapted to the environment. Most of them are nocturnal to combat the summer heat, so visitors don't see them. The animals do leave unmistakable clues behind: their tracks. Some of the more interesting creatures to inhabit the park are the
gray fox
The gray fox (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), or grey fox, is an omnivorous mammal of the family Canidae, widespread throughout North America and Central America. This species and its only congener, the diminutive island fox (''Urocyon littora ...
,
six-lined racerunner,
Virginia opossum
The Virginia opossum (''Didelphis virginiana''), also known as the North American opossum, is the only opossum living north of Mexico, its range extending south into Central America. It is the northernmost marsupial in the world. In the United S ...
,
tiger beetle
Tiger beetles are a family of beetles, Cicindelidae, known for their aggressive predatory habits and running speed. The fastest known species of tiger beetle, ''Rivacindela hudsoni'', can run at a speed of , or about 125 body lengths per second. ...
,
eastern spadefoot toad, and
antlion
The antlions are a group of about 2,000 species of insect in the neuropteran family Myrmeleontidae. They are known for the predatory habits of their larvae, which mostly dig pits to trap passing ants or other prey. In North America, the larvae ...
.
Roanoke Sound
The Roanoke is a shallow,
brackish
Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuari ...
,
estuarine
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...
body of water that separates
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 ...
from
Roanoke Island
Roanoke Island () is an island in Dare County, North Carolina, Dare County, bordered by the Outer Banks of North Carolina, United States. It was named after the historical Roanoke (tribe), Roanoke, a Carolina Algonquian people who inhabited the ar ...
. It remains shallow due to the same forces that created the ridge: winds blow sand from the dune area into the sound. It is able to act as a
hatchery
A hatchery is a facility where eggs are hatched under artificial conditions, especially those of fish, poultry or even turtles. It may be used for ex-situ conservation purposes, i.e. to breed rare or endangered species under controlled condit ...
for many types of both freshwater and saltwater fishes due to its mostly calm waters.
Croakers
Sciaenidae are a family of fish in the order Acanthuriformes. They are commonly called drums or croakers in reference to the repetitive throbbing or drumming sounds they make. The family consists of about 286 to 298 species in about 66 to 70 gene ...
,
shrimp
Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...
,
striped burrfish,
pipefish
Pipefishes or pipe-fishes (Syngnathinae) are a subfamily of small fishes, which, together with the seahorses and seadragons (''Phycodurus'' and ''Phyllopteryx''), form the family Syngnathidae.
Description
Pipefish look like straight-bodied seah ...
,
blue crabs Blue crab may refer to:
* Blue Crab 11, an American sailboat design
* ''Callinectes sapidus'' – Chesapeake or Atlantic blue crab of the West Atlantic, introduced elsewhere
* ''Cardisoma guanhumi'' – blue land crab of the West Atlantic
* '' Disc ...
, and
seahorses
A seahorse (also written ''sea-horse'' and ''sea horse'') is any of 46 species of small marine fish in the genus ''Hippocampus''. "Hippocampus" comes from the Ancient Greek (), itself from () meaning "horse" and () meaning "sea monster" or " ...
have all been documented near the park. Many types of shorebirds are also present along the sound.
Osprey
The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...
s are one of the more fascinating sights during warmer months in the area.
References
External links
*
Jockey's Ridge State Park- Friends of Jockey's Ridge State Park site with program information
{{authority control
Protected areas of Dare County, North Carolina
State parks of North Carolina
Outer Banks
Dunes of the United States
Protected areas established in 1975
Museums in Dare County, North Carolina
Natural history museums in North Carolina
National Natural Landmarks in North Carolina
Landforms of North Carolina
Landforms of Dare County, North Carolina
1975 establishments in North Carolina