No off-road vehicles at Cape Point would hurt anglers, local economy
TOM HIGGINS
An imaginary future conversation between a grandfather and grandson:
TOM HIGGINS
An imaginary future conversation between a grandfather and grandson:
Grandpa, did you ever fish at a place called Cape Point on the Outer Banks?
Oh, yes, son. From 1964 through 2007 I went to Hatteras Island -- usually once in the spring and again in the fall -- and during these trips I always tried to do some of my surf fishing at Cape Point. Son, how do you know about the place? And why are you asking?
Well, Grandpa, I was looking through a book about North Carolina in the library at middle school and it had a list of the state's most famous places.
Cape Point was one of them.
Grandpa, why don't you fish there any more?
It's a sad story, son. I can't get to it. Not a lot of anglers can nowadays, especially those of middle age or older.
Why, Grandpa?
Well, son, back a few years ago in April of 2008, a federal judge ruled that people no longer could drive off-road vehicles on the beach at parts of Cape Hatteras National Seashore. He placed an off-limits sign for ORVs not only on Cape Point, but other prime fishing spots as well. The ban included the beaches at Oregon Inlet, Hatteras Inlet and the north and south ends of Ocracoke Island.
Walking to Cape Point from a parking lot near the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, a hike of approximately three miles, is just too great a distance for an ol' feller like me. It is for most people, especially considering that they'd have to carry all their gear -- rods and reels, tackle boxes, bait boxes, food, everything needed to spend a day fishing.
The other banned places are almost as tough to reach on foot.
Grandpa, why did the judge hand down such a ruling?
It resulted from a lawsuit, son. Two groups, the Defenders of Wildlife and the Audubon Society, didn't want to wait for a compromise plan to be worked out. They contended it would take too long. So they sued the U.S. Park Service, which administers the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, to implement the vehicle ban immediately for 365 days a year, 24 hours a day until a plan could be put in place.
The ban was granted and hasn't been lifted. Chances are it won't ever be.
Grandpa, why did the two groups want the ban?
Son, they contended it was to protect a threatened sea bird, the piping plover, which infrequently nests and lays its eggs on the sandy shore along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. They argued that the anglers' ORVs, mainly 4-wheel-drive sports utility vehicles, were a danger to these birds and damaged the nests.
However, me and a lot of others suspect the two groups had motives beyond protecting the piping plover. We think their ultimate goal was to turn the Cape Hatteras National Seashore into a relative wilderness.
And in a way it has, leading to what you might call the extinction of a lot of good, hard-working people by ruining the economy. Grandpa, who were these people?
Son, almost everyone whose livelihood depended on fishermen visiting the area. Folks working in tackle shops. Restaurant and motel workers. Netters who caught and sold bait. Employees who oversaw and maintained the homes that fishermen rented.
Grandpa, was the fishing good at Cape Point?
Son, it was like most fishin' holes. There were times when the fish didn't hit. But when the action was on at Cape Point, wow! Its surf produced big red drum, striped bass, bluefish, flounder and trout. It justifiably became known as the foremost surf fishing spot on the East Coast.
The other spots banned to ORVs were good, too. But even when the fishing wasn't so hot, it was fulfilling being out there at such beautiful places with the surf swirling and the sea breeze in your face. And few locations in our country have more awe-inspiring sunrises and sunsets than Cape Point, Hatteras Inlet and the ends of Ocracoke Island.
Grandpa, what is there to do now at Cape Point and the other places, like Hatteras Inlet, since it has become so tough to reach them to fish?
You can bird watch, son, for piping plover.
outdoors
About the issue
Because there is no current off road vehicle plan in place in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Recreational Area, the Defenders of Wildlife and the Audobon Society are suing to prevent off road vehicles from traveling on or near the beaches in order to protect a bird who nests in the sand there. A federal court ruling is expected on April 3.
Tom
Higgins
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Fishing reduces stress and gives you a break from our modern world where everything is going a million miles per hour
73
Check & Clear 6
LOC: 38-54-14.60N / 097-14-09.07W
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