(Corolla, N.C.) Spanish mustangs have lived 500 years on Currituck Bank, and in
2012, the 144-horse wild-horse herd is still provoking “oohs” and “aahs”
from those who catch a glimpse. They roam government-protected land on the Outer Banks between
Currituck Sound and the Atlantic, being most often seen at the beach,
says Claudia Jones, northern sites manager of the N.C. Coastal Reserve
and National Estuarine Research Reserve. Their protected area, including the estuarine reserve, starts
about a mile north of the Currituck Heritage Park – a cluster of Corolla
landmarks on N.C. 12 that includes the climbable, 1875 Currituck Beach
Lighthouse. Park in the Heritage Park lot, then follow N.C. 12, paved at this
point, about 1 1/4-mile to the beach. Unpaved N.C. 12 runs along the
beach, and if you walk north, you may find yourself dodging
four-wheel-drive traffic, but you may also spot horses. A law prohibits
getting within 50 feet of them.
Sightings are less likely, but not unheard of, on a 1/3-mile
boardwalk and a 1 1/2-mile circular path leading through the reserve to
the sound. Bald eagle nests, marshes, blooming wild plants and a
maritime forest lie along the path. Park during daylight hours in the
reserve’s parking lot a mile north of Heritage Park.
Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/04/06/3156168/5-great-springtime-walks-in-the.html#storylink=cpy
