Quote:
Originally Posted by jrsgirl
Hi! 
We are considering moving to coastal North Carolina and wondered if Cape Carteret would be a good area to raise 2 teen boys (12 & 14 now). I've been researching the area (along with many others) on the internet and I like what I read about the area but wonder if it's mostly retirees or if there are families with teens there also.
Employment is not an issue as my husband is retiring and we would like to be near the beaches and Intracoastal Waterway but our boys are our top concern for now.
Also would like a good church.
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! |
You have picked a great area. We moved down to the area last September and love living here. We actually go to the Cape Carteret Presbyterian Church which is just across the street from the new Lowes Home Improvement Center.
Right next to our church is the Methodist Church which is a much bigger church. Right beside Lowe's Home Improvement Center is the real estate office where I work. So I feel like part of the town even though we live just down the road.
The area is growing. They have just started work on a new Walgreen's that is going to be in front of the Lowe's Grocery Store. Here are some pictures of the
Cape Carteret Town Hall. It is one of the few places where I have felt like government might be paying attention to the people.
Looking at the
Moderator cut: link removed you should factor in that Cape Carteret, Cedar Point, Swansboro, and Emerald Isle are all so close that you get the feeling that you are a part of four small towns at one time.
We do have a lot of retirees, but there are also a number of young people and the tourists with their families also add to the mix, though you mostly see them in the grocery stores and on the beaches if you choose to use a public access beach instead of doing what most locals do, which is find a beach accessible only by boat.
As you can probably tell from the maps, the Intracoastal Waterway runs right by the area. We live on the water a few miles up the White Oak River. It takes us about 15 minutes to get to the Intracoastal.
This map (http://coastalnc.org/generalarea - broken link) will give you a pretty good idea of the area.
We just got our boat and are really enjoying it. If you come to the area, make certain that you get someone to give you a ride down the Intracoastal from Swansboro to at least Broad Creek. The area is really beautiful from the Intracoastal. We have been as far as Shackleford Banks which was a sixty-seven mile trip.
Also if you have a particular kind of boat in mind, that has a lot of impact on where you might want to live since the area has lots of water, but much of it is fairly shallow. We have a 20ft skiff and so far it has been the right boat for us.
Just talk to some local people who have boats, and you will quickly find out where your boat can be happy.
Here are some links to boat trips that we have made, they give you a pretty good idea of the area.
Shackleford Banks Trip
Father's Day Boating Trip, Hammocks Beach, Bogue Inlet
Up the White Oak River
You might also enjoy this post about
the Mayor of Cape Carteret cooking hamburgers for everyone.
Finally I think you might be able to get a feel for the ages of people in the area by looking at these two festivals.
One is the
Emerald Isle Saint Patrick's Day Festival.
The other is the
Swansboro Oyster Roast and Pig Out. I know for a fact that teenagers play a big part in making the Oyster Roast successful.
Some more local pictures that might help are the ones from the
Emerald Isle Christmas Parade.
You might also like to read about the
Swansboro Flotilla
Then there are all
the pictures of the great trails in the area. Having the Croatan National Forest around is pretty neat.
As you can tell, I really love the area. Though all of our kids are grown, I would have loved to have grown up here. If your kids love the outdoors, this is a fantastic spot. I know a couple of people who have been here for most of their lives, and they turned out pretty terrific.
You can find more info links starting at one of my main websites,
Southern Outer Banks or
Coastal Paradise.
I would be glad to try to answer other questions that you might have. Since I am recognized in the
restaurants and hardware stores, I now consider myself a local.
By the way, you can find
school information at this link.
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