The Core Sound Waterfowl Museum, 1785 Harkers Island Road, +1-252-728-1500, (http://www.coresound.com/). M-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su 2PM-5PM. Free admission. Locals have been carving wooden decoy ducks for generations, and efforts were made to formally renew this craft in 1987. The museum has exhibits on decoy carving, waterfowl art, oral histories and local artifacts, as well as exhibits and programs on local heritage and a 4-acre freshwater waterfowl habitat area.
The ghost village of Portsmouth, on the northern tip of Core Banks on the south side of the Ocracoke Inlet. Established in 1793 and once the largest settlement on the Outer Banks, Portsmouth was ravaged by a hurricane in 1899. The settlement was thereafter abandoned, and today you can explore the empty streets. In April, descendants of the settlers gather on the island for a homecoming and dinner on the grounds.
Shell Point
on the eastern end of the island. A mound of seashells, built by the Tuscarora tribe who used to live on the island, which researchers think may have been the start of a bridge across Core Sound.