CEDAR ISLAND: 



t's a slow day Down East as a yellow lab 

 roams along the Cedar Island Harbor pier. 



Nearby, a young man listens to a Willie 

 Nelson song while relaxing on a well-worn gray 

 sofa inside an open shelter facing the harbor. 



As soon as a white skiff pulls in, everyone 

 lushes to see the catch of the day. 



"It's all local people. It is like a big old 

 family," says Joe Taylor, who owns one of the 

 piers. "No one squabbles. We use each other's 

 docks." 



There have been few changes at the harbor 

 over the years. "It's rustic. The place has not 

 been fancied up," says Taylor. "There is no 

 concrete here. It is a do-it-yourself-place. 

 People build their own piers." 



Not far from the harbor, Bradley Styron 



"Ninety percent of the people on Cedar 

 Island still fish for a living," says Cedar Island 

 native Jerry Gaskill, director of the N.C. 

 Department of Transportation's Ferry Division. 

 "The rest of the people work for the ferry division 

 or go into Beaufort or Morehead City to work." 



The ferry dock is the only busy spot. During 

 the summer season, cars are lined up bumper to 

 bumper to catch the ferry to Ocracoke. 



It is a 'unique community" because of the 

 Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge that 

 spreads over more than 14,000 acres, says 

 Woody Hancock, who raises horses. "There is no 

 room for growth. It's as laid back as you can get." 



Natives still retain the famed "Hoi Toide" 

 accent, a remnant of Old English that was once 

 spoken in colonial Carolina. 



FAR LEFT: 



Marshall Daniels' boat 

 Libby takes a rest. 



LEFT TO RIGHT: 



The Cedar Island Harbor 



is a popular gathering 



spot for fishers. 



A crabber heads out to 



set his pots. 



A sign on N.C. 12 



welcomes visitors. 



By Ann Green 

 Photos by Scott D 



operates Quality Seafood out of a concrete 

 Taylor building adorned with an American flag. His 



crew fishes year-round. On this day, men are 

 icing down a load of fresh shrimp. 



"I come from a fishing family," says 

 Styron, who serves on the N.C. Marine Fisheries 

 Commission. "Everybody was a fisherman. 

 Fishing is our heritage." 



In Cedar Island, 40 miles east of Beaufort, 

 fishing still dominates most people's lives. 



Along the main road, some homes have 

 gardens that are fenced off with fishing nets. 

 Others have fishing boats parked in the front 

 yard. Brightly painted "boom trucks" haul 

 fishing gear. 



The community's only variety store, Island 

 Choice, is packed wall-to-wall with fishing gear, 

 hardware and groceries. 



One of their favorite expressions is "right 

 slick cam" when the water is as smooth as glass, 

 according to author Jean Day, who lived on 

 Cedar Island during the 1950s. 



ISOLATED COMMUNITY 



To get to Cedar Island, head east from 

 Beaufort along U.S. 70 to N.C. 12. Along the 

 way, marshes stretch for miles along the 

 shoulders. The only sign of life is people coming 

 in and out of convenience stores and homes in the 

 tiny communities of Bertie, Otway, Smyrna, 

 Williston, Stacy, Sea Level and Atlantic. 



After passing over the Monroe Gaskill 

 Bridge, a sign says: "Welcome to Cedar Island, 

 Gateway to the Outer Banks." 



Along the road, fingers of emerald green 



Continue d 



COASTWATCH 7 



