When Wilbur and Orville Wright traveled from Ohio to the Outer Banks in 1900, they were seeking both steady winds and a place where they could experiment out of the public’s prying eye. The discovered Kill Devil Hills, building and eventually flying the first successful, controlled and powered flight in a heavier-than-air machine.

The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is a powerful symbol of the North Carolina Outer Banks, and its black and white spirals are recognized around the world. Built in 1870 at a height of 208 feet, it is the tallest brick beacon on earth and the tallest lighthouse on the entire East Coast.

If you spend time in the northern stretches of the Outer Banks, particularly north of Corolla, you’ll probably catch a glimpse of a wild horse contentedly grazing among the tough scrub brush and the dunes.