🇺🇸 Cape Hatteras (Real Slick)
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Best directionSW
Wind speed15–28kt
SeasonYear-round
Skill levelAll levels
WaterFlat lagoon + waves
The Outer Banks' Pamlico Sound side gives flat, protected water while the Atlantic side delivers real waves — officially designated for kiteboarding and windsurfing by the National Park Service. Home of the well-known "Planet of the Apes" downwinder route for intermediate riders.
View live 5-day wind forecast →Good to know
Getting thereNorfolk (ORF), then about 2.5 hours south down the Outer Banks via Highway 12 to Waves. A car is essential; the primary access is through the REAL Watersports complex, with free gravel-lot parking and entry via their private docks or the adjacent public sound-side tracks.
Hazards'The Slick' can get very shallow (under 0.5m) depending on wind direction — real risk of hitting the sandy bottom in a crash. Stay clear of the shoreline launch docks where advanced freestylers ride, and maintain the legal 150-foot buffer from overhead power lines. Shifting sandbars and submerged duck blinds can appear unexpectedly further out.
Best time of daySpring and summer afternoons, when prevailing SW trade wind gets a real thermal boost. Tide-independent (sound-side), but a steady SW direction is what creates the glass-flat water behind the land spits.