Carova Beach
Corolla, NC
No pavement, no traffic lights, and a small band of wild colonial Spanish mustangs that wander right up onto the sand. You need four wheel drive to get here, which is exactly why it has stayed this untouched while the rest of the Outer Banks filled in with rental houses.
No pavement, no traffic lights, and wild mustangs on the sand, genuinely untouched, but four wheel drive and tide timing are non negotiable to get there.
How we score beachesAir down your tires before driving onto the sand, and check a tide chart, since high tide narrows the drivable beach considerably.
Dogs are allowed on Carova's beaches year-round as long as they're kept on a leash.
This stretch of the Outer Banks gets the same hot, humid summer and June through November hurricane season as the rest of coastal North Carolina. High tide narrows the drivable beach year round, but it's most restrictive when storm surge is in the mix during hurricane season.
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