Outer Banks Beach — Live Cam

This live camera looks out over the Atlantic from North Carolina's Outer Banks — the slender chain of barrier islands ("the OBX") that arcs off the mainland coast. The view takes in the wide, open beach and the rolling surf of one of the East Coast's classic shorelines, a place defined by big skies, shifting sand, and the constant Atlantic. Conditions here can swing from glassy calm to dramatic storm surf. The cam is a favorite for checking the waves and the weather, and for catching a sunrise straight out of the ocean — the Outer Banks face due east, so the sun comes up over the water. North Carolina is on Eastern Time, six hours ahead of Hawaii, so OBX sunrise lands in the small hours HST. Summer brings warm water and crowds; fall and winter bring solitude, bigger swells, and the migration of surfers and anglers. The Outer Banks are steeped in history — the Wright Brothers' first flight at Kitty Hawk, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, and the "Graveyard of the Atlantic" offshore. It's a quintessential American beach, raw and wind-swept.