BEACH ACCESS IS A MUST

Beach Access is being slowly diminished, through a few organizations. Everyone needs to understand how BEACH CLOSINGS negatively impact our economy on: local, state, and national levels. Yes, birds, turtles, fish, and other critters are important ... SO IS HUMAN SURVIVAL! Let's always have the option to "BE A CHild" in the sand for years to come! SURFCERELY, RAMP http://www.beachrampaccess.com/ or http://www.ramp67.com/

U TALK 'N TO ME ?!

I SWEAR ... THE FISH WAS LONGER THAN THE BOAT !

NO BRIDGES ON OCRACOKE ISLAND

NO BRIDGES ON OCRACOKE ISLAND
HEY ALL YOU BEACH BUMS! ...CHECK THIS OUT...SEVERAL BRIDGES ARE BEING REPLACED ON OCRACOKE ISLAND, NC ... I PICTURE TUMBLE WEED LIKE CONDITIONS, SORT OF LIKE ... WELL, AN OLD WESTERN MOVIE IF YOU ASK ME! MORE TO COME!

NUMBER ONE BEACH 2007

CBSNEWS.COM(CBS/AP) Move over, Florida and Hawaii. Your beaches are no longer the best.
The nation's best place to get a tan and enjoy the ocean's waves in 2007 is North Carolina's Ocracoke Island, a place so remote that even people in the offices of "Dr. Beach" — Florida International University professor Stephen Leatherman — didn't know where to find it on the map.
"Fourteen miles of unspoiled beach," Leatherman told CBS News from Ocracoke Island. "No development on it whatsoever."
Ocracoke is the first beach not in Florida or Hawaii to earn the top spot in his annual ranking of the nation's top 10 spots on the shore.
Technically, it's Ocracoke Lifeguarded Beach that is the nation's best. But Leatherman said there's little that separates those 300 yards of postcard-perfect sand from the rest of the island, almost all of which is protected from development as part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
(CBS)Ocracoke is at the southern end of the Outer Banks, the fragile chain of barrier islands along North Carolina's coast known as the "graveyard of the Atlantic." Accessible only by boat or private plane, there are only about 800 full-time residents of the island where the pirate Blackbeard met his untimely death at the hands of the Royal Navy in 1718.
"Don't come here to play golf, don't come here for a Paris Hilton spa — it's not that kind of beach," Leatherman, director of Florida International's laboratory for coastal research, said.
"It has what people are looking for. It has beautiful sand, soft light, the water's clean and clear — it's about 75 degrees today, beach-type weather, no jellyfish, no seaweed," he said Friday. "Then it has a quaint little village called Ocracoke where you have B&Bs (bed-and-breakfast inns) and small, wonderful restaurants."
Ocracoke has been a favorite of "Dr. Beach" for years — he ranked it No. 3 in 2006 and No. 2 in 2005. By winning this year, it will be retired from consideration, along with other past champions.
"Obviously, it's a great honor to be put up at the top of the heap," said Julia Howard, the administrator for the Ocracoke Island Museum and Preservation Society, who has lived on the island for 35 years.
Leatherman ranks beaches on 50 criteria, using a 1 to 5 scale. No beach has ever gotten all 250 points, and Ocracoke ranked somewhere in the 230s, he said. The sand, for example, isn't lily white, so it lost points there.
Here's the 2007 list:
Ocracoke Lifeguarded Beach, Outer Banks, N.C.
Caladesi Island State Park, Clearwater, Fla.
Coopers Beach, Southampton, N.Y.
Hanalei Beach, Kauai, Hawaii
Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod, Mass.
Hamoa Beach, Maui, Hawaii
Main Beach, East Hampton, N.Y.
Coronado Beach, San Diego, Calif.
Lighthouse Point Park, Daytona Beach, Fla.
Siesta Beach, Sarasota, Fla.
CBSNEWS.COM

GPS -- Don't Get Lost On The Beach

It's easy to get lost (turned around) on Outer Banks beaches, especially if it's your first time. Thanks to Global Positioning Systems (GPS), it's easier to find your way around and go fishing, surfing, or just explore new territories, even at night! In an attempt to make your beach experience more enjoyable, here are some helpful coordinates: (* denotes degrees)
Highway 12/RAMP 4 -- N 35* 47.759 WO 75* 32.780
Beach/RAMP 4 -- N 35* 47.885 WO 75* 32.444
See you on the beach!

RAMP 4 / BEACH RAMP ACCESS HOME PAGE

Welcome! Either you can go to the RAMP4.com page, or you can check out all of the premiered RAMPS on the HOME PAGE: http://www.beachrampaccess.com . See you on the beach.

BEACH RAMP ACCESS

BEACH RAMP ACCESS The Outer Banks, in North Carolina, are known for their awesome beaches! Many people access these beaches via "RAMPS" or pathways. BEACH RAMP ACCESS TM wants to insure awareness and help promote beach protection, thus, allowing for continued beach access. As we are updating our site, http://www.beachrampaccess.com/ , be sure to check out these other very good and informative sites: www.nps.gov/caha/bdriv.htm (beach access), and www.nps.gov/caha/pphtml/news.html (beach closings)."Sea" you around! "RAMP"Link: http://www.beachrampaccess.com/