Alligator River Route

Alligator River Route is a 40-mile North Carolina scenic byway across the state's coastal wetlands, running from Lake Mattamuskeet to Roanoke Island. The drive starts by skirting Lake Mattamuskeet, North Carolina's largest natural lake at roughly 50,000 acres, first recorded by English explorers in 1585 during one of Sir Walter Raleigh's early expeditions to the coast. From New Holland, the route follows Highway 94 north, then turns east onto Highway 64, crossing Croatan Sound before continuing on Highway 64/264 out to Roanoke Island, site of the lost Roanoke colony. Along the way, two national wildlife refuges border the road, providing habitat for migratory waterfowl and several endangered species that draw birdwatchers to the pull-offs. The landscape here is almost entirely wetland and swamp, low, flat, and often covered in cypress and marsh grass, giving the drive a distinctly different character from North Carolina's mountain byways. It's a slow, watery route better suited to wildlife viewing than fast travel, ending at one of the most historically significant sites on the Atlantic coast.

• Lake Mattamuskeet to Roanoke Island
• 40+ miles
• Lake Mattamuskeet (50,000 acres)
• Croatan Sound crossing
• two National Wildlife Refuges
• coastal wetlands