Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge and Gull Rock

LOCATION:
Coastal Plain
Hyde County

SIZE IN ACRES:
16,411 acres in refuge and 19,436 acres in game land

INVOLVEMENT IN ACRES:
909 acres in refuge and 805 acres in game land

Bald eagle

Redhead drake

TOPOGRAPHICAL MAP:
Swanquarter: Great Island, Pamlico Point, Scranton, Swan Quarter
Gull Rock: Bluff Point, Middletown, New Holland

Topographical maps are available by contacting:
NC Geographical Survey.
1612 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1612.
(919) 715-9718
www.geology.enr.state.nc.us/

ACTIVITIES & AMENITIES:
Birding / Fishing / Small Boats / Boat Ramp / Parking

OWNERSHIP & ACCESS:
Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge:
Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge
c/o Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge
Route 1, Box N-2
Swan Quarter, NC 27885
(252) 926-4021

Gull Rock:
Gull Rock Game Land
N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission
1701 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1701
(919) 733-7291

SITE INFORMATION:
Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge is composed of islands and coastal marshlands containing potholes, creeks, swamp forests, and tidal drains. This brackish marsh ecosystem is dominated by black needlerush and other marsh grasses. Tens of thousands of canvasback, scaup, bufflehead, redhead, and ruddy ducks winter in adjacent bays and are visible from the Swan Quarter/Ocracoke ferry as it leaves Swan Quarter and passes by refuge waters. Many bird species nest here, including egrets, osprey, and other raptors. The refuge contains a stand of old-growth bald cypress that supports a great blue heron rookery. This protected land is an important corridor between Pamlico Sound and Lake Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge.

Located east of Swanquarter refuge, Gull Rock Game Land contains a diversity of wetland habitats, including brackish marsh, pond pine woodland, nonriverine swamp forest, and low and high pocosin. The natural area is home to 63 breeding birds, black bear, and American alligator. Canoeing and boating are great ways to see these marshes, offering good viewing of the waterfowl, but windy days can make for rough water in the more exposed areas.

CONSERVATION HIGHLIGHTS:
In the mid-1980s, The Nature Conservancy acquired 805 acres of Gull Rock Game Land. In 1991, Transamerica Insurance Company donated 768 acres of wetlands to The Nature Conservancy that were subsequently transferred to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for inclusion in Swanquarter National Wildlife Refuge.

DIRECTIONS:
The refuge is located south of Belhaven, NC, and southwest of Lake Mattamuskeet, on the south side of US 264 on the Rose Bay access road marked from US 264. The state ferry landing and private boat ramp are located south of the town of Swan Quarter via NC 45 and SR 1132. To get to the fishing pier and canoe or kayak put-in from Swan Quarter, drive six miles west on US 264, turn left on a gravel access road, and go two miles to the parking area and pier.

Gull Rock access is south from US 264 via SR 1122 or SR 1164 with four-wheel-drive side roads open in the fall and winter. Check those hunting schedules before visiting!