Most people who camp at the Frisco Campground at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore are completely unaware that a trail leading from the campground goes straight to a little-known piece of British soil in North Carolina. The easy trail (although it’s nearly nine miles long) leads to a forgotten secret of the Second World War that’s both sad and fascinating.
Frisco Campground, in case you're not familiar, is perched right on the dunes and is part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
The campground is open seasonally from April to November and its hilly dunes even offer some campsites a full view of the Atlantic for both a sunrise and a sunset. Most of the campground trails lead to the shore, however, the 8.9-mile Open Ponds Trail leads eastward all the way to the sandy Lighthouse Road where the Cape Hatteras Light is located.
The campground and trails are maintained by the National Park Service and the Open Ponds Trail provides campers with access to the lighthouse without having to get in the car to drive.
In times when temperatures soar and even the ocean breeze doesn't cool you down enough to consider hiking 18 miles in one day, you can simply drive over to the other end of the trail on Lighthouse Road to explore the hidden secret along this trail.
At about 150 feet from the end of the trail on Lighthouse Road is a small piece of land that's been leased for, perhaps, infinity to the British government.
It's here along the trail that two British soldiers lay at rest in a small two-man British Cemetery.
As history tells the story, during WWII, a German u-boat sank two British vessels just off the coast of Cape Hatteras and later (much later) two of the bodies washed ashore.
The cemetery and surrounding area (including the trail) are maintained by the National Park Service.
Did you know about this forgotten secret of World War II in North Carolina? Or that a small piece of US soil is leased to the British government for the foreseeable future? We’d love to know the answers to both!
The Open Ponds Trail is open year-round. You can find more information about the trail at this link on alltrails.com. More information about Frisco Campground can be found at this link.
Forgotten British Cemetery Address: Lighthouse Road, Buxton, NC, 27920
For more reasons to visit the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, keep reading here!
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