Adventure Awaits!
Located west of Pine Knoll Shores sits the little town of Indian Beach and Salter Path, full of exciting activities. Here you’ll find vacation rentals from homes to one of the islands most popular condos, Summerwinds. Indian Beach is known for its family-friendly atmosphere and provides the perfect location for a family beach vacation.
Along with beautiful, uncrowded beaches, Indian Beach & Salter Path’s watersports activities are a favorite pastime here with Stand Up Paddleboarding, surfing, boogie boarding, kayaking being a few of the highlights. A quick trip to Island Water Sports and you can book activities from wave runner rentals, banana boat rentals and more!
The Lost Treasure Golf & Raceway is easily accessible and features two 18 hole Miniature Golf Courses, a mining train that will take you to the first holes, go-carts, bumper boats & an arcade. Seafood here is as local as it gets. With the famous Big Oak Drive-In, known for their shrimp burgers, to The Crab Shack and much more, these restaurants are sure to keep you coming back for more. Contact Us today and let us help you create the perfect Indian Beach vacation!
Indian Beach – History
It is thought that the name Indian Beach came about because of Indian Burial mounds that were discovered there. Indian Beach is in fact divided by the unincorporated area of Salter Path. Highway 58 winds through Indian Beach for a little over a mile and then you come to the town of Salter Path. If you continue down the highway, in less than a mile you will again find yourself in Indian Beach.
Indian Beach has a sea turtle program staffed by volunteers who work in conjunction with the North Carolina Aquarium at nearby Pine Knoll Shores as well as the Bogue Banks Sea Turtle Project. The Bogue Banks Sea Turtle Project is a branch of the NC Wildlife Resources Commission and is dedicated to studying and protecting the nesting population of sea turtles on Bogue Banks. Indian Beach accommodations include ocean and sound access shaded by flourishing maritime forest. The public beach access offers showers and bathrooms along with picnic tables where you can enjoy your picnic lunch. The wooden walkway out to the beach leads over white sand dunes onto soft sandy beach and beautiful crystal clear waters.
Salter Path
The community of Salter Path is believed to be named after Owen Salter or possibly Riley Salter. Schools of mullets that ran close to the ocean shorelines were the primary source of food and income for many of the natives. These fishermen would quickly move from the sound to the ocean, beating a path in front of a Salter household, hence the name Salter Path. Many of the families who moved to Salter Path from Diamond City on Shackleford Banks in the late 19th century and early 20th century established their residences without deeds. The area of Salter Path subsequently became known as a squatter’s community.
Salter Path was passed from John A. Royal to Alice Green Hoffman, a distant relative of Theodore Roosevelt and daughter of Alfred Green, a former governor of New Jersey. Alice Hoffman developed an estate and sued the residents of Salter Path in 1923 because their cows were wandering onto her estate. A subsequent court decision permitted the residents of Salter Path to remain, but the cows were not allowed to graze on the Hoffman Estate. The village was restricted to 81 acres that the squatters occupied, and direct ownership of the beachfront was granted to the village to use collectively. This ruling further stated that only current residents and descendants could occupy the property, but it did not give any individuals title to the land. This ruling remained intact until 1979 when a legal settlement permitted Salter Path residents to hold a title to their property and for Carteret County to levy taxes on the former squatter’s village.
