Lake Mattamuskeet North Carolina's largest natural lake — eleven miles from your room
A shallow sea
of sky and grass
Eighteen miles long and rarely more than a few feet deep, Lake Mattamuskeet is the largest natural lake in the state — a vast, glassy expanse rimmed with marsh, pond cypress and pine. The headquarters lies just off Highway 94, a short drive north of the inn, where a century-old lodge still keeps watch over the water.
A sky full of wings
From November through January, waterfowl pour out of the sky onto the lake from as far away as the Arctic.
Tens of thousands winter on the lake — the sound of them at dusk is unforgettable.
Pintail, teal and snow geese raft by the thousand across the open impoundments.
Hallowed duck ground — in season the lake and game lands draw waterfowlers from across the state.
Hunters come for the waterfowl; everyone else comes for the spectacle of it. The three-mile Wildlife Drive loops past observation platforms over the largest marsh — and there’s a full rundown for hunters on our hunting page.
Bass, crappie
& blue crab
The canals, marshes and the lake itself give up largemouth and striped bass, crappie and catfish to anyone with a shallow-draft boat or a pair of waders. And at the water-control structures, the blue crabbing is the stuff of local legend — Mattamuskeet's crabs run famously large.
The country around the inn
An hour from
the Outer Banks
Engelhard is the mainland's quiet back door to the coast. Manteo and the northern beaches sit about an hour away, while the Swan Quarter ferry glides across the sound to Ocracoke Island and its little white lighthouse. Spend the day on the sand, and come home to a room without the boardwalk prices.
- Swan Quarter ferry to Ocracoke — about 15 minutes west on U.S. 264
- Lake Mattamuskeet — about 11 miles north, off Highway 94
- Waterfowl season — roughly November through January
- Wildlife Drive — a 3-mile loop with observation platforms
- Historic Mattamuskeet Lodge — a former pumping station on the lake
- Fishing — largemouth & striped bass, crappie, catfish
- Blue crabbing — at the lake's water-control structures
- Manteo & the northern Outer Banks — about one hour east
- Norfolk Int'l Airport (ORF) — about 2½ hours north
- The inn's kitchen — hot breakfast in the morning, pizza & wings 5–9 p.m.
A room by the lake
Hotel Engelhard is the closest bed to all of it. Call the front desk and we'll hold your dates.
