Weather, repairs, and wildlife management activities have led to the temporary closures of several refuge roads to vehicles and/or general public access. The descriptions below summarize current road status as of July 31, 2026. A complete map of the refuge can be found in the Refuge Tearsheet.

The refuge is open during daylight hours (half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset). 

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Milltail and Long Curve Closure

Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge staff have recently witnessed and been notified of multiple incidents of dangerous human-bear interactions, including black bears approaching and leaning on cars. Animals that are habituated to human presence pose significant dangers to both humans and animals because of the risk of aggressive encounters, disease transmission, and property damage.

In order to protect public safety, the refuge is closing part of Milltail and Long Curve Roads to all entry effective July 31st. Milltail Road will be closed between Sawyer Lake and Long Curve Road. Long Curve Road will be closed between Milltail and Grouse Roads. 

Reducing human activity in these closure areas will reduce the habituation of animals, help ensure safe wildlife observation distances, and avoid a potentially life-threatening incident between a bear and human.

You can do your part to protect yourself, others, and wildlife by giving bears space, viewing wildlife quickly and moving on, and never feeding wildlife. The refuge will continue monitoring bear activity around the closures and elsewhere on the refuge. Updates to the road closures will be posted on the refuge website and social media.

Many other roads on the refuge remain open for driving and wildlife observation. Some suggested alternative routes include:

Sawyer Lake Loop:

Estimated time: 40min, 6mi

• From Highway 64, enter on Milltail Road. Turn right onto Sawyer Lake Road at the closure. 
• Drive Sawyer Lake Road to the end. Turn right onto Buffalo City Road and out to Highway 64.

Grouse Loop: 

Estimated time: 20min, 5mi

• From Highway 264, turn right onto Borrow Pit Road.
• Turn right onto Bear Road. At the end, turn left onto Grouse Road (note that those areas are posted No Stopping, Standing, or Parking—you can drive through, but please do not stop in order to reduce wildlife’s exposure to humans).
• Turn left onto Long Curve Road, then left onto Borrow Pit to return to 264.

River to Pump Loop: 

Estimated time: 20min, 4mi

• From Highway 64, enter on River Road. Continue to the end of River Rd. 
• Turn right onto Laurel Bay Road. Continue 1 mile.
• Turn right onto Pump Road and out to Highway 64. 

Through the Heart of the Refuge

Total distance: 17 miles, estimated time 1h 15min

If you want to explore a longer route through the refuge through wild pocosin wetlands and forest with dense vegetation, you can connect from Milltail Road to Long Curve Road via the following route. Make sure you have a map to keep oriented as you drive!

• Enter from Highway 64 onto Milltail Road. Turn right onto Sawyer Lake Road at the closure.
• Proceed 1.3 miles. Turn left onto Butler Road.
• At the end of Butler Rd, turn left onto Sandy Ridge Road
• At the end of Sandy Ridge Road, turn left onto Milltail Road
• Proceed 1.4 miles. Turn right onto Koehring Rd.
• At the end of Koehring Road, turn left onto Long Curve Road.
• At the “T” intersection, turn right onto Borrow Pit. You can turn left on Bear Road to add the Grouse Loop or continue straight to exit via Highway 264.

Upper and Lower Creef Units

The Upper Creef Unit lies east of Milltail Road and north of Link Road and includes Gadwall, Bobcat, Creef, Sprigtail, and Peterson Roads. Roads on the Upper Creef Unit are currently open to non-motorized access (foot traffic and bicycles). Please do not enter farm fields under cultivation.

The Lower Creef unit is located between Link, Bear, Borrow Pit, and Long Curve Roads.

Link Road and Bear Road between Link and Grouse Roads are currently closed to all public entry. The farm fields between Link, Bear, and Grouse Roads are closed to all public entry.

There is currently no stopping, standing, or parking on Bear Road and Grouse Road. While observing wildlife on these sections of road, do not stop, get out of your vehicle, or linger in one area.

These restrictions are necessary due to growing visitation pressure on black bears in this area. Some visitor behaviors change wildlife behaviors and lead to an unnatural comfort level of bears around people and vehicles. These behaviors include closely approaching animals, following animals, and remaining in one spot for long duration. When humans and vehicles remain in one place for long periods of time, animals are unable to use the area without human presence. Human presence can prevent animals from using important foraging habitat and can force animals into close contact with humans, increasing the risk of habituation.

Human habituation, or acclimating to the presence of people, reduces wildlife’s normal elusiveness and fear responses. Instead of avoiding areas of human activity and fleeing at the sight of people, the animals may choose to approach or remain closer than is natural. Acclimating to people may increase the likelihood of incidents that are detrimental to their survival, such as the vehicle strike mortality of red wolf 2323, the breeding male of the Milltail red wolf pack.

Please be mindful of your behaviors and actions at all times when on the refuge. On a National Wildlife Refuge, the welfare of plants and animals and their habitats come first. Follow these viewing guidelines:

• Use binoculars or a zoom lens to view wildlife from a distance—at least 100 yards or eight school buses.  
• If wildlife approaches you on foot or in a vehicle, move back to stay 100 yards away. It is important to keep wildlife from growing comfortable to humans or vehicles.
• If animals react to your presence, you are too close.
• Don’t linger in one spot for a long time--give wildlife time to use that area without human presence.
• It’s illegal to feed, touch, tease, or intentionally disturb wildlife.

Be careful when driving to protect wildlife as well. Be sure to always follow the speed limits and watch for wildlife that may dart into the road. When you want to stop to watch wildlife, pull your vehicle to the side of the road, do not block traffic, and move on once you've had a good look.

Red Wolf Recovery Program staff will be continually monitoring red wolf activity in the area of the closures throughout this time period. The most reliable source for current information about red wolves is the Red Wolf Recovery Program website.

Twiford Unit

The Twiford Unit is the area between Milltail and Buffalo City Roads and north of Sawyer Lake Road. The Twiford Unit is open to non-motorized access (foot traffic and bicycles). Sawyer Lake Road is open to motorized vehicles.

Laurel Bay Unit

The Laurel Bay Unit is the area west of Buffalo City Road and east of Pump Road. 

Hickory and Wynne Roads and the adjacent farm fields are closed to all public entry until further notice. River Rd and Laurel Bay Rd between River and Pump Roads are open to driving. Other roads in the Laurel Bay Unit are currently open to foot traffic and bicycles.

Bay and Cypress Roads

Bay and Cypress Roads are closed to all motorized vehicles due to weather and road conditions. These roads are natural-surface dirt and are easily damaged by vehicle traffic during wet conditions. Recent rainfall and vehicle traffic have caused significant damage to these roads.

Buffalo City Road

High water levels or heavy rainfall may lead to flooding at the end of Buffalo City Road. When flooding is present, please turn around before the end and do not drive in standing water.

Grassy Patch and Dry Ridge Roads

Dry Ridge Road has been re-opened to vehicle traffic. Grassy Patch Road has been re-opened to foot traffic and bicycles.

Chip Rd

Chip Road is currently closed to all public entry for management activities.