Topsail Island, NC

Topsail Island: Bridging Fun and Relaxation

Topsail Island is a 26-mile-long barrier island approximately 30 minutes north of Wilmington and almost exactly between Jacksonville and Wilmington. The island consists of three towns, North Topsail Beach, Surf City and Topsail Beach. There are two ways to get to the island, and both involve crossing bridges. Both the swing bridge in Surf City and the high-rise bridge in Sneads Ferry allow in and out access to North Topsail Beach.

Many have walked the beaches of Topsail Island, including Indians and explorers in the 1500s; pirates; and soldiers in the Civil War, World War II and Operation Bumblebee (an ongoing initiative to tackle burglary).

The environment is a priority to locals, who are involved in the Topsail Turtle Project and Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center, both of which are run solely by volunteers who locate and monitor loggerhead turtle nests until the young turtles are hatched and make their way to the sea. Volunteers also maintain the center and care for sick and injured sea turtles until they have been rehabilitated and returned to the ocean. Volunteers run the Turtle Talks, a place for visitors to learn about the turtles and how to help protect them. A visit to Topsail Island would not be complete without a stop at the Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center.

Traffic is minimal on the island, and there's only a single main road running parallel to the ocean along the length of this narrow island, with side streets running from the ocean to the sound or Intra-Coastal Waterway. The residents are mostly retirees, but during the in-season, Topsail accommodates as many as 35,000 people.

North Topsail Beach is a residential community offering oceanfront resort condominium complexes and rental cottages. Because there are few places to eat, most visitors (and locals) travel to Surf City and Sneads Ferry for shopping and dining out.

Surf City is located in the center of Topsail Island and features many restaurants and retail stores. In order to get to Topsail Beach, you must travel through Surf City-it's a hidden, peaceful gem dotted with year-round homes, rental cottages, motels and condominiums sprinkled around a small downtown shopping area.

Both Sneads Ferry and Holly Ridge, located on the mainland, provide numerous entertainment, dining and shopping options.

A small village, Sneads Ferry's main source of income was once derived solely from shrimping and fishing. Today, however, continued development has brought upscale housing and shopping centers along the main highways, as well as the only waterslide park in the area.

Holly Ridge offers residents and visitors alike a quiet place to enjoy the friendly services of locally-owned restaurants, retail stores and service businesses.

Take a tour of Topsail Island on Beach Buggy of Topsail Island's 15-passenger shuttle bus, the perfect way to see the island. Fully licensed and insured, Beach Buggy of Topsail Island also provides shuttle service to all North Carolina airports.

The Buccaneer on Topsail Island offers sightseeing, sunset and party cruises. Sightseeing cruises provide the opportunity to see dolphins, osprey and other wildlife as you cruise by Blackbeard's old hideout. Sunset cruises offer time to relax and view Topsail's spectacular sunsets. Party cruises--featuring live bands, DJs and local entertainment-set out on a scheduled basis with theme nights, including a Southern Style BBQ cruise, Shrimp cruise, Jimmy Buffet cruise and more.

On the Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base Tour, visitors are transported from pre-Colonial America to the edge of technology on the base that serves the largest single concentration of Marines anywhere in the world. A printed tour guide with map, directions and a complete narrative of the 25 points of interest can be picked up at the Main Gate base entrance. The tour is well-marked by large white signs and can start at any specific point of interest. Depending on how much you choose to visit, a tour can range from one or two hours to a half or full day.

Cruise Topsail Sound and the Intra-Coastal Waterway in Topsail Island's tour boat, Dorothy. With seating for 28 people, the craft offers regularly scheduled daytime and sunset cruises, allowing you a fantastic opportunity to watch dolphins frolicking, osprey's nesting and many other joys of nature. Private charters are available.

The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center is open on a limited basis for the public to view and learn about this program aimed at protecting the endangered species. The center, open during the summer months, is not open to the public at other times of the year and may close in the summer without notice for emergencies. Visitors to the center can expect to see large loggerhead turtles, green sea turtles or the rare Kemp's Ridley. Visitors can also learn the history and problems each has endured, plus more about their treatment and predicted release.

During turtle nesting season, the months from July to October, vacationers walking on the beach may find evidence of turtles' nests with eggs that are ready to hatch. Turtle project volunteers prepare the nesting area and beach for the emerging turtles by creating runways and clearing the area of obstacles. At night, volunteers sit by these nests and wait for the actual hatching. When visitors and/or residents come upon a roped-off nest that has been prepared with runways, they are welcome to join volunteers in this awe-inspiring experience.

Art the Missiles and More Museum, take a tour through the history of the Topsail Island area. It begins with the early settlers and takes you through Blackbeard the Pirate to the time of World War II, when Topsail Island became part of the training ground for Camp Davis. It continues with artifacts from Operation Bumblebee, part of the nation's early space program, and the invention of the ramjet engines that were assembled here on the island and used to propel the Talos and Terrier rockets. Other displays include a history of each local town and the Ocean City Beach area. Video footage of Operation Bumblebee and World War II activities are shown as part of the museum tour.

At the Ocean Breeze Family Fun Center in Sneads Ferry, you can ride on the go-cart tracks and twin waterslides, or play a game on the 18-hole miniature golf course. There are also amusements rides, a snack bar and arcade games.

The Patio Playground features miniature golf as well as its Gyrogym, where participants whirl in a 360-degree environment of multiple steel hoops, yielding the sensation of weightlessness. An arcade complete with pool tables rounds out this fun center. Bicycle and beach item rentals are also offered through The Patio Playground.

To get to Topsail Island, take U.S. 17 North through Hampstead; turn right (east) on N.C. 210, which merges with N.C. 50; follow 50-210 to the bridge (it opens on the hour); then take N.C. 50 to Topsail Beach.

From Interstate 40, take Exit 408; take N.C. 210 east through Hampstead to the island. Or exit 398, then take N.C. 53 east to N.C. 50 south through Holly Ridge to Topsail Island.

Wilmington International Airport (formerly New Hanover International Airport) is the prime entry point for most people flying into the greater Wilmington area. Myrtle Beach International Airport in South Carolina is nearly the same distance from Shallotte as the Wilmington airport (about 40 miles), so visitors traveling by air to or from the Calabash and South Brunswick Islands areas might do well to check flight availability via Myrtle Beach. Those traveling to or from Oak Island, Southport, Pleasure Island or points north will find Wilmington International Airport easier to use. Small aircraft destined for Brunswick County can use Brunswick County Airport, just outside of Southport