Great playground park with tons of piers & boat ramps. Opens until midnight for fishing per my…read morebrother-in-law. The kiddos loved playing there & seeing all the boats go by. Had view of the bridge crossing over to the mainland. Very nice & safe. Plenty of parking available for the park use, street parking is pay to park option as well if it gets busy

A beautiful waterside park with a fun playground for children, fishing decks, picnic kiosks, and…read morewooden deck walking paths. There is also a separate kayak drop off parking area and kayak drop in area. Can't beat the view or the ocean breeze at this marvelous park on Topsail Island with is also a short walk to Surf City Beach. Park in the free land side lot adjacent to the traffic circle and walk over the high rise bridge to get to the park for an exhilarating experience and light exercise. This is an exceedingly safe park that is rarely packed but always has families at the playground and people fishing from the decks. Birdwatchers will love this park. There is free parking for boaters with a load in ramp that has a bathroom close by. There are several great restaurants and sweets shops within walking distance of this park as well as nearby beach supply and souvenirs shops. Please do not use this park solely for beach parking.

A nice park that serves its community and visitors well…read more The park is a decent size and offers a lot of tranquility and is a great getaway when civilization starts pushing your peace from all sides. I recommend here.

Again I can say this park is for all humans and beautiful animals. But as of yesterday like I…read morepredicted there was animal attack I don't know the full story yet, but they have a training dog school ppl with big dogs and the trainers are not logical trainers. Dogs need there space not to be in the middle of an active field with small dogs, ppl, children. That's a bad connection. The trainers bring dogs that have no control of their senses to a family park in an open space. Park department should not allow this. My dad trained German shepherd , Doberman and he trained them indoor until they were well trained and obedience. If they continue to get complains the park department may listen. I don't know why they are not investigating yet. I would hate to have find another park for my pup because of safety.

The landscape was beautiful and the trails were clearly marked. I was there by myself and felt very…read moresafe. If you're ever looking for a nice quiet place to go for a nature hike, this is your spot.

This lovey trail is part of Croatan National Forest. It's free, and there's a small parking lot…read morewith a restroom at the trailhead. I visited on a warm weekday afternoon between Christmas and New Years and saw only a few other folks out on the trail. There's a big loop that's about 1.5 miles, or you could do a shorter loop. The trail is mostly shaded and quite flat, making it an easy stroll and accessible for kids (including strollers) and people who need low intensity hikes; there are many benches along the way. Many parts are wooden bridges out over the marshland; at the right time of day you can see fiddler crabs in the water. (If it's recently rained, don't go at high tide; parts of the trail may be wet or muddy!) You'll find a really nice variety of trees and micro climates- the grasses and small trees in the marsh land are quite different from the hardwood forests and pines just a few feet further inland. This trail would be especially lovely at sunrise or sunset. Definitely worth a visit if you're in the Emerald Isle/Swansboro area!

We came here to check out the sunset. Close to our Airbnb. Plenty of parking and wooded trails…read more Nice frisbee golf area. We walked the wheelchair accessible wooden walkway that went to the dock. Clean restrooms by the trail entrance.

Hidden gem! Kind of small, trails aren't marked, but the sound views are lovely. It has disc golf…read moreas well as nature trails.

Review as of March 2019 (post hurricane Florence)…read more There was substantial damage to the entire Island from Hurricane Florence. While the residents have done an amazing job cleaning up and repairing, there are still things that may adversely affect a vacation to the island. I had a blast spending a week on the island in March. The residents were welcoming and friendly. The hurricane had wiped out almost all of the private walkways to the beach, and the majority of the public accesses. When I was there about half of the public accesses were restored; however, most of the private accesses remain unusable. The beach was also severely eroded (I'd guess 7-10' of beach). During high tide, there isn't a lot of space to walk in the beach because the water comes up to the dunes. (Most of the dunes in North Topsail were completely destroyed). There is a lot of construction going on, but the local noise ordinances are enforced, so by 10pm it's super quiet. The workers are polite and try not to impede anyone. Just know that there are more stairs and structures that need repaired than there are contractors to do the work. There is no way Topsail will be completely restored by peak season this year (2019). We were told it'll take 5-7 years for the dunes to be reestablished, assuming no bad hurricanes hit again. So I LOVE Topsail. I've been vacationing there 1-2 times a year for the past 9 years. Don't let the restoration keep you from visiting, but know that there may be some concessions that need to be made.

Visiting from New York and was in search of a local beach near Jacksonville. My online research…read morelead me to North Top Sail just under 30 minutes from Jacksonville. I love that we were able to pull up and hop out right on the beach. No long walk distances from Parking like at Jones Beach and Long Beach in New York. This beach was the perfect getaway during the 90 degree evening. This was my first visit to a beach in North Carolina since my mother relocated here from South Carolina. This beach was very clean and comfortable. Very scenic with beautiful beach homes on the sand and lovely green landscape. I also love that it wasn't a long distance drive to paradise. I can imagine during the day the parking lot can fill up quickly due to there being no real lot rather just spaces to park.

We did the 2.25-mile trail, which was an easy and relaxing walk. The views were beautiful, and I…read moreloved that the trail had a nice mix of peaceful wooded areas and paths along the lake. It was a great place to get some fresh air, enjoy nature, and take a break from the usual routine. Definitely a nice trail for a leisurely walk, and we'd love to come back!

This place is so beautiful and offers kayaking,canoeing, and paddle boarding. They have a swim area…read morefor families in the summer time open too. Nice campgrounds and friendly people! We love going there

Visit d this location during a vacation in Wilmington. Not only does it have a park for kids to…read moreenjoy, the location has pickleball courts, kayaks, paddle boats and a walking trail that circles the beautiful lake. We hoped to see gators but missed them all. Tons of turtles though. The walking trail is 5 miles around the lake and easy with shaded spots, and various lookout locations with benches to rest or simple zen out. I wish I lived closer so I could walk this look weekly!

This is such a nice park. Wilmington has done a nice job up keeping this park. I love the 5 mile…read morewalk around Greenfield Lake, especially during azalea season. My kids enjoy the skate park and playgrounds. The trials are well kept. Lock your car and keep items out of view. This park is known for vagrants and we did see one person approach our car and try the doors. They scurried away quickly when they noticed we saw them. This could be because we have out of state plates but locals say this park is known for crime.

The park is primarily a barrier island with ferry service, though there are some onshore trails…read morethrough the forest and ample picnic space while you're waiting for the boat. The ferry is reasonably cheap and does not take advance reservations. They limit capacity on the way over, but obviously this does create a situation where passengers can build up by the end of the day, to which their solution appears to be to have the last scheduled ferry service double up if need be (they had at least two boats it seemed). The island has ample uninterrupted beach, which had plenty of sea life, including a sand dollar which I would more typically see farther south. There was a modest paved walk through the island to get to the beach, passing primitive campgrounds and some bathroom facilities on stilts. During my visit, they emphasized that the water available on the island was not drinkable; apparently they had to repair facilities after a hurricane and the intent was to produce drinkable running water, but there was still some unsolved technical issue. They cautioned us in advance to bring plenty of water, and there were working fountains on the mainland. Every island is different, and in this region, most of them are settled. The next really wild one heading north is Shackleford I think, and heading south would be Masonboro (which I haven't found practical to get to). The atmosphere here is worth preserving.

Really nice park. Nice trails. Well maintained infrastructure. Top notch campground with very…read morenice bathrooms. This is a good place to check out.

This is a gorgeous park to walk dogs, ride bikes or jog. There is a nice paved path that goes…read morearound the lake and a reading tour with pages from kids books that you can stop and read. There's also a picnic shelter and a nature trail that is up off the lake, more wooded. Dogs are supposed to be leashed but have found that people use the nature trail and take dogs off leash up there, even though they're not supposed to. The lake trail does go close to the water's edge at several points and the dogs can take a quick dip - but no swimming for humans! There's also a boat launch and looks like a great place to go kayaking.

I can't believe I've never been to this park before! It was such a great spot for a walk around the…read morebeautiful lake and to play! The main path (1.3 miles) is paved with additional dirt trails on the sides. The playground is absolutely amazing and my kid loved it. The park was clean and there were lots of people out. The bathrooms were decent and there was picnic tables under shelter. Parking was filling up but it was a sunny day in February so I think people were out enjoying it. They have kayak launches that I'd love to come back to try!

Phillips Park is more than a neighborhood park as it is a bit larger than usual. It stands at a…read morebend in the New River and offers some waterside view which is quite nice. Of course, you need to be on the lookout for wildlife. The park includes a medium sized picnic shelter that has charcoal grills. Nearby is playground equipment, an outdoor basketball court, and a multipurpose field. The park is accessed through the parking lot for what looks like a liquor store. There is plenty of parking, some of which is in the shade. [Review 15516 overall, 1020 of 2021, number 3058 in North Carolina.]

Decided to stop and sit to eat my lunch as it's a beautiful day out and was happy to see no trash…read morepicnic area clean kids playing on equipment having a great time nice open field for them to run around as well.