Anne (andasamo) asked me where Topsail Island is, so here's the answer! It’s on the coast of North Carolina, about two and a half hours from where I live, so it’s a quick and easy trip to go down there for a long weekend like I did last week.
I love the beach. When I was a kid, that was always the destination for our family vacations – we would spend a week or two at either a North or South Carolina beach every summer.
North Carolina has a lot of nice beaches but Topsail is my favorite because it reminds me the most of how the beach was when I was young. It’s not over-developed and there are no ugly high-rise hotels, it’s mainly just cottages. And there’s not much to do except commune with the ocean, swim, walk, fish, or just lay around and read, so it’s very relaxing and renewing. I love the salty smell of the beach and the sound of the waves crashing, and I love to go for long walks and look for seashells. Fall is a perfect time to go because it’s still plenty warm, but vacation season is over so there aren’t a lot of people there.
Topsail is a barrier island about 26 miles long, right off the NC coast. You get to it by crossing a “working antique” swing bridge that turns sideways every hour to let boats pass through. There are three beaches on the island: Topsail Beach, Surf City, and North Topsail. My friends and I stayed in a little house in Surf City, which is right in the middle of the island. Topsail is a sea turtle sanctuary but this isn’t the season so we didn’t see any, and the turtle hospital was closed for the winter. I ate shrimp and oysters and took a lot of photos while I was there. But mainly I just looked at the ocean. It was a wonderful weekend!
Surf City
You can see this fishing pier from the restaurant where we ate on Saturday night. There were a lot of people out there fishing!
Comments (11)
Annie, that looks just lovely. And so close for a weekend getaway!
The antique bridge intrigues....
Posted by sandrac | September 30, 2008 2:02 PM
Posted on September 30, 2008 14:02
This is my second son's ideal place to vacation. He goes every summer and invites us to come down one day... I like Topsail, but my favorite is the outerbanks..
Posted by ann | September 30, 2008 5:22 PM
Posted on September 30, 2008 17:22
Sandra, welcome home!
Ann, I like the Outer Banks too except for the fact that it takes twice as long to get there! So I pretty much stick to the southern NC beaches. Topsail is my ideal beach too.
Posted by Annie | September 30, 2008 5:42 PM
Posted on September 30, 2008 17:42
I am very envious. :)
Posted by Leslie | September 30, 2008 7:04 PM
Posted on September 30, 2008 19:04
The under-developed beaches are the best kind of beaches. It looks so peaceful there. I really enjoyed seeing your photos.
Posted by girasoli | September 30, 2008 10:27 PM
Posted on September 30, 2008 22:27
Hi Annie, Topsail Island sounds and looks like a really relaxing getaway beach destination. The sunsets are so colorful and beautiful. I also enjoyed the link you posted and reading about pepper and all the work that the sanctuary does to protect the sea turtles.
Thanks for sharing.
Posted by Kathy (Trekcapri) | October 1, 2008 7:54 AM
Posted on October 1, 2008 07:54
Beautiful! Sounds like you had a perfect weekend at the beach. I’m so envious. The closest beach I have is either San Diego or Puerto Peñasco, Mexico. I don’t like feeling landlocked.
Posted by María I. | October 1, 2008 3:38 PM
Posted on October 1, 2008 15:38
Hey Annie, thanks for the tour!! Topsail sounds heavenly, I love ocean beaches.
Posted by Anne | October 2, 2008 12:19 AM
Posted on October 2, 2008 00:19
Hi! This is my first post to a blog but I had to comment. Three years ago I bought a beach house on Topsail Island. We are the last house on River Road before you get to the beach in North Topsail Beach. We love going there in every season, and are amazed at how the beach changes between trips - it's never the same! North Topsail Beach is mostly residential so we go to Surf City for shopping and eating. It's so peaceful and quiet at our beach house plus we have spectacular views of the ocean and the New River Inlet. It's a truly wonderful place to get away from it all! Thanks for your wonderful pictures.
Posted by Cheryl Titko | April 29, 2009 6:07 PM
Posted on April 29, 2009 18:07
Hi Cheryl, thank you so much for your comment! I've been to pretty much every North and South Carolina beach, and Topsail is by far my favorite. You are lucky to have a house there! I usually rent from a friend who has a house in Surf City - I can't wait to go back later this year.
Posted by Annie | April 29, 2009 6:23 PM
Posted on April 29, 2009 18:23
I look forward to looking at more of your work.
Posted by Yaeko Gerlock | December 19, 2010 12:45 AM
Posted on December 19, 2010 00:45