NC - Fort Fisher State Recreation Area

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

After starting my morning by learning that North Carolina has a passport system and their is another cancellation station just near where my condo is located, we go to Fort Fisher SRA. As we pull in, summer is in full swing as the parking lot is near capacity and their as county school recreation groups in attendance (a common thing in North Carolina as the Lottery funds education.) Anyway, I park and proceed towards the beach to get a few photos. I photograph the necessary signage as I see fit and some of the picnic tables as they are under a unique canopy. 

There is a change and comfort facility way off the ground and their is a line outside. I walk up to it and their is a wooden walkway to the Ranger Station. There is no visitor center here like Carolina Beach, but there is a building and I enter it and there are vending machines, and yes, more comfort facilities. There are waysides on how the park came to fruition as it only one year younger than myself (you'll have to figure that out on your own.) 

Alas, there is some resemblance of a office and I enter to what I later realize is the wrong way. However, no worries, I quickly realize this and do not move forward. Just then, the ranger notices me in the doorway and asks if she can be of assistance. I stated that I need my passport stamped. She proceeds to reach into her desk drawer and provides the stamp and I am on my way. For note, I got dropped off at the State Historic Site (they do not have a passport system as of 2017) 1/2 mile down the road. It tried to visit the day prior, but it was a Monday and the site is closed on Mondays. I walked the 20-phase wayside trail, rested at the visitor shelter with a water and a soda and walked back to the condo just in time to go swimming with the rest of the team.

Park Synopsis

Alternate between nearly six miles of pristine beach and trails through salt marsh brimming with wildlife at Fort Fisher State Recreation Area, a park touching both the Atlantic Ocean and the Cape Fear River. Development on this protected shoreline is limited to a visitor center and related facilities and boardwalks that attract birders and photographers. Loggerhead sea turtles, piping plovers and other rare species nest along the sandy shore. The park is popular for surf fishing, and four-wheel-drive vehicles are allowed seasonally with required permits. On this tip of Pleasure Island, visitors will also find a state aquarium, Civil War-era historic site and a boating ramp and paddling launch nearby.

If You Go

Fort Fisher State Recreation Area is located in New Hanover County five miles south of Carolina Beach. From Wilmington, follow U.S. 421 through the towns of Carolina Beach and Kure Beach. Turn left on Loggerhead Road. The recreation area may also be reached from Brunswick County via the Southport-Fort Fisher ferry, which crosses the Cape Fear River. North Carolina State Parks are open every day, with the exception of Christmas Day. Park hours vary with the seasons.

Four-wheel drive beach access:

 Sept. 15 - March 14.....................24 hours a day

 March 15 - Sept. 14..... Closes 30 min. before park gates

Pedestrian beach access:................24 hours a day

Please visit the North Carolina State Park website or contact the park office for the most current information about seasonal hours, activities, alerts, camping fees, programs rules and weather.

Contact Information

1000 Loggerhead Road

Kure Beach, NC 28449

910-458-5798

fort.fisher@ncparks.gov

GPS: 33.9534, -77.929

Accessibility

Some picnic tables as well as the comfort, vending and hydration facilities at the Ranger Station are accessible. Furthermore, there is a accessible boardwalk over the dune to the beach