Bald Head Island Beach
Bald Head Island, NC
There are no cars on Bald Head Island, only golf carts and bikes, and that alone filters out most of the crowd before you even hit the sand. Old Baldy, the state's oldest surviving lighthouse, watches over the beach from a stand of maritime forest that feels older than it probably is.
No cars anywhere on the island filters out most of the crowd before you even reach the sand, though that also means a ferry and a golf cart rental just to get around.
How we score beachesYou'll take a passenger ferry from Southport and rent a golf cart once you arrive, since no personal cars are allowed on the island.
Dogs can be off-leash under direct supervision most of the year, but must be leashed (10 feet max) from sunset to sunrise during turtle season, May 1 through November 15.
Cape Fear's stretch of coast runs warm and humid through summer, with water in the high 70s by August, and sits squarely in the June through November hurricane season. Mild winters mean the island stays walkable, if chilly, nearly year round.
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