By the time you read this most of our senior interns will have left us, each taking a different path in their future. The good news for our regular staff is that two of them will be staying on for a bit to help us through the next few months. Of course nobody, other than our turtles, gets to walk out of our doors with just a wave of their flipper. When they were chosen for our program they were told that successful completion...
SEA TURTLE HOSPITAL NEWS It’s been a busy summer with patients of various sizes and species cycling through our hospital. Many of them have been incidental catches from coastal waters and depending on where, or how many hooks were involved they’ve been short-timers ready to go home after a few days of TLC and breakfast. When a small Kemp’s arrived from Oak Island with a hook in her mouth we thought,...
Tuesday, June 14, was homecoming, or more accurately, home-going for 10 rehabilitated sea turtles: one loggerhead, two Kemp’s, and seven greens. Nine of these critters were victims of cold stunning, Kemp’s “Magic Potion” being the exception. His decision to choose a quick snack on a baited hook landed him in our hospital for a month. This was our first public release for the year and sea turtles...
BURGAW – With the rising cost of gasoline, it’s time to explore our Pender County backyard for things to do and see. Recently we examined the free activities available. This week we are going to explore the more inexpensive activities that abound in Pender County. Let’s start with Topsail Beach. At the south end of Topsail Island is Serenity Point. It’s a great place to go shelling. The south...
Nesting turtles are coming ashore - how you can help The ladies are in the house – or actually on the beach. After a bit of a late start those turtle moms are finally here and our Topsail Turtle Project volunteers are out at dawn looking for signs of nests. As of this writing we have nineteen verified nests on the island. Topsail is pretty much loggerhead territory, but the past few years have seen a green...
By Tammy Proctor, Pender County Tourism Director This may show my age, but I remember my father grumbling when gasoline went above $1 per gallon. Dad didn’t grumble much, but our family station wagon was a guzzler. It’s my turn to complain. With gasoline inching closer to $5 per gallon in our region, I think twice about extra trips in the car. For summer fun and entertainment, you do not have to travel...
Friday, June 3 - It's Memorial Weekend and we know some of our visitors are coming in early. While some visitors will start thinking about packing the car, others are unpacking for a long weekend or perhaps a week's stay. Either way, we want you to feel welcome. We want you to live like a local and enjoy Island Time - a time zone where you are not hurried or rushed. Whether it's your last night at the beach...
We’ve got the pot. You pick the spot. That’s the dinner bell ringing from Topsail Steamer in Surf City. With six locations and shipping nationwide, Topsail Steamer was once upon a time Topsail Island’s best-kept secret. The first location opened in Surf City in March 2017. The freshness of its food and the manner in which it is delivered has set Topsail Steamer apart. They clean, chop, and prep...
We talk to our turtles all the time, and they generally respond to the sound of our voices. In all honesty, they’re probably only paying attention to us because they think we’re there to deliver a meal. But what can turtles really hear, especially underwater where they do most of their hearing? Since last year some of our patients have been participating in non-invasive research to find answers to that...
May on Topsail has always been a busy sea turtle month. Nesting season officially began on the first, so those turtle mamas are just offshore getting ready to deliver the first clutches of babies. But it’s not just the mamas that enjoy our Carolina coast. Loggerheads, greens, Kemp’s, and leatherbacks of all sizes are fairly common to our waters and some of them can’t resist the lure of a free lunch at...
Topsail Pie Company opened today with a celebratory ribbon cutting with the Greater Topsail Area Chamber of Commerce, the Town of Surf City, and Pender County Tourism. The Topsail Pie Company, a bakery offering pies, brownies, cookies, and more. The bakery is located at 328 N. Topsail Dr. in Surf City. For hours and more check out their Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/TopsailPieCompany
Topsail Island's newest luxury hotel, Saltwater Suites, will open its doors this Memorial Day weekend, on May 27. "We are extremely proud of what our team has accomplished over the past 15 months of construction," said Richard Stroupe, developer of Saltwater Suites. "The Topsail Island community has been nothing but supportive. We're grateful for the opportunity to introduce Saltwater Suites...
Saturday, May 21 — Welcome to Topsail Island, Pender County, NC! Unpack the car and get settled into your home away from home. We’ve got a week’s worth of ideas for you to explore! The sea turtle hospital is open. Go online and book a visit to the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center. Whatever you do, don't leave without a visit to the largest sea turtle hospital on the Eastern...
A full kitchen, a large screen television, a comfy bed, and an ocean view – it sounds like the perfect vacation accommodation, right? Saltwater Suites is set to open by Memorial Weekend and they are ready to offer the perfect vacation accommodation. Each of Saltwater Suites’ 24 units features an ocean view. Each suite offers a king-size bed or two queen beds in approximately 680-sq. ft. of modern, open...
NEW PROGRAM! You asked and we are delivering!! Calling all future marine biologists, conservationists, and ocean stewards of all ages! Are you ready for a fun and engaging family adventure? Funky Fins is all about exploration and discovery, using the coastline of Topsail Island as our classroom. Roll up your sleeves and get ready to dive into our 90-minute family-friendly programs with your parents, grandparents,...
Saturday, May 7 — Welcome to Topsail Island, Pender County, NC! Unpack the car and get settled into your home away from home. We’ve got a week’s worth of ideas for you to explore! On your way to the beach, you may want to take a little side trip to Burgaw forr the Annual Pender SpringFest. Located on the Courthouse Square, the festival features locally made items by Pender County vendors. SpringFest...
Good food, drink, and good service is found at Margaritas Mexican Grill and Cantina Just days before Bernardo Garcia was about to sign a contract to open a new restaurant in Virginia, he and his family vacationed on Topsail Island. While shopping in Treasure Coast Square on North New River Drive, Garcia saw a vacant storefront. “I immediately envisioned a restaurant in that location,” recalled Garcia. He...
Funky Fins, an eco-education for curious minds, is the dream child of Chris Lener. She’s no stranger to conservation or education. “I taught science in grades K-12 for 25 years,” Lener said. “I love working with children. I love seeing their delight at discovery.” Lener said she is looking forward to making new discoveries with visitors and residents in the Greater Topsail Island area...
Spring is officially here, and it’s something even sea turtles seem to recognize. In a few short weeks nesting-season officially begins and there have already been sightings of loggerheads heading toward our coastal beaches. But along with all the “coming”, we have a very important “going.” Canal, a juvenile green who has been with us for almost seven years is relocating a few hours away...
Last month, Pender County Tourism teamed up with the state’s tourism office, Visit NC, to promote the area to travel writers, travel agents, and potential travelers in New York City. With a display booth at the Jacob Javits Convention Center, we met thousands of people with thousands of questions. One of the most asked questions regarded hiking trails. “Do you have hiking trails?” “Do...
Two patients at the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center, greens Belle and Rosemary, had moved into a duplex tank and were getting along “swimmingly” as neighbors. And that we also suspected that Belle’s little turtle brain was cooking up some plan to supplement her daily ration of veggies. You have to understand that Belle is on the high end of the body condition scale where 1 is...
Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) are announcing the distribution of the first wave of awards – a total of more than $1.6 million – under the Endangered Species COVID-19 Relief program, funded by the American Rescue Plan. The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center was one of 21 selected sites to receive funds for expenses such as food,...
Being good stewards of our natural resources Pender County Tourism joined forces with the Topsail Island Shoreline Protection Commission and the Greater Topsail Area Chamber of Commerce to discuss a trashy problem – plastics, glass, trash, and marine debris on our beaches, in our waterways, and on our beaches. We have a problem, and you can help us. We are asking visitors and locals alike to think twice...
Being good stewards of our natural resources Pender County Tourism joined forces with the Topsail Island Shoreline Protection Commission and the Greater Topsail Area Chamber of Commerce to discuss a trashy problem – plastics, glass, trash, and marine debris on our beaches, in our waterways, and on our beaches. We have a problem, and you can help us. We are asking visitors and locals alike to think twice...
Sea Turtle Hospital News After only a few short months in rehab our first group of cold-stuns, aka the “Twelve Days of Christmas Plus One” have been reduced to the “Five Days of Christmas.” Eight little Kemp’s were settled securely into tubs and hit the road for the US Coast Guard Station at Fort Macon where they had tickets for a ride to turtle-comfy waters. Joining them on the trip...
