Beautiful Fort and unique American history. Take the tour! It is free, educational, and…read moreinteresting. It was only about 30 minutes and our tour guide was wonderful.

This is a super cool park. You've got the fort with all the cannons on one side and paths to the…read morebeach on the other. If you're looking for a quiet beach spot to hang for the day, this is it.

I love National Parks when they get Volunteers like Roy. He is funny, has loads of interesting…read morefacts and just pleasant to talk to. Bathrooms are in the parking lot, and very clean. The minke whale bones on display were amazing. Ask Roy about it, he'll tell you the story! Everyone here was friendly, which makes for a wonderful experience.

Great place to visit. They have a visitors center with a shuttle ferry that will take you over the…read morelighthouse and also you can stop.at Shackleford Island to see the wild horses. The ferry is 24.00 per person and you need to book you return also so secure a spot back on the ferry. The island is nice to stroll

Choose Your Review Adventure: Glenburnie Park Edition!…read more - If you are a Disc Golf Afficianado, proceed to paragraph A. - If you are an Amateur Herpetologist, proceed to paragraph B. - If you are a child, or perhaps an Adult Playground Connoisseur, proceed to paragraph C. - If you are a faithful Indiana Jones cosplayer, or a method actor pursuing the role of Dr. Jones in an upcoming Spielberg/Lucas blockbuster, proceed to paragraph D. --------------------------------------------------- A. This park contains one of the best disc golf courses in the New Bern area. Barring a few instances over the past year, this course has been well maintained and a blast to play. The first half has more open long range holes, and the second half gets deep into the woods with some really tricky shots. Most holes have two difficulty levels, as evidenced by the different starting pads and baskets. Overall, this course is challenging, and it's a beautiful hike to boot. B. This park has a lot of different species of frogs, toads and lizards. It's a ton of fun to just walk around and try to spot as many different little creatures as you can find. Being right on the bank of the Neuse means there are always interesting things to poke and the views are nothing to shake a stick at either. C. Glenburnie has a pretty awesome playground that my young nieces just love to visit. The equipment is very well maintained and is kept well stocked with plenty of children for your youngins to play with. As an adult, I find myself wanting to climb the giant rock they have at the playground every time I visit. D. Snakes!? Why'd it have to be snakes? During the spring time, I've noticed a water moccasin or two sunning themselves on the disc golf course between holes 5 and 10. As I said before, the grounds are well-kept at Glenburnie Park, so keep your eyes open and be aware of your surroundings and its not an issue. Overall, I love this park. If you find yourself in the New Bern area, check it out!

If you are a beginner hiker or just looking for an nice walk, here is an excellent start. We walked…read morearound for a good hour and saw some beautiful views.

I wouldn't call this a pond. It is an extensive body of water. It is a good sized lake. Some…read morewaterlillies have entered it. Otherwise it is a very beautiful example of the round or oval lakes that occurred in the area and throughout the southeast in the old days. Many of them were drained leaving this lake to be important as a source of knowledge of interest. The forest surrounding the Patsy Pond Nature Trail is a joy and a wonder to behold. A section of it, however, has been seized upon by a small hunting group and each year or two they burn it out to remove the unique flora and understory plants. They do that, they claim, to open the land to deer hunting because deer, they say, like the open areas. Because the area is also part of a managed forest (where loblolly pines are encouraged to grow and planted in long rows, this idea about deer and hunting doesn't make much traction. Shooting at animals while standing (more often sitting) on a trail drinking beer is not my idea of hunting. One year I was in the area and the North Carolina Department of the Environment had a 'controlled' burn. It torched a wide area. Upon reporting the flames, which reached more than 120 feet in the air at times and emitted acrid smoke, no authorities took notice and did not question what was happening. Disappointing to say the least - however this area butts up on the Croatan National Forest and this trail skirts at its deepest point. That area is wild and has been for a long time. I recommend the Patsy Pond Nature Trail as one of the entry points to that wilderness. Bring all protective clothing with you.

I was in a brief vacation with my family at Emerald Isle recently and decided to head up the island…read moreto take a sunset ferry trip over to Shackelford Banks. We boarded the "Shackelford Lady" piloted by Captain Jose'. The trip was basically 30 minutes out, an hour on the island, and then a "30" minute trip back. The island is simply beautiful all on its own, but Captain Jose' made it extra special. He was in constant contact with other boat captains relaying the location of dolphins and anything that would make the trip special. On the way back as the sun was setting, he would turn the boat so that everyone could take pictures. It was truly an amazing experience.

Beach for shelling or relaxing, or to check out the 130 wild horses that roam the island. Take a…read moreferry from Beaufort or be lucky enough to have your own boat. Depending on the company the final ferry should go from 8am and depart at around 5pm (every hour) but that's plenty of time to explore the island. A ride there and back will cost roughly $17 per adult. A warning, it gets extremely hot in July and August. There are no facilities on the island, so a ride back to the mainland is at the minimum 10 minutes or more. Do not overexert yourself in the heat, bring PLENTY OF FLUIDS especially if you are going to explore around looking at the horse in 90 degree weather and be on the island for hours. Bring food, bananas, Gatorade, water. The north side of the island will have calm water and tons of boats parked with people sunbathing. The south (ocean) side of the island will be almost empty and with shells everywhere. You can definitely cut through the island hiking through existing trails and dunes but make sure you are physically able to do so. Reminder there are no facilities or emergency services on the island, it's completely uninhabited so if you need any help whatsoever you are out of luck. BE SMART. If you really want to find shells I recommend going to the far northwest point of the island and walking around. That tip is a perfect combination of waves, shells, and beach area. Just make sure you watch about for the tide later in the day so your stuff doesn't get washed away.

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.

Thank you for taking us early. We were your first customers of 2022 and what an honor it was. I had…read morenever been on a jet ski before so this was the experience of a life time for me! Thank you so much for taking us early!!!!!

The team and equipment at Makin Waves is superior. They provided great recommendations and…read moresuggestions that helped our group have an excellent experience. We had one rider with very limited experience and they helped her so much and she felt so comfortable and safe. Don lead our Dolphin Watch tour. We saw several dolphins during our hour ride and even a large pod with several young calves. We fully recommend Makin Waves.

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!