This is a great place to spend the day with family or friends. They have kayaks and boats to rent…read morefor a few hours or the whole day. There are plenty of fishing space if you dont want to go out in the water. There are bbq grills and brick benches under an overhang that are free to use. So you can bring the family and grill food while they play or fish. If you dont have poles you can also rent them here with tackle equiment.

I can't believe I've never been to this park before! It was such a great spot for a walk around the…read morebeautiful lake and to play! The main path (1.3 miles) is paved with additional dirt trails on the sides. The playground is absolutely amazing and my kid loved it. The park was clean and there were lots of people out. The bathrooms were decent and there was picnic tables under shelter. Parking was filling up but it was a sunny day in February so I think people were out enjoying it. They have kayak launches that I'd love to come back to try!

Great.little park to take a trail around and hike. Nice for canoeing or fishing (catch and release…read moreonly) Dogs need to be leashed , and cannot go near park

Highly recommend Fishbones Inshore Fishing Charters and Captain Junior Sinclair. Went fishing July…read more20, 2016 with my wife. Even though a front went through the night before and the bite was a little slow, Captain Sinclair worked extremely hard to put us on the fish. I caught a 31 inch monster red drum. I also caught a 21 inch keeper and my wife a 24 inch keeper. We also caught of number of smaller ones. A bonus is the beautiful scenery. We saw an alligator and a nesting pair of osprey.

Great charter captain, and great with the kids. It was the highlight of our camping trip.read more

This place is terrible on all fronts. There is no service, a woman sits you, you get your food…read morebrought to you but it's self service for drinks ( burnt old coffee btw ) and the whole place is old and dirty. The old woman that worked the front was deeply unpleasant as well, short snippy, like we were inconveniencing her. The plus was that it did not take long to get our food, but maybe it should have because it was absolutely disgusting and nearly inedible. It cost 60$ for self serve drinks and food (barely ) served on paper plates. Save your money.

The pier is attached to the back of the Seaview Restaurant on the main drag in North Topsail Beach…read more Parking is free, but limited as half of lot is for patrons of the restaurant only. Upon entering the pier shop, one is greeted by a gruff gentleman who has little time for those who do not immediately understand the plethora of rules. We had to deal with his condescending attitude again as we left the pier. When leaving, visitors are to go through a gate that leads to a path around the shop rather than back through the shop. The gate was stuck and could not be opened after numerous tries. We went back through the shop and had to listen to him tell us we had not tried hard enough. The 5th star is withheld due to this gentleman's attitude with the public. The pier is wonderful. It is very well maintained and obviously popular among the local fishermen and fisherwomen. There were many stations to cut, filet and clean one's catch. A plethora of benches line the pier for seating. A ruler is present at the end of the pier to measure fish, and QR codes are posted to order lunch from the attached restaurant. A large observation tower sits at the end of the pier. The pier rules are posted in plain view and there is even a fire extinguisher should a need arise! We really enjoyed seeing what the fishermen and women were catching and all of them were very friendly and willing to share their knowledge. I would definitely recommend taking a walk on the pier when in the area.

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!

This place was popular but not what we were looking for. The pier was very crowded with people…read morefishing. I had to keep my head on a swivel to make sure no hooks were coming my way. The cost to park was 5$ for 40 minutes, max around $30 for the day. There was an ice cream shop but it had closed before we arrived. We like more relaxing places so we will not be back. If you are looking to pack a cooler and fish for the day, off the pier, then it might be for you!

I grew up fishing here and the local area (25 years) I have really really tried to give this pier a…read morechance with the constantly changing rules and management (four times I gave them) and this last one did it for me. I had two eyes break off an old rod, I kept it there with my stuff because I wanted to see what happened (pressure, wear, epoxy failure) and swapped reel to another one from my car. When I was leaving after watching the hoveround gang come and flex their AARP affiliation, I had SIX people come out (they have walkie talkies) and tell me I had too many rods and that though the one was beaten like a dead mule and visibly not usable (missing the top of the darn rod tbh) that I shouldn't do it there again... because I was idk huckleberry finning for crawdads or something... one or two saying it okay; but six. Jesus, I know this is the first time y'all have had power over other people and such but damn... I might be a bit forgetful at my age now but not that quick. If I go back ya'll can hold my rods and bait em for me to make sure I don't upset any rules (as kids are smoking dope and drunk as hell on the pier)....

We live only 2 miles from Goose Creek State Park and we absolutely love the park.. perfect place…read morefor us to ride our bicycles & take our little Chihuahua ( always on her leash)& walking the numerous trails..& the picnic areas are well maintained as are restrooms.. though we haven't utilized the campground area they definitely appear awesome, the cabins are very nice( our grandchildren have stayed there several times.,,

**RV SITE REVIEW** A…read morecouple weeks back me and my dad camped for one night at Goose Creek State Park, and we stayed at RV site #20. This RV site was fantastic. All of the sites were flat (which is what you want), and offered plenty of privacy (The sites were very spacious from one another). All RV sites consist of 30 and 50 amp hookups, as well as a connection to fresh water, and a sewage pipe. The bath house was new and clean. It was modern on the inside, offered hot water (even in 20 degrees), and was well taken care of. The camp host does a great job at taking care of this site. I would highly recommend that you stay/visit Goose Creek when you can. It is a great hidden spot that offers a wide array of trails and activities.