The North End – Freeman Park

I’ve been coming. To Freeman Park since I was 2! ALWAYS a fun time to be had here! Friendly people and tasty flounder to catch!
And you can get pizza delivered out there!

I went with my dog on October 18^th because that’s a time when dogs can be off leash. It was her first time at the beach and she had A BLAST! Many dogs and the people are all aware it’s a dog friendly beach.
The only drawback was that there were a lot of people fishing right in the beach and I didn’t want my dog getting too close to their lines. There’s a pier right at the start of the beach, why don’t ya’ll just go up there?
Other than the fisherman, we had a great few hours running around!

We came here Saturday to camp out overnight. This place is so awesome and such a fun time. We drove our Durango right up along the beach and unloaded our stuff. Fortunately, we made some friends and spent the day playing corn hole, giant beer pong, and a frisbee game! It costs $ 20 to drive on the beach for the day/​night (though, if you dont have 4×4, you can pay $ 10 and park at the beach entrance and walk). We ended up sleeping in our Durango and, with the windows rolled down, it was pretty nice. Here are a few tips:
–Seems like the cops were on the lookout for 2 things: 1. People making fires directly in the sand (aka without a pit). We watched a couple get a ticket for this. 2. Glass bottles.
–Pizza places, Brew-​Threw, and icecream/​small food/​ice drive up and down the beach if you need to buy anything. Most have a minimum for card, so I’d bring cash.
–Overnight camping starts at post 6 and continues basically till the end of the cove. This is fairly well marked.
–There are porta-​potties every so often.
–We got there around 11 on Saturday and found a spot after driving for a bit. However, it was getting crowded by then. So, plan to arrive early-​ish.
–If you go during the summer, dont expect to have a ton of room. People will park their vehicles in the tiniest of spaces. So set your chairs and stuff up and just be prepared to embrace the neighbors!
Awesome place to visit and we cant wait to return!

I’ve been here a number of times, but only camped for an extended period once. We stayed for 5 nights last September. We had a really great time and there is nothing like unzipping your tent to gaze out to a beautiful sunrise over the Atlantic, with the waves gently breaking 20 feet away. 5 stars for this place, except for the crowds which brings it down to 4.
Now for the bullet point review/​helpful tips:
Tips:
–Avoid weekends. They are jam packed, even through the end of September. Weekdays are not bad, and late in the season (we were there the last week in September and had the beach almost to ourselves during the week).
–Avoid ECU students. I lived in Wilmington and had the misfortune to meet at lot of the ECU crowd. Not sure what they put in the water there, but these kids are terrible.
–When ECU students arrive, hide your coolers and valuables.
–Arrive Friday morning to lock down a good spot if you are going to be there over the weekend.
–HAVE ALL WHEEL DRIVE. Dont be the jackass that gets stuck. You don’t need a Jeep, my AWD Volkwagen Tiguan had no issues.
–Bring tie down anchors that screw into the sand. Don’t expect your little plastic tent stakes to work in the sand. Go to Amazon and seach «Auger anchors» and you’ll see what I’m talking about. The 15″ variety will work.
–Be aware of the tide. Don’t set up camp or park below high tide. You will regret it!
–If you come during the busy season (summer), there is a «Booze-​Thru» business that drives through and you can buy alcohol, which I thought was really funny and cool. You can also call them if you want to order something. They are located in Carolina Beach (the town).
–Don’t mess around with Carolina Beach Police. They take themselves pretty seriously.
–Don’t put a tarp under your tent. If this seems obvious, sorry, but it wasn’t to me on my first time putting a tent on the beach. The rain will fall through the sand, and will never pool up or run into your tent. A tarp will stop that from happening and the water WILL pool up on the tarp.
–As always, check Unilocal for the best local places to eat. I had some amazing seafood in the area.
–Drive 30 minutes south to Fort Fisher and check out the aquarium which is very cool.

We have been visiting Freeman’s Park to do some camping on the beach since we got a Jeep and I just love it! The beach is clean and the people are friendly. The city installed a boardwalk at the entrance recently to hopefully ease the traffic. There are porta-​potties located at a minimum of three locations that I have seen. There are also trash receptacles on the beach. You must use a fire pit if burning. A pass to get on beach is $ 20 a day or $ 100 for the annual pass.

We’ve been driving on this beach for years to surf and enjoy a great day at the beach. It’s even better now that they have started a leash law. They have hiked up the cost of the year round and daily drive on rates. I believe it has cut down on the amount of people on the beach, which to me is a good thing.