Island Time Vacation by Darlene

A restful vacation is on beach time

When you go on a vacation at the beach, our favorite beach is Topsail Beach on Topsail Island. (Pronounced "Topsul" by the locals). Be prepared to relax and do nothing. Doing nothing is quite good for your health. We have found it to be a great stress buster.

When we arrive at our Answer to Prayer beach rental, it is right on a beach, so be prepared to take your watch off, put your to do list away and sit in your Adirondack chair and do nothing but listen to the ocean waves lap the shore.

Our first year, one of our guests put a “Beach Etiquette” list together and we read it every September when we are there and laugh as we put our cell phones away and take off our watches for the week.

BEACH ETIQUITTE

1. TAKE OFF YOUR WATCH – It is island time! If anyone asks for the time, proper responses include “daytime”, “almost dinnertime”, ‘time to pray”, "time for another swim”, “night time”, or "time for a drink”, All of these answers can be given confidently without the aid of timekeeping devices.

2. LEAVE ALL SAND OUTDOORS – if you fail to do this it will follow you around and chafe you in the darndest places when you least expect it.

3. NEVER SHAKE OUT A BEACH BLANKET IN AN INHABITED AREA – (THIS IS A COROLLARY OF #2) the sand will come back to get you or someone else.

4. THOU SHALT REGRET IT IF THOU FEEDEST THE SEA GULLS - They're beautiful, but they tend to thank you by leaving "white stuff" all over your deck, chairs, beach towel, and so forth.

5. THE OCEAN NEVER SLEEPS – it is cool and refreshing and can be enjoyed at any hour of the day (please refer back to #1 for hours of the day).

6. ALWAYS SWIM WITH A BUDDY - preferably with the name “Bob”.

7. KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE WAVES WHEN SWIMMING – No two waves are alike and some are downright sneaky.

8. Almost anything you collect from the beach (except well washed shells) will smell just terrible after 2 days, especially if you pack it in a suitcase. Spread it back around the beach so someone else can collect it the next week.

9. Peanut butter and jellyfish sandwiches are NOT approved eating.

10. Bodysurfing requires no equipment and is to be recommended. For technique, just watch the natives.

11. Use outdoor shower whenever possible and keep showers short to preserve hot water – exceptions can be made for group showering.

12. With regard to #11, NO PEEKING!

13. ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES may be consumed by those 21 years of age and older at anytime after the SUN IS "OVER THE YARDARM". Since no one can ever find yardarms on the island, this rule is subject to broad interpretation. IN THE PICTURE ABOVE, the crew is checking to see if the sun is above the yardarm!

14. The tide is always either coming or going in, usually when you least except it.

15. Finally, walk in love, have fun, and remember that God giveth us richly to enjoy, the ocean is one of them. Yippee let the good times roll!

Come to the beach and enjoy beach etiquette. Check out our website www.beach4rent.org

Surf City Repairs Dunes

Channel 6 reports on the efforts that Surf City is making in rebuilding its dunes. Dunes are a healthy and natural way to protect the island. Sometimes winter storms will wash out part of the dunes. The natural wave action slowly builds it back up, but sometimes, we help mother nature by pushing the sand back up from the beach. Then natural vegetation can start to grow on it sooner:

PENDER COUNTY, NC (WECT) - A nearly $90,000 project to repair beach dunes in Surf City will begin Tuesday night.

Last September a storm ripped through the area causing erosion to the dune line, so the Surf City Council decided to do a beach push.

Surf City is spending $89,000 to repair its dunes along the six mile beach stretch.

Officials say dunes are very important to the beach because they protect structures that stand behind it.

"If you leave it [the dune] like this, it's going to collapse on itself," said Surf City official Christina Watkins. "We need to build it back up in order to protect all these structures.

Read more here.

How about some Surf Fishing?

Dad or Grandpa helps pack up the car and rustle the kids into the back seat. He drives all the way down to Surf City, then hauls everything up stairs. They're barely done when Mom asks if they'll take the kids out swimming. After chasing the kids around, he tiredly brings them back inside for meals, showers and eventually that night, bed.

The good thing is that the kids will sleep in - at least longer than Dad or Gramps will. But what can Dad or Gramps do with those early morning hours of peacefulness?

How about fishing the surf? He can catch small sharks, jacks and other ocean delights while he sits back and enjoys the peacefulness of the morning. Yet, unlike deep sea fishing, with surf fishing he can reel them in and join the family when they get stirring and ready to do something.

He can rent equipment for the week and get a license at East Coast Sports in downtown Surf City. Click on East Coast Sports or click here for more places to buy or rent fishing gear on Topsail Island.

Snow on the Beach??

Can you believe snow on the beach in Surf City and Wilmington? It's rare because the ocean acts to modify the land surface weather. That's why you like to come in the summer, because when it is HOT where you live, the ocean breezes make it very comfortable on Topsail Island.

But in the fall, winter and early spring, the opposite happens. When it is cold where you ive, the ocean warms up the beach. That's why so many people come to visit in the "off-season".

Here are some pictures taken of snow on the beach sent in by watchers of WECT TV in Wilmington.

Fresh Shrimp on the Grille

One of the great things about coming down to Topsail Island and Surf City is the fresh shrimp. In the picture above you can see one of the local shrimp boats fishing the waters by the drop off for some fabulous Carolina shrimp.

How about cooking your own fresh shrimp? I mean fresh - right off the boat. There is a seafood market located in the parking lot of the Crab Pot and it has what they are catching. Shrimp, flounder, sometimes shark, and more. Click here for a picture of the Fresh Seafood Market.

If you're not good with preparing fresh fish, try this. Get some shrimp and skewers. Boil the shrimp until white. Rinse and place on the skewers - kabob style - with sliced green peppers and some quartered onions. Braise with butter and put on the grill. Take off the grill when they have grill marks and enjoy with a "sundowner"

What's The Best Place to Beach Vacation on the East Coast? Yahoo Voters Say Topsail Island!!

Yahoo Answers is a forum where people post questions and then other people - regular people - respond. People can either give an answer or vote on the best answer already given. Well when somebody posted a question about where the best beach vacation was on the East Coast, somebody answered Topsail Island and enough other people voted for that answer, that it won.

Here is the exchange (which can be found here.)

Resolved Question

What East coast beach would you recommend for a family vacation? Any suggestions on where to stay?

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

We are on the way to TOPSAIL ISLAND in North Carolina next week. It is a family beach WITHOUT a carnival atmosphere and theme park attractions. There are many good and inexpensive seafood restaurants, small shops for souvenirs and two large grocery stores. If you put TOPSAIL ISLAND on Google, you will find more information than you want to know. If you are looking for a "beach" experience with miles of sand and a gentle surf, this is the place to look.

Good News - Bad News: Growth

The Wilmington Star News reports that Census data shows that North Carolina is one of the fastest growing states in the nation and Surf City is one of the fastest growing in the state. Full story here.

We absolutely love it here. I can say with a truthful chuckle that I have had more than half a dozen people from time to time tell me - when I was telling them how much more I liked NC than California - to "please don't tell anybody...we want to keep it this way".

Well, the word is getting out. I lived in my beach house for part of the year last year and my teenage son attended Topsail High, ranked one of the 5 best high schools in the state. I have a good friend from Columbus who bought a beach home here 5 years ago, called Answer to Prayer, and she books out the entire month of September just for her family and friends. So many come down from Ohio now during the same month that they rent other houses and have a reunion of sorts.

Surf City and Topsail Island. Life doesn't get any better than this.

We Love Surf City So Much We'll Swim in the New Year: The Dolphin Dip

WECT TV 6 reported on the Dolphin Dip which occurred on New Year's Day:

Reported by Casey Roman - email--croman@wect.com
Posted by Debra Worley - email--dworley@wect.com

SURF CITY, NC (WECT) - Wearing bikinis and winter jackets, thousands made a New Year's resolution to help a local charity by taking an icy dip in the ocean.

Brian Moxey started Topsail's Dolphin Dip seven years ago to benefit the Lower Cape Fear Hospice Center. Their goal is to bring people together to celebrate life.

Organizers said a quick dip in the ocean gives people an opportunity to challenge themselves and help others.

Each year the crowd comes with donations, costumes, and determination.

"Oh its cold in there, its flat out cold, there's no denying that," said Moxey. "People come out and you'll see some great facial expressions on the way out!"

Some families recruit, or maybe trick, visiting relatives into taking the plunge.

"I'm just going about knee level and my son is going to go in for me," said Al Wolitski who was visiting from Alberta, Canada.

The crowd lined up, the countdown began, and the crowd raced into the waves and right back out.

To read more, click here.

How about a Wedding at Topsail?

Many people come to Topsail to have their wedding, particularly in the offseason. Housing can be easily found and your wedding can either be at the beach or at one of the nice churches on the island. It can be a memorable occasion, as these people discovered at the after wedding reception which appears to be at Gilligans. See more of the wedding party pictures here.

The Christmas Parade at Topsail

Rand Burchfield is a great realtor here on the island. We found this story on his blog:

Well, the third and final parade of the season (for The Rand Burchfield Real Estate Group, anyway) was Saturday, December the 6th. We put a holiday wreath on the front of the truck, lit it up and we were off to Topsail Beach from our main office in Surf City! Joining us were team members Linda Blackburn, Judy Carlton, Bob Ramsey, Dot Cotman and myself and Kathy. Not able to be with us were Justine Warner (our executive assistant) and Bill Hunt, a long time associate and buyer agent. As you will note from the photos, Lilly and Pearl had a grand time, all decked out in the reindeer antlers. Pearl is actually starting to enjoy the limelight a little bit!

Our last event of the year will be a food drive for the North Carolina Food Bank, to be held on December 20th in the Food Lion parking lot in Hampstead. We call it “Feed the Need.” This year in particular, there are a great many more people turning to the food banks all over the state and the country, I would imagine. You can help locally by just bringing canned food and dry items (nothing frozen or needing refrigeration) to the collection point. We will transport it to the Food Bank. Easy for you and so helpful to those of our citizens who may find themselves without this holiday season. Please come and help!

Topsail Elementary School Earns Top Honors

Despite being so close to the beautiful beach and ocean, Topsail schools are rated very highly across the state. In fact, in 5 top categories (Mathematics, English, Physics, Chemistry, History) Topsail High School ranks in the top 5 across the state.

Now, South Topsail Elementary has distinguished itself as one f the best 15 elementary schools in the state.

As WECT channel 6 in Wilmington reports:

South Topsail Elementary receives state award
Posted: Dec 12, 2008 11:45 AM
Updated: Dec 12, 2008 01:25 PM

Courtesy: Pender County Schools


Posted by Debra Worley - email

PENDER COUNTY, NC (WECT) - South Topsail Elementary has received the state's Real D.E.A.L. Award.

South Topsail is one of 15 schools in the state to get the award that stands for dedicated educators and learners.

The schools were selected for the honor on the basis of excellent teaching and learning conditions and outstanding student achievement.

The school was recognized for its high test scores and positive environment for teachers and staffers during a conference in Cary.

This is the first time a Pender County school has been honored since the award began four years ago.

"I am extremely honored to receive this recognition on behalf of the staff of South Topsail Elementary School," said Principal Anna Maria Romero-Lehrer in a press release. "We have high expectations, and a warm, nurturing environment conducive to learning for everyone in the school."

A complete report on the results of the 2008 Teacher Working Conditions Survey results compiled by the New Teacher Center at the University of California in Santa Cruz will be available at www.ncteachingconditions.org in January 2009

Christmas at the Beach - in Full Color

The Topsail Advertiser has picked one of the most delightfully decorated homes on Topsail Island to post on their cover. Here is their story about this lovely house:

What requires more than 7,000 energy efficient LEDs, more than 2,300 feet of wiring, 20 surge protectors and 96 man-hours to create?
Bryson and Pierce's dynamic sound and light show!

December 10, 2008 - 1:00 PM

Carrie Bryan


Christmas came to Surf City on the evening of December 1 at the home of Sterling Bryson and Glen Pierce, when the switch was pulled to illuminate a multitude of lights at their Shaes Landing residence.

Glen Pierce designed and engineered the system, upgrading from last year's 4-channel GE Christmas-In-A-Box to a 16-channel light controller connected to a "Monster Brain" that has a built in mini MP3 player.

The mini MP3s uses a compact memory card with sequenced songs that sends a signal to the monster brain telling it when to turn on and off each of the 16 channels. The monster brain's "line out" sends the music to an FM transmitter, and then from the transmitter to a 200-watt stereo to power the outside speakers. The FM transmitter is a legal FCC transmitter that transmits the music on 101.5 FM up to 150 feet from the house.

There are more than 7,000 energy efficient LED lights in the display, more than 2,300 feet of wiring (equaling about a half mile), and 20 surge protectors. Read more.

October Sunrise

A young couple from Ohio decided to take a week away in October at North Topsail beach, staying at "Answer to Prayer". They wanted some time to relax before their first child was born. The beach was so peaceful and quiet, not too many people to share the sand with. They could walk the beach and relax. They had a thrill one morning to watch an incredible sunrise! Being October it wasn't 6:30 but rather 7:30 - 8:00.
After a sunrise like that who wouldn't want to be awake.

One of the fun things you can do when pregnant at the beach is dig out a hole for you belly and lay on the sand and soak up the sun. Did you ever think you could sleep on your belly again?

Lots of peace and quiet before the baby. Who knows maybe they will be back with their little one next year.

Kayak in the Topsail Sound

Kayaking in the wetlands in the Topsail Sound is great exercise and it also gives you an upclose and personal view of nature's beautiful wetlands. Birds, fish, and the bright sun bring you to a world that is spectacular.

But what do you do if you didn't bring your kayak or you want to try it first before you commit to buying? Rent one and launch it from Herrings.

Herrings is the best outdoor outfitter on the island.

Rent a kayak and go on the sound, or get really good and kayak-surf the waves. You can also rent beach cruisers (bikes) and utilize the bike lane which runs from the county line (about the 9 mile mark) to the south of the island.

They also carry a full line of rods and reels and all types of bait. The girls will love the "Life is Good" clothes line they carry. My wife went in there and spent more than an hour trying on "cute little things". I found a great pair of reef walker shoes at a good price.

Check their web site out here.

Autumn with Topsail Returns!

A funtastic fall festival returns this month to Topsail.

In it's 20th year, the festival brings a carnival atmosphere together with neighbors who enjoy the warm fall weather on the island.

You may have thought that Topsail Island is alive only in the summer, but in fact, it's becoming a lively place all year round. Many fishermen and seniors come down in the fall season which usually stays pretty warm in the daytime up until Thanksgiving.

Then families come down for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years.

There are also a significant number of people who come down for the entire winter. One couple, staying in North Topsail Beach, sold their home in Cleveland a few years back once their youngest went to college. They now live 6 months in a rental in the Florida Keys during that low season (the summer) and then stay on Topsail Island in our low season (the winter). They love living at the beach without having to have the worries of beach home ownership.

For more info on the Autumn with Topsail Festival click here.

Why Rent a Vacation Home?

This is an excellent blog from here on the benefits of renting a home for your next vacation (as opposed to going to a hotel):


vacation homes rental. In order to keep the cycle of our life running smoothly, we need to oil it frequently. It means, being human, we all are subject to boredom from our dull, monotonous routine, and need to fuel ourselves with a change in environment. What else can be a better solution than planning a vacation with your near and dear ones, to rejuvenate yourself? This way you can deal with your work pressures in a constructive manner. And while planning for a vacation, you should pay special emphasis to the comfort level and convenience. You may find a large number of options, regarding accommodation such as hotels, motels etc. But the best way to make the most of your vacation is vacation house rental.

The vacation house rental is worldwide known for its innumerable benefits. No matter, where you decide to spent your vacations whether you are planning to visit beautiful beaches of Florida or an exquisite vacation at Santa Barbara, you can find the provision of vacation house rental at all places. Now, let us discuss in detail why you should choose for vacation house rental over any other accommodations.

While planning a vacation some of the most important features that need to be considered closely are finances, comfort, etc. And vacation house rental offers you the best deal, both in terms of rates, as well as, convenience. It can be bungalow, apartment, condos or villas. A vacation house rental is relatively cheaper, as compared to hotels, motels, or other accommodations. These are specially conceived to make you feel at home and catering you with a soothing vacation. Some other benefits of the vacation house rental are as follows:

• Inexpensive

• Privacy

• Ample space

• Additional benefits

A vacation house rental is usually situated at a near distance to most of the tourist attractions. You will be entrapped while surrounded by the surreal beauty of the place. Several vacation house rentals are situated at a waterfront location, which adds to the tranquility. It caters you with a fully furnished kitchen, so that you will not have to rush with pangs of hunger in search of a restaurant for breakfast. You can save a big sum of money and relish home made food. A vacation house rental offers you dining rooms, living rooms, terrace where you can rest and enjoy the beautiful sunset.

All in all, a vacation house rental makes you feel as if you are in your very own home. For all these comforts, you need to put in some efforts. To find the best deal and additional amenities you can search online sources. There you can find innumerable individuals, and travel agents, offering vacation house rental at nominal rates.

Where to Eat at Topsail: Restaurant Reviews

Are you coming to Topsail Island and are looking for the perfect place to eat?

Check out the Restaurant Reviews page where you can find almost every restaurant reviewed, along with addresses and pictures to find the place.

Click here.

Sunrise: Is There Any Better Way to Start the Day Than at Answer to Prayer?

This is a picture of the sunrise from off the deck of Answer to Prayer.

When you get up in the still of the morning, pour a hot steaming cup of coffee, and step out onto the deck as the sun rises, you experience a peacefulness and clarity that you never get back in the city.

Things come into focus, possibilities flood in, favorite memories replay in your mind, thankfulness overflows in your heart.

God put the sunrise there for you. Why not come and enjoy it. Contact Answer to Prayer here.

Time to Make Vacation Plans

You know you are going to want to get away to the beach next summer. Now is the time to plan it while the week you want is still open.

What if your plans change? Most places only require a 10% deposit more than 6 months out. That means only a couple of hundred dollars to reserve your spot. Then you can call your sister/mother/friends now and see if they can come with you. They can arrange for the week off now before all this vacation week is taken by someone else at their office.

What happens if they want to come but can't get the week you've reserved but can get another week? Most places, including beach4rent.org will let you change your week this far in advance.

And you can all discuss how much fun it is going to be when you get together for the holidays.

Indigo Marsh - Off Season Specials

I don't mean for this to be an advertisement but since I like Indigo Marsh so well, I thought I'd share the off-season specials that they are running now. This is what they sent me in an email:

Indigo Marsh

Off Season Specials!

1/2 Price Wine on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday
Includes all Bottles and Glass Wine!
Also...
Get a FREE Petite Mixed Greens Salad
with every entree!
And...
As always, if you are seated before 6:00 you get a
FREE dessert along with the FREE salad!

Join our new Referral program and earn FREE food!
Reservations Recommended
910.328.2580

Indigo Marsh is located at:

602 B Roland Ave
Surf City, NC 28445
Phone: 910.328.2580
Fax: 910.328.2508

As I said before on this blog, this is my favorite restaurant on the island.