“AND FOR JUST A FLEETING MOMENT, A TINY WISP OF TIME THAT HUNG IN THE AIR LIKE FIREFLIES IN SUMMER SKIES, SHE WONDERED IF SHE WAS IN LOVE WITH HIM AGAIN.”- NICHOLAS SPARKS, THE NOTEBOOK

We were long overdue for an east coast 4th, and as usual, it didn’t disappoint. We took the Southport Ferry over to Bald Head Island for the day, about an hour away from where we were staying in Cherry Grove. Idyllic in every way, it isn’t hard to see why Nicholas Sparks made this the backdrop for his novel Safe Haven, and why those who know North Carolina’s best kept secrets flock here for the summer.

No cars allowed! Only golf carts, which adds to its charm.

We took a little tour via said golf cart and visited ‘Old Baldy,’ the oldest standing lighthouse in North Carolina.

Casually sitting in a tree.

Parts of ‘Dawson’s Creek’ were filmed here and it took me back to the summer I lived on Oak Island and interned for the show’s casting office. I spent half my week on set and half the week at the beach. Ah, those were the days.

Beach front homes are in the millions, but you can get a summer rental for a reasonable price.

No better place to wax poetic…The dunes, covered in sea oats, roll gently, luring you out to the secluded shore.

It was a perfect day spent on the beach with family, eating just caught shrimp and flounder, wishing time could stand still. By sundown we were back on the ferry headed ‘home,’ looking out as the Oak Island Lighthouse, a vivid symbol of my childhood, whirled round and round.

Bald Head Island Beach Towns Coastal Towns Dawson's Creek filming locations North Carolina Golf Cart Only Islands Most Picturesque Towns in the US Nicholas Sparks North Carolina Coast Oak Island Oak Island Lighthouse Outer Banks Safe Haven Filming Location Southport