Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in North Topsail Beach, we use the following websites to find information relevant to North Topsail Beach and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for North Topsail Beach
- Astronomy & Satellites ...
- Whether using binoculars, a small telescope or the naked-eye, the Heavens-Above website can help you to find your way around the night-time sky. In addition to detailed sky charts, their website will help you find planets, asteriods, comets, satellites and their tracks across the sky.
- To give accurate results, Heavens-Above requires the latitude and longitude of your location. As a starting point, when we link to Heavens-Above, we pass this GPS location for North Topsail Beach:
- 34.494252, -77.431478
- Once you're on the Heavens-Above website, you can improve its accuracy by giving a more precise longitude and latitude as your actual position.
- The Heavens-Above Website, centered on North Topsail Beach
- Bird Watching ...
- We enjoy finding new spots for bird watching and we use the eBird website for local sighting reports and to help identify hotspots.
- The eBird website is organized on a county-by-county basis. We have selected Onslow County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Onslow County
- Since North Topsail Beach is near Pender County and also Carteret County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Pender County
- eBird sighting report for Carteret County
- Waymarking ...
- Looking for somewhere out of the ordinary? Find a unique place and want to share it with others? Then it's time to visit Waymarking.com:
- Waymark.com
Curious and Interesting Names Near North Topsail Beach ...
As we travel, we always see a community with a name that gives pause. While there are names which are interesting or familiar, some catch our attention or strike our fancy. We always wonder about such a name. If time permits and the community is not too far, we'll usually try to make a side-trip.
- Duck Creek
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Duck Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Duck Creek
- Duck Creek is located in Onslow County
- Haws Run
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest) - Holly Ridge
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holly Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Ridge
- Holly Ridge is located in Onslow County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,092 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Holly Ridge <2>
- Kings Landing
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kings Landing have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings Landing
- Kings Landing is located in Pender County
- Marines
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast) - Paradise Park
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paradise Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise Park
- Paradise Park is located in Onslow County
- Peru
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Peru
- Peru is located in Onslow County
- Piney Green
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Piney Green have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney Green
- Piney Green is located in Onslow County
- Surf City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Surf City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Surf City
- Surf City is located in Onslow County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,532 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Surf City <2>
- Topsail
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Topsail
- Topsail is located in Pender County
- Topsail Beach
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Topsail Beach
- Topsail Beach is located in Pender County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 438 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Topsail Beach <2>
- Woodside
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
How Far From North Topsail Beach to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a city such as North Topsail Beach to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in North Topsail Beach and extending to:
- Jacksonville, which is the Seat of Onslow County, lies 18 miles [29 km]<3> to the north. If you could walk a straight line from North Topsail Beach to Jacksonville, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take five to six hours.
- Raleigh, which is the State Capital of North Carolina, lies 112 miles [180.2 km] to the northwest (NW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about two hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 7 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 304 miles [489.2 km] to the north (N). Driving would take five to six hours, a buggy would take 12 days and walking would take 18 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,102 miles [9,820.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,788 miles [10,924.2 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,674 miles [7,522.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for North Topsail Beach: www.north-topsail-beach.org/
The official website for Onslow County: www.co.onslow.nc.us/
The official website for State of North Carolina: https://www.nc.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- North Topsail Beach) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in North Topsail Beach. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.4943, Longitude: -77.4315 In this case, the coordinates for North Topsail Beach have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <4> | While we have tried to pick reasonable speeds, the rate of travel is very theoretical - obstacles like fences, hills, lakes, river crossings and rest stops have been ignored. When we say 'Days' of travel, we're assuming 8 hours of travel per day. |
| <5> | The shortest line can be visualized by stretching a string on a Globe from Point A to Point B - this is known as a Great Circle Route. Where you might expect the shortest route from North Topsail Beach to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 308.303 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.246 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.443 degrees. |