Hammocks Beach State Park
An undeveloped barrier island of exceptional quality — but the campsites are on the island, reached by ferry.
- Onslow County, NC
- Nearest town: Bear Creek
- 21 ft
Coordinates
- Lat
- 34.63428
- Lng
- -77.14536
No van camping
There is camping here, but only walk-in, backcountry or boat-in sites. You cannot sleep in a van at the trailhead.
At a glance
The basics
What to expect
State park
Reservable sites, paved or well-graded roads, bathhouses in season.
- County
- Onslow County
- State
- North Carolina
- Nearest town
- Bear Creek
- Elevation
- 21 ft
- Max vehicle length
- Not verified
The place
About Hammocks Beach State Park
Bear Island is the reason this park exists: nearly four miles of undeveloped barrier beach with high dunes, no road, no development and a loggerhead turtle nesting season, separated from the mainland by salt marsh and a channel. A passenger ferry runs across in season, and the difference between the crowded beaches a few miles away and this one is total. The mainland side has the visitor centre, the ferry dock and paddling access through the marsh, which is superb in its own right — a maze of creeks best explored by kayak at high tide.
For van drivers
Getting a van in and out
Be clear on this before you drive here: the campsites are on Bear Island and reached by passenger ferry or your own boat, so there is no van camping. Everything you sleep with has to be carried on. Treat the park as a day visit or a paddling trip and plan to sleep elsewhere — Swansboro is minutes away and Croatan National Forest's Cedar Point campground is close. The mainland access road is paved and easy. Check ferry operating season, because it does not run year round.
Written for a high-roof van, not a pickup. Surfaces and clearances change with the weather and with the season’s roadwork — the official page below is the last word.
On the ground
Facilities & fees
Not verified means nobody has confirmed it — treat it as unknown, never as a no. 8 of the 8 below are still unconfirmed.
- Restrooms
- Not verified
- Drinking water
- Not verified
- Showers
- Not verified
- Dump station
- Not verified
- Hookups
- Not verified
- Campfires
- Not verified
- Dogs allowed
- Not verified
- Reservations
- Not verified
- Max vehicle length
- Not verified — check with the park
- Season
- Not verified — check with the park
- Fees
- Not verified — check with the park
The last word on all of this is ncparks.gov(opens in a new tab).
Where it is
Coordinates & directions
Decimal degrees
- Latitude
- 34.634281
- Longitude
- -77.145362
34.6343° N · 77.1454° W
No map tiles here on purpose. Half of these places have no signal at the gate, so coordinates you can save offline beat a map that needs one. Drop them into your phone before you turn off the pavement.
Nearest gas and groceries: Bear Creek
Before you go
Official sources
Fees, site counts, length limits and closures change season to season. Everything we have not confirmed ourselves is marked Not verified above rather than guessed at — and where we do have a number, the operator’s own page still wins.
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