Oak Island Lighthouse & Beach Access

Oak Island Lighthouse is a working aid to navigation and one of the newer lighthouses on the American coast, built in 1958 — squat, concrete, and banded grey, white and black, with none of the storybook prettiness of Old Baldy across the water and rather more character for it. It’s still one of the brightest lighthouses in the country. The real draw is the beach on either side of it. Oak Island has more than sixty public beach accesses spread along its south-facing shore, which means even in high season you can walk five minutes and find genuine space. The south-facing orientation is unusual for the Atlantic coast and gives you both sunrise and sunset over water. Shelling is good after a blow, and the fishing pier is a decent bet for an evening walk. Free tours climb the lighthouse on limited days through the season — check ahead, as they’re weather-dependent, run by volunteers, and involve ship’s ladders rather than stairs, so there’s a minimum age. Parking at the accesses is free but fills by mid-morning in July. Loggerhead turtles nest here through the summer, so keep lights off the beach after dark.