If you’re planning a stay in historic Wilmington, NC, make sure to make time for a few hours of kayaking in unique spots all over the city. The easier and most obvious are the meandering sea paths on the sound side of Wrightsville Beach where island hopping and swimming holes abound. The birding is consistently incredible and if you’re lucky you might just spy a pod of dolphin.

But if the salt water isn’t calling you, perhaps a more brackish go at the twists and turns of Cape Fear River tributaries might float your actual boat, uh, kayak. Alligators lurk on the banks at the right times and Osprey nests loom at every bend. It’s a trip down Spanish moss lanes of old. We use a super easy public park put in the feels like a secret not the even the locals know of.

Greenfield Lake also provides gators and scenery a bit more convenient to downtown (just a few minutes from Wilmington’s hub of nightlight and shopping). It’s picturesque as can be (turtles are just about everywhere) and with a little more feeling of people around, but not crowded by any means.