Carolina Beach Greenway Walk
Join us for a nice walk along the Island Greenway in Carolina Beach. This 1.5 mile Greenway shows off the Carolina Beach that is not along the ocean that most of us are familiar with. We will start at 10am and walk the Greenway down and back with an opportunity to extend the walk for those that may want to walk more than about 3 miles. Once you sign up, we will send the exact start location as we get closer to the event. Suitable for those age 10 and up.
Level: Easy
Cost: None
Learn More & RSVP @ https://act.sierraclub.org/events/details?formcampaignid=701Po00001A1ygpIAB (you must RSVP individually on the Sierra Club website; details for location released to registered participants only)
Monthly Program October 2025
Our next Monthly Speaker Presentation will be on Tuesday, Oct. 14, at 6:15 pm. They will continue to be on the second Tuesday of each month. You can find the speakers in our monthly newsletter or on our website.
When: Tuesday, Oct. 14, at 6:15 pm
Where: RSVP for details
Speaker: Roger Shew, serves on the Board of Cape Fear River Watch, Eagles Island Task Force, Alliance for Cape Fear Trees and is a Supervisor on New Hanover County Soil and Water Board. He also works with the Nature Conservancy on conservation and restoration projects. Roger loves to engage the community and provide facts regarding issues and opportunities facing our area.
Topic: A Changing Southeastern North Carolina: Threats to our Natural Areas and Health from National, State and Local Policies.
Public Open House on Wilmington Harbor Deepening Project
Public Open House Oct 8, 3-7p @CFCC Union Station Bldg Daniels Hall (502 N Front St)
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Wilmington District has opened a public comment period on its draft environmental impact statement (EIS) of the Wilmington Harbor project. Public comments on the multi-million dollar project to deepen the main channel from a depth of 42 feet to 47 feet will be accepted through November 3rd. The Corps’ draft letter report and draft EIS are available online: https://wilmington-harbor-usace-saw.hub.arcgis.com/ . Environmental issues mentioned in the report and EIS include increased salinity, wetlands function impact, and loss of fish habitat in the Cape Fear River. The potential impacts of dredging and disposing of PFAS-contaminated soils as well as the release of PFAS from Brunswick County’s nearly finished reverse osmosis (RO) plant are not mentioned. PFAS contamination in the Cape Fear navigation channel is currently one of the many critical environmental concerns that must be addressed.
USACE officials are scheduled to host a public open house on October 8th from 3-7 pm at Cape Fear Community College’s downtown Wilmington campus Union Station Building, Daniels Hall, 502 N. Front St. Participants will get the opportunity to speak with officials, learn about the conditionally authorized project, ask questions and provide comments.
Public comments may also be submitted by Nov. 3rd by email to WilmingtonHarbor403@usace.army.mil, by mail to ATTN: Wilmington Harbor 403, 69 Darlington Ave., Wilmington, N.C. 28403, or by comment card at the public meeting.
Green Drinks September
Learn how the Alliance for Cape Fear Trees is advancing policy and community advocacy to preserve our urban canopy and build a more resilient city.
RSVP here!
Join us at Waterline Brewing (721 Surry St, Wilmington, NC 28401) on the last Tuesday of every month from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm to network, collaborate, and connect with like-minded sustainability professionals and enthusiasts!
Who: Sustainability professionals & enthusiasts in the Wilmington area!
What: A space for the local sustainability community to network, collaborate, and discuss a different sustainability topic each month.
Where: Please RSVP on the Green Drinks website
When: The last Tuesday of every month from 6:00-8:00 pm!
Why: To bring together like-minded individuals to foster connections and drive change.
Hike at Ft. Fisher State Park Sept 2025
Hike at Ft. Fisher State Park
Walk 2.2 miles roundtrip, at Ft. Fisher St. Park
On Friday September 26th, we'll have a guided walk from the Ft. Fisher beach area on the Basin Trail to the observation deck overlooking Zeke's Island. Park Ranger Stephanie Covell will explain the different environments and habitats along the way.
This trail meanders through the marsh, allowing hikers a chance to view sound-side flora and fauna and the maritime forest. The trail passes a World War II bunker, where the "Fort Fisher Hermit," Robert E. Harrell, lived for more than a decade. At the end is a wooden observation deck with wide views of the Cape Fear River and Zeke's Island, making it a great spot for watching birds and boats.
Either after or before the hike, consider an optional visit to the new Museum at the Ft. Fisher Historic Site (not a Sierra Club guided trip). The indoor museum is free and self guided. There is also a ranger led escorted tour of the property grounds at either 10am or 2pm (free of charge).
Wood Pellet Boat Trip
Wood Pellet Boat Trip with Southern Forests Conservation Coalition
Please join us for the very important and educational boat trip. If you haven't been aboard for any of the past free wood pellet informational tours from the deck of the Henrietta, here is your chance! One hundred and sixty acres of North Carolina forests are being clearcut every day and then pelletized for shipment to the DRAX Energy Corporation to be burned in England as clean energy. This is greenwashing in its most egregious form.
Make your reservation now for our Sept. 20 tour to find out what the Enviva Corporation and DRAX Energy are doing to our forest resources in Eastern NC.
Monthly Program September 2025
Join us at Halyburton Park Events Center on the second Tuesday of the month for a program presentation. We will have light dinner available (donations accepted, not required) at 6:15; program starts at 6:30. We’ll give a brief update of important actions for environmental advocacy.
September Speaker: N.C. Rep. Deb Butler, House District 18 and founding member of the Progressive Caucus of the NC Democratic Party. Rep. Butler will speak on upcoming legislation in the fall session of the General Assembly.
We do need all attendees to RSVP on the Sierra Club’s site; couples need to RSVP as individuals.
Walk Briskly With A Purpose - Ft. Fisher
CFSC Walk With a Purpose: Fort Fisher/Kure Beach Pier
Start your day with a stroll by the sea with the Cape Fear Sierra Club on August 2, 2025! This is the second event in our new bi-monthly “Walk With a Purpose” program, intended to complement a moderately challenging walk/hike with a communitarian or educational experience.
What: A brisk walk along the beach from the Fort Fisher sea wall (which runs parallel to the parking lot) to the Kure Beach Pier, one of the oldest fishing piers on the Atlantic coast. Outbound, we’ll observe stunning ocean views, coastal foliage, and a variety of birds; on the return, we’ll collect beach litter. The round trip distance is 5 miles.
When: August 16, 2025 at 7:30 a.m. sharp. NOTE that this is weather and tide dependent.
Green Drinks July 2025
Come network and connect with Wilmington’s sustainability community, and learn from Stefanie Young—Vice President, Client Solutions at the U.S. Green Building Council—as we discuss how green buildings benefit both the environment and occupants, and the role LEED plays in decarbonization and resilience.
Monthly Recurring Event
Join us at Waterline Brewing (721 Surry St, Wilmington, NC 28401) on the last Tuesday of every month from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm to network, collaborate, and connect with like-minded sustainability professionals and enthusiasts!
Who: Sustainability professionals & enthusiasts in the Wilmington area!
What: A space for the local sustainability community to network, collaborate, and discuss a different sustainability topic each month.
Where: Waterline Brewing - 721 Surry St, Wilmington, NC 28401
When: The last Tuesday of every month from 6:00-8:00 pm!
Why: To bring together like-minded individuals to foster connections and drive change.
Green Drinks Summer Sustainability Social
CFSC proudly supports Green Drinks
This Tuesday
Join us at Waterline Brewing (721 Surry St, Wilmington, NC 28401) on the last Tuesday of every month from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm to network, collaborate, and connect with like-minded sustainability professionals and enthusiasts!
Who: Sustainability professionals & enthusiasts in the Wilmington area!
What: A space for the local sustainability community to network, collaborate, and discuss a different sustainability topic each month.
Where: Waterline Brewing - 721 Surry St, Wilmington, NC 28401
When: The last Tuesday of every month from 6:00-8:00 pm!
Why: To bring together like-minded individuals to foster connections and drive change.
Save Sledge Forest Rally
Cape Fear Sierra Club proudly supports Save Sledge Forest - please see our issues page or their website for more details
We hit a major milestone with our Save Sledge Forest petition - 10,000 signatures!
This isn’t just another event. It’s our chance to say—loud and clear—that destroying our last, large expanse of old-growth forest in New Hanover County - simply for the benefit of a developer’s profit - is unacceptable. And, that this massive development isn’t just wrong for the forest—it’s also a direct threat to our community’s health, safety, and quality of life
We hope you can help us to make June 21st a powerful show of people power and a powerful voice for justice.
Please RSVP, then share with five friends!
This rally is for all of us who care. Let’s show them what 10,000 voices looks like.
Solstice Sunset Hang Out
Come join the members and friends of the Cape Fear Sierra Club for a little fellowship in the glow of the moon along with a hopefully beautiful sunset on the longest day of the year. Open to the entire family. We will be meeting around the fire pit at Ember Park in the Riverlights development in Wilmington. The park is adjacent to the restaurant, Smoke on the Water. Bring chairs, bug spray, drink, snacks and something to share, if you choose and we will sit around the fire pit and socialize as the sun sets over the Cape Fear River. There are a few places to eat beforehand and do takeout right next to Ember Park. Checkout the website for a list. No agenda - "Just Fun!"
Green Swamp Walk
This is the time of the year that the Venus Flytraps and Pitcher plants are blooming, so be sure to sign up early as space is limited.
Hike Carolina Beach State Park
Walk with escort Ms. Eliza Dolin, around the State Park, and learn about the history and natural vegetation of the area. This will be a 60-75 minute moderate walk to Sugar Loaf Dune, with few stops and a side trip to the Marsh Overlook.
Earth Day Retrospective with NC Sierra Club
Deepen your understanding of the urgent environmental issues facing North Carolina, especially the critical state of our wetlands.
Monthly Program
Deepening of the Cape Fear River - Consequences and Building Opposition
April Green Drinks
Come connect with Wilmington's sustainability community and learn from the NC Coastal Federation as they share how they work to protect and restore our coast - from preventing stormwater runoff to recycling oyster shells. You'll also discover simple ways to support their efforts. Stick around afterward for a fun round of coastal trivia with Federation-themed prizes!
Cape Fear Sierra Club is proud to support Green Drinks, a dynamic meetup providing a vibrant platform to boost environmental activism by harnessing the collective knowledge, energy and resources of local and regional environmental organizations.
Carolina Beach Lily Pond Clean Up
Come join us to clean up a unique area of Carolina Beach State Park called “Lily Pond”, which was once a dumping site for trash from the 1920s through the 1960s. Park Ranger Jessse Anderson will also give a short presentation on the Lily Pond. Join Sierra Club and Plastic Ocean Project (POP) for this worthwhile event. For details and to register click here.
Monthly Presentation
Tuesday, April 1, 6:15 pm at Halyburton Park meeting room, 4099 S. 17th Sktreet, Wilmington NC
Topic: Cooking the GOOS: Salinity, Sea Level Rise and the Oceans
Presenter: Dr. Fred Bingham
The ocean plays a major part in global climate change. We know that sea level is rising and the oceans are getting warmer. To go along with this, the salinity of the ocean is changing, in concert with changes in the global water cycle. This talk will describe how the changing ocean is observed, both by satellite and in situ (wet) observations, and what that might mean for our region.
Dr. Bingham is an oceanographer in the Department of Physics & Physical Oceanography at UNCW. In addition to holding a PhD in Oceanography from the University of California, San Diego, Dr. Bingham has held positions at Tohoku University in Japan and the Univeristy of Hawaii at Manoa. He has been especially interested in the role of ocean salinity and its connection to the global water cycle. Dr. Bingham has been a member of NASA’s Ocean Salinity Science Team since 2009.
Green Drinks
March 25, 6-8 pm - Waterline Brewing Co.
Topic: “What is a Soil & Water Conservation District?” and “Stormwater 101”
Presenters: Dru Harrison and Jessica Stitt with the New Hanover County Soil & Water Conservation District
We are also partnering with the Wilmington Earth Day Alliance for a special fundraiser supporting the 2025 Earth Day Festival! Waterline Brewing Co. will be donating $1 per beer sold during the event. The Alliance will also have T-shirts and raffle tickets available for purchase. All proceeds will go towards this year’s Earth Day Festival.
Holly Shelter Game Land Hike and Talk
Come join us and Ben Jones, the Project Manager at the Mountains to Sea Trail, as we hike (both a 5-mile and a 3-mile option) through the Holly Shelter Game Land. We will learn about the Mountains to Sea Trail that will wind its way through the Game Land. Holly Shelter Game Land is 64,743 acres in size and is entirely in Pender County. We will start our hike at the trailhead off Hwy 17 in Hampstead. Note: During our hike there will be no hunters in the Game Land. Along the hike, Ben will inform us about the habitat and plans for the Trail. For additional information, please sign up here.
March Monthly Meeting
Presenters: Madelyn Wampler (NHC Sustainability Manager) and Dr. James Gregory (Professor Emeritus, Dept. of Forestry and Environmental Resources, NC State University)
Ms. Wampler has offered to share her vision and the goals of her office which will allow us, in turn, to develop a strategy that helps her achieve these objectives as well as improving our understanding of county operations.
Dr. Gregory has offered to share his profound knowledge of regional Forest Soils, Watersheds and Wetlands Hydrology in the context of the function and value of these natural resources and the challenges we face in preserving them.
We look forward to being enlightened by our two presenters, to the extent that we can effectively support initiatives that promote sensible, local land management.
Halyburton Cleanup
We are calling for volunteers to help keep the Halyburton trails safe and looking good. Help us meet our obligation to the City of Wilmington for allowing us the free use of the Halyburton Park meeting room for our monthly meetings.
The main priority will be to help establish a new trail from an existing "unofficial" trail, putting up new trail markers and cleaning light brush. Please bring work gloves and eyewear. Please sign up to attend.
Green Drinks February
Happy Hour & Networking
Join us for a casual happy hour and networking event. Whether you're an industry professional, an advocate, or just curious, this is a great chance to meet like-minded people, expand your network and learn about Green Drinks in a relaxed setting.
No speakers this time - just good company and great conversation.
Cape Fear Sierra Club is proud to support Green Drinks, a dynamic meetup providing a vibrant platform to boost environmental activism by harnessing the collective knowledge, energy and resources of local and regional environmental organizations.
Hiking Brunswick Nature Park
Where: Brunswick Nature Park - 2601 River Road, Winnabow. Watch for small sign on River Road, turn right onto the gravel road to end of the park. Meet near the restrooms and the Sierra Club banner.
When: Sat. February 15th at 1:00pm.
What: Enjoy an invigorating hike at a brisk pace on the Dogwood Trail. This is a 2.90 mile trail with a 101 ft. gain.
Experience the lovely forest with rugged terrain that sets it apart from the surrounding area. The trail features labelled trees, benches, and scenic views of Town Creek. Some sections are narrow and unmaintained. Estimated time of this loop is 1 hour.
Who: Open to those able to handle walking on roots and uneven terrain. Children should be able to keep up with a brisk pace. Well behaved dogs on a leash are allowed.
The park has flush toilets and porta potties. Bring your own water.
After: We will attempt to set up a coffee/tea/hot chocolate table for socialization afterwards. Feel free to bring some snacks to share, and folding chairs for relaxing.
Would you be interested in helping to set up the coffee station? Need volunteers to help set up, and someone to supervise this area while the group is walking. If so please text Suzanne at 540-598-8207.
Level: Moderate(relatively brisk pace)
Cost: free
Bring: hydration, sturdy shoes
Additional Directions: Meet in the parking area near the restrooms; look for Sierra Club banner
Cancellation Policy: Steady rain cancels
February Monthly Meeting
Restoring a Pocosin Forest
The 7,500 acre Angola Game Bay Land in Pender County was once a species rich pocosin forest storing carbon in moist peat soils. As the land was drained and converted to loblolly pine production, the carbon dioxide sink became a CO2-emitting source. The presentation will focus on how the land is being restored to its previous biodiversity, carbon capture and flood-controlling capacity. Also discussed will be how the Nature Conservancy and the NC Wildlife Resources Commission organized professionals and volunteers to install water control structures to rehydrate the land, and plant Atlantic white cedar and other native tree species. Warren Darrell, our speaker, worked on this project in October.
PDF from the presentation at Monthly Meeting.
Presenter Bio:
Warren Darrell is a mentor for UNCW Environmental Science students and teaches environmental topics at Osher Lifelong Learning Center - UNCW and Coastal Carolina University. He is an active volunteer with the Ecologic Development Fund and the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. Warren is a registered professional engineer with Masters’ degrees in environmental engineering and environmental science.
Clean Up Carolina Beach State Park
What a great opportunity to partner with other groups for this clean up at Lily Pond at Carolina Beach State Park. The other groups participating are Plastic Ocean Project (POP), Friends of Pleasure Island State Park, Life Point Church, and the Three Pines Project. We will be escorted by Park Ranger Jesse Anderson. The area of interest is called Lily Pond; which, was a dumping site for trash from around 1920-1960, before the area became a State Park. Listen to a video about the ecosystem at Lily Pond Here.
Monthly Meeting: Saving Sledge Forest
Presenters:
Kayne Darrell, Advocate, Community Activist, and Grass Roots organizer for several environmental and social just projects.
Andy Wood, Author and award-winning conservation educator currently volunteers as director for Coastal Plain Conservation Group - a non-profit environmental organization based in Pender County.
Sledge Forest is a local natural treasure spread across over 4,000 acres in Castel Hayne. The goal is to save Sledge Forest from destruction and protect and preserve it in conservation. Please join us for this very important meeting.
Doors open at 6:15p, donations accepted; discussion starts at 6:30p