2014 Bald Head Island - Shoals Club Membership

Pool at the Shoals Club

Surf fishing the tip of  Frying Pan Shoals

The Shoals Club is about a ten-minute golf cart ride from the Bald Head Island marina. Use of the club requires membership, which can be obtained either on a permanent or a temporary basis. Private dining for lunch or dinner in the clubhouse offers a distant view of the sand dunes and the Atlantic Ocean. Some members will make use of the fitness room, lockers rooms and two private pools. Other amenities include a beach volleyball court and beach access with towel and chair service. A membership card must be in the guests possession during use of any of these private perks.

Dining at the Shoals Club for supper was billed as a great opportunity for sunset watching. However, a terrible Nor'easter storm was blowing through during our dinner hour and a driving rainstorm had quelled any chance at all of sunlight entering our dinner plans. We toasted our fate with a Tin Roof merlot and began the meal with peeled shrimp and cocktail sauce, followed by sorbet. Our main course included Pork ribeye Oscar and an Angus Filet.

Angus Filet with asparagus and potatoes

Peeled Shrimp appetizer

The palm trees by the pool are well lit and we could see them bending in the wind. The 180-degree view of the ocean shoals revealed that the ocean was churned up with white foam. These Frying Pan Shoals jut out into the Atlantic for miles, and there were so many shipwrecks here over time that the name Cape Fear was earned. On this night it was easy to see how mariners could be lost at sea in such bad weather, which can last for multiple days, as it did on this occasion.

To view past blog entries about my September 2014 visit to Bald Head Island click here.