Columbus Monthly’s Weekend Adventures feature highlights 30 travel ideas to fill your calendar from June to December.
This installment features four ideas for July, including the quaint town of Southport, North Carolina, plus camping in Canada’s Georgian Bay islands, the Under Canvas resort near Zion National Park and a clothing-optional co-op community in Pomeroy.
Beausoleil Island National Park
Where: Canada’s Georgian Bay
Rattlesnakes, turtles and bears, oh my. If you want to catch a glimpse of northern wildlife while experiencing the geologically complex terrain of the Canadian Shield, a camping excursion to Beausoleil Island is for you. They say getting there is half the fun, and that’s doubly true for this trek, which includes an eight-hour road trip (including an overnight in Toronto) and a private boat ride to the UNESCO Biosphere reserve.
Beausoleil Island is the largest of 63 islands in Georgian Bay Islands National Park, many of which you’ll pass on the 15-minute ride to the campground. Beausoleil has typical car camping services, but without the cars. Amenities include a shower house, marked campsites along Lake Huron and bike rentals. Three-wheeled carts are available at the dock to move all camping sundries to your reserved campsite.
The 5-mile long island features trails that traverse its perimeter, inland trails (including one that practically guarantees a rattlesnake sighting—or hearing) and a clear blue lake with its own island. (Strong swimmers can experience being on an island within a lake within an island within a lake.)
Travel to the island should be booked in advance through one of several third-party boat transportation companies, and canoes and kayaks can be rented from the mainland, as well. Mid-summer visitors should pack in plenty of bug spray, though basic necessities are available for sale at island prices. parks.canada.ca
Under Canvas Zion
Where: Virgin, Utah
Camping generally necessitates a significant amount of planning and packing, but a trip to Under Canvas Zion requires only a direct flight to Las Vegas and a stunning two-and-a-half-hour drive to Virgin, Utah. This glamping resort will take care of the rest. Located near Zion National Park, staying at Under Canvas is like staying at a fancy hotel, but with unadulterated views of the night sky, red rock formations and sandstone cliffs.
Under Zion features several styles of off-the-grid canvas platform tents, complete with restroom facilities, luxury bedding, portable battery packs, viewing decks and a wood-fired stove for cool nights. An attentive staff provides baggage portage, housekeeping, room service and rides to the dining lodge on the spacious campus.
While it’s acceptable to bring your own food (coolers and ice are provided at the tents), on-site dining is nearly always available, with seasonal and locally sourced options peppering the menu. There’s also a coffee shop providing high quality specialty concoctions, with a grab-and-go section from which you can pick up a snack or sandwich for excursions to Zion National Park, half an hour away.
The resort coordinates area experiences such as rock climbing, mountain biking, fly fishing and horseback riding. No matter what the day brings, returning to Under Canvas for a glass of wine or beer (or free gourmet s’mores) around the fire pit is a relaxing way to end the day. And unlike typical camping, no assembly is required. undercanvas.com
Wisteria
Where: Pomeroy, Ohio
For a more metaphysical experience, head to Wisteria, a cooperatively owned and operated community in Southeast Ohio. Wisteria hosts event-related group camping, with an emphasis on intentional living, co-education and alternative spirituality. About a 90-minute drive from Columbus, the camp is also home to a series of summer festivals (though none are in July), including an Appalachian Summer Solstice, Appalachian Herb Fest and a Labor Day weekend celebration for volunteers who work the land.
Founded in 1996 on a reclaimed strip mine, Wisteria is a clothing-optional venue spanning 620 acres, with 80 acres dedicated to its campground and 220 acres preserved as a nature retreat. The community hosts four households year-round, while other shareholders and extended community members contribute to the shared labor. A visit to one of its festivals includes foraging workshops, nature treks led by experts, and spiritual gatherings honoring traditions such as Druidism, Wicca and Norse mythology.
Wisteria’s expansive map features a swimming pond, meditation groves, three music stages, a bar (serving Jackie O’s), a faerie shrine (where visitors leave trinkets) and a wind phone (allowing visitors to connect with loved ones who have passed). wisteria.org
Quant Carolina: Discover the Charms of Southport
About 90 minutes up the Atlantic coast from the Myrtle Beach airport, discerning travelers will discover the old fishing town of Southport, North Carolina. Southport is itself quite “touristy”—what isn’t, these days, on the Carolina Coast? But the town is nestled into the southern shore of the Cape Fear Inlet, far from major highways, so a trip here is never the path of least resistance for Midwestern travelers who just want to get to the beach, gosh darn it.
Instead, the folks who frequent Southport—or are just discovering it—have probably arrived to enjoy the town’s authentic quaintness. Sure, the beaches of North Carolina’s Brunswick Islands communities, just a few minutes south of Southport, are quite magnificent. But visitors will also want to explore the many local shops, boutiques and galleries in Southport’s charming downtown, stroll the waterfront (with a blessed lack of carnival rides) and delve into the local cuisine.
Many of the eateries are located along the picturesque old waterfront, where diners and other visitors can watch as huge container vessels, guided by Southport’s Cape Fear pilots, wind their way through the narrow, twisting channel from the open Atlantic up the Cape Fear River toward the port of Wilmington. There are still commercial fishing boats working the waters around Cape Fear, although those still calling Southport home can be counted on the fingers of a single hand.
Southport’s charm has also attracted television and movie productions such as Matlock, “Crimes of the Heart” and The Summer I Turned Pretty. The Fort Johnston-Southport Museum & Visitors Center includes a room dedicated to that Hollywood history. Meanwhile, the rich ocean-going tradition of the Cape Fear region is explored at the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Southport, with exhibits about local pirates, fishing, shipwrecks and more.
And for lighthouse fans, North Carolina’s oldest and newest lighthouses—Old Baldy Lighthouse, built in 1817, and Oak Island Lighthouse, built in 1957—are both visible from the shore at Southport and are just a short drive away.
Travel time from Columbus: Seasonal direct flights via Allegiant, Southwest; ncbrunswick.com
This story is from the Weekend Adventures feature in the June 2024 issue of Columbus Monthly.
