If sharks, jellyfish and stingrays aren't enough to keep you out of the surf...

[reelapeelin]

Originally Posted by Pipe_Dream

I've been haunting the waters around this island for over 20 years, and while I haven't yet seen a gator at the beach, I've seen the reports in the newspapers nearly every summer.

The rivers, creeks and sounds are another story. A couple of weeks ago I was cleaning up the ol' PD in the marina after a day on the water, when about 25 feet astern of her appeared a 6 footer. Not the first gator I've seen in the marina, but he was the biggest to date. Given a choice, I'd rather see a manatee in the marina than a gator.

Some pretty good sized ones inhabit the golf course ponds along the ICW up around the Sunset Beach area...that's NC...

[bcmarinamanager]

Surf City in Topsail Island had a gator swimming in the surf a couple weeks ago too. Very rare indeed. I've seen them on the river side of Carolina Beach, but never on the ocean side.

[bradford]

They caught a 9 footer off the beach at the north end of Tybee a few weeks ago. I saw a 10-12 footer in Field's Cut about 8 years ago.