North Carolina / Cape Fear River /
Lock and Dam #1
Boat ramp · on Cape Fear River · near Riegelwood · North Carolina
Open per North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Boating Access Areas's data, checked October 18, 2026. Seasonal gates, low water and storms are not always posted; check before you tow.
At the launch
- Type
- Boat ramp
- Fee
- Free
- Ramp lanes
- 1
- Ramp surface
- Concrete
- Trailer parking
- 9 spaces
- Car parking
- 13 spaces
- Restrooms
- No
- Hours
- 24 hours
- Wheelchair access
- Accessible parking
- Managed by
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- Website
- saw.usace.army.mil
- Coordinates
- 34.40320, -78.29316
Channel depths in feet from the Army Corps' surveys (Wilmington District; the one nearest this launch is of August 27, 2018). Not for navigation.
Conditions
- Weather forecast for this launch · National Weather Service
- Water level, flow at the CAPE FEAR R AT LOCK 1 NR KELLY, NC gauge · USGS, 0.1 mi away on Cape Fear River
Water level
Latest reading loads here; without it, see the USGS page below.
USGS gauge CAPE FEAR R AT LOCK 1 NR KELLY, NC, 0.1 mi from this launch on Cape Fear River: water level, flow, a reading every 15 minutes. Readings and history at USGS.
Channel survey
The Army Corps surveys the channels it maintains and posts every survey.
- Lock and Dam 1 UL
Condition survey of August 27, 2018 by the Wilmington District. Soundings on the sheet from 4.2 to 33.5 ft below mean low water (MLW); the Corps maintains a 8 ft channel here. Survey sheet (PDF)
US Army Corps of Engineers hydrographic surveys, from eHydro. A survey shows the bottom on the day it was made; channels shoal after high water and change with dredging. Not for navigation.
On Cape Fear River
River in North Carolina. All launches on Cape Fear River.
Community
Where people who use Cape Fear River talk about it.
Nearby launches
- Elwells Ferry · 6.5 mi · Cape Fear River
- Hunts Bluff · 7.7 mi · Black River
- Ivanhoe · 14.2 mi · Black River
- Lake Waccamaw Boat Launch · 16.4 mi · Lake Waccamaw
- Ennis Bridge · 16.5 mi · South River
- Sutton Lake Boat Launch · 18.5 mi · Lake Sutton
Sources
- North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Boating Access Areas record fa4c1500-1df4-4eb3-81f4-89da4a739cd0 · NCWRC: developed and maintained for free and public use; no warranty (ArcGIS item 825b21606e2040aabed210d878b2f3e5)
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers boat ramps (FHWA Federal Lands Transportation Facility Inventory) record 789-803014-7-001 · US federal government data, public domain (FHWA Federal Lands Transportation Facility Inventory, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers submittal)
- OpenStreetMap n11176025728 © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL
Why it is listed as public: listed by North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Boating Access Areas and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers boat ramps (FHWA Federal Lands Transportation Facility Inventory). Something wrong, or is this launch private? Send a correction; it goes to a person.