Kim

The number of visitors to DuPont State Recreational Forest this year hit 327,000 at the end of October, a historical high, and forest officials said attendance shows no sign of easing up anytime soon.

Publicity surrounding its mountain biking trails, waterfalls and a role in the filming of the popular “Hunger Games” movie has drawn in thousands.

Initial results of a 2012 exit poll conducted by DuPont rangers showed half of roughly 900 visitors surveyed were from North Carolina, 21 percent from South Carolina, 9 percent from Florida and 5 percent from Georgia. But rangers were surprised to find that about 2 percent of DuPont visitors were from California, while other groups came from as far away as China, Great Britain and the Ukraine.

The March premiere of “The Hunger Games” — and subsequent DVD release in August — lured hundreds more visitors hoping to see where star Jennifer Lawrence, who played “Katniss,” crossed Triple Falls and plunged into a pool below Bridal Veil Falls.

Brevard-based Hunger Games Fan Tours sold out all of its main-season events and were half-full for November. Bookings for 2013 tours have already begun filling up.

A second movie, “Hunger Games: Catching Fire,” will wrap up filming next month in Hawaii after shooting scenes this fall near Atlanta. Rangers predict interest in the filming locations — including DuPont — will remain strong among “Hunger Games” fans for years to come.

While good for tourism-related businesses, increased visitation at DuPont isn’t without its downsides. Growing pains at the forest include damage to stream banks and trails from heavy foot traffic, parking lots that regularly overflow onto roadsides and greater numbers of accidents.

In 2006, the forest recorded 20 incidents such as lost hikers, injured tourists and car accidents. In the first eight months of this year alone, there were double that amount, including 13 traumas and five search and rescues.

While Hurricane Sandy caused devastation to most of the Northeast, the Southeast experienced a much less severe storm. But the storm still managed to unearth a piece of buried history in Surf City, on Topsail Island.

A section of the William H. Sumner, a three-masted schooner whose young captain died under suspicious circumstances after running the ship aground in 1919, has been protruding from the sand a short distance from the Dolphin Street beach access.

The wreckage is a chunk of the ship that floated ashore when the Coast Guard blasted the vessel shortly after it ran aground, to remove the navigation hazard.

At least part of the 489-ton, 165-foot ship is believed to be resting at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean near the southern end of the island. Erosion caused by strong coastal storms routinely exposes what has been identified as a side portion of the ship. This piece has been there for quite a while, and should ideally remain there underneath the sand, being naturally preserved that way. The wreckage is only visible at certain periods of low tide.

A large frame of the ship that once rested on the shore is in the state archaeology lab in Fort Fisher. The frame was moved to the lab after a group of fishermen was caught trying to illegally remove it from the beach about a year ago.

The state claims all abandoned shipwrecks still in the water. Surf City Mayor Zander Guy said when the wreckage was initially exposed more than 10 years ago it was a public safety concern. Large iron bolts used to hold the ship’s frame together eventually erode into spikes – a potential hazard to beachgoers. The state can permit beach towns to relocate and re-bury ship wreckage.

For the most part, beach towns leave the artifacts in place, giving a residents and visitors a rare glimpse of the past outside of museum walls.

The Sumner is a valuable resource unique to Surf City since most shipwrecks on the North Carolina coast are in the Outer Banks.

Archaeologists have studied the ship, a “heavily-built” vessel that hauled lumber and phosphate rock for about 30 years. On Sept. 7, 1919, it was sailing precariously close to the shore, catching the attention of swimmers and sunbathers at Wrightsville Beach.

Shortly after it ran aground, the Sumner’s 24-year-old captain was dead. His ship’s mate, Charles L. Lacey, claimed that his boss, Robert E. Cockram, shot himself to death. This was Cockram’s first command after a promotion only two weeks before.

But evidence pointed to foul play, and Lacey was charged with murder. He was convicted of the crime but later acquitted in an appeal.

The 18th Annual Cucalorus Film Festival surpassed expectations all around, festival organizers estimated that this year’s attendance was up from last years by 10%. Filmmakers, actors, directors and screenwriters come from all over the country and all over the world, including some far travelers from Brazil this year, to attend the growing film fest.  The festival brings the best in feature and foreign films, shorts, and documentaries to Wilmington. Films are screened at Thalian Hall, City Stage, Jengo’s Playhouse, Screen Gems Studios, and The Soapbox for both public audiences, film students, and Cucalorus attendees.

About 11,600 people attended the four-day event, up from about 10,515 in 2011, according to Cucalorus organizers.

This year, the noncompetitive festival, which wrapped on Sunday night, had more screenings and events than in years past. More than 200 films from 17 different countries were presented.

Cucalorus Director Dan Brawley said he was pleased that festivalgoers attended a wide variety of screenings.

“Wilmington has a cozy, artsy vibe and Cucalorus is a good festival,” said Josh Koury, one of the film participants and Cucalorus attendees. Films like “Save the Date” and “Somebody Up There Likes Me” made quite a storm this year at the festival and are expected to do well in their theatrical releases. The Cucalorus Film Festival is certainly bringing the film industry to Wilmington and they are liking what they see.