Flesh-eating plants at the coast, the perfect three that vanished in the Piedmont, fall color in the mountains. Take your pick.
Coast
Are we recommending this weekend’s back-to-back Carnivorous Plant Hikes just so we can use a picture of Seymour’s carnivorous creation?
I wrote the following story for the Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer in Raleigh; it appeared in both newspapers on Oct. 18, 2011. It appears here in expanded form, with links. Check out yesterday’s post for more on teens and sleep.
Sleeping and driving. According to a report by the National Sleep Foundation’s Sleep and Teens Task Force: “Drowsiness or fatigue has been identified as a principle cause in at least 100,000 police-reported traffic crashes each year, killing more than 1,500 Americans and injuring another 71,000, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA, 1994). Young drivers age 25 or under cause more than one-half of fall-asleep crashes. A North Carolina state study found that drivers age 25 or younger cause more than one-half (55 percent) of fall-asleep crashes … 78% were males. The peak age of occurrence was 20.”
Monday — never an easy time for the outdoors enthusiast. After a weekend of adventure, returning to the humdrum work-a-day world can make one melancholy. To help ease this trying transition, every Monday we feature a 90 Second Escape. Essentially, it’s a 90-second video of a place you’d probably rather be: a trail, a park, a greenway, a lake … anywhere as long as it’s in the sun.
There’s something for everyone in North Carolina this weekend: a triathlon at the coast, looking down for fall color in the Piedmont, taking the Great Pumpkin Mountain Challenge in the high country.
Coast
Thought your triathlon season was over? How about one last event — this Saturday’s Emerald Isle Triathlon. This is a slightly longer sprint distance tri: 750 meter swim in the Atlantic, 19.3k out-and-back bike ride along NC 58, 5k run along Ocean Drive. Flat, fast coastal race — with the buoyant ocean to lend a hand. 8 a.m. More info here.