More than 60 pilots are expected at this weekend's Hang Gliding Spectacular and Air Show.

A good looking weekend is on tap across North Carolina. Our thoughts on how to make the most of it include a trip to the coast, where some of the best hang gliders around will be circling Jockey’s Ridge; an excursion into the Piedmont, where they’ll be celebrating another milestone for the Mountains-to-Sea Trail; and a visit to the high country where they’re doing what you do when the spring wildflowers start to pop: you go for a hike.

Coast

If man were meant to fly he’d have swept-wing craft made of durable lightweight fabric attached to an aluminum or composite frame that he could harness himself into and take flight from an elevated location.

Like a sand dune.

Specifically, like the sand dunes at Jockey’s Ridge, home to this weekend’s Hang Gliding Spectacular and Air Games. The event kicks off Thursday night with a Pre Spectacular Party and runs through Monday morning. In between, there’s lots of competition and a film festival. More than 60 top hang gliders from all over are expected to participate. If you’ve ever toyed with the idea of flying, make plans to be at Jockey’s Ridge this weekend to see what it’s about.

Logistics: A full schedule of events and other pertinent info can be found at the Web site for sponsor Kitty Hawk Kites.

Weekend forecast: Looks like it will be overcast and warm, for the most part, with highs around 80.

Little Lick Creek Bridge.

Piedmont

If you’re a fan of long hikes, make plans to be at Falls Lake Saturday morning when the 100-foot bridge over Little Lick Creek is officially opened, officially establishing 60 miles of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail along the lake’s south shore. (“Officially,” because the bridge has actually been open for a couple months; apparently they just found the ribbon-cutting scissors). Words will be spoken at the Rollingview Recreation Area of Falls Lake, followed by a hike to, and over, the bridge-of-honor. It’s a nice stretch of trail, through tight forest at the beginning and, at the bridge, over an open wetland.

You can now hike the MST nonstop from Penny’s Bend at Old Oxford Highway near Durham downstream to the Falls Lake Dam. When the 1,000-mile MST is completely done (it’s a little over halfway now), you’ll be able to hike from Clingman’s Dome on the Tennessee border to Jockey’s Ridge on the Atlantic.

Logistics: The dedication is at 10 a.m., the hike follows. More info at the Friends of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail.

Saturday forecast: Partly cloudy, high of 73.

Mountains

This past weekend the weather was ... challenging in the Craggy Mountains. Which means this weekend should bode well for the Carolina Mountain Club’s Bee Tree Gap to Tanbark Tunnel hike Saturday on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. The 6.2-mile hike features passage over Lane Pinnacle and through Rattlesnake Lodge. Expect good views and lots of wildflowers.

Logistics: Shuttle to the trailhead departs from the Folk Art Center in Asheville at 9 a.m. For details and to register for the hike contact hike leader Kathleen Hannigan at 828-230-4883 or kathleen.hannigan@pgnmail.com. For more on the route, go here.

Saturday forecast: Partly cloudy, high of 74.

* * *

Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.

* * *
Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too

Ridiculously hard, according to the list of goals I compiled. Spend 55 nights in a tent, for instance. Or do a 50-mile trail run, a 55-mile mountain bike race, do 55 pushups in a row, run 11 5Ks. Individually, doable. But cumulatively a challenge even if I’d had the financial luxury of devoting my entire year to just these goals. I did manage a couple: I did a 55(ish)-mile backpack trip in December and my resting heart rate is 55 (though it was 54 a year ago).

While I didn’t check off the majority of my 55 goals, the year was far from a wash. I gravitated away from 5Ks to the less-punishing, longer trail runs, completing the 12-mile MST Challenge and the 20-mile version of the Uwharrie Mountain Run. In the climbing world, I didn’t do a 5.5 climb outdoors, but I have done a 5.9 indoors. I didn’t do a 55-mile mountain bike race, but I did manage to survive Charlie Storm’s 42-mile January Mountain Bike Marathon. And, I’m in the process of getting my open water recertification in Scuba. Not a bad 55th year.

This year, I’ll still have goals but they won’t be arbitrarily set over a health report and too much caffeine. Instead, my goal is to constantly have a goal. Knock off one event, make sure another is lined up to keep me from slacking off. My 56th gets off to a good start with two epics: Next Wednesday, my buddy Alan and I will celebrate our birthdays (his is May 10) by riding 60 (his age) miles at Umstead, Crabtree and surrounding environs. Then, the following Monday I get to serve as Diane Van Deren’s trail guide for the day as she runs across North Carolina. I’ll be doing somewhere between 31 and 39 miles with her as part of the MST Endurance Run.

Not a bad start to year 56. Here’s hoping it ends just as well.

Mallard Creek (photo courtesy N.C. State Parks)

Mother’s Day means time spent with mom — preferably in the great outdoors. Take mom on a coastal hike, unravel the mysteries of Grandfather Mountain, or run with her through a vineyard. Whatever you do, it’s bound to be memorable.

Coast

Nothing says Mother’s Day outing more, to us, than a relaxed ramble through a coastal wetland. Which is no doubt what the folks at Goose Creek State Park outside Washington on the Pamlico Sound had in mind when they scheduled Sunday’s Mallard Creek Hike. “Enjoy a fresh breath of air and experience nature at its best. The hike will be an easy 1.5 miles and taken at a pace which will allow you to relax and enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of nature.” Hallmark couldn’t have said it better.

Logistics: Hike commences at 2 p.m. Sunday, meet at Parking Lot #3 (the last lot inside the park). More info at the park Web site or by calling 252.923.2191.

Sunday forecast: High of 75, mostly cloudy.

Piedmont

Here’s something for the whole running family, especially mom and dad: Saturday’s Running of the Vines 10K on the grounds of the Yadkin Valley’s Shelton Vineyards. No mention of wine tastings at the aid stations, but each runner age 21 or older does get two free tickets to a sunset concert that evening. Besides, running through a vineyard? Every barefoot runner’s dream.

Logistics: $35, race starts at 8 a.m. Saturday. Race day registration from 7-7:45 a.m. Free kids fun run at 9:30 a.m. Benefits the Mount Airy and Surry County parks and rec departments. More info here.

Saturday forecast: High of 75, clear early.

Photo courtesy Grandfather Mountain

Mountains

You always hear about how ecologically diverse Grandfather Mountain is, but just how diverse is it? There’s no better time to find out than on this, the Grandfather Mountain Naturalist Weekend. A spring bird count and owl prowl on Friday; wildflower hike, birds of prey, crayfish research, “Nature on the Edge,” and trees and shrubs on Saturday; and geology, birding along the profile trail, a NASA climate workshop, animal tracking, flora disease and more on Sunday. All with the price of admission.

Logistics: Friday, Saturday and Sunday, park admission ($18 for adults, $15 for seniors $60 and up, $8 for kids 4-12) gets you into all events. More info here.

Weekend forecast: Dry weekend with highs in the upper 60s.

* * *

Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.

* * *
Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too
 

Coast

If you’re a cyclist looking to do your first century ride, you have a big ally in the coastal plain: the closest things to a hill? Bridge overpasses. Couple your urge to log triple-digit miles with a good cause —  Ride to a Wish, which raises money to help kids battling serious illness a chance to fulfill a dream — and you’ve got Saturday’s Tour de Wish out of Columbia (on US 64 east of Manteo).  The Tour actually kicks off Friday evening with a Zombie Hash (appropriate dress required) pasta dinner at 7, followed by Saturday’s 8 a.m. ride, which winds through scenic (and flat) Tyrrell County. Stick around afterward for live music. 50- and 33-mile options as well.

Logistics: $20 registration fee and you must raise a minimum of $50, a nominal amount as these events go. (That's a minimum: last year’s event raised more than $30,000 and granted six wishes.). More info here.

Saturday forecast: High of 90, 40 percent chance of rain.

Piedmont

It’s a full moon Saturday, and nighttime events abound, from paddles to hikes, including one aimed at kids at the Annie Louise Wilkerson MD Nature Preserve Park in Raleigh. “Many animals are active right around sunset or shortly after. Take a walk with a park naturalist to explore the woods and fields at this special time. Look for deer, foxes, coyotes, owls, moths and lightning bugs.” Nothing like a pair of beady eyes glaring at you from the forest’s inky depths.

Logistics: From 8-9:30 p.m., $2 person, all small persons must be in the company of an adult. More info on the preserve here.  Or call 919.996.6764.

Saturday forecast: Daytime high of 86, 50 percent chance of rain.

Mountains

This weekend, starting Friday, it’s the 15th Annual French Broad River Festival in Hot Springs, a classic combination of live music on two stages with outdoor activities, including the 8th Annual French Broad River Festival Mountain Bike Race on Saturday at 9 a.m. (route and other information provided at that time) and a 9-mile raft race, from Barnard down the French Broad to Hot Springs (including one Class IV rapid), also beginning at 9 a.m. You can also get tips on whitewater paddling from U.S. Freestyle Rodeo Team member Eli Helbert in a Paddle with the Pros clinic, and there are various outdoor activities for the kids.

Logistics: The Festival begins Friday afternoon. Fee structure varies: Festival ticket-holders participate free in all events, individual fees for the races. More information here.

Weekend forecast: Highs in the upper 70s, 40 percent chance of rain Sunday.

* * *

Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.

* * *

Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too

Nicholas Sparks with some guys enjoying his track.

A run with romance! A walk/run/bike for a cause, a wild hike for wildflowers highlight the action in North Carolina this weekend.

Coast

Did you know that before Nicholas Sparks was making women and girls misty-eyed with his tales of romance he ran track at Notre Dame? Surprised by that plot twist? That being the case, though, it shouldn’t surprise you that a 5K and 1-mile Fun Run are part of his Nicholas Sparks Celebrity Family Weekend starting Friday in New Bern? The 5K travels through roadkill-flat New Bern and ends on the state-of-the art track Sparks donated to New Bern High School. The 1-mile Fun Run is entirely on the track.

Logistics: $40 for the 5K, $30 for the fun run (procrastinators are dinged a $10 late-filing fee). Race day registration is from 7:30-8:30 a.m. at the Nicholas Sparks Track at the New Bern High School located at 4200 Academic Drive in New Bern. 5K is at 9 a.m., fun run at 10:15. More info here.

Weather forecast: High of 77, 60 percent chance of rain.

Walk, run or bike in support of Umstead.

Piedmont

Imagine being able to walk or run or bike as a way to support your favorite park or forest. Imagine this Saturday’s Walk/Run/Bike for Umstead. This annual fund raiser for Umstead State Park in Raleigh includes a run/walk component on four miles of park trail and two bike tours, both lead by the Triangle Off-Road Cyclists, one four miles for beginners, the other 12 miles for more experienced riders. Rides begin at 9:30 a.m., the runs at 9:45. Trail is finely crushed, foot and tire friendly gravel roadbed.

Logistics: $15 for kids 12 and under, $35 for adults. Online registration through Thursday, April 19 at noon, in person registration at certain locations which you can learn more about here.

Weather forecast: High of 79 with a chance of thunderstorms.

Indian paintbrush: You might see some on Sunday's CMC hike.

Mountains

The wildflowers are blooming in the high country — you just need to know where to look for them. That’s why you should follow the folks who’ve been following them for years; in the case of Sunday’s Hawkbill Flower Hike, that would be the Carolina Mountain Club. They know, for instance, that the vivid display of wildflowers peaks in this nook of the Craggy Mountains in late April. They also want you to know that the 8.4-mile route they’ll be taking is not for everyone: “This great wildflower hike follows a rough trail up alongside Hawkbill Creek to the top of the cove, then a very steep 400 ft bushwhack up to Hawkbill Rock. ...” They also want you to know that it’s worth it: ““The wildflowers and ramps have been spectacular every time CMC has done this hike.”

Logistics: Sunday at 8 a.m. is when the hike will gather. For info on where they’ll gather and to sign up, contact Carroll Koepplinger at 828-667-0723 or CarrolKoepp@bellsouth.net. You can find a description of the hike here.

Weather forecast: High of 65, 70 percent chance of rain (at nearby Mount Mitchell).

* * *

Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.

* * *

 
Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too

This stretch under Lake Boone Trail is finished; only two paving projects remain on the House Creek Greenway.

If you’ve been driving Raleigh’s Beltline between Wade Avenue and Glen Eden Drive, sneaking peeks into the woods and wondering when on earth the House Creek Greenway is going to open, the answer is June 25.

That’s the official answer. In reality, it should be passable by Memorial Day.

The eagerly anticipated 2.9-mile greenway will link the 11-mile Crabtree Creek Trail to the north with the Reedy Creek/Museum of Art/Rocky Branch/Umstead/Black Creek greenway network to the south. It was supposed to open in March, but City of Raleigh greenway guru Vic Lebsock said the contractor encountered problems relocating utilities, especially around Glen Eden Drive, where the greenway tunnels under the road, then loops up to it to cross the Beltline before continuing north on the west side of the highway. Those delays late last fall pushed back the paving date, and this being a N.C. Department of Transportation-supported project, paving is prohibited between December 15 and March 15.

“You can’t lay asphalt when it’s cold,” says Lebsock. And while, yes, this was a mighty warm winter and they probably could have paved, “you need a number of continuous days in a row, and that’s hard to predict.”

Lebsock adds that the project isn’t late. “The contract date for completion is June 25. The contractor actually had been ahead of schedule.”

Tomorrow (Friday, the 13th), Lebsock says they should be paving the stretch of House Creek at Glen Eden. Next week the remaining missing pavement around Horton Street should be done. The last major work remaining will be boardwalk through wetlands, also in the Horton Street area. Lebsock says that should be done by the third week in May.

From there, it’s a matter of the contractor dotting the greenway’s i’s and crossing its t’s. But Raleigh greenway users are an impatient lot who aren’t prone to let a little incompleteness interfere with their fun.

Expect heavy thru traffic by Memorial Day.

* * *

Come back next week when GetGoingNC.com will give an update on the Neuse River Trail on Tuesday and on Wednesday take a look at what happens when the current $35 million greenway building boom concludes at the end of next year.

Saturday: a good time on the Dismal Canal.

I know it’s just Tuesday, but what better time to start planning for the weekend ahead than while the memory of the weekend past is still fresh

Coast

Two great options at Dismal Swamp State Park this weekend. Saturday, it’s Bike to the Bull North Burn, an 8-mile round-trip bike ride to the site of last year’s Bull North Fire. There’s a 20-minute program at the site, followed by a box lunch. Brink your own bike or rent one on site (make arrangements when you call to register). Starts at 9 a.m.

Sunday, it’s Kayaking the Canal, a 1- to 2-hour paddle of the Dismal Swamp Canal. Paddle gear provided, you bring the sunscreen, bug spray, water and appropriate paddle clothing. Starts at 10 a.m.

Logistics: Saturday’s bike program is free (unless you need to rent a bike), helmets are required. Sunday’s paddle program is likewise free. Preregistration is required for both, by calling 252-771-6593.

Weekend forecast: Saturday: overcast early, then partly cloudy with a high of 77; Sunday: partly cloudy with a high of 79.

Leopard's Bane (photo courtesy Eno River Association).

Piedmont

Need a little extra incentive to get out and walk? How about the peak of the spring wildflower season? This 1.5-mile hike at Eno River State Park will go by in a flash as a naturalist fills you in on all the wildflowers filling out the forest floor. Bring a camera.

Logistics: Free, preregistration required, by calling 919.383.1686. Begins at 11 a.m.

Weekend forecast: 68 and partly cloudy.

Assault on the Carolinas

Mountains

Ah, the spring cycling classics. Not the pro European classics; rather, the classic spring mountain rides in North Carolina’s high country. Rides such as this Saturday’s Assault on the Carolinas out of Brevard. Put on by the Pisgah Forest Rotary Club, the ride is actually three rides: a 40K (25 miles), 60K (37 miles) and 100K (65.8 miles). The latter includes a classic Southeast climb, the six-mile grind up Caeser’s Head south of the border in South Carolina. Added incentive: training guru and Lance buddy Chris Carmichael will lead the 100K and raffle off a $1,000 Carmichael Training Systems camp session. Starts at 9 a.m. followed by live music until 8 p.m.

Logistics: Register online through April 11 for $40, race day registration, from 7-9 a.m., $50. More info here.

Weekend forecast: 75 and partly cloudy.

* * *

Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.
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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 the transition, every Monday we feature a 90 Second Escape — essentially, 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 not under a fluorescent bulb.

Today’s 90-Second Escape: Pilot Mountain.

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I needed to be outside to do it. I needed a destination that wouldn’t restrict my options, one accommodating to the soul who couldn’t decide whether he wanted to hike or paddle, to be still and take in the wildlife, or to be about as wild as I get and go climbing. I also didn’t want to drive all day to get there.

That left one obvious option: Pilot Mountain State Park. Tag along for 90 seconds and see what I found.

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This could be you. Really!

Even before the talk began I realized I had a live one on the line.

I was at the King Public Library Tuesday evening for a presentation on backpacking, a presentation  tied to my book, “Backpacking North Carolina.” On the surface, the book is a guide to 43 places to backpack in the state. But it’s true intent is to debunk the backpacking stereotype: of an arduous pursuit best left to survivalists and folks with a high threshold for discomfort.

My first mark was about my age and had backpacked in the ‘70s, mostly in the Smokies. “I especially loved winter camping,” he told me. “No bugs.” But then he started having back problems and drifted from the pursuit.

Back problems. I saw an opening.

“Did you have an external frame pack?” I asked. Sure did. An ungainly thing whose aluminum frame was constantly jabbing him in the ribs and back.

“Try this on,” I said, helping him slip on my pack, which I’d brought as a visual aid. I’ve got a year-old Osprey Aether and it’s a good representation of modern backpack technology. It’s got a lightweight, non-jabbing, alloy frame; multiple adjustment straps to get the fit just right; comes in various sizes; and, has a hip belt that’s heat-molded to the wearer’s body. Packed correctly, it’s more appendage than awkward appurtenance.

“Wow,” he said. “That’s a lot different.” He hadn’t even buckled the belt.

“A lot easier on your back,” I pointed out. “One other thing that will help your back, as well as your knees and legs, are hiking poles.” I detected a slight knee-jerk, I’m-not-an-old-man grimace.

“Seriously,” I continued, “when I started reporting this book I’d come home from trips, my knees would be swollen and I’d hobble around for a week. So I relented and got hiking poles. They made a huge difference for my knees and I probably hiked about a half mile an hour faster.” All true.

My second challenge of the evening was an avid hiker and car camper. But when it came to backpacking, “I just don’t like walking with all that weight on my back,” she said. A perfect segue for why I wrote the book.

“I was reluctant to write this book at first because I didn’t think I was the right person for it,” I explained. “I wasn’t an epic backpacker. I hadn’t thru-hiked the AT, hadn’t really done much more than four-day trips. But then I got to thinking that those missing qualifications were what, in fact, made me a good choice for writing a backpacking guide. The more I talked to fellow hikers and occasional backpackers, the more I realized they didn’t like tromping around with all that weight, either.

“So I ended up writing a book based largely on the base camp concept: Backpack in four, five, six miles, set up base camp, do day hikes from there.”

A distant look settled over her face. “I might like that,” she said.

I can’t really count a third, younger member of the audience as a convert; he was about to enter grad school at Western Carolina in part because of its Cullowhee location, smack in the middle of the Southern App action. He was already planning a trip or two, but I could tell his enthusiasm level rose considerably when I started talking about how technology has helped take the sacrifice out of backpacking. From my kitchen bag I pulled my JetBoil, a gas stove that boils water in less than two minutes; a freeze-dried dinner (beef stroganoff), which I told them was surprisingly good; my beloved instant oatmeal, which mixed with brown sugar and almonds makes a great trail breakfast.

“And this,” I said sticking my hand back into the kitchen stack for a slow, teasing reveal, is my most cherished piece of equipment. “It looks like just an insulated plastic coffee mug, but watch this” — and here I pulled the lid off to reveal a screened trap on a plunger — “it’s a French press! Makes the best trail coffee ever.”

Afterward, the Catamount-to-be came up, his eyes big. “I’m really excited about that French press,” he said. “I was worried about coffee.”

Myths persist about backpacking and so many other activities that are so much more accessible than most people realize. I’m reminded of this regularly at the Triangle Rock Club, where I run into folks who never in their wildest pictured themselves as a risk-taking climber. But a friend persuaded them to take an intro class, they realized how little risk is actually involved and before they knew it they were climbing gym rats. The same with paddlers, mountain bikers, Scuba divers, you name it.

Doubt me? Then give me a chance. Tell me about an activity you’ve toyed with the idea of trying, then told yourself you couldn’t possibly because ... . Tell me the “because” and I’ll do my best to convince you otherwise.

As Ken Chlouber is famous for telling participants in the Leadville 100, a race series he founded in 1994 and ran for years, You are better than you think you are. You can do more than you think you can.

Drop me a line and give yourself a chance to find out.

The view from the Appalachian Trail bridge over the Nantahala River at the Nantahala Outdoor Center.

A 5K/10K kicks off the Azalea Festival in Wilmington, there’s a ride with lunch in the Triangle and at the Nantahala Outdoor Center they’ll be celebrating hiking and long trails. A good cross-section of sweaty fun this weekend in North Carolina.

Coast

What better way to kick off a festival than with a run? This Saturday’s Azalea 5K/10K/Fun Walk, for example, which kicks off Wilmington’s annual Azalea Festival. (Kicks off prematurely: while the race is Saturday, the festival proper doesn’t get underway until Wednesday.) The course is flat and USATF certified. It’s $35 to participate, but funds go help the Big Buddy program.

Logistics: $35, online registration ends tonight at midnight. Race begins at 8 a.m. (packet pickup is from 6:30-7:30 a.m.) More info here.

Weekend forecast: Sunny with a high of 66.

These people are responsible for Saturday's MS Spring Fling.

Piedmont

Eager for that first group ride of the year? It could happen Saturday on the MS Spring Fling, sponsored by Team MSFits. Both the 30- and 50-mile rides begin at the Sam’s Club in Morrisville and work their way through RTP and out to Falls Lake and Granville County and back. Lunch at the finish, provided by Carino's Italian, Moe's Southwest, California Pizza Kitchen and Hooters.

Logistics: $40 to ride, register here.

Weekend forecast: Sunny with a high of 66 (bring your sleeves!)

Mountains

Typically, we associate the Nantahala Outdoor Center with whitewater sports, but Friday and Saturday the NOC celebrates is location on the Appalachian Trail with the AT Founder’s Bridge Festival. “Put on your boots, bring your friends, and join us to celebrate this historic trail,” the NOC implores on its Web site. “Day hikers, long distance warriors, and outdoor enthusiasts alike are welcome to share their passion with like-minded folks. Enjoy trail-steeped speakers sharing their experiences, a vendor village staffed by industry representatives, skills clinics, as well as some great product giveaways and door prizes and live music nightly.” Among the speakers you won’t want to miss: Jennifer Pharr Davis (author, “AT Speed Record Hike,” “Becoming Odyssa”, backcountry guide Patrick Warren and Bill Walker, author of books on the AT, PCT, Camino de Santiago, among others.

Logistics: Festivities from 2 p.m. to midnight Friday, 8 a.m. ‘til late Saturday. A breakdown of the schedule here.

Weekend forecast: Rainy Friday morning but clearing in the afternoon, high of 68. Sunny and 75 on Saturday.

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Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.

* * *
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