Tag Archives: Hiking

GetOut! Here’s how to beat our first hot weekend

Whooo, baby! We’re looking at our first 90-degree weekend of the year. And you had your heart set on taking a hike.

No need to cancel your plans. You just need to alter them a wee bit.

From our GetHiking! Guide to Summer Hiking, a bit of advice:

  • Dress appropriately. Button-up fishing and hiking shirts typically have vents and mesh that do a good job of keeping your torso from building up head. Shorts are good, but there are also inexpensive lightweight nylon pants that protect your legs without keeping in the heat.
  • Hydrate. Always important, especially in heat. Increase your desire to drink by packing cold water, either by filling a water bottle three-quarters full the night before, freezing it and topping it off with cold water before the hike, or by loading a bladder with ice, then filling in the nooks and crannies with cold water.
  • Hike early. The coolest part of the day. This weekend, the temperatures shortly after sunrise should be in the low 60s.
  • Hike late. Temperatures typically peak late afternoon, then drop as the sun does. By 6:30 p.m. you should be down 10 degrees from the day’s high, and you’ll benefit from a continually dropping thermostat.
  • Choose a heat-resistant trail. How, you ask? Look for trails with:
    • Higher elevations. The temperature drops roughly 3 degrees for every 1,000 feet of elevation.
    • Near water. Trails along creeks or around lakes are especially good. If you start to overheat, kick off your boots and wade in.
    • Look for a northern exposure. Trails that spend most of their time on a northern exposure, away from direct sunlight, tend to be cooler.

    Not sure you want to do that much research? Worry not. We have some recommendations. read more

GetOut! Possible thunderstorms, definite wildflowers

Finally, the classic warm-weather forecast: Partly cloudy with a chance of thunderstorms. 

Meaning?

We’re not really sure what’s going to happen. 

Action?

Plan your weekend as usual, but before heading out, check the radar. It will be pleasantly warm this weekend — perhaps topping 80 in the Piedmont, but mostly in the upper 70s — but not hot enough to generate those pop-up storms that come from nowhere. (And no, I am not a meteorologist, just a guy who’s spent most of his life poking a wet index finger in the air to gauge the weather.) Thus, if you check the radar of choice of your weather app, you’ll be able to fairly accurately judge what’s coming, at least within the next few hours. If your radar has a projection function, engage it to see where the weather is likely headed. read more