In case you haven’t seen the forecast for this weekend, fall finally arrives. After summer’s last stand (hopefully), we’re looking at daytime temperatures in the 70s in the Piedmont, in the 60s in the mountains, ideal for finally getting out and enjoying some fall hiking.
Tag Archives: Mount Mitchell State Park
GetOut! Your Friday Nudge for Weekend Adventure
What to do on the last weekend of July? We have a thought or two …
Geology of Stone Mountain, Saturday, 9 a.m., Stone Mountain State Park, Roaring Gap. No doubt you’ve looked at that strange forehead protruding from the ground, the one from which Stone Mountain gets its name, and wondered, How did that happen? Here, at this one hour program at the Hutchinson Homestead, is your chance to find out. And if you’re left at the end yearning for more, eager to know all about Stone Mountain, then stick around until 2 p.m. for “All About Stone Mountain.” (You can do some hiking in between to pass the time.) For more info on both programs and to register, go here.
=&1=&, Saturday, 8 p.m., Haw River State Park Iron Ore Belt Access, Greensboro. We love a night hike, and we especially love one where we’re not compelled to watch our every footstep to avoid rocks and roots in the trail. On the smooth-as-sandstone 3.8-mile Great Blue Heron Trail you’ll be able to focus on the wonder of the night. Bring a flashlight/headlamp with red or blue filter, bring bug spray and water. For more info and to register, go here.
=&2=&, Sunday, 11 a.m., Mount Mitchell State Park. Visiting Mount Mitchell, which tops out at 6,684 feet, is like visiting another world — so many unusual things to see at that elevation. Sunday, let a ranger explain what it is your seeing and why it’s there on this guided hike on the Balsam Trail. More info and register here.
You can find more opportunities this weekend here:
- North Carolina State Parks have a variety of adventures planned for the weekend. Check those options here.
- North Carolina Environmental Education Centers has an extensive calendar of what’s happening at its affiliates; check it out here.
- You can also find more adventures right here, at GetGoingNC.com.
And learn more about where we spent this past week, featured in the video, by visiting the web sites for
Umstead State Park
This weekend: a 2X Tri, Wilderness Survival and the Friendly Side of Mitchell
Carolina Beach Double Sprint Triathlon: the triathlon so nice they let you do it twice. Plus, surviving the wilds of South Mountains and experiencing Mount Mitchell’s gentler side.
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Loaded with energy? Say, twice the energy you typically have?
Then perhaps you’re up for Saturday’s Carolina Beach Douple Sprint Triathlon in Carolina Beach. Swim 375 meters in the Atlantic, run 1.5 miles, bike 20K. Then, instead of collapsing and kicking back a cold one, collect yourself for another 1.5-mile run, another 375 meters in the ocean. The course is described as flat.
Logistics: Carolina Beach Double Sprint Triathlon, Saturday, June 24, 7 a.m., Carolina Beach, $85. More info here.
Saturday forecast: Partly cloudy with a race start temperature of 79.
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Looking ahead: Sharks Tooth Island Full Moon Kayak Trip, Aug. 7, Halyburton Park, Wilmington. More info here.
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You’re happily exploring, then, suddenly, you’re lost. Now what?
You’ll know what if you attend Saturday’s Wilderness Survival 101, which borrows a page — several, actually — from the Boy Scouts of America Handbook to cover basic first aid, shelter and a variety of other issues that can pop up in the wild.
Logistics: Wilderness Survival 101, Saturday, June 24, 2 p.m., South Mountains State Park, Connelly Springs. More info here.
Saturday forecast: Mostly sunny, afternoon high in the mid 80s.
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Looking ahead: Saturday and Sunday, July 1 and 2: the trails at Hanging Rock State Park’s Vader Mecum area are open. More info here.
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Pretty rugged terrain at Mountain Mitchell State Park, atop the East Coast. The rocky spine that defines the Black Mountains is a challenge to even the most experienced and nimble hiker. While the thought of hiking Mitchell is appealing, the reality can be intimidating.
Unless, that is, you drop off the ridge a short distance to the Commissary Trail. This former high country highway is flatter, friendlier and still takes in much of the high alpine, spruce and fir ecology that gives Mount Mitchell State Park its appeal. It’s also the site of a Guided Commissary Trail, a ranger-led hike Saturday.
Logistics: Guided Commissary Trail, Saturday, June 24, 11 a.m., Mount Mitchell State Park. More info here.
Sunday forecast: High at hike time of 60 with a chance of thunderstorms.
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Looking ahead: Riverboard Demo Day, July 22, Ledges Whitewater Park, Alexander (on the French Broad River). More info here.
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Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed below.
Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed 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 coastal 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
This weekend: A Labor of Fun
Labor Day weekend marks the unofficial end of summer (technically, summer ends at 10:29 p.m. on Sept. 22). Either way, you don’t want to miss out on a weekend of fun, be it paddling after ‘gators at the coast or exploring the highest land east of South Dakota’s Black Hills.
Coast
It’s Labor Day weekend, so you’re probably kicking out a little early, right? Early enough to make it to the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge for Friday morning’s canoe tour on Milltail Creek?
The trip runs from 9 a.m. to noon and is led by a naturalist who, among other things, will show you the difference between a downed log and a “downed log” that blinks. In other words, the preserver’s namesake reptile, the alligator. And there are plenty of ‘em lining the banks of Milltail Creek. Bring a telephoto lens (hats, sunscreen and lots of water are a good idea, too).
Logistics: Friday, Aug. 29, 9 a.m.-noon, Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, $40 for adults, $25 for kids 12 and under. Meeting location revealed when you call to register, at 252.216.9464. If you can’t make it Friday, the tour runs every Wednesday and Friday through September. Find more information on this and other NWR trips, here.
Friday forecast: Sunny, high of 78.
Piedmont
Learning outdoor skills can be done one of two ways: based on your own mistakes or based on the mistakes of others. We prefer the latter, which is why we’re recommending Saturday’s Outdoor Skills: The 7 Priorities of Wilderness Survival at Charlotte’s McDowell Nature Preserve. The class is a mix of lecture and hands-on, a good combination for making skills stick.
Logistics: Saturday, Aug. 30, 2 p.m., McDowell Nature Preserve, Charlotte. $3. More info and to register go here and enter #58424.
Saturday forecast: Sunny, high of 94.
Mountains
Mount Mitchell State Park is a great place to explore, but because of its rapidly changing weather and rugged terrain, it can be intimidating. A good place to explore with the folks who know the area best, like the park rangers.
Saturday, you have two opportunities to safely explore the highest country east of South Dakota’s Black Hills. At 9:30 a.m., join a ranger for an hour-and-a-half hike out to Mt. Craig and back, learning about the flora and fauna of this alpine setting. Miss that hike, or simply want more? Another guided hike explores the Commissary Trail, starting at 11 a.m.
Logistics: Saturday, Aug. 30, 9:30 and 11 a.m., Mount Mitchell State Park. 828.675.4611 for more info, or go here.
Saturday forecast: High of 84, mostly sunny.
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Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed 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
This weekend: National Get Outdoors with Fathers Day
Two reasons to get out this weekend: Saturday is National Get Outdoors Day, Sunday is Father’s Day. And lots of options for observing both!
Coast
You’re 4 years old and a little short on cash. Still, you want to show dad a good time on his day, Sunday, Father’s Day. What to do, what to do … .
If you live in the vicinity of Wrightsville Beach, you can take dad to the Blockade Runner, where from noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday all board rentals are free to certified dads (“father” to a Lab or Golden does not count). You’ve heard dad pining about wanting to ride the waves like Hawaiian royalty? Now’s the time to give him his shot. And if you can scrounge $3 in change, you can buy him a discount taco, too.
Logistics: Sunday, June 15, noon-3 p.m., Blockade Runner Beach Resort, Wrightsville Beach. More info here.
Sunday forecast: High of 82, change of thunderstorms.
Piedmont
Psst! Looking for a good paddle that not many folks know about? Saturday, the Piedmont Land Conservancy is sponsoring paddle suitable for beginners on the upper Haw River. The paddle begins at the Grove Winery and meanders about five miles downstream. A two- to three-hour trip, depending upon water levels and how many questions are asked about this intimate stretch of the Haw. Return to the winery put-in for a wine tasting.
Don’t have a boat? Don’t have a problem: call the PLC (see below) and they can hook you up.
Logistics: Saturday, June 14, 10 a.m. Grove Winery on the Haw River (here for directions). Call the Piedmont Land Conservancy to sign up: 336.691.0088
Saturday forecast: High of 85, mostly sunny.
Mountains
Not that you need one, but if you’re looking for a fun reason to visit Mount Mitchell, at 6,684 feet the highest peak east of South Dakota’s Black Hills, how about a scavenger hunt?
Saturday, Mount Mitchell State Park celebrates National Get Outdoors Day with a scavenger hunt. Stop by the mountain-top concession stand between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. and pick up your list of things to find. When you’ve found them, return to the concession stand for verification and a Moon Pie (you’ll need to pony up for the MP). What you win is part of the mystery. A good way to explore a terrain unlike any other in the region.
Logistics: Saturday, June 14, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Mount Mitchell State Park. More info on the park here.
Sunday forecast: High of 78, mostly sunny.
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Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed 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