In our five-part Winter Wild monthly adventure series, we go off trail to explore some of the wildest places in the region. Our January hike will be to the Butner Game Lands, more than 40,000 acres of wetlands and bottomland woods on the north side of Falls Lake.

We’ll hike about six miles, mostly on limited access natural surface and gravel roads, around impoundment ponds, past blackwater swamps, through long stretches of dense bottomland woods. The terrain is reminiscent of hiking the wildlife refuges at the coast: long stretches of mostly flat, unchallenging terrain that invites thought and contemplation. Or, hiked with others, a good opportunity for a long chat.

Here’s a 30-second preview of our hike on Saturday, January 11. You can learn more about this, our third Winter Wild adventure of the season and the series itself, by going here.