The northern mountains of North Carolina have the least amount of public land in the high country, yet the few places that are open to exploring offer some of the best adventures in the state.
Elk Knob State Park, for instance, located between Boone and West Jefferson, has one of the best mountaintop views in the state (see photo at top) from its 5,520-foot summit, a sweeping look east, north and west into Virginia and Tennessee. (And the 2-mile climb to get there is swell as well.)
Mount Jefferson State Natural Area towers above the town of Jefferson, and if you’re not up for the 1,000-foot vertical climb to the top, you can drive to the top and hike around this 4,465-foot mountaintop.
Pond Mountain. Love Mount Rogers in Virginia but aren’t crazy about the crowds? Pond Mountain, a joint venture by the Blue Ridge Conservancy and N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, is a similarly open and exposed mountain that also has that wide-lonesome feel of the West.
New River. One of the oldest rivers in the world and one of the most relaxing to paddle (you can even hike along its banks).
That’s just a taste of the adventure to be had at the Year of the Trail Weekend Festival in West Jefferson Aug. 4-6. The event is sponsored by the towns of West Jefferson, Lansing and Jefferson; Ashe County; the Blue Ridge Conservancy; the New River Conservancy; and, the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources’ Hometown Strong initiative.read more
Today, an evergreen post we like to run near the official start of summer (June 21, or next Wednesday): Our 10 favorite mountain watering holes, places where you are guaranteed to escape the death-grip of summer’s 90/90 (heat/humidity) doldrums. Some are just off the road, some you have to work for. All are worth a visit. Links for more information follow.read more
This weekend, seasonal temperatures finally arrive, and it appears they will will stick around at least through midweek. As the days heat up, you might be tempted to cool it on your hiking habit. But, actually, you can hike all summer long — the secret lies in the when and where. Here are a few tips from a piece we run the beginning of most summers to keep you on the trail .read more
Saturday is National Trails Day. Which, anymore, has become more the anchor for National Trails Day Weekend.
For the uninitiated, National Trails Day is the first Saturday of June, and has been for at least three decades. Sponsored by the American Hiking Society, it’s a chance for us to officially celebrate the trails — hiking, biking, paddling, horsing around, whatever — that we unofficially celebrate every day. In the beginning, NTD was seen primarily as a day to blaze new trail and tidy up existing trail. There’s still a lot of that, but more and more it’s become a celebration of hiking, biking, paddling — of simply enjoying the trail.read more
Editor’s Note: As summer rolls around and we find ourselves headed to the mountains for more challenging hikes, we often face the challenge of a stream crossing. Crossing’s cause anxiety for some hikers, but that needn’t be the case if you know how to approach them. Today’s post is a seasonal piece we repeat every few years on the art of the stream crossing.read more
