It was the podcast you hope for setting out for a long walk: a tale of adventure and intrigue from a distant time that makes you think, Man, I wish I’d been there. That sense of longing fades to wistfulness when you realize you could have been there. Or some place very much like it.
Why we do this
The following post originally ran in December 2019. We run it again today for two reasons: 1) It explains (or tries) why we don’t let little inconveniences, like torrential rain and cold, keep us from hitting the trail, and 2) We’re way behind and don’t have a new post for this week.
Jump-start 2023 with a year-end 2022 adventure
Another year, another year of … .
If your knee-jerk response to finish this thought is “… not enough adventure,” we hear you. It’s a common sentiment this time of year. The leaves nearly gone, the cycle of another calendar year is fast coming to a close. We begin looking ahead to next year with thoughts of big plans for the year ahead. And that’s when it hit: “What were our plans for this year?” And what the heck happened to them?
2023 Year of the Trail
The State of North Carolina has declared 2023 to be Year of the Trail, and there’s going to be a lot going on. For starters, the State Legislature has allocated $29.15 million in funding for the Complete the Trails Fund. That money will fund projects on North Carolina’s 12 State Trails, which you can find here. Expect a lot of “Excuse our Mess” signs in 2023.
Coastal hikes beckon, with cooler weather
Editor’s note: Every year around this time — the time of cooling temperatures — we revisit some of our favorite coastal hikes. This year, we revisit last year’s list, with a tweak or two.
We generally refrain from hiking at the coast from late March through October. But once Halloween has passed and the flitting and slithering things that give us pause re subdued, our thoughts turn to the coast and some of our favorite hikes in the state. To hikers, this is the region’s real peak season. Pack a camera, a notebook, a handful of nature guidebooks. Camp, stay in cheap motels. Cook dinner over a camp stove, linger over breakfast, eat lunch on the go. And listen.