In North Carolina, more than 50 bird counts are scheduled during the three-week period of the count, from Dec. 14 through Jan. 5. The Tarheel count opens Sunday, Dec. 14 with events in Durham, Morehead City, Mount Jefferson State Natural Area and Lake Norman, The count concludes Jan. 5 with a count at Kerr Lake. In Virginia, nearly 60 counts are scheduled.

Resources

You can find a full rundown of CBC events at the Audubon website, here.
For more about the count in general, visit the Audubon CBC site here.

The post Three weeks that count for the birds appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

In North Carolina, 62 bird counts are scheduled during the three-week period of the count, from Dec. 14 through Jan. 5. The Tarheel count opens with events at Mount Jefferson and Pilot Mountain (the latter appears to still be on, despite a recent wildfire that burned more than 1,000 acres on the mountain). The count concludes Jan.5 with counts in the Upper Yadkin River Valley and at Roanoke Rapids. At least four counts have already reached capacity and are closed. 

You can find a full rundown of CBC events at the Audubon website, here.
For more about the count in general, visit the Audubon CBC site here.

The post Audubon’s CBC: Three Weeks for the Birds appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

As we noted in Wednesday’s post, February is a great month for hiking because of its link, in the Southeast at least, between the last of the best of winter and the beginning of spring. One particular upside of February is that you can start thinking about heading back up to the mountains. Sure, maybe not the highest peaks, where winter will hold court into late March, but certainly along the Blue Ridge Escarpment — and not far beyond. 

In the “not far beyond” category are isolated small peaks such as Mount Jefferson, in the far northwest corner of the state. This isolated peak reaches 4,683 feet, impressive by regional standards and a worthy destination for a first-of-the-season mountain hike: the Rhododendron and Lost Province trails combine for a scenic 2-mile mountaintop hike. And if you need added incentive — and want to learn a thing or two — Mount Jefferson State Natural Area is hosting two hikes this weekend: Climate Tower Hike on Saturday at 2 p.m., the Luther Rock Nature Hike on Sunday at 2 p.m. Click the appropriate link for more information.

A couple more events that might be of interest:

Seven Mile Creek Natural Area, Sunday, 2 p.m., Hillsborough. We’re especially excited about this hike in the Eno River Association’s Sunday Afternoon Winter Hike Series because it explores new terrain. Well, not “new,” exactly: it’s been around a while. But it is new in terms of accessibility. This 3-mile hike will utilizes old farm roads that will be part of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail to follow Seven Mile Creek, an Eno tributary, past old homesteads. Get to know Seven Mile Creek this Sunday by meeting at 2 p.m. at 2187 Moorefields Road, Hillsborough. (Follow the signs to “The Moorefields.”) More info here.

Great Backyard Bird Count, Saturday and Sunday, various locations. For the past 22 years, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society have been keeping tabs on the world’s bird population by employing volunteer eyes like yours to monitor bird activity in their own backyards. Currently, about 100,000 citizen scientists participate in the count. As the event’s name might suggest, you can do the count on your own, in your own backyard. Or, you can join others, including practiced birders who know their birds, at scheduled events. For instance, the Triangle Land Conservancy is holding a GBBC Friday at their Brumley Nature Preserve North near Hillsborough, Saturday at the Bailey & Sarah Williamson Preserve in southeast Raleigh, and Sunday at their White Pines Nature Preserve south of Pittsboro. Learn more about those events and sign up to join in, here. Similarly, group counts are scheduled Saturday at Hammocks Beach State Park and Eno River State Park. Learn more about those counts at the N.C. State Parks web site, here.

GetHiking! this weekend

What are our GetHiking! groups in North Carolina and Virginia up to this weekend? Plenty, thanks for asking … 

GetHiking! Charlottesville: James Madison’s Montpelier to Grelen and Back, Friday, February 14, 9 a.m., 11350 Constitution Hwy., Montpelier Station. Easy. 6 miles. Hike highlight: Montpelier. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Triangle: Valentine’s Day Hike: Loblolly Trail to Schenck Forest, Saturday, February 15, 10 a.m., Schenck Forest Access Rd., Raleigh. Easy. 5 miles. Hike highlights: chocolate exchange. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Charlottesville: Bear Church Rock, Saturday, February 15, 8:30 a.m., 4105 Lewis and Clark Dr.., Charlottesville. Strenuous. 10 miles. Hike highlight: Bootens Gap, Appalachian Trail, Laurel Prong Trail, Cat Knob Trail, Cat Knob, Jones Mountain Trail, Bear Church Rock. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Charlottesville: Sunset Hike on Rivanna Trail: Riverview Park to Free Bridge, Saturday, February 15, 4 p.m., 298 Riverside Ave., Charlottesville. Easy. 1.5 miles. Hike highlight: fields and forests along the Rivanna River. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Charlotte: Dutchmans Creek Loop, Uwharrie National Forest, Saturday, February 15, 9:30 a.m., Dutchman’s Creek Trailhead, Mt. Gilead. Strenuous. 11.3 miles. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Virginia Beach: York River State Park, Sunday, February 16, 11 a.m., 5526 Riverview Rd., Williamsburg. Easy-Moderate. 5-10 miles. Learn more here.

Live the video

Today’s video is from Saturday’s hike on Day Hike Section K of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, at 7.3 miles the longest undisturbed run of the trail along Falls Lake. Learn more about this stretch of the MST here.

More Weekend Options

Looking for more options for weekend adventure? Check out our GetOut! Find An Adventure resource page here.

The post GetOut! Your Friday Nudge for Weekend Adventure appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

We live less than a half mile from Occoneechee State Natural Area in Hillsborough, and I either hike or run there a couple times a week. Though I generally like to mix things up on trail I do regularly — hiking clockwise one time, counterclockwise the next — I have the same routine at Occoneechee: I enter from the neighborhood entrance off Eno Mountain Road, then take the Occoneechee Mountain Loop Trail, Overlook Trail and Chestnut Trail back to the Loop Trail, which brings me around the west side of the mountain to the Eno River for the hike’s highlight: a 75-yard stretch beneath a north-facing cliff that is perpetually green. Green with holly and ferns, which are common in these parts, but also with mountain laurel, with rhododendron, and even a narrow carpet of galax. For this brief stretch the trail leaves the Piedmont for the Southern Appalachians.

We look to trails for escape. My Occoneechee route is the Tardis of Triangle Trails. It’s also the focus of a ranger-led hike Saturday at 2 p.m. From the park’s main lot, armed with water and closed-toe shoes, the group will head out on a mile-and-a-half hike in search of Evergreens at Occoneechee. Learn more about the hike and about how to register, here. 

So what else is going on this second weekend of December?

Winter Bird Walk, Sunday, 3 p.m., Weymouth Woods State Natural Area, Southern Pines. One of our favorite places to hike in winter (yes, technically winter doesn’t start until a week from Sunday, but have you stepped outside lately?), is Weymouth Woods State Natural Area. Even on a cold winter day the sun penetrates this expanse of longleaf pines — one of the largest collections of longleaf pines remaining — warming the soul and igniting the smell of pine. The terrain and location also make it a prime winter bird watching site. This program piggybacks on Audubon’s 120th Christmas Bird Count bird count occurring at the park, meaning there will be plenty of qualified birders on hand to help identify what you’re seeing. Learn more here. 

Hike with a Ranger at Mayo River State Park, Saturday, 1 p.m., Mayo River State Park: Hickory Creek Access, Stoneville. Maybe you know someone who’s looking to be more active in 2020, but hasn’t quite figured out how to make that happen. This hike on an old farm road would make for a great way to float hiking as an option: it’s on an old road, which generally means more foot-friendly travel, and it’s less than a mile long. Just long enough to get the heart rate up and stoke an appreciation for hiking, not so long that it seems like work — or worse, a workout. Learn more here.

GetHiking! this weekend

What are our GetHiking! groups in North Carolina and Virginia up to this weekend? Plenty, thanks for asking … 

GetBackpacking! Weekend Quick Escape: Birkhead Mountain Wilderness, Uwharrie NF, Friday, December 13, 5 p.m. – Sunday, December 15, 12 p.m., 3091 Tot Hill Farm Rd., Asheboro. Moderate. 15 miles. Hike highlights: Birkhead Mountain Wilderness Loop, views from ridge line. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Charlottesville: Thornton River Circuit, Sunday, December 15, 8 a.m., 4105 Lewis and Clark Dr., Charlottesville. Strenuous. 10.5 miles. Hike highlights: Elkwallow Wayside, Appalachian Trail, Piney Ridge Trail, Fork Mountain Trail, Thornton Hollow Trail, Thornton River Trail, multiple stream crossings, Thornton River Falls. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Charlottesville: Appalachian Trail – Rockfish Gap to Paul Wolfe Shelter, Sunday, December 15, 10 a.m., 415 Ray C Hunt Dr., Charlottesville. Moderately Strenuous. 9 miles. Hike highlights: This section of the AT is primarily along a ridgeline. And with the trees stripped of their leaves, we should be treated to several nice views of the Rockfish Valley. Learn more here.

GetHiking! Winter Wild: New Adventure in the Places You Most Love to Hike, Saturday, December 21, 10 a.m., Lower Haw River State Natural Area, Pittsboro. Moderate. 6-8 miles. Hike highlights: East bak of the Haw River between Bynum and Jordan Lake. Learn more here.

Live the video

This week’s video takes us on the Company Mill Trail at Umstead State Park in Raleigh. It’s the park’s most popular trail, in part because it has options: Hike down to Crabtree Creek and back for a 2-mile roundtrip hike, continue on and do the abbreviated Company Mill Loop (cutting short across the Reedy Creek Bike & Bridle Trail) for about 5 miles, or do the entire loop of just under 6 miles. Learn more about exploring Umstead here.

More Weekend Options

Looking for more options for weekend adventure? Check out our GetOut! Find An Adventure resource page here.

The post Getout! Your Friday Nudge for Weekend Adventure appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

The natural world presents many questions in winter. This weekend, you have a chance to learn many answers.

Coast

When you head to the coast, hiking often isn’t atop your list of things to do. It should be, especially this time of year. The bugs are at bay (or at least at a minimum), the temperatures aren’t stifling, and, perhaps most significantly, it is serene, the calm before the summer crowds descend.

And because it is the more temperate coast, nature is more alive than it is in colder reaches of the state.

Take Carolina Beach State Park, for instance, where the park’s website states, “Several coastal ecosystems are present in the park. Forests dominated by longleaf pine, turkey oak and live oak occupy the dry, coarse soil of a series of relict sand dunes. Between the dunes are dense shrub swamps, called pocosins, populated by pond pines, loblolly and sweet bay, yaupon and evergreen shrubs. Brackish marshes consisting primarily of cordgrasses and sedges can be found beyond the relict dunes adjacent to the river.”

That’s a lot to take in on your own. Fortunately, the park periodically holds a Biological Wonderland Hike, the next one of which is Saturday. Let a ranger help you identify these adjoining ecosystems and understand how they interact. The hike begins at 2 p.m., from the Flytrap Trail Parking Area.

Logistics: Biological Wonderland Hike, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2 p.m., Carolina Beach State Park, Carolina Beach. More info here.

Saturday forecast: Sunny with a high of 70 at hike time.

* * *

Looking ahead: U.S. Open Fat Bike Championships, March 11, Blockade Runner Resort, Wrightsville Beach. More info here.

Piedmont

One of the joys of winter in North Carolina is that it serves as the overwintering grounds for a goodly number of waterfowl. Most folks think this phenomenon is limited to the coast, where tundra swans, northern pintails and others by the hundreds of thousands spend the mild coastal winter in lakes, marshes and other wetlands. But the interior of North Carolina also gets its share of feathered visitors.

Learn about these migrants as well as the native avian population Sunday on a Waterfowl Birding Boat Tour on Lake Townsend in Greensboro. A naturalist leads this hour-and-a-half tour conducted on a pontoon boat.

Logistics: Waterfowl Birding Tour, Sunday, Feb. 26, 3 p.m., Lake Townsend Marina, Greensboro. $7. Learn more and sign on, here.

Saturday forecast: Sunny with a tour-time temperature of 58.

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Looking ahead: Not a boat person? Take in the lake from the Palmetto & Nat Greene trails on a March 4 hike, also sponsored by Greensboro Parks & Rec. $2. More info here.

Mountains

Are you taking the North Carolina State Parks 100 Mile Challenge? Are you aware of the Challenge?

The Challenge is N.C. State Parks effort to get folks to hike 100 miles or more in their great parks during 2017. Log your hikes, complete the Challenge, get a cool commemorative pin. Learn everything you need to know about the challenge here.

Intrigued? Start your march toward 100 Sunday at Lake James State Park with the Fox Den Loop 100 Mile Challenge Hike. Ranger Kevin Bischoff leads this 2 1/4-mile hike to help you find out what the park’s permanent residents are up to in winter. Complete the hike and you’ll be 97 and 3/4 miles closer to meeting the Challenge.

Logistics: Sunday, Feb. 26, 11 a.m., Fox Den Lopp 100 Mile Challenge Hike, Lake James State Park, Nebo. More info here.

Sunday forecast: Hike time high of 49 under sunny skies.

* * *

Looking ahead: Streamside Hike, March 18, South Mountains State Park, Connelly Springs. More info here.

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Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed below. 

Coast

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The post This weekend: winter curious? appeared first on GetGoing NC!.