High and dry, at the Triangle Rock Club in Morrisville.
From Murphy (40-90 percent chance of rain, highs in the low 50s) to Manteo (up to a 90 percent chance of rain with highs in the low 50s), it promises to be a wet, cool first weekend of Spring across North Carolina.
Not that that should keep you inactive. Or even indoors.
We refer you to two of our get-out-and-go directories, tailor made for weekends such as this. Climbing walls. Check out our list of 14 climbing gyms across the state, nearly all indoors and impervious to the elements (unless the roof leaks, in which case you’ll have a little taste of being in the wild). If you’ve never climbed, this is the perfect opportunity to learn. Start with our primer, then dial up your neighborhood gym and inquire about instruction. Hiking. Cool and wet — my favorite time to be on a local trail, especially since I have the gear for it. Basically, that gear would include water-resistant hiking boots or shoes and rain-resistant/proof outer wear. Honestly, if you can stay dry, a cold, wet day in the woods is hard to top. And because driving tends to be the biggest hassle you’ll face, check out our list, compiled in conjunction with Great Outdoor Provision Co. Five venues near each of North Carolina’s seven biggest metro areas.
Don’t let a little (or a lot, frankly) cold rain stop you this weekend: get out (or stay in) andread more
There's great scenery on the Dan (photo courtesy Dan River Co.)
We’re finally catching up with the mail bag — and just in time for what appears to be the first warm weekend in a while.
You write to us for a variety of reasons. To find out where to take visiting kin hiking. To see if we know what the latest bear situation is in the Smokies. To ask if you can optimize our visibility on the Web, for a modest fee. You also write to point out certain … deficiencies in GetGoingNC’s content. Your latest batch of constructive comments comes in time to help others make the most of a weekend that will see sun and temperatures climbing into the mid 60s.read more
“You’re a cyclist?” I ventured.
Some people guess weights, some professions. I look at someone’s physique and try to guess how they have fun.
“Yeah!” David answered.
“Road?”
“Yeah, mostly. I do triathlons.”
We were gearing up to climb early this morning at the Triangle Rock Club and the short exchange picked up my spirits. A month-plus of assorted deadlines had started taking its toll on my immune system. Physically, mentally I had wound down. I needed something.
David and I had just met, mutual friends of our third climbing partner, Joel. The awkwardness of the first-time meeting was absent, which I attribute in part to climbing mojo. Different sports communities have different vibes, not all of which are entirely supportive. Climbing, though, is a sport apart. I’ve had 5.12 climbers give me a “Nice!” at the gym after I’ve topped out on a 5.8. This after they stopped to watch me grapple with a problem and suggest a key move I didn’t see. And it travels to the top of sport. Not to name drop, but I’ve met Conrad Anker and Cory Richards, and I’m pretty sure if I’d said, “Hey, my microbus is out back; let’s grab our gear and head to Linville Gorge,” both would have been in the back asking “Are we there yet?” before I’d started the engine.
We started climbing and it came up that David had a mess of titanium in his elbow, courtesy of a mountain bike accident.
“You mountain bike, too?” I asked. We talked for a minute about where we like to ride. “So,” I asked, “you ever ride Morrisville?”
David smiled. He works for a retail developer that developed a parcel of land that previously played host to a popular, albeit illegal, mountain bike trail referred to simply as Morrisville. Rebel trail, trail developed on private property not in use, is common. Mountain bikers know such trail is ephemeral, that it can disappear overnight. Still, when it does … .
“I told my buddies, ‘If you want to ride one last time let’s do it today because we’re getting to work in their tomorrow.”
We climbed some, talked more. Soon it was time to head to work, to another day of deadlines. Work’s been a challenge. Before hitting the gym I felt like I’d hit the wall. After climbing the wall, I was ready to give my deadlines another try.read more
Alan and I were overdue for an epic ride. During the early summer we’d done a handful of 4- to 5-hour rides at Umstead, Lake Crabtree and adjoining single track networks that will go unnamed for fear of prosecution for trespassing. But since July — or specifically since I’d done ORAMM and no longer had the incentive to put in long hours in the saddle — our longest ride had barely topped 2 hours. So we were overdue, we realized last week, but we were also short on after work daylight.read more
Climber/photographer Cory Richards is in town tomorrow night to speak about his experience as a top climber and photographer. His talk at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences, “Both Sides of the Lens,” is part of The North Face Never Stop Exploring Speaker Series. I managed to get an interview with Richards late last month; I say “managed” because Richards was on location in the Crimea and he managed to fit my questions in between his climbing and shooting.read more
