Take advantage of the wonderful weather statewide this weekend with a summer carnival in Cherokee, a hike at the coast (and earn prizes), or learning about the state’s birds of prey in Charlotte.
Coast: Hike at Merchants Millpond State Park
On Saturday a park ranger at Merchants Millpond State Park in Gatesville will lead a 2-mile hike on the Track Trail-certified Coleman Trail. Take a brochure on the hike, follow its directions, accumulate information, then enter the information on a website following the hike. Get enough entries and earn patches, note pads, backpacks and stickers! Not to mention the opportunity to get some exercise on a beautiful trail. Wear sturdy shoes and plan on the hike taking about 2 hours.read more
Happy Valentine’s weekend! Whether you are married to a human or the outdoors, this weekend is full of festivities surrounding the holiday of love.
Coast: ‘We LOVE Frogs!!!’
For everyone who is either boycotting the spirit of this weekend’s holiday, or who is single and ready to mingle, hop on over to Weymouth Woods Sandhills Nature Preserve, and take part in the kick-off event of the Disappearing Frogs Project. This new project is aimed at raising awareness for the alarming disappearance of frogs and other amphibians. Various DFP observances will be held at Weymouth Woods through February; this event will focus on learning about the different species of frogs (and toads) of the Sandhills.read more
Monday — never an easy time for the outdoors enthusiast. After a weekend of adventure, returning to the humdrum work-a-day world can make one melancholy. To help ease the transition, every Monday we feature a 90 Second Escape — essentially, a 90-second video or slide show of a place you’d probably rather be: a trail, a park, a greenway, a lake … anywhere as long as it’s not under a fluorescent bulb.read more
In November, we began writing a monthly series of blog posts for our partners at Great Outdoor Provision Co. on the current U.S. Forest Service’s revision of its management plan for the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests. Today, we write about the curious case of the Lost Cove and Harper Creek Wilderness Study Areas.read more
A solo plunger (photo courtesy Blue Ridge Outdoors)
Reduce your bucket list with a mountain polar plunge, get up to speed on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, or run for chocolate: they’re all options this weekend in North Carolina.
Mountains: 4th Annual Polar Plunge
One of the iconic winter sporting events that might be on a bucket list or two is the polar plunge. If you find the prospect of immersing your already cold body into cold water intriguing, check out this weekend’s 4th Annual Polar Plunge Benefit-t-t-t-ing Kids in the Creek and Youth Education at Lake Junaluska benefitting Kids in the Creek and Environmental Education.read more
