Nicholas Sparks with some guys enjoying his track.
A run with romance! A walk/run/bike for a cause, a wild hike for wildflowers highlight the action in North Carolina this weekend.
Coast
Did you know that before Nicholas Sparks was making women and girls misty-eyed with his tales of romance he ran track at Notre Dame? Surprised by that plot twist? That being the case, though, it shouldn’t surprise you that a 5K and 1-mile Fun Run are part of his Nicholas Sparks Celebrity Family Weekend starting Friday in New Bern? The 5K travels through roadkill-flat New Bern and ends on the state-of-the art track Sparks donated to New Bern High School. The 1-mile Fun Run is entirely on the track.read more
This stretch under Lake Boone Trail is finished; only two paving projects remain on the House Creek Greenway.
If you’ve been driving Raleigh’s Beltline between Wade Avenue and Glen Eden Drive, sneaking peeks into the woods and wondering when on earth the House Creek Greenway is going to open, the answer is June 25.
That’s the official answer. In reality, it should be passable by Memorial Day.read more
I know it’s just Tuesday, but what better time to start planning for the weekend ahead than while the memory of the weekend past is still fresh
Coast
Two great options at Dismal Swamp State Park this weekend. Saturday, it’s Bike to the Bull North Burn, an 8-mile round-trip bike ride to the site of last year’s Bull North Fire. There’s a 20-minute program at the site, followed by a box lunch. Brink your own bike or rent one on site (make arrangements when you call to register). Starts at 9 a.m.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 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
Even before the talk began I realized I had a live one on the line.
I was at the King Public Library Tuesday evening for a presentation on backpacking, a presentation tied to my book, “Backpacking North Carolina.” On the surface, the book is a guide to 43 places to backpack in the state. But it’s true intent is to debunk the backpacking stereotype: of an arduous pursuit best left to survivalists and folks with a high threshold for discomfort.read more
