If you thought 2020 put the kibosh on all forms of competition, then you aren’t familiar with FKTs.
Fastest Known Times — that is, the fastest known time that it’s taken someone to cover a stretch of trail. You may be familiar with the concept in terms of a major trail. The AT, for instance, which has seen intense competition over the years to see a new FKT record. The current record, for the 2,189-mile AT, btw, is 41 days, 7 hours and 39 minutes, set in 2018 by Karel Sabbe, a Belgian dentist. Or possibly North Carolina’s 1,175-mile Mountains-to-Sea Trail, which saw a new record set last summer, when Tara Dower ran it in 29 days, 8 hours and 48 minutes.read more
Wednesday Wisdom? That may be a stretch (though it is alliterative). Every Wednesday we share our thoughts in rotating subject areas: gear, social media, hiking/backpacking/camping resources, and tips from the field. These items are culled from our weekly GetHiking! enewsletter, which also includes news and information on hikes and backpack trips in our GetHiking! and GetBackpacking! universes. Subscribe to our weekly enewsletter here.read more
Wondering when your favorite seasonal campground or roadside attraction in the National Parks will reopen? We have some dates:
Blue Ridge Parkway
Campgrounds
Price Park Campground at MP 297: April 2-Oct. 31
Linville Falls at MP 314: April 2-Oct. 31
Crabtree Falls at MP 339: May 28-Oct. 31
Mount Pisgah at MP 408.8: May 28-Oct. 31
Other facilities
Moses Cone Manor House at MP 294: April 15
Linville Falls at MP 316: April 30.
N. Museum of Minerals at MP 330: Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. through April.
Craggy Gardens at MP 364.5: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. starting April 17.
Waterrock Knob at MP 451: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. starting April 17.
Shenandoah National Park
Campgrounds:
March 25: Lewis Mountain Campground (mile 57.5)
March 26: Big Meadows Campground (mile 51.2)
May 5: Mathews Arm Campground (mile 22.2), Loft Mountain Campground (mile 79.5), and Dundo Group Campground (mile 83.7)
Picnic Grounds will open on the following schedule:
March 25: Lewis Mountain Picnic Grounds (mile 57.5)
March 26: Big Meadows Picnic Grounds (mile 51.2)
Open year round: Dickey Ridge Picnic Grounds (mile 4.7), Elkwallow Picnic Grounds (mile 24.1), Pinnacles Picnic Grounds (mile 36.7), South River Picnic Grounds (mile 62.8), and Dundo Picnic Grounds (mile 83.7)
Other facilities:
Dickey Ridge Visitor Center (mile 4.6 Skyline Drive): open Fridays through Tuesdays, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. (closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays), No indoor exhibits or films.
Byrd Visitor Center (mile 51 Skyline Drive)
Open 7 days a week, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., No indoor exhibits or films.
The restaurants, lodges, and associated facilities operated by the park concessioner, Delaware North, open as follows:read more
It’s a weekend where you can experience the best of two seasons. Get out early and it will feel like winter, with temperatures starting in the mid-20s Saturday and mid-30s Sunday. Wait ’til the afternoon and, on Sunday at least, it’ll be shorts and t-shirt weather.read more
Wednesday Wisdom? That may be a stretch (though it is alliterative). Every Wednesday we share our thoughts in rotating subject areas: gear, social media, hiking/backpacking/camping resources, and tips from the field. These items are culled from our weekly GetHiking! enewsletter, which also includes news and information on hikes and backpack trips in our GetHiking! and GetBackpacking! universes. Subscribe to our weekly enewsletter here.read more
