Another seven days, another seven days of which one is decent. And, fortunately again, that day falls on the weekend. A few thoughts on how to spend a sunny Saturday.
Coast
Run, Rick, run!Flytrap Half Hell Haul 7K: even if you don’t run, how could you not want to be a part of something with a name like that! And when you discover the Half Hell Haul is on the trails of the Boiling Spring Lake Preserve, well, that’s got to seal the deal.
No matter where you are, head out Friday night and take in the Geminid meteor shower at its peak. And during the light of day you’ll find lessons to be learned about snow.
Coast
The Geminid meteor shower is expected to peak Friday evening — and you can have a prime seat at the Dismal Swamp State Park in South Mills. If the conditions are prime, you should be able to see 50 to 100 meteors per hour! This park program starts at 7 p.m.
In September, GetGoingNC.com made the transition from telling you what you can do to showing you: we started GetHiking! Triangle, which leads weekly hikes in the Triangle and beyond. Our target audience: newcomers to hiking and established hikers interested in learning new trails. The initial response has exceeded our expectations. We currently have 344 members and have attracted more than 50 people to our hikes.
The following originally appeared on Nov. 5, 2009. It reappears as our available daylight disappears.
For maybe the fifth time in five minutes Alan stopped to comment on the trail. “This is a great trail,” he commented. And for the fifth time in maybe five minutes I reminded him that we had hiked this same trail maybe a half dozen times. His sense of discovery was justified, though. This was the first time we’d hiked the trail in daylight.
Several years ago, we both despaired at the end of Daylight Savings Time. The end of DST meant a sharp decline in our outdoor activity. Long workouts only on weekends? That just seemed silly.
And it was. For just as advances in lighting have made it possible to ride a bike in the woods at night, so have these technological advances made it relatively simple to hike at night. And unlike the light systems for mountain biking that can set you back $200 to $600 or more, you can get a decent light set for hiking for less than $30. Most of the more simple systems run on AA or AAA batteries, power an LED light, and strap to your head, leaving your hands free. For more information on lights and what to look for, go here.
Some advice before you head out:
This weekend you can race early through the streets of Asheville or late through downtown Durham. Not a city person? Fret not: there’s a marsh paddle near Wilmington that goes nowhere near concrete or traffic lights.
Coast
There are lots of paddling options at the coast. My favorite: riverine and salt marsh habitats. That’s the destination Saturday of a trip sponsored by New Hanover County Parks & Gardens and Hook, Line & Paddle at Riverside Park in Castle Hayne. The 2.5-hour guided trip will explore the flora and fauna of this rich habitat.