I write about adventure, hopefully your next adventure. How do I sniff them out? Here’s a snapshot of a day on the road, scouting the multitude of adventure options in North Carolina’s Rockingham and Stokes counties. As you’ll see, it’s not all about paddling, hiking and mountain biking; sometimes, pickled beets and fried okra are involved.
Tag Archives: adventure
Let’s talk Adventure, Carolinas
Looking for a new adventure?
Let me answer that for you: Yes, you are.
I know this because you visit this site for one of two reasons: Either you’re already into adventure and are always looking for more, or the idea of adventure intrigues you, you just haven’t found the right fit.
My goal here at GetGoingNC is to help you find that fit. That’s also the goal of my new book, “Adventure Carolinas.”
Billed as “Your Go-To Guide for Multi-Sport Outdoor Recreation,” the book focuses on six key adventure sports and touches on 10 more.
The six keys: mountain biking, flatwater paddling, whitewater paddling, rock climbing, scuba diving and backcountry exploration.
The 10 more: downhill skiing and snowboarding, cross-country skiing, tubing, kiteboarding, hang gliding, ziplining, standup paddleboarding, windsurfing, geocaching and caving.
Sure, I’d like to you buy the book. But first, I’d prefer that you learn more about it, ask a few questions. And for that reason, I have a number of appearances set up statewide over the next month. Check out the list below, mark your calendar.
Let’s talk about your next adventure.
Dress for the weekend mess
The forecast for this weekend?
Wet.
And cold.
Here in the Triangle, the high is expected to drop from a high near 80 today to 57 on Saturday, with a 50 percent chance of rain. Sunday, the high is only supposed to hit the mid-30s, with a 70 percent chance of “wintry mix.” The outlook is similar in Charlotte, the Triad, and the Asheville area.
We understand your reluctance to venture out ion the roads if Sunday’s “mix” turns toward the wintry side. But if the roads are just wet, you shouldn’t let a little cold drizzle keep you from enjoying an otherwise … invigorating adventure. You just need to know how to dress for it. That said, we direct you to two previous posts on topic.
A world of adventure out your front door
The gentleman in the meticulously trimmed salt-and-pepper beard and Tilley Duck Hat paddling the $3,000 fiberglass kayak sounded surprised when I replied that, no, I hadn’t seen any osprey or bald eagles. Hadn’t seen or wouldn’t recognize? he seemed to imply.
Adventure envy
I was … envious?
Envious of Alan’s 13-hour nights in the tent? Envious of the 10-degree nights? Envious of having to crawl out of a warm bag at 4 a.m. for the inevitable commune with nature that goes with calling it a night at 6 p.m.?
Alan had just gotten back from six days on the Appalachian Trail in Virginia. Six days that saw the first cold of the season descend, bringing with it those 10-degree nights and daytime highs in the 20s. Six days with snow, a foot on the trail in places, drifts of up to two-and-a-half feet. Six rare days of bona fide winter backpacking, Southern style. His trip had the added cache of accompanying a thru-hiker down the homestretch. His buddy Rich — a k a Orson Deep Waters — was concluding his conquest of the AT (a conquest interrupted once to cut Christmas trees in Avery County in November, once to go to Belgium for the world punkin‘ chunkin‘ championship). Meanwhile, I spent the week here in Cary, sick, going three-on-one with the kids. An adventure in its own right.