Blockade Runner Archives - GetGoing NC!

This weekend: A bi, a sign, a race

JoeMiller — Thu, 26 Mar 2015 14:10:24 +0000

If you shy away from multi-sport races because they often include swimming (and you’re a sinker, not a floater) then you’ll like Saturday’s 6th Annual Wrightsville Beach Biathlon at Wrightsville Beach. If you like signs of spring, you’ll like Saturday’s totally awesome program at Lake Crabtree County Park in Morrisville. And if you like an early season road race but aren’t in early season form, then you’ll like the distractions of Saturday’s Valley of the Lilies Half Marathon and 5K on and around the mountain campus of Western Carolina University.

Coast

Here’s a good, coastal biathlon for these modern times: the 6th Annual Wrightsville Beach Biathlon, involving a 4-mile standup paddle and a 4-mile run on the beach. Hosted where all your hip beach adventure competitions are hosted, at the Blockade Runner Beach Resort. Competition in various categories.

Logistics: Saturday, March 28, 10:30 a.m., Blockade Runner, Wrightsville Beach. From $45 for individuals up to $150 for corporate teams. Details here.

Saturday forecast: Sunny with a high of 54.

Piedmont

Nature programs abound in spring, and understandably so: our world is coming back to life and there’s so much to see and figure out. All those emerging amphibians, for instance.

Saturday morning, get a feel for the amphibians at Lake Crabtree in Morrisville with Toadally Awesome Amphibians. According to the sponsoring Lake Crabtree County Park: “After the first week of spring, but before the April showers start, we’re hoping to catch some sleepy salamanders. This program will investigate the park’s amphibian habitats, show you how to create your own, and teach about the important ecological roles amphibians and the vernal pools they inhabit play.”

Logistics: Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon, Lake Crabtree County Park, Morrisville. $3 per person, $5 per family. Call 919.460.3355 to reserve a spot.

Saturday forecast: Mostly sunny, high of 50.

Mountains

We like Saturday’s Valley of the Lilies Half Marathon and 5K in large part because it’s in one of our favorite places in the state: the campus of Western Carolina University in Cullowhee.

The 5K stays on campus, the Half starts and ends on campus but spends most of its time along the Tuckasegee River. Racing in a gorgeous setting is always good, but especially early in the race season when distractions may be especially welcome.

Logistics: Saturday, 8 a.m., Western Carolina University, Cullowhee. Race-day registration is $80 for the half marathon, $30 for the 5K. Read more about the race in the Asheville Citizen-Times, visit the race website here.

Saturday forecast: Sunny with a high of 44.

* * *

Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed below.

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

Crystal Cost Tourism Authority
Comprehensive calendar focusing on the Crystal Coast. Good source for programs offered by N.C. Coastal Federation, Cape Lookout National Park, N.C. National Estuarine Research Reserve and other costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

Blue Ridge Outdoors
Searchable calendar lets you extend your reach to events throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast (or you can just limit it to North Carolina). Also lets you search a boatload of categories, ranging from Hiking, Mountain Biking and Climbing to Trail Running, Triathlon and Road Walking.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Great Outdoor Provision Co.
Calendar includes three weekly events for each of its seven markets: Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Greensboro, Greenville, Raleigh, Wilmington and Winston-Salem. Search by market.

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

North Carolina State Parks
Lets you search for programs at the state’s parks, recreation areas and natural areas by location, by month, by topic. To reach the calendar from the home page, click on “Education,” then “Fun & Free Programs at Parks.”

National Forests in North Carolina
From the home page, click on Carolina Connections for news updates on the state’s four national forests as well as hints on recreational opportunities and a detailed rundown of recreation areas and the amenities at each.

U.S. National Wildlife Refuges
Rundown, by month, of regular activities at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service refuges in North Carolina.

* * *

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The post This weekend: A bi, a sign, a race appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

This weekend: Fat bikers, wildflower stalkers, Y hikers

JoeMiller — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 10:32:53 +0000

Catch fat bikes on the beach, wildflowers in the Piedmont, a sunny spring day along the Laurel River in the mountains.

Coast

Here’s a good reason to go to the coast this weekend: the US Open Fat Bike Championships.

First, we’re guessing a lot of you are wondering what an Open Fat Bike is. Actually, it’s just a Fat Bike, which is a mountain bike with bulbous tires, defined as wider than four inches. Typically, they’re used to bomb down mountains, rolling over whatever lies in wait. In this case, however, they will be used to race on the beach, in sand, which any cyclist will tell you is a challenge at best, a nightmare to the drive train at worst.

There’s competition in the Beginner, Sport and Expert categories; the latter will race 25 miles. Again, on sand. Sounds like good spectating.

Logistics: Saturday, March 14, Blockade Runner Beach Resort, Wrightsville Beach. $42. More info here.

Saturday forecast: High of 68, chance of thunderstorms.

Piedmont

Trout lily

If you’re like us, you’re wondering when the first spring wildflower will make its appearance. Typically, the first trout lily or spring beauty pokes through the last week of February. This, however, has not been a typical year, and while Dave Cook of “The Piedmont Almanac” fame says the trout lily should be in its “full glory” by now, we’ve yet to see a single, perky yellow petal.

After this week’s warm weather, however, expect spring’s early recruits to be on the march this weekend. One great place to catch the action is the Pump Station Access area of Eno River State Park, where an open floodplain provides good flowering habitat. Fortuitously, Pump Station is the location of a morning hike by Eno River State Park on Saturday at 8:30 a.m. “Wear good hiking shoes, bring drinking water and a snack,” advises the ranger.

Logistics: Saturday, March 14, 8:30 a.m., Pump Station Access, Eno River State Park, Durham.

Saturday forecast: High of 65, “periods of light rain likely,” says WRAL.com.

Mountains

Bluff Mountain Outfitters

The weather gods are smiling on Asheville’s Woodfin YMCA this week. Rather than schedule their hike on on a rainy Saturday, they had the good fortune to plan it for a sunny Sunday.

The hike in question is a 7.5-mile hike on the Laurel River Trail near Hot Springs, reason in itself to do the hike, with the chance for a post-hike visit to Bluff Mountain Outfitters, www.bluffmountain.com/ one of the truly great outfitters around. (Good coffee, too, as we recall.)

Logistics: Sunday, March 15, 8:45 a.m. at the Woodfin YMCA in Asheville. For more on the hike, check out this report in the Asheville Citizen-Times.

Sunday forecast: Sunny, high of 57.

* * *

Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed below.

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

U.S. National Wildlife Refuges
Rundown, by month, of regular activities at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service refuges in North Carolina.

* * *

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This weekend: Rental fun, hoop dreams, swamped on high

JoeMiller — Wed, 30 Jul 2014 16:22:23 +0000

Not crazy about being tied to a schedule? Rent an adventure according to your schedule at the coast. Wondering if you could replace LeBron in Miami? See if you’ve still got game in Charlotte. And if you’re in the mountains and think you have to travel afar for a swamp adventure, think again.

Coast

Today’s suggestion isn’t an event; rather, an opportunity.

New adventures can be had up and down the North Carolina coast for a relatively modest sum. For instance, if you find yourself in the Wrightsville Beach area, swing by the Blockade Runner and you can experience any number of water-related adventures: rent a single kayak for just $20 an hour (or a tandem for $35), take out a standup paddleboard for $25 an hour, take a two-hour guided kayak tour for $50 ($90 for a tandem).

You’ll find opportunities likes this just about everywhere you’ll find someone taking a beach vacation. (See Logistics for direction.)

Logistics: Learn more about the Blockade Runner rentals here; check out our “53 Places to Rent a Canoe, Kayak or Standup Paddleboard in North Carolina,” here.

Weekend forecast: The coast is looking at highs in the low 80s, a chance of thunderstorms.

Alley-oops

Piedmont

You haven’t played ball in longer than you care to remember. And yet, you still feel you can take it to the hole, sink a three-pointer at the buzzer, execute an alley-oop or elicit an enthusiastic “Rejected!” from Marv Albert on your stellar defensive play.

OK, maybe you’re dreaming. But aren’t dreams made to be fulfilled? Check out the current state of your game this Saturday at the 30 & Over Open Play at the Sugaw Creek Recreation Center in Charlotte. From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., adults over 30 can see if they still have what it takes to achieve basketball glory, even if for just an afternoon. Or one play.

Logistics: Saturday, Aug. 2, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Sugaw Creek Rec Center, 943 W. Sugar Creek Road, Charlotte. $2. Need more info? Call 704.596.0107

Saturday forecast: It’s always bright and comfortable in the Sugaw Creek gym.

Boardwalk through a swampier section of Pink Beds

Mountains

One of our favorite hikes in the mountains is the Pink Beds area of the Pisgah National Forest. Pink Beds itself is a rare mountain swamp. As such, the six-mile loop trail at Pink Beds is relatively flat, also unusual for a mountain hike.

Sunday, the Carolina Mountain Club is adding a little elevation to the Pink Beds hike by adding the South Mills River Trail sections on Soapstone Ridge and Club Gap. Total distance for this hike is nine miles, total elevation gain 1,700 feet.

Logistics: Sunday, Aug. 3, 8:30 a.m. carpool meet-up at in Asheville. Space is limited, contact hike leader Dave Wetmore at 828.577.0648 or dwetmore@citcom.net to reserve a spot or for more information.

Sunday forecast: High of 79, chance of thunderstorms.

* * *

Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

U.S. National Wildlife Refuges
Rundown, by month, of regular activities at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service refuges in North Carolina.

* * *

Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

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The post This weekend: Rental fun, hoop dreams, swamped on high appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

This weekend: National Get Outdoors with Fathers Day

JoeMiller — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 15:10:18 +0000

Yabba dabba doo

Two reasons to get out this weekend: Saturday is National Get Outdoors Day, Sunday is Father’s Day. And lots of options for observing both!

Coast

You’re 4 years old and a little short on cash. Still, you want to show dad a good time on his day, Sunday, Father’s Day. What to do, what to do … .

If you live in the vicinity of Wrightsville Beach, you can take dad to the Blockade Runner, where from noon to 3 p.m. on Sunday all board rentals are free to certified dads (“father” to a Lab or Golden does not count). You’ve heard dad pining about wanting to ride the waves like Hawaiian royalty? Now’s the time to give him his shot. And if you can scrounge $3 in change, you can buy him a discount taco, too.

Logistics: Sunday, June 15, noon-3 p.m., Blockade Runner Beach Resort, Wrightsville Beach. More info here.

Sunday forecast: High of 82, change of thunderstorms.

Piedmont

Psst! Looking for a good paddle that not many folks know about? Saturday, the Piedmont Land Conservancy is sponsoring paddle suitable for beginners on the upper Haw River. The paddle begins at the Grove Winery and meanders about five miles downstream. A two- to three-hour trip, depending upon water levels and how many questions are asked about this intimate stretch of the Haw. Return to the winery put-in for a wine tasting.

Don’t have a boat? Don’t have a problem: call the PLC (see below) and they can hook you up.

Logistics: Saturday, June 14, 10 a.m. Grove Winery on the Haw River (here for directions). Call the Piedmont Land Conservancy to sign up: 336.691.0088

Saturday forecast: High of 85, mostly sunny.

Mountains

Not that you need one, but if you’re looking for a fun reason to visit Mount Mitchell, at 6,684 feet the highest peak east of South Dakota’s Black Hills, how about a scavenger hunt?

Saturday, Mount Mitchell State Park celebrates National Get Outdoors Day with a scavenger hunt. Stop by the mountain-top concession stand between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. and pick up your list of things to find. When you’ve found them, return to the concession stand for verification and a Moon Pie (you’ll need to pony up for the MP). What you win is part of the mystery. A good way to explore a terrain unlike any other in the region.

Logistics: Saturday, June 14, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Mount Mitchell State Park. More info on the park here.

Sunday forecast: High of 78, mostly sunny.

* * *

Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

U.S. National Wildlife Refuges
Rundown, by month, of regular activities at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service refuges in North Carolina.

* * *

Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

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The post This weekend: National Get Outdoors with Fathers Day appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

This weekend: Adventure Festival fun under the sun

JoeMiller — Thu, 24 Apr 2014 15:07:00 +0000

And, they're off! Photo courtesy blockade-runner.com.

A gorgeous weekend — clear skies and temperatures around 80 are forecast across the state — and three stellar festivals — 2014 Carolina Cup (standup paddleboarding), French Broad Classique (canoeing and kayaking), and TuckFest (everything) — make this the weekend to be out and having fun in North Carolina.

Coast

Curious about standup paddleboarding and want to know more? Head to the Blockade Runner in Wilmington and get the full immersion at the 2014 Carolina Cup, which began Wednesday and runs through Sunday.

There’s competition featuring elite SUPsters, so you’ll learn a thing or two there. But there are also clinics galore, vendors, night paddles, recreational racing, kids clinics … just a whole lot of standup paddleboarding going on.

Logistics: Ongoing through Sunday, April 27, at 4 p.m., Blockade Runner Beach Resort, Wrightsville Beach. Fees for some activities. See a schedule of events here, for more info go here.

Four-day forecast: Mostly sunny with highs reaching the low 80s by Sunday.

Jammin' at TuckFest. Photo courtesy tuckfest.org

Piedmont

If the ideal sports festival includes a variety of adventure competition, lots of live music and beer, then it doesn’t get much more ideal than the three-day TuckFest, which runs Friday through Sunday at the U.S. National Whitewater Center in Charlotte.

You like running on trails? There are five of those, ranging from a pair of 5Ks to a half marathon. More into using those trails for a mountain bike race? There are four of those. Kayak racing (both whitewater on the NWC’s famous course and flat water), climbing, wake boarding, standup paddleboarding, dog jumping — just about every type of adventure sport competition imaginable. Demos, too. And continuous live music. And beer.

Logistics: Friday through Sunday, April 25-27, U.S. National Whitewater Center, Charlotte. One-time registration fee of $40 ($30 for kids) qualifies you for all events and competitions. More info here.

Friday-Sunday forecast: Highs in the low 80s under sunny skies (save for the chance of a thunderstorm Friday).

And these paddlers are off, too! Photo courtesy fbcanoeracing.org

Mountains

Not to be outdone in the sportfest category, the mountains and Asheville offer up the French Broad Classique this weekend. This 5-year-old event features canoe and kayak racing on it’s namesake river, in Henderson and Buncombe counties.

For the more competitive, there’s an 18-mile downriver race Saturday and a 16-miler on Sunday. Competition is by category, including K1 (one-person kayaks), C1 and C2 (one and two-person canoes), and stand-up paddleboarding (SUP). Classes for boat or board type, sex and age will be determined at the race, based on the number and make-up of participants. Read more about the race in the Asheville Citizen-Times.

Logistics: Saturday and Sunday, April 26 and 27, Asheville. One day of racing is $25, two days is $35. More info here.

Weekend forecast: Sunny, highs in the upper 70s.

* * *

Those are our thoughts on the weekend. Find more options at the sources listed below.

Coast

CapeFearCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar for the Cape Fear/Wilmington/southern N.C. coast searchable by date and event name.

Coastal Guide
Comprehensive calendar including nature programs from a variety of costal conservation and research agencies that offer nature programs. Covers the entire coast.

NCCoast.com
Comprehensive calendar including programs for the Outer Banks and Crystal Coast.

North Carolina Coast Host
Comprehensive calendar for the entire coast that lets you search for events by day, by region, by county, by city or by event (based on key word).

This Week Magazine
Primary focus is the Crystal Coast (North Carolina’s coastal midsection).

Mountains

Asheville Citizen-Times
From the main page, click on “Outdoors,” then WNC Outdoors calendar.

The Mountain Times
From the main page, click on “Calendars,” then Main Events.

Todd’s Calendar

Piedmont

Charlotte

Charlotte Observer events calendar
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including Nature, Recreation, Recreation & Wellness, Running

Charlotte Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triad

GoTriad.com
Comprehensive calendar includes a Sports & Recreation category.

Piedmont Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Triangle

Triangle.com
Comprehensive calendar searchable by category, including: Birding, Boating, Cycling, Nature, Rec & Wellness, Recreation, Running, Swimming, Tennis, Yoga.

Carolina Parent
Comprehensive calendar concentrating on things the family can do together.

Statewide

Office of Environmental Education
One calendar for the numerous Environmental Education Centers statewide.

U.S. National Wildlife Refuges
Rundown, by month, of regular activities at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service refuges in North Carolina.

* * *

Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too

The post This weekend: Adventure Festival fun under the sun appeared first on GetGoing NC!.