Years ago, I was in the market for a mountain bike. I went to the old Spin Cycle in Cary, picked out a bike, asked if I could take it for a test ride. Sure, they said. Plenty of residential streets behind the store: knock yourself out.
Trouble was, it was a mountain bike; riding it on asphalt wouldn’t give me much of a feel for how it handled rocky, rooty trail. Fortunately, I knew of some of the later weaving between the former. I returned a half hour later with a dirt covered bike — which I wound up buying.
The point: for a big-ticket item that’s performance-based, buying it sight-untested is silly. Yet we do it all the time with our outdoor gear. With kayaks, for instance.
The good news?
With a boat, that needn’t necessarily be the case. Great Outdoor Provision Co. sponsors boat demo days in its main markets in North Carolina and Virginia where you’re welcome to come and compare and contrast a variety of boats.
Intrigued? Learn more about demoing a kayak at this blog we wrote in partnership with Great Outdoor Provision.

The post Shopping for a kayak or canoe? Take a test paddle, first appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Test a kayak, try a new wildlife refuge, tread (quickly) some stellar trail. There’s lots to do in North Carolina this coming spring weekend.

Coast

Been thinking about getting into flatwater paddling but confounded by the various boat options? Rec kayaks, touring kayaks, sea kayaks, sit-on-tops, inflatables … . Where’s a budding paddler to start?

If you’re in Wilmington Saturday you can start at Smith Creek Park, where from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. they’ll be hosting a Kayak Demonstration Day. All variety of kayaks (as well as canoes and stand-up paddleboards) will be available for you to take for a spin on friendly Smith Creek Lake. Certified instructors will be on hand to help and to answer questions.

Logistics: Saturday, April 19, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Smith Creek Park, Wilmington. Free. More info: 910.798.762 or jdellinger@nhcgov.com

Saturday forecast: High of 64, chance of rain.

Piedmont

When you think of the National Wildlife Refuges in the region,  your thoughts tend toward the coast: Alligator River, Pea Island, Mattamuskeet, Pocosin Lakes … . But just across the state line in South Carolina is a 46,000-acre preserve dedicated to restoring the longleaf pine/wiregrass ecosystem. the Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge consists of 30 lakes and various creeks and tributaries, which help support 190 species of birds, 42 species of mammals, 41 species of reptiles and 25 species of amphibians, in addition to more than 750 plant species. It’s an area ideal for exploration.

Which is what the Reedy Creek Nature Center in Charlotte has in mind Saturday. As part of a monthly series, the center will spend the day exploring the refuge on a hike covering 6 to 8 miles of uneven terrain.

Logistics: Saturday, April 19, 8 a.m., Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge, Chesterfield County, S.C. Lead by the Reedy Creek Nature Center of Charlotte. 8 a.m.-6 p.m. $12. 18 and older. For more info and to register: 704.432.6460.

Saturday forecast: High of 71, 40 percent chance of rain.

Mountains

DuPont State Forest has about 100 miles of trail confined to a little more than 10,000 acres. And that’s a good thing, because just about every inch of this playground between Hendersonville and Brevard is view-worthy. That makes it a great spot to hike, to mountain bike, or to hold a 10K trail run.

The latter is the recreational transport of choice Saturday as the forest hosts the 2014 Morris Broadband 10K Trail Race. Beginning from Guion Farm in the forest, the race will utilize approximately 6.2 percent of DuPont’s trail network. Considering the up-and-down nature of the terrain, that will be just enough for many runners. Fletcher Parks and Rec hosts.

Logistics: Saturday, April 19, 9 a.m. (packet pickup is from 7:30-8:30 a.m.), Guion Farm, DuPont State Forest. $40. More info, call 828.687.0751 or g.walker@fletchernc.org.

Saturday forecast: High of 70, sunny.

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

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The post This weekend: Forecast for fun appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

You can test-drive a car before you buy it, so why not a boat?

Actually, you can. This Thursday (May 2), folks in the Charlotte area can pre-purchase paddle a boat on Mountain Island Lake, next Thursday (May 9), Trianglites can see what’s under the hood at Lake Crabtree , and on May 16 (yep, another Thursday), those of you in the Triad can evaluate a range of paddle craft for the purpose of purchase at Lake XXXXX.

The events are all courtesy of Great Outdoor Provision Co. If there’s a specific boat or two that you’re interested in, call your local GOPC store in advance and they’ll do their best to make sure it’s included in the demo fleet. A great way to determine the boat of your dreams, even if you didn’t know you were dreaming of a boat.

Also on hand: stand-up paddleboards. Check one out, you may be surprised at how easy they are to paddle. To give you a sense of their user-friendliness, here’s a clip from one of last year’s GOPC boat demos at Lake Crabtree.

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Details

Although the demos are free, registration is requested in advance, at the numbers listed.

Charlotte
Thursday, May 2, 4-7 p.m.
Gar Creek Canoe Launch, Latta Plantation Nature Preserve, Mountain Island Lake, Huntersville
More info here, to request a boat call 704.523.1089.

Triangle
Thursday, May 9, 4-7 p.m.
Lake Crabtree County Park, Morrisville
More info here, to request a boat call 919.833.1741 (Raleigh store) or 919.933.6148 (Chapel Hill).

Triad
Thursday, May 16, 4-7 p.m.
Oak Hollow Lake, High Point
More info here, to request a boat call 336.727.0906 (Winston Salem store) or 336.851.1331 (Greensboro).

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The post 90 Second Escape: The boat (& board) demo appeared first on GetGoing NC!.