Cape Fear Kite Festival Archives - GetGoing NC!

Your weekend: More great fall days to hike, run or fly a kite

JoeMiller — Fri, 04 Nov 2016 19:26:59 +0000

Our spate of great fall weekend weather continues. Amid a full lineup of ways to enjoy it, here’s what we are especially drawn to.

Coast

Photo courtesy VisitNC.com

Make of this what you will: I go for a 5-mile run, my step-counter-dealiebob gives me credit for maybe 8,000 steps. I spend the day working in the yard, I hit my daily goal of 15,000 steps by noon. Which is to say, good aerobic exercise can come from unexpected places.

Like attending this weekend’s 11th Annual Cape Fear Kite Festival at Fort Fisher State Recreation Area. Say you bring a kite: you’re spending the day running up and down the beach, trying to get the thing up, fetching it when your initial objective falls short. Say you don’t bring a kite: you’re running up and down the beach checking out all the really cool (and sometimes really big!) kites. Odds are you’ll hit your goal by noon as well. And extra credit for running in the sand.

Starts Saturday morning at 10, ends Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m.

Logistics: 11th Annual Cape Fear Kite Festival, Saturday and Sunday, Fort Fisher State Recreation Area, Kure Beach. Free. More info here.

Weekend forecast: Sunny both days with highs around 70.

* * *

Looking ahead: Bear Island Eco Hike, Hammocks Beach State Park, Sunday, Nov. 13, 10 a.m. More info here.

Piedmont

House Rock

Hanging Rock, Moore’s Knob, Wolf Rock, Cook’s Wall and … dang! You can never remember the name of the last of the five peaks that make up the coveted Five Peak Challenge at Hanging Rock State Park.

Saturday is your chance to forever etch that elusive fifth peak, House Rock, into memory, when an environmental educator at Hanging Rock State Park leads a 3-mile hike (roundtrip) to House Rock and back. This hike promises a moderate pace, taking two hours to take in the views and scenic wonders along the way, while also exploring all of House Rock’s “rooms.”

Intrigued? Read on …

Logistics: Adventure Hike, Saturday, Nov. 5, 10 a.m., Hanging Rock State Park (meet at the bathhouse). For more info, go here.

Saturday forecast: 52 degrees at hike time under sunny skies.

* * *

Looking ahead: Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 24) hikes at Raven Rock State Park (9 a.m.) and Weymouth Woods Sandhills Nature Preserve (10 a.m.). More info here.

Mountains

Here’s a beguiling pitch: “No Pavement. No Traffic. Just Awesome.”

Go on …

That’s how race organizers describe the South of the Mountain Trail Run. This 5K is on the 260-acre South Mountain Christian Camp, course that, “takes runners on one continuous loop through a mix of gravel roads, grassy shorelines, and wide dirt trails on the south side of Cherry Mountain. Encompassing rolling hills, wooded paths, and scenic views along the lake, the South of the Mountain Trail Run offers a wide variety of challenges for runners and walkers of all skill levels in one of the most beautiful settings around.” Well, then … .

Logistics: South of the Mountain Trail Run, Saturday, 10 a.m., South Mountain Christian Camp, Bostic. $25. More info here.

Sunday forecast: Sunny and high of 54 around race time.

* * *

Looking ahead: Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 24) hikes at Grandfather Mountain State Park. More info here.

* * *

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 coastal 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 Your weekend: More great fall days to hike, run or fly a kite appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

This weekend: Kites ‘n’ hikes

JoeMiller — Wed, 30 Oct 2013 19:05:55 +0000

Fly a kite at the coast, take a hike in the dark in the Piedmont, enjoy the first weekend of November — it’s a good weekend to be in North Carolina.

Coast

If you’re simply looking for all-out fun this weekend, you can do no better than this weekend’s Cape Fear Kite Festival at Wrightsville Beach. This is a non-competitive kite-flying event, which means you should feel good about bringing your own homemade work of art. Yet it also attracts serious kiters, looking for one last chance to fly in the 2013 season.

Logistics: Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 2 and 3, all day, at the Shell Island Resort on Wrightsville Beach. More info: 910.520.1818.

Weekend forecast: Sunday’s looking better than Saturday. Click the link for the latest.

The wide, smooth trails at South Mountains.

Piedmont

We know, we should be recommending hikes to catch the fall color, what with all the fall color and all. Yet we can’t help but think what great potential there is in Friday’s Night Hike at South Mountains State Park. South Mountains’ 40-mile trail network is ideal for hiking at night; much of the trail system is old roadbeds and as such, the trails are generally wide and devoid of the ankle-grabbing rocks and roots that trip so many of us up on our night hikes. Besides, you can always arrive a couple hours before the 6 p.m. hike and take in some park color on your own.

Logistics: Friday, Nov. 15, 6 p.m., South Mountains State Park, Connelly Springs. More info: 828.433.4772.

Friday forecast: Daytime high of 70 dropping to 45 at night, 80 percent chance of rain.

Looking south, toward the area of Sunday's hike.

Mountains

It’s hard to think of a better way to spend the first weekend of fall, with sunny skies and highs forecast in the upper 50s, than by taking a hike. A hike, say, in the Pisgah National Forest southwest of Asheville, where the color is still good and you can begin to break out your cold weather gear. That’s the Carolina Mountain Club’s plan for Sunday, when they do a 14.5-mile loop hike encompassing Squirrel Gap and Horse Cove Gap in the Pisgah. If you’re unfamiliar with these trails, don’t be surprised; as the CMC notes, these are “lesser-used trails” that promise great scenery.

Logistics: Sunday, Nov. 3, 8:45 a.m. (carpool from Asheville). More info by contacting hike leader Carroll Koepplinger, 828-667-0723, carrollkoepp@bellsouth.net More info on the route, here.

Sunday forecast: High of 59, sunny skies.

* * *

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.

* * *

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GetGoingNC.com

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The post This weekend: Kites ‘n’ hikes appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Weekend plans? Two if by land, one if by air

JoeMiller — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 10:00:51 +0000

The first weekend of November? Really!?

You know what that means — time is running short to explore the outdoors before the weather gets really cold. A few of your options this weekend:

Coast

Few things make you feel like a kid more than flying a kite. The thrill of getting your kite airborne after a dogged sprint, watching it climb higher and higher into the wild blue, chasing after it over fences and through the neighbors’ backyards after the string snaps. Good times — and a good workout, too.

Head to Wrightsville Beach this weekend and feel like a kid again at the annual Cape Fear Kite Festival. Lots of hands-on opportunities, including kite-making classes for kids and stunt kite lessons — from certified stunt kite professionals — for all. You can also watch the best in the business put stunt kites through their paces and checkout an airborne parade featuring a wide array of funky kites.

The festival runs Saturday and Sunday, from 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. both days. More info here.

Piedmont

If you’ve done much hiking with the kids this fall, you’ve no doubt been bombarded with lots of challenging questions: Why did that leaf turn red but that one turned yellow? Why do they change color in the first place? How close are we to a restroom? It’s almost enough to make you want to curtail hiking until the leaves have all fallen and the forest is a cold, gray landscape.

Or maybe not. Especially when there are so many hikes out there where a trained naturalist leads you around and answers these questions for you. Once such hike is this Sunday, from 10-11 a.m. at Historic Yates Mill County Park in Raleigh. Take a hike and relax while someone with actual knowledge answers your kids questions. It’s free, for ages 6 and up.

More info here.

Mountains

Little Green Mountain makes a great spot to take in the color of Panthertown Valley.

You’ve been an avid greenway walker for years. Secretly, though, you yearn to tackle more challenging trail in the mountains. But your noviceness intimidates you, as does the notion of being out in the wild. You need some major handholding — not to mention some basic equipment.

That’s what you’ll get on a guided hike Sunday into Panthertown Valley led by Gary Eblen of Diamond Brand Outdoors, the Asheville outfitter. Maps and compasses are provided, daypacks and hiking poles are available as well. There’s a $25 fee, but that should buy you some reassurance as you explore an area often referred to as the Yosemite of the East. (It’s actually more of a diorama of Yosemite: cool, with waterfalls, towering pines, and an enchanted valley setting, just on a smaller scale. A good venue for a first-time forest explorer.

For more info and to reserve a spot, call 828.891.6585

* * *

Those are GGNC’s thoughts for an active weekend. Find out other ways you can get out this weekend by browsing our super calendar, a collection of events calendars from throughout the state, 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.

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.

The post Weekend plans? Two if by land, one if by air appeared first on GetGoing NC!.