Perhaps you’ve noticed we seem to have gotten a jump on fall this year. Especially along lakes and streams and where woods meet meadow, the colors of fall are starting to percolate. So why wait until October to indulge some fall color?
True, the color change is yet to be pervasive. But there are a handful of places where you can get a feel for fall hiking right now. Today, we share some of our favorites. Most make the list because they’re along water, where fall color tends to first become evident. Some make the list because they have plenty of edge forest, where color also tends to pop early. All but one is in the piedmont — and the one that isn’t is pretty darn close.read more
We’ve run this post before. It’s what we call an “evergreen,” meaning, with a tweak or two, it stands the test of time: What held true when it first rain — the hikes we thought were classic fall hikes then — we feel remain the classics.
This year, though, we run it with added enthusiasm because one of the trails mentioned has just reopened after being closed for nearly a year: the Mount Mitchell Trail at Mount Mitchell State Park. A couple quick caveats:read more
The following first appeared at the start of Fall 2019. It appears again today, updated and tweaked, but relevant as ever as we head into the Fall 2025 hiking season.
From an astronomical standpoint, fall doesn’t begin until around 2:19 p.m. on September 22. That would be the autumnal equinox, that magical day when we have as many hours of daylight as dark.read more
Editor’s note: We run a tweaked version of this post every fall to help you avoid crowded trails in this, the most popular hiking season.
Astronomically, fall doesn’t start until Sept. 22 at 2:19 p.m. EST.Culturally, most of us associate the handoff of summer to fall with Labor Day weekend (this weekend). This year, however, it feels like fall is already well underway: for the past week or so morning temperatures here on the North Carolina/Virginia line have been in the low 50s, daytime highs in the upper 70s. If that doesn’t scream call in sick and grab your pack, I don’t know what does.read more
Wondering where you might be able to hike in the mountains this weekend?
Nowhere. At least not in North Carolina and southwestern Virginia. For one, you’d be hard-pressed to find a trail that’s passable. More on that in a sec.
The main reason you shouldn’t hike in the mountains this weekend: You’ll only be in the way.read more
