Coast

If you like your movement to have meaning, you’re in luck this weekend. In the Wilmington area alone, there’s the 17th Annual Son Run 5K (benefitting The Carousel Center, A Safe Place and Methodist Home for Children), Color Run 5K (childhood obesity), Cape Fear Buddy Walk (Down Syndrome), Wellness Walk (healthy living), Live.Love.Throw! Cornhole Tourney (New Hanover Regional Medical Center’s Pink Ribbon Project) and the Wilmington Area CROP Hunger Walk.

Whew! That’s a lot of options.

Logistics: Learn more about these events starting at WhatsOnWilmington.com.

Weekend forecast: Highs in the low 70s, chance of rain both days.

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Looking ahead: 19th Annual Wings Over Water Wildlife Festival, Outer Banks region, Oct. 20-25. More than 100 birding, paddling, photography, art and natural history trips, tours and programs. Details here.

Piedmont

Are you ever torn between two adventures. Say, for instance, the forecast says you should get out in the woods and enjoy the emerging fall color on the trail. Yet you also hanker for something more physically challenging. Rock climbing, perhaps?

Slake both thirsts in one outing this Sunday, with GetHiking! Triangle and the Triangle Rock Club. First, at 4 p.m., GetHiking! Triangle leads a 4-mile hike on a portion of the Sycamore Trail at Umstead State Park in Raleigh. Then, the group heads 10 minutes down the road where the Triangle Rock Club hosts a couple hours of indoor climbing on its 13,000-plus square feet of wall (plus another 7,000 square feet of bouldering surface).

No experience? No problem. Plenty of helpful types will be on hand to help you enjoy both experiences.

Logistics: Sunday, Oct. 11, 4 p.m., starting with GetHiking! Triangle at Umstead, followed by climbing at 6 p.m. at the TRC North Raleigh.

Sunday forecast: Sunny and a high of 70.

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Looking ahead: Basic Land Navigation, Oct. 25, Umstead State Park, Raleigh. More info here.

Mountains

Run. Bike. Run.

Sounds like an elementary primer for the adventure set. In fact, it’s the 2015 Dig the Du: WNC’s ‘Dirty Duathlon.” Benefitting OpenDoors of Asheville, the event consists of a 2.5-mile run, a 12-mile mountain bike ride, then another 2.5 miles of running. The course, at Sky Valley Farms in Hendersonville, is described as “not only a good introduction to off-road, multi-sport events but … also a great venue for seasoned athletes.”

Logistics: Sunday, Oct. 11, 8 a.m., Sky Valley Farms, Hendersonville. More info and to register, go here.

Sunday forecast: Mostly sunny, high of 70.

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Looking ahead: “Reel Rock 10 Film Tour,” Oct. 15, 7 p.m., Diana Wortham Theatre at Pack Place, Asheville. Details here.

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

The post This weekend: Worship the sun appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

The sponsoring American Hiking Society lists 31 National Trails Day events in North Carolina. From that list, which you can find in its entirety here, we’ve pulled three activities — at the coast, in the Piedmont and in the mountains — that we think you’ll find particularly appealing.

Coast

The Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge occupies 153,000 acres of some of the most ecologically impressive terrain in North Carolina. Situated on a spit of rich organic and mineral soils on a peninsula between the mainland and the Outer Banks, the refuge is known largely for its diverse cast of critters, black bears, red wolves, coyotes and alligators among them.

But it also supports a range of ecosystems, including Atlantic white cedar forest, bay forest, brackish and freshwater marshes, cyrpress-gum forest, freshwater lakes and ponds, high shrub pocosins … the list goes on. It’s one of those places where you wish you knew at least a few of the key players.

That can happen Saturday, on a Plant and Tree ID Hike in the refuge. Local plant expert Bob Glennon leads a hike not only identifying plants but explaining the role they play in the overall scheme of things. The hike is on the half-mile-long, handicap accessible Creef Cut Trail.

Logistics: Saturday, 9 a.m.-10 p.m., Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, off Milltail Road. For more information call 252.475.4180 or visit here.

Saturday forecast: High of 77, chance of rain.

Looking ahead: From National Trails Day this Saturday to National Get Outdoors Day next Saturday, the outdoors celebration continues. As part of NGOD, Dismal Swamp State Park is holding a Summer Paddle at 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 13, all equipment included. More info by calling 252.771.6593.

Piedmont

Here in the U.S., we largely hike to forget. OK, perhaps “forget” is a little extreme, suggesting that we hike with a hiking staff in one hand, a bottle in the other. Rather, we hike to help cope with the stress of often chaotic lives. Put us on a trail, let our minds wander, we’re happy.

They likely hike for similar reasons in Germany and in the rest of Europe, but they also tend to hike with a sense of purpose, banding together into “volksmarch” clubs and hiking predetermined routes based on intriguing points of interest. And, they also like to get credit for their hikes, earning stamps, pins and patches on their merry, marching way.

Saturday, the Triangle Volksmarch will give locals a sense of the volksmarch ethic. Sponsored by N.C. State Parks, Public Lands Every Day and Great Outdoor Provision Co., this 5.6-mile hike will bridge the N.C. Museum of Art and Umstead State Park, with stops along the way at the Prairie Ridge EcoStation and N.C. State University’s Schenck Forest. Each location yields a learning experience — and a stamp! Afterwards, from 4-7 p.m., attend an after party at Great Outdoor Provision Co. in Raleigh’s Cameron Village.

Hike on your own anytime between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., or tag along with GetHiking! Triangle, which will start at 2 p.m.

Logistics: Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., N.C. Museum of Art/Umstead State Park (Harrison Avenue entrance), Raleigh. For information on the hike and for related activities throughout the day, go here. If you’d like to march with GetHiking! Triangle, go here for details and to sign up.

Saturday forecast: Partly cloudy, high of 85 with, of course, a chance of afternoon thunderstorms.

Looking ahead: Also on the agenda for National Get Outdoors Day: A 3-mile Get Outdoors Hike at Hanging Rock State Park to House Rock for a “free “Home Tour” of every room – rarely seen by visitors.” Intrigued? Call 336.593.8480 for details.

Mountains

We hate it when a trail network closes, even temporarily. We love it, though, when it reopens, new and improved.

Saturday is the grand reopening of the eight-mile Emerald Outback trail network at Beech Mountain. Initially a hiking trail, the trail has been redesigned to accommodate hikers and mountain bikers. The system is a mix of single- and double-track trail, and takes in lots of great views from Beech Mountain’s 5,400-foot summit (it bills itself as “one of the highest trail parks east of the Rockies”). In spots, you’ll be reminded of biking/hiking in the West.

The grand opening includes guided hikes and bike rides, food, live entertainment, clinics and if you don’t have a bike, demos will be available for loan.

Logistics: Saturday, 10 a.m. until nighttime, Beech Mountain. Free, for more information, go here.

Saturday forecast: High of 73, partly cloudy in the morning, a growing chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon.

Looking ahead: Afraid that you’ve missed the spring wildflower season? They’re still out in the higher elevations, such as Mount Jefferson State Natural Area, site of a Wildflower Hike Saturday, June 13, at 2 p.m. Call 336.246.9653 for details.

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

The post This weekend: Celebrate a trail! appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Coast

We may sound like a broken record, but one of the best adventure bargains going is canoeing at Merchants Millpond State Park. For just $5 an hour (and $3 for every hour thereafter), you can take out a canoe and explore this rambling, 760-acre millpond pocked with bald cypress, tupelo gum and the the assorted mysteries of a southern swamp.

It’s made even better Sunday afternoon when a park ranger leads Canoe 101. No paddling experience? No problem: the ranger will start you off with the basic strokes, then lead you on a paddle tour of this intriguing ecosystem. Best of all: there’s no fee. There are a limited number of boats available, though; sign-up ASAP to insure a spot (see below).

Logistics: Sunday, May 24, 2:30 p.m., Merchants Millpond State Park, Gatesville. Free, but space is limited; reserve a spot by calling 252.357.1191.

Sunday forecast: High of 82, mostly sunny.

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Looking ahead: Historical Southport Bicycle Tour, Saturday, May 30, 9 a.m. $20/$25. More info here.

Piedmont

What to do on a sunny Sunday morning on a cusp-of-summer day when the daytime high will only reach the low ‘80s?

Take advantage of one of the last days amenable to hiking in the Piedmont before fall. Which is the plan for our GetHiking! Triangle crew as it takes on a 10-mile stretch of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail along the Eno River. The group will start at West Point on the Eno City Park in Durham, hike upstream through rocky passages, past signs of Durham’s past, around the inviting Eno Quarry and through a thicket of mountain laurel atop a bluff en route to the Pleasant Green Access.

Logistics: Sunday, May 24, 9:30 a.m., meet at the Pleasant Green Access to Eno River State Park. For more information and to sign up, visit GetHiking! Triangle.

Sunday forecast: Mostly sunny, high of 82.

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Looking ahead: Volksmarch from the N.C. Museum of Art to Umstead State Park, 6.2 miles, Saturday, June 6, 2 p.m. More info here.

Mountains

As Karen Chavez with the Asheville Citizen-Times puts it, this weekend’s 15th Annual Mountain Sports Festival “celebrates all-things outdoor-recreation” Friday through Sunday. Based in Asheville’s Carrier Park in the River Arts District, the MSF truly covers just about every active mountain activity you can imagine, from whitewater kayaking and cyclocross to Ultimate Frisbee, Inline Hockey and knot-tying. If you want to experience it, you can experience it here.

Check out Karen’s account of the event here. Then, check out the Mountain Sports Festival site below for more detailed information.

Logistics: Friday-Sunday, Carrier Park in Asheville. For details, consult the Mountain Sports Festival website.

Three-day forecast: Highs in the mid 70s to low 80s, mostly sunny.

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Looking ahead: Blue Ridge Bicycle Club’s Fletcher Flyer, June 7, 8 a.m., Oskar Blues Brewery, 342 Mountain Industrial Drive, Brevard. Full century, metric century, half century, and half metric rides; post-ride party. $45 until May 24, $55 after.

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

The post This weekend: Make it a memorable one appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Coast

Friday morning, our friends at the North Carolina Coastal Federation, along with Wrightsville Beach Scenic Tours, are conducting a Coastal Birding Cruise. The one-hour boat ride, aboard The Shamrock, will explore the marsh and backwaters around Wrightsville Beach searching for shorebirds, from the pelican and black skimmer to (hopefully) the endangered piping plover (pictured). Guides will explain the area’s ecology as well. A great way to learn more about an area you may visit frequently, but likely don’t know well.

Logistics: Friday, April 3, 10 a.m., Blockade Runner Beach Resort Dock, Wrightsville Beach. $25-$35. More information: 910.509.2838 or visit here.

Friday forecast: High of 79, 20 percent chance of rain.

Piedmont

We love new trail and try to jump on a new stretch as soon as it opens. So we’re a little disappointed in ourselves for waiting more than a half year to investigate the 5-mile stretch of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail that opened last year linking West Point on the Eno city park in Durham with Penny’s Bend Nature Preserve downstream.

But investigate it we will, finally, on Saturday, with our GetHiking! Triangle group. We’ll meet at West Point at 10 a.m., shuttle to Penny’s Bend, hike upstream back to West Point. It’s a relatively flat stretch, this five miles that links 12 miles of the MST along the Eno upstream of West Point on the Eno, and 60 miles downstream, along Falls Lake.

Logistics: Saturday, April 4, 10 a.m. For details and to sign up, visit GetHiking! Triangle.

Saturday forecast: High of 64, a chance of showers early, then clearing.

Mountains

There’s something about the Smokies and wildflowers that shouts great spring weekend in the mountains. Which is why we’re giving a shout out (Is that still hip to say? Are we trying too hard?) to Sunday’s Baxter Creek & Big Creek Wildflower Hike by the Carolina Mountain Club. The hike originates in the Big Creek Campground on the North Carolina side of the Smokies, goes up Baxter Creek to the overlook and back, then head up Big Creek to Mouse Creek Falls, and back. Expect old growth forest and wildflowers in bloom.

Logistics: Sunday, April 5, 8:30 a.m., Big Creek Campground, Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Contact hike leader Stuart English — 828.384.4870, stuengo@citcom.net — to sign up and for more crucial logistical information. For more details on the hike, including maps, go here.

Sunday forecast: High of 65, sunny skies.

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

The post This weekend: Learn a thing appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

We offered some thoughts yesterday, in our weekly Weekend Plans segment: we’re back today with additional thoughts and direction.

Hiking

We start with hiking because once the hot weather sticks, one of the last things we’re inclined to do is hike. Copious sweating and being encased in spider webs aren’t on the American Hiking Society’s list of reasons to hike.

We won’t tell you where to hike, but we will tell you where to go to figure out where to hike. Four suggestions:

• Mountains-to-Sea Trail. It’s Mountains-to-Sea Trail Month, so hiking a stretch of the 550 miles of completed MST seems a natural. You’ll find about 50 miles down in the coast and coastal plain, nearly 200 miles in the Piedmont and a little more than 300 in the mountains. You can find helpful descriptions of where to take a hike on the Friends of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail website.
• GetHiking! Our three GetHiking! groups — in Charlotte, the Triad and the Triangle — all have hikes planned for Sunday, all on the MST: Charlotte on an eight-mile stretch along the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Triad will be doing 6.5 miles along the Watershed Lakes in Greensboro, the Triangle as a 15-miler planed along Falls Lake. If you’d like to explore the MST but would also like some company, click on the appropriate link and join us.
• Great Outdoor Provision Co. Over the past two years, the Great Outdoor Provision Co., with assistance from GetGoingNC, has been developing an online trail guide. So far, we’ve got 55 trails in North Carolina and 15 in Virginia. All the information you need to assess, plan and execute a hike. Start your search here.
• Carolina Mountain Club. This venerable (formed in 1923) hiking club offers at least three hikes a week and has an extensive database of hikes in the Appalachians. A great resource.

Paddling

First, a warning: all that rain means the local rivers are running high, local lake levels are up. Unless you’re an accomplished paddler, you might want to steer clear of rivers in particular this weekend. Your best bet: Get a copy of Paul Ferguson’s “Paddling Eastern North Carolina,” find the river you’re interested in paddling, check Paul’s recommendation for maximum runnable river level, then check the latest USGS streamflow numbers.

Lakes may also be a challenge; if possible, call before throwing the boat on the car to check on conditions. And if you need to rent a boat, don’t forget our “51 Places to Rent a Canoe, Kayak or Standup Paddleboard in North Carolina.”

Mountain biking

This is one activity you may be shut out of this weekend. Most trail networks close when wet; even those that don’t might be impassable in spots due to the rain. Again, before throwing the bike on the roof rack, call to see if your destination is open. Find a list of statewide mountain biking destinations here.

Running

This is the time of year when a race can either be sublime or a sufferfest. Most runners are in pretty good shape at this point in the spring, but that first hot race can easily bring even the best-trained to their knees. With morning temperatures forecast in the low 60s  this weekend, it’s PR time.

If you’re a runner and don’t have a race scheduled for this weekend, you might reconsider. The North Carolina Running Calendar has 38 races listed for this weekend, starting with tonight’s Hopewell Hustle 5K in Monroe and The Great Glow Run 5K in Raleigh, to Sunday’s Greensboro Half Marathon (and 5K and 10K). You may have to pay a premium to enter at this point, but it could be well worth it.

Learn about the natural world around you

There’s a lot going on this time of year in the natural world; gain some insight at one of the numerous free nature programs offered by North Carolina state parks.  to the meat-eating plants at Carolina Beach State Park. Check out this weekend’s curriculum here.

Plan for the future

A personal plug here: Yes, get out and explore this weekend. But also take a few minutes to think about your next adventure, by, say, joining me at one of this weekend’s “Adventure Carolinas” talks. Saturday at 11:30 p.m., I’ll be discussing my new book from UNC Press at the Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, while on Sunday from 2-3 p.m. I’ll be at the Barnes & Noble in Burlington, at Alamance Crossing off I-40/85.

Can’t make it this weekend? I’ll be making the rounds for a while. Here’s my schedule.

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The post Weekend Plans: Special Fabulous Weather Edition appeared first on GetGoing NC!.