It’s the transition season in North Carolina: standup paddleboarding at the coast, skiing in the mountains and hiking in between.
Coast
The Surf to Sound Challenge at Wrightsville Beach typically marks the end of the standup paddleboard season at the coast — a late and chilly end, in most folks’ books. The two-day challenge features the 6.5-mile Surf to Sound Challenge and the 4-mile Harbor Island Outer Loop challenge on Saturday, and a new competition, the Surf SUP Competition on Sunday. If you’ve got the will and a wet suit, head on down to Wrightsville Beach.read more
Monday — never an easy time for the outdoors enthusiast. After a weekend of adventure, returning to the humdrum work-a-day world can make one melancholy. To help ease the transition, every Monday we feature a 90 Second Escape — essentially, a 90-second video or slide show of a place you’d probably rather be: a trail, a park, a greenway, a lake … anywhere as long as it’s not under a fluorescent bulb.read more
Monday — never an easy time for the outdoors enthusiast. After a weekend of adventure, returning to the humdrum work-a-day world can make one melancholy. To help ease the transition, every Monday we feature a 90 Second Escape — essentially, a 90-second video or slide show of a place you’d probably rather be: a trail, a park, a greenway, a lake … anywhere as long as it’s not under a fluorescent bulb.read more
Great views abound from the Mountains-to-Sea Trail in the Pisgah area.
The first significant cool front in a while descends over much of the state, leaving weekend highs in the 60s and 70s over much of the state. Here are three ways to take advantage of our weather windfall.
Coast
We’re avid proponents of starting the weekend early, especially when the destination is a place called Keg Island. Thus, we endorse Friday’s Sunset Kayaking Adventure at River Road Park in Wilmington. The trip begins at the park, on the Cape Fear River between Wilmington and Carolina Beach, and paddles on the river out to Keg Island for a picnic. Then it’s back to the put in as the sun sets.read more
Dr. Mitchell was after in in the outdoors until the end, when he was in his early 60s.
If you’re looking to escape the weather this weekend, consider this: the forecasts for our three events in the mountains (Swannanoa), the Piedmont (Orange County) and at the coast (Wrightsville Beach) are this: High of 88, 20 to 30 percent chance of precipitation. Likely, it will be hot and a bit muggy wherever you go. Fortunately, we’ve found three events cool in both concept and execution.read more
