Tag Archives: Merchants Millpond

Exploring North Carolina’s northeast corridor

At our weekly GetHiking! Triangle hike a couple weeks back, I was approached at the trailhead by a woman who introduced herself as being from Virginia Beach, Va. She, her daughter and a friend were in town asked if they might tag along with our group. read more

This weekend: Honor mom outside

"Woman in Boat"

What better way to celebrate your mom than with the mom to all, Mother Nature.

Coast

Renoir’s “Woman in Boat” is one of those classic impressionist paintings that you get lost in for a while before snapping to and thinking, “I should get Mom out in a boat. She’d like that.” OK, maybe that’s not necessarily what you think at the time. But now that the seed has been planted, it’s a good idea, no? read more

Do it all on New Year’s Day

Post-hike Russian tea at the Eno River Association New Year's Day Hike

When I first started writing about fitness and the outdoors back in the early 1990s, there were a handful of ways you could welcome the New Year in most communities. There was usually a 5K run, a bike shop sponsored a casual ride, canoe clubs held members-only paddles, there was a hike or two, and some oddball group was jumping into a local lake (and jumping right back out again). You had options for welcoming the new year, but not a lot. read more

Resources for a steamy weekend of cool, wet fun

We’re staring down the first steamy weekend of the summer. Frankly, I’m hard pressed to think of something to do outdoors that doesn’t involve water.

There’s swimming, of course. At your local pool (search for local parks and rec departments with pools at the North Carolina Recreation & Parks Association Web site), at a trusted swimming hole (find 76 in North Carolina at SwimmingHoles.org), at the coast (find Outer Banks beaches here, Wilmington area beaches here and assorted other beaches here. read more

90 Second Escape: On the water

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 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