Until Sunday, when, once again, temperatures barely topping 40 accompanied by a wintry mix return. But, again, until then … . So what say we start the weekend a bit early, on Friday? If we do that, we have a couple of intriguing options:

Untitled Hike, Friday, 1 p.m., Eno River State Park, Durham. “Untitled Hike,” may not sound appealing, but read the description: “Join a Ranger to hike about 2 miles to the site of a cemetery of enslaved people on park property. We will discuss the role enslaved people of color played in the formation of the Eno River Valley as well as the history of enslavement in North Carolina. This hike will include discussions of the practice of slavery and will feature a short hike off trail (about 50 yards) as well as one creek crossing.” Off trail and history — two of the best things a hike has to offer. Free, but registration is limited; call 919.383.1686 to register. More info here.

Leaf Me Alone, Friday, 1 p.m., Pilot Mountain State Park, Pinnacle. “Leaf litter” — a somewhat derogatory term, no? While it can have some downsides, it’s also a positive. Learn more on this hike. Learn more here.

Then, on likewise glorious Saturday:

History of the Longleaf Pine, 1 p.m., Jones Lake State Park, Elizabethtown. Any chance to visit Jones Lake in the winter should be taken, especially when the weather promises to be sunny and cool/warm. This hike is at the Salter Lake portion of the park. Learn more here.

BioDiversity Hike: Uwharrie National Forest, Saturday, 2 p.m., Uwharrie National Forest. Charlotte’s Reedy Creek Nature Preserve sponsors this 5- to 7-mile adventure, part of a monthly series exploring “Biodiversity together on a monthly pilgrimage around North and South Carolina.” Specifics provided upon registration. Go here for details and to register.

That’s a sampling of what’s up this weekend, a weekend that you might want to start on Friday because Sunday may not be weekend-friendly. But whatever you do, just make sure to GetOut!

And enjoy!

* * *

Looking ahead

Next weekend we’re holding our first GetOriented! Finding Your Way in the Woods map and compass session of the year, at Umstead State Park. Our 3-hour class gives you both the basic map and compass skills and the on-the-ground training to make you a more confident, competent hiker. We also have a lot of fun! Learn more and register to join us here.

The post GetOut! And do it Friday or Saturday, because Sunday … appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Coast

Got some vacation time — or in these hard corporate times, “furlough” time — you need to burn by year’s end? Tell the boss you’re taking off for a trip to the coast. True, the water is chilly and it’s hard to get an even tan wearing a parka. But that shouldn’t affect you since you’ll be at Wings Over Water.

For 16 years now, the folks at the northeast coast have been setting aside a week — Nov. 6 thru 11 this year — to celebrate the wonder of wildlife in the Outer Banks region. This year’s celebration consists of 85 programs: guided paddle trips, wildlife photo safaris, hikes, birding expeditions and more. Just about every type of nature excursion you can think of.

Logistics: Learn about it all at wingsoverwater.org.

Extended forecast: Highs in the mid to upper 60s and sunny over the next several days.

Piedmont

Sometimes your kids — and you — need a little extra incentive to hit the trail. A carrot to get you out in the cold. No, not a carrot. A deer skull, maybe. Or owl droppings. Or a certain kind of fungus.

That’s the intent behind Saturday’s Hunt for Fall Scavenger Hunt at the Reedy Creek Nature Center in Charlotte. Get scavenger hunt checklist, then head out with a naturalist who can help you check it off. A mile or two of trail hiking required.

Logistics: From 2-3:30 p.m. Free, but preregistration required, by calling 704.432.6460. Additional information here.

Saturday forecast: Sunny and 66.

Mountains

Here’s the dilemma of the flatlands distance trail runner: You’re intrigued by the idea of running a mountain trail, but you don’t know the mountain trails that well and you don’t know any mountain trail runners to tag along with. Your only option is to run these unfamiliar trails is to do a race. Or so you think.

In fact, there are trail running groups in the high country that would love to show you around. Groups such as the Swain County Trail Runners, who meet every Saturday morning to run the Smokies or in the Tsali Recreation Area. Now you have a friend in the mountain trail running business.

Logistics: Group assembles at 8 a.m. Saturday at the Deep Creek Trailhead parking area at the foot of the Smokies near Bryson City. For more detailed information, call 828.399.0989 or 828.488.6769, or e-mail wdtreern@yahoo.com.

Saturday forecast: Sunny, high of 70.

* * *

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.

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

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.

* * *
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The post This weekend: Wing it to the coast appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Coast

Sometimes it takes a push from our creative side to jump-start our active side. That’s one incentive for checking out Lake Waccamaw State Park’s monthly Nature Journal Hike. Once a month, participants, with journal and pen in hand, head out with a park ranger to explore this unique park 12 miles east of Whiteville in the coastal plain. Lake Waccamaw State Park is dominated by a 9,000-acre Carolina bay, one of thousands of oval lakes that dot the middle of the eastern seaboard — or once did, for many of the shallow lakes have long-since filled in. The lake (pictured) is the subject of this month’s hike, from 3-4 p.m. on Saturday. It’s free — even the journal is included.

More info, call 910.646.4748 or visit the park Web site.

Piedmont

One of the joys of hiking woods rich in history is that you never know when you might stumble upon an historic relic — an old homestead, a roadbed that once served as a major transportation corridor, a ford that afforded passage across a stream.  One of the coolest relics you could hope to stumble upon is the destination of a hike Saturday morning from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., the Robinson Rock House on the grounds of the Reedy Creek Nature Center in Charlotte. The house dates back to the 1700s, when John Selwyn received a land grant from King George. The hike is three miles, the history timeless. Or something like that.

More info on the hike, here.  More on Reedy Creek and the rockin’ Robinson house here.

Mountains

A visit to Elk Knob State Park is justified simply by the fact that to get there you have to take Meat Camp Road. A visit is doubly justified Saturday thanks to a Celestial Treasure Hunt. From atop Elk Knob’s 5,520-foot mountain-top clearing you’ll check out the night sky’s top constellations, from Orion and Canis Major to Taurus the Bull. Program starts at 6, ensuring darkness.

More info by calling 828.297.7261 or going here.

* * *

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.

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

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.

The post This weekend: history natural, history human, stars appeared first on GetGoing NC!.