Coast

If you need a reason to run, you won’t find a much better one than Saturday’s Run, Roll & Stroll 5K, 10K and 1-mile fun run in downtown Wilmington. The reason? The race benefits Purple Heart Homes, whose goal is to “help reintegrate veterans into the community, and to proudly acknowledge the sacrifice they have made on our country’s behalf. Whether it is adapting an already owned home, building a home from the ground up, or adapting and modifying a foreclosed home, Purple Heart Homes is committed to guiding the veteran through the entire process.”

There are other reasons, including the fact the races are in scenic downtown Wilmington (including the waterfront) and that at race’s end, all participants of age will be treated to a cold one by Front Street Brewery. Another plus: if you’re an avid runner with a non-running spouse/partner/accomplice, it should be pretty easy to talk them into the one-mile fun run, considering the cause.

Logistics: Saturday, Nov. 7, 9 a.m. (fun run is at 9:15), The Diligence in downtown Wilmington (Water Street between Princess and Grace streets). $40 for the 10K, $30 for the 5K, $25 for the fun run. More info here.

Saturday forecast: Temperature of 73 at race time, with a chance of thunderstorms later in the day.

* * *

Looking ahead: Kayaking the Creeks, BHI Conservancy, Bald Head Island, Saturday, Dec. 5, 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. More info here.

Piedmont

Every four years, it intrigues us. Sure, the Super G, hockey and figure skating may get the lion’s share of attention when the Winter Olympics roll around, but face it, what you really look forward to is that oddball sport from the far north that involves only two pieces of equipment, both of which are remarkably simple: a broom and some polished rocks.

Yup, we flip open a Hamm’s (the beer refreshing) and watch transfixed as one person propels the shinny stone down a sheet of ice while two bebroomed teammates about 150 feet away sweep like mad to bring the stone home. And after the second or third Hamm’s (from the land of sky blue water), we are want to proclaim, “Shucks, I could do that!”

Could you?

Find out Saturday when the good folks at Charlotte Curling hold an Open House at their facility at 6525 Old Statesville Road. Try your hand, ask questions, hang out afterward.

Logistics: Saturday, Nov. 7, 1-2 p.m., Charlotte Curling Association, 6525 Old Statesville Road, Charlotte. Free. More info here.

Saturday forecast: High of 70, but rain all day.

* * *

Looking ahead: Thanksgiving Day hikes, at your North Carolina State Parks. Find one near you, here.

Mountains

What do you do on a sunny, 55-degree fall day in November in the Southern Appalachians? You take a hike.

And if you choose to tag along with the Carolina Mountain Club this Sunday, you’ll be hiking an 8.5-mile stretch of the Appalachian Trail between Sams Gap and Devils Fork Gap. Sunday’s hike takes in High Rock, Rice Gap, Lick Rock and Sugarloaf Gap as well. All, as we mentioned, under sunny skies and temperatures in the 50s.

Logistics: Sunday, Nov. 8, 8:30 a.m., Appalachian Trail off I-26 at Exit 3. Contact hike leader Bob Hysko, 828.243.3630 or rhysko@yahoo.com for details. Specifics on the route, here.

Sunday forecast: Sunny, high of 55.

* * *

Looking ahead: Sticking with the Carolina Mountain Club, they’ll be hiking a newer stretch of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail on Sunday, Nov. 22, from Good Road to Bald Knob and back. More info here.

* * *

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

Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too

The post This weekend: Curl up with a smooth stone appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Today’s 90-Second Escape: First Light on the Trail

There are things we’d rather do first thing in the morning than workout. Read the paper over coffee and sleep longer both come to mind.

But what gets us out of bed and on the trail first thing is the prospect of savoring the first light of the day. Knifing through the woods and illuminating the forest floor, the day’s first sunlight offgers a dreamlike quality to an early morning run or ride — and dreamlike not from the fact you’re still half asleep.

Tag along for a 90 second early morning escape on the trails of Umstead State Park and see if you aren’t inspired to set the alarm a half hour earlier.

* * *

Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too

The post 90 Second Escape: First light on the trail appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

Resolved to get out more in 2014 but need to ease into it? We’ve got two birding programs that promise a mix of mellow movement and awesome outdoor exposure. And if you’re looking to up your competitive resume in the year just begun, we’ve got a run in the mountains in a lesser-known natural area. Regardless of where you currently fit into the movement spectrum, it’s a good first weekend to an active new year.

Coast

Lake Waccamaw in the southern coastal plain is worth a visit no matter the season. It’s a rare surviving Carolina bay, a series of mysterious oval lakes that once numbered in the thousands along the East Coast, though all but a handful of which have since filled in. Limestone bluffs along the lake’s north shore neutralize the lake’s tannic waters, providing a habitat for plants and animals found nowhere else. The nearby Green Swamp adds to the area’s ecological diversity.

In winter, the lake becomes home to various species of overwintering waterfowl, including a wide array of ducks. Part of the fun of watching this winter waterfowl display is knowing who’s who, a skill you can become more proficient at at Saturday’s Ducks at a Distance program at Lake Waccamaw State Park.

Logistics: Saturday, Jan. 4, 2 p.m. Free. Learn more about the park here, for more information call 910.646.4748.

Saturday forecast: Sunny, clear, high of 49.

Piedmont

Think about this from the perspective of a bird based in Canada or the northern tier states. Winter is coming, food will be scarce; you need to head for warmer climes. All your feathered friends are thinking the same thing, and most are a twitter over a common destination: the North Carolina coast. “Sure hope Lake Mattamuskeet isn’t as crowded as last year,” worry the northern pintails. “I do hope we can find a decent place at Pea Island,” fret the tundra swans. All your bird buddies are heading to the North Carolina coast.

If you were a smart migrant, what would you be thinking? You’d be thinking about a quiet place away from the coast, a nice 6,800-or-so-acre lake with maybe 150 miles of shoreline that’s not on the radar of all the other winter migrants. A place such as Lake James, located on the cusp of the southern Appalachians.

A lot of birds do apparently think this way, making Lake James a great place for a Waterfowl Hike such as the one Saturday morning, where a naturalist ranger will point out who’s who, where they’re from and how long the plan to stay.

Logistics: Saturday, Jan. 4, 10 a.m., Lake James State Park, Nebo. More info on the park here, more information on the program by calling 828.584.7728

Saturday forecast: Sunny with a high of 42.

Mountains

Even if you consider yourself well-versed in the natural areas of North Carolina’s high country, you might not be familiar with the Box Creek Wilderness near Union Mills. At 5,185 acres, Box Creek is the largest private Registered Natural Heritage Area in the state, its status coming as a result of its “sheer number and rarity of imperiled species and natural communities as well as for its importance in protecting the highest quality and rarest natural communities and species. “At Box Creek you’ll find more than 100 rare and priority conservation species of plants and animals, 18 globally rare plant communities, and forest supporting 28 rare or conservation priority bird species.

That’s a lot to see! And what better way to see it than on a run benefitting the Union Mills Learning Center, which celebrates and promotes the region’s natural, cultural and historic heritage. Sunday’s Box Creek Wilderness Run includes a 5K (all on paved roads) and a 10K (a mix of paved and gravel roads).

Logistics: Saturday, Jan. 4, 8:30 a.m. $20 ($10 for 12 and under). More info here.

Sunday forecast: Sunny, high of 42.

* * *

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

Like us on Facebook and get health, fitness and outdoors news throughout the day.

GetGoingNC.com

Promote Your Page Too

The post This weekend: Waterfowl watch, wilderness run appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

A biathlon with running and standup paddleboarding, a half marathon on a NASCAR track, a hike in the snow — can a weekend get more North Carolina than that?

Coast

Running and standup paddleboarding — that’s a combination you don’t often see under the biathlon umbrella. But you will Saturday at Wrightsville Beach for the 4th Annual Wrightsville Beach Biathlon. Four miles of standup paddleboarding on a flatwater course followed by a 4-mile beach run, all in the hopes of scoring “the soon-to-be-coveted Masonboro Trophy.”

Logistics: Competition begins at 10:30 a.m. Saturday morning from near the Blockade Runner in Wrightsville Beach. Individual $45, teams $250. More info here.

Sunday forecast: High of 61, 70 percent chance of rain.

Piedmont

Not all of Sunday’s North Carolina Half Marathon takes place on the track at Concord’s Charlotte Motor Speedway — you get to run on the nearby drag strip, too! The chance to start and finish on this 1.5-mile oval alone should inspire thoughts of a PR (though don’t expect to match Elliott Sadler’s qualifying record of 193.21 miles per hour).

Logistics: 7:30 a.m. Sunday, March 24, Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord. $85, here.

Sunday forecast: High of 55, 60 percent chance of rain.

Mountains

When I think of Kitsuma Peak near Old Fort, I think of mountain biking, specifically the Off-road Assault on Mount Mitchell. Sunday, though, the focus will be on hiking as the Carolina Mountain Club takes on Kitsuma and Young’s Ridge for its great views of Graybeard Mountain, Green Knob, Mount Mitchell and the Swannanoa Valley. A 10-mile hike with 1,150 feet of total climbing.

Logistics: Sunday, March 24, 9 a.m. Details, contact hike leader Lenny Bernstein at 828.236.0192 or lsberns@att.net

Sunday forecast: High of 37 with a 60 percent chance of snow.

* * *

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.

U.S. National Wildlife Refuges
Rundown, by month, of regular activities at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service refuges in North Carolina.

The post This weekend: S’up? Plenty! appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

“Did you get lunch?” one dental hygienest asked the other.

“No,” answered the second. “I bought a dress that’s a size too small and, well … .” She went on to explain that she’d bought if for an event on Friday — the day after Thanksgiving.

“ ‘at’s a-mer-a-ble,” I said sounding like Foster Brooks but sincere in my appreciation of her optimism.  “A dresh a shize too shmall before ‘hankshgiving. ”

Health and fitness writer guy kicked in and I suggested that first thing Thursday morning she should run 10 miles because, curiously, exercise can act as an appetite suppressant.

She looked at me skeptically, not so much about the appetite suppressant but about the running 10 miles part.

“Or at leash go for a long walkh,” I offered.

For years now, I’ve either gone for a long run or a long ride Thanksgiving morning. This spurt of endurance exercise usually moderates my T-day intake, and when it doesn’t, it at least assuages my guilt over the remainder of the day. The trick can be convincing yourself, on a holiday, to rise early for a solitary workout. This trick can be accomplished with some help, from the assortment of organized rides and runs offered.

In running circles, Thanksgiving is especially well-known for the trots — the Turkey Trots, of which the website Running.net lists 11 this Thanksgiving in North Carolina. They are:

• Asheville: Earth Fare Turkey Trot 5K, 9 a.m.
• Boiling Springs: Ruby C. Hunt YMCA Turkey Trot, 5K Run, 5K Walk, children’s fun run.
• Carrboro: Double B Gallop and Gorge 8K.
• Cary: Inside-Out Sports Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot 8K, One Mile, Kid’s 100-yard Dash, 5K, 9 a.m., (One Mile race is at 8:30 a.m.).
• Charlotte: Charlotte SouthPark Turkey Trot 8K, 1 Mile FR 8:30 a.m.; 8K Run & Baby Jogger 8K 9 a.m.; 5K Walk 9:15 a.m.; Tot Trot 10 a.m.
• Cornelius: Lake Norman Turkey Trot, 10K, 5K, 7:30 a.m.
• Duck: Advice 5K Turkey Trot, 9 a.m.
• Mooresville: Mooresville Christian Mission Turkey Trot 5K, 9 a.m.
• New Bern: Twin Rivers YMCA & Taberna Country Club Turkey Trot 5K run/walk/dog jog, 8 a.m.
• Raleigh: Ridgewood Turkey Trot, 8K & 1 Mile, 8 a.m.
• Winston-Salem: Turkey Strut 5K, 1 Mile fun run/walk, 9 a.m.

Find out more about those runs here.

There aren’t as many organized bike rides, but I did find two, both in the Triangle. (Precipitation cancels both rides.)

• Earn-Your-Turkey Ride, 45 miles, 17-18 mph pace, 9 a.m. Start and finish at Apex Community Center.
• Gyros Cycling Club Thanksgiving Day Ride, 35 miles, “easy pace,” 9 a.m. More info here.

Alas, I won’t be running or riding this Thanksgiving, largely because I now have a new appetite suppressant.

I can’t chew.

The post Turkey and a 10K? appeared first on GetGoing NC!.