In 2015, we launched our GetHiking! Classic Hikes program with GetHiking! North Carolina’s Classic Hikes. Over the course of the year we hiked a dozen of North Carolina’s most notable areas: Shining Rock, Mount Mitchell and the Black Mountains, Panthertown Valley, the Mountains-to-Sea Trail and the Appalachian Trail, to name a few.

Now, if there were only a dozen Classic Hikes in North Carolina, we could declare mission accomplished and be done. In fact, there are so many more than a dozen Classics in the state (I’ve written a book that documents 100, “100 Classic Hikes in North Carolina,” Mountaineers Books). And there are so many more Classics throughout the Southeast.

Thus, our mission continues in 2016, with the expanded GetHiking! The Southeast’s Classic Hikes series.

First, we’re not abandoning North Carolina. In fact, we’re only adding two out-of-state hikes in 2016, both in Virginia (a stretch of the Appalachian Trail near Lynchburg and the Grayson Highlands/Mount Rogers area). And while we are repeating two hikes from 2015 (Panthertown Valley, by popular demand, and Doughton Park, because it’s a good late winter mountain hike), we’ve got a North Carolina lineup that will expose you to even more great hiking than you thought possible. We’ll get to a full calendar of hikes, with descriptions, in a sec. But first … .

Why join this fee-based hiking program? We had about 90 hikers participate in the 2015 program, all with their own personal motivation. Basically, though, they boiled down to two key motivators: the challenge, and the chance to explore more of the state’s wild areas.

The Challenge

Right about now you’re likely thinking what most people are thinking on the cusp of a new year: how can I be more active in the year ahead? Hiking is a great option. First, just about anyone can do it, and unlike many other “active” options, it’s something you can be active at late into life. (Of our 90 or so 2015 hikers, at least half are over 50.) Hiking requires some basic equipment: hiking boots/shoes, good socks, a day pack, for starters. But once you’ve got the basics, it’s cheap fun: transportation and food are your key expenses.

If you’re new to hiking, you might be intimidated by the “Classic” designation, equating “Classic” with epic and visions of a death march rather than an enjoyable day in the woods. First, our hikes are actually two hikes, a longer hike and a shorter hike. For instance, our first hike, on the Neusiok Trail in the coastal Croatan National Forest, gives you the option of hiking the entire 20.4-mile trail, or a 6-mile stretch. Start with the shorter options, maybe you’ll want to go longer after three or four hikes. Plus, the monthly hikes are good incentive to do shorter, local hikes in the interim.

If you’re looking for an activity you can embrace for the longterm and one that doesn’t seem like work (as is often the case with a traditional “workout,” hiking is a good option. Likewise, if you seek a sense of accomplishment and reward, you’ll find it in a hike (just ask the folks who did our 13.4-mile hike on the Appalachian Trail north of Carvers Gap in September).

And if you’re worried about being left in the woods, don’t be. Our hikes are led from the rear, guaranteeing that no one, not the slowest hiker, is dropped. This approach benefits our more experienced hikers as well; with direction supplied before the hike, they become more confident in their ability to navigate in the backcountry.

Explore New Trails

Even if you’re an avid hiker, how many of the state’s — and region’s — trails have you hiked? Or are even familiar with? Drop down and take a look at our lineup for 2016: if you’ve hiked half of these trails, you’re doing pretty good. Odds are there are one or two you haven’t heard of.

We aim to expose you to the wealth of hiking opportunities in the Southeast. Take the October hike. Perhaps you’ve heard of, even hiked in the Shining Rock area. But Sam Knob? Its neighbor to the west offers a more varied hike: the views, meadows and black balsam forests Shining Rock is known for, plus rock outcrops and waterfalls. As for the July Standing Indian hike, we’re guessing that one’s got you scratching your head. After the weekend of July 16-17, 2016, you’ll be boasting it’s one of the best circuit hikes around.

Again, check the schedule below for descriptions of 2016’s hikes.

New in 2016

If you’re a veteran of GetHiking! North Carolina’s Classic Hikes, we’ve added a few new twists to GetHiking! The Southeast’s Classic Hikes:

• Weekend trips. Over the past year, several of you commented that you loved the mountain trips, but you wished there was more hiking to justify the long drive. This year we’ve added six camping weekends in the mountains. Drive up Friday afternoon/evening, camp, hike Saturday, camp Saturday night, hike Sunday. Camping will be in group campgrounds near the trails we will hike; in some cases we can hike directly from camp. Our one group camp experience in 2015, at Mills River, was a big hit, highlighted by a potluck dinner Saturday evening.
• Aren’t a camper — but you’re interested? This year, we’ve added a Discover Camping option to our weekend trips. We provide the tent and sleeping mattress, give you a list of household items you can use to supplement your other camp needs, and are there to help take the mystery out of camping.
• Lodge/hostel weekend on the AT out of Hot Springs. Over the three-day Veteran’s Day weekend (November 11-13) we’ve reserved the Laughing Heart Lodge in Hot Springs, North Carolina. Hike the Appalachian Trail during the day, return to the lodge/hostel for a civil evening of rest in a warm environment (see schedule for details).

Membership: what you get

Basic membership to GetHiking! The Southeast’s Classic Hikes is $75, which applies to your first three hikes. (If you’re first three hikes are weekend trips, that’s a savings of $30). Your membership includes:

• Three hikes, as mentioned above. After that, each single-day hike is $25, weekend trips are $35.
• Monthly emagazine with detailed information on that month’s hike, including an overview touching on the trail’s highlights; map of the hike with points of interest; elevation profile; photos; info box with key information, including trail access, length, elevation gain and more. Also in each emag: information on camping and lodging near each hike, as well as hiking tips and resources pertinent to this particular hike.
• Swag bag for each hike. For each hike you’ll get a goody bag filled with hiking-appropriate swag.
• Joining gift. TBD. Last year, members received either hiking socks, a camp towel or a GetHiking! T-shirt, courtesy Great Outdoor Provision Co.
• Loaner gear. Curious about trekking poles but never tried them? Here’s your chance. We’ll also have loaner headlamps (if you’re worried about finishing after sunset).
• Ten percent discount on hiking gear at Great Outdoor Provision Co.

If you think you’ll make all the hikes, save $60 by joining the Classics Club for $300. That covers all the hikes, plus the Discover Camping program, and get a $35 gift card from Great Outdoor Provision Co.

How to join

Sign up today and we will send you pertinent information about the program, as well as details on our first hike, on January 24 on the Neusiok Trail. Pay via PayPal, below, or send a check to GetGoingNC, 4909 Waters Edge Dr., Suite 206, Raleigh, NC 27606.

Hike schedule

Here’s the full schedule of our 2016 GetHiking! The Southwest’s Classic Hikes.

January: Neusiok Trail, Croatan National Forest
Havelock
Sunday, Jan. 24
Long Hike: 20.4 miles (entire length)
Short Hike: 6.4 miles (northern trailhead to NC 306)
$25
We start the year in a coastal forest, on a lowland trail that spends much of its eastern length in pine savannah and on boardwalk elevated above a shrubby bog, its western end in forest that has odd flashes of the Appalachians. The Neusiok is a trail best hiked in winter, when the flying pests common to the coast are less pesky. As you might guess, there’s little elevation on this hike, making it a good hike to start the year.

February: Uwharrie National Recreation Trail, Uwharrie National Forest
Asheboro
Saturday, Feb. 20
Long Hike: 17.8 (Sections 3-8)
Short Hike: 6.3 (Sections 3-4)
$25
The Uwharries, in the heart of the rolling Piedmont, may have long since eroded from their 20,000-foot peak, but they still present a nice challenge. A challenge not without its reward: especially Sections 3 and 4, where the trail reaches its high point (King Mountain, at 1,013 feet) and offers its best view, a 360 from the top of Long Mountain. Both hikes include this stretch; the longer hike lets you build endurance as you probe deeper into this largely hardwood forest.

March: Doughton Park, Blue Ridge Parkway
Roaring Gap
Saturday, March 19
Long Hike: 18 miles (Longbottom Loop)
Short Hike: 10 miles (Longbottom to Bluff Mountain)
$25
One of the few repeats from the 2015 Classic Hikes season, and for good reason. For starters, it’s an early-season opportunity to get into the mountains. Located on the Blue Ridge escarpment north of Wilkesboro, both hikes begin with a steady 4.5-mile climb before topping out in the rolling mountain meadows of Doughton Park. The short hike finishes at Bluff Mountain, the long brings it back around down a descending ridgeline to the Longbottom Trailhead. Great views from the top — and early spring wildflowers to boot.

April: Appalachian Trail, Virginia
Lynchburg, Va.
Saturday, April 2
One hike: 10 miles (Punchbowl on the Blue Ridge Parkway to James River)
$25
Think of day hiking the Appalachian Trail and you immediately think of driving half the day to western North Carolina. In fact, the AT is closest to the Triad and Triangle, at least, in Virginia. Where the AT crosses the James River west of Lynchburg is an especially scenic stretch of this iconic trail. From the Blue Ridge Parkway, the trail climbs to Punchbowl, then stays along a ridge for about 7 miles, offering an ongoing supply of views, both east to the Piedmont and west to the Shenandoah Valley and George Washington National Forest.

May: Mountains-to-Sea Trail: Craggy Mountains
Pisgah National Forest
Saturday/Sunday, May 7-8
Group camping: Briar Bottom Group Campground
Saturday: Buck Creek Gap to campground (hike lengths to be determined)
Sunday: NC 128 to Craggy Gardens (hike lengths to be determined)
$35
The first of six weekend hikes with group camping. Arrive Friday night, set up camp at the Briar Bottom Group Campground at the base of Mount Mitchell, then hike from Buck Creek Gap back to the campground on Saturday. A potluck Saturday night, followed by more hiking, at Craggy Gardens on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Sunday. A good sampling of a stretch of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail that doesn’t get hiked much because of its remote location.

June: Davidson River / North Mills River
Brevard
Saturday/Sunday, June 18/19
Group Camping: White Pines Group Campground
Saturday: Art Loeb (hike lengths tbd)
Sunday: Fish Hatchery / John Rock loop (7 miles)
$35
Our lone group camping experience in 2015 at Mills River was a hit. We return to the area, this time to the White Pines Group Campground in the adjoining Davidson River area of the Pisgah National Forest for a weekend of hiking. Saturday, we’ll hike a stretch of the Art Loeb Trail heading down from the Blue Ridge Parkway, then return to camp to kick back and enjoy a pot-luck dinner. Sunday, we’ll do the popular 7-mile John Rock Loop, enjoying lunch and views of Looking Glass Rock from the trail’s namesake attraction.

July: Standing Indian / Appalachian Trail
Franklin
Saturday/Sunday, July 16/17
Group camping: Kimsey Creek Group Campground
Saturday: Kimsey Creek/AT/Lower Trail Ridge (hike lengths tbd)
Sunday: Timber Ridge / AT / Bear Pen Gap loop (hike lengths tbd)
$35
On our third Saturday/Sunday hike we visit the Standing Indian area west of Franklin. The Standing Indian group campground is ideally situated for our purposes. Saturday morning, head out your tent door and onto the Kimsey Creek Trail for a climb up to the Appalachian Trail, returning via Lower Ridge Trail. Sunday, we do another AT loop, up Timber Ridge to the AT and back via Bear Pin Gap.

August: Great Smoky Mountains National Park /Deep Creek
Bryson City
Saturday/Sunday, Aug. 13/14
Group camping: Deep Creek Group Campground
Saturday: Noland Divide Trail/Pole Road Creek Trail/Deep Creek Trail (hike lengths tbd)
Sunday: Indian Creek/Deeplow Gap/Thomas Ridge trails (hike lengths tbd)
$35
August too hot for hiking? What if your hike ends with a tube trip down a mile-long stretch of mountain creek. That’s an option both days, on hikes that start and end from our group campsite at Deep Creek, just outside Bryson City.

September: Grayson Highlands / Mount Rogers

Saturday/Sunday, Sept. 23/24
Group Camping: Grayson Highlands State Park
Saturday: AT/Mount Rogers (hike lengths tbd)
Sunday: AT (hike lengths tbd)
$35
Our second trip of the year to Virginia is our first to the Grayson Highlands / Mount Rogers area of southwest Virginia. Grayson Highlands/Mount Rogers is one of the most popular trail networks in the Southeast, in no small part because the rocky and open terrain has more of a western U.S. feel. Also, the wild ponies.

October: Sam Knob / Panthertown Valley
Cashiers
Saturday/Sunday, Oct. 22/23
Group Camping: Kuykendall Group Campground
Saturday: Sam Knob (8 miles)
Sunday: Panthertown Valley (12 miles, with shorter options)
$35
Our last weekend group camping trip of the season sees us return to Panthertown Valley for waterfalls, views and great fall color, then head up to the Shining Rock Area for a diverse 8-mile loop at Sam Knob. Both areas are known for rock outcrops, open spaces and waterfalls.

November: Appalachian Trail: Max Patch to Rich Mountain
Hot Springs
Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Nov. 11-13
Friday: AT (5 miles)
Saturday: AT/Rich Mountain Loop (12.7 miles)
Sunday: Max Patch (7 miles)
Lodging: Laughing Heart Lodge in Hot Springs
$35 (does not include lodging)
Three days of hiking (it’s over Veteran’s Day weekend) and two nights at the Laughing Heart Lodge in Hot Springs. The hiking includes various stretches on the Appalachian Trail, from Max Patch to Hot Springs. The lodging is at the laid-back Laughing Heart Lodge, where we’ve blocked out space for the weekend. Stay in the lodge, stay in the cabin, stay in the economical hostel. Off trail, we’ll explore one of the AT’s classic trail towns.

December: Mount Mitchell
Pisgah National Forest / Mount Mitchell State Park
Saturday, Dec. 31
$25
We wrap up the year with a celebratory climb up the highest peak in the East, 6,684-foot Mount Mitchell.

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Coast

Lake Waccamaw State Park, Lake Waccamaw. Lakeshore Trail, 5 miles. More info here.
This coastal plain trail takes in a little of everything on its journey from the Visitors Center along the shore of this Carolina Bay to the Waccamaw River. According to the park website, the trail “cuts through a pine forest, past one of the oldest stands of cypress trees in the area, under towering hickory trees, alongside grass beds in the lake that provide cover for a variety of fish species and beside sandy beaches perfect for picnicking or pausing to gaze across the lake.” Expect a variety of color. Learn more about the park — including where the heck it is and how to get there — at its website. Enhance your visit by going on Saturday, Dec. 21, and signing on for the Holiday Hike, a ranger-led hike focusing on winter tree ID.

Piedmont

Uwharrie National Recreation Trail, Uwharrie National Forest, 40 miles, with shorter options (Trip No. 36, “Backpacking North Carolina,” Hike No. 37, “100 Classic Hikes in North Carolina”). Details on the forest here. Back in the 1970s, when the Uwharrie Trail was originally blazed, it covered 50 miles and was a popular backpack destination for regional scout troops. Fittingly, it was those very troops who helped build the trail. Parts of the trail later fell into disrepair; the useable part of the trail dropped by half. But the Uwharrie Trail is on the rebound: Early this month a new 4-mile run opened linking the 20-mile Uwharrie National Recreation Trail to the south with a trail network in the Birkhead Mountain Wilderness Area, creating 40 miles of continuous trail. The growing trail provides access through the Uwharrie National Forest, site of an ancient mountain chain where peaks once climbed to 20,000 feet but today fall short of 1,000. Quick climbs through this Southern Appalachian hardwood forest are greeted not with peaks but rounded ridgelines featuring chunks of exposed granite. Lower passages are often along several creeks that penetrate this mid-state national forest. Three roads cross the trail, making for shorter, shuttled options.

Greensboro watershed lakes, 42 miles total, short hikes of as little as a mile. Details here. Falls is a great time for hiking. Alas, it’s also a great time for several other activities, starting with watching college and pro football. Much as you’d like to hit the road for a day trip in the mountains, kickoff is at 1. What’s a sports fan to do? Hike closer to home. Triad residents have numerous good options around the three watershed lakes — Brandt, Townsend and Higgins — north of town. Forty-two miles of watershed hiking trails take you through a variety of environments. The 1.6-mile Palmetto Trail, for instance, features some interesting geology; the 3.6-mile Nat Greene Trail offers a smorgasbord of Piedmont ecology.

Mountains

Doughton Park: Basin Cove Loop, Blue Ridge Parkway near Boone, 7-18 miles (Trip No. 11 “Backpacking North Carolina”). This trip has all sorts of options. Starting from Longbottom Road at Basin Creek you immediately have three: To the north, Cedar Ridge Trail takes you up to the Parkway near the Brinegar Cabin, where you can catch the Bluff Mountain Trail south through the vast meadows and balds that make Doughton Park a popular Blue Ridge Parkway destination. To the south, Flat Rock Ridge Trail traces another ridgeline up to the Parkway, where you’ll take Bluff Mountain Trail north through Doughton Park. Straight takes you up Grassy Gap Trail to a primitive campground where three options await. The 2-plus-mile Bluff Mountain Primitive Trail takes you straight up the escarpment to Doughton while the southern veering Grassy Gap Trail, following old roadbed, is the most mellow way to reach the top. Or, take the Basin Creek Trail up a narrow canyon where falls seem to trip over themselves for your attention. The trail ends at the one-room Caudill cabin, where a determined couple raised 13 kids more than a century ago. Not a bad option in the bunch.

Sam Knob Loop (Trip No. 14, “Backpacking North Carolina”). This loop off the Blue Ridge Parkway on the edge of the Shining Rock Wilderness is the ideal spring opener. It’s not too long (8.2 miles), water is assured but, at this altitude (between 5,000 and 6,000 feet) not an obstacle, and there’s just enough climbing to wake your hibernating legs, but not enough to make them wake grumpy. Plus, mile-for-mile it may be the most scenic trip in the book, taking in just about every type of southern Appalachian landscape — from balsam forest to rocky knob to open meadow and tight rhododendron passage — imaginable. A good overnight trek.

The post Trails made for a December hike appeared first on GetGoing NC!.

If you’ve got good rain gear, you’re in for a great weekend. One of this week’s picks even comes with coffee!

Coast

Tis the season to check out the bird life at the coast, where waterfowl from various points north  are congregating to spend the winter. With the skies so full of feathers, wouldn’t it be nice to know who’s who? Learn to identify the year-round residents and snowbirds at Saturday’s Coffee with the Birds at Pettigrew State Park. A cup of coffee and a knowledgeable birder — what better company for a Saturday morning in early December?

Logistics: Saturday, Dec. 7, 9 a.m., Pettigrew State Park, Columbia. More info: 252.797.4475

Saturday forecast: High of 56, rather high (90 percent) chance of rain.

Piedmont

If you’re a hiker, and especially if you’re a fan of long hikes, you’ll appreciate Sunday’s grand opening of the 4-mile stretch of trail linking the Uwharrie National Recreation Trail with the Birkhead Mountain Trail in the Uwharrie National Forest. It may only be 4 miles, but it’s four miles that creates a continuous trail of 40 miles.

Sunday’s grand opening will commence from new Joe Moffitt Trailhead on Thayer Road. The festivities begin at 1 p.m., the hiking at 2. Joe Moffitt, btw, was a Boy Scout leader and was instrumental in helping blaze and build the original Uwharrie Trail in the 1970s. Parts of that trail survived, parts did not. The trail today recreates much of that original 50-mile trail.

Logistics: Sunday, Dec. 8, 1 p.m., Ophir Community Center, 2683 Flint Hill Road, Troy.

Saturday forecast: High of 49, 90 percent chance of rain.

Mountains

If you like a bracing winter hike then brace yourself for Sunday’s Carolina Mountain Club assault on the Appalachian Trail between Lemon Gap and Garenflo Gap. With temperatures forecast around 40 and a 70 percent chance of rain, it’s the ideal mountain hike for the person with the right stuff (mainly, good rain gear). This 7.4-mile hike climbs 700 feet to the Walnut Mountain Shelter, drops 600 feet to Kale Gap, travels open forests before an ascent up Bluff Mountain and a descent to Garenflo Gap.

Logistics: Sunday, Dec. 8, 8 a.m. meeting in Asheville to carpool to the trailhead. More info: Jim Reel at 828.443.2532 or jimr57@yahoo.com.

Sunday forecast: High of 42 with a 70 percent chance of rain.

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

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We’re finally catching up with the mail bag — and just in time for what appears to be the first warm weekend in a while.

You write to us for a variety of reasons. To find out where to take visiting kin hiking. To see if we know what the latest bear situation is in the Smokies. To ask if you can optimize our visibility on the Web, for a modest fee. You also write to point out certain … deficiencies in GetGoingNC’s content. Your latest batch of constructive comments comes in time to help others make the most of a weekend that will see sun and temperatures climbing into the mid 60s.

Paddling.  The Dan River Company writes to note that they had been omitted for our list of 41 Places (now 42) to rent a canoe or kayak in North Carolina. An especially bad oversight on our behalf because: a) the paddling in the northern Piedmont — on the Dan and Mayo in particular — is stellar, b) the Dan River Co. has been around for a while, and c) we’ve used their service. In addition to canoe and kayak rentals and providing shuttle service, the Dan River Co.’s base camp has a new neighbor, the Green Heron Club, which sounds like a nice apres paddle spot for a drink and live music.
Our apologies, DRC. Your listing has been added to our now list of 42 Places to Rent a Canoe or Kayak in North Carolina. It looks like this:

Dan River Company, 336.593.2628
Boats: Canoes, kayaks, shuttle service
Rates: Kayak trips, including being put on and taken off the river, start at $35 per person for a 3-hour trip on the Dan River; canoe trips start at $55. Shuttle rates are $12 to $22

Camping. Mary D. writes to point out a bad link in our Local Campground, Local Escape listings.  The listings, which can be found here, are done in our collaboration with the Great Outdoor Provision Co. and include five local campgrounds in seven major North Carolina markets: Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Greensboro, Greenville, Raleigh, Wilmington and Winston-Salem. Mary noted that our link for camping in fact took you to Lake Norman. (You bloggers know how tedious doing links can be, that to stem the mind-numbing boredom you find yourself dreaming about the weekend or checking out the latest cat video? If memory serves, the day we did those links we got hooked on cat-in-cardboard-box videos. But we digress … .)
Anyway, thanks to Mary if you want information on camping at McDowell Nature Preserve, you will now get information on camping at McDowell Nature Preserve, here. For information on camping options near the state’s metro areas, go here.

Hiking. David Gardner writes: “Please add the Uwharrie Trail as a good hiking location. It is 22.5 miles from the trailhead on NC 24/27 west of Troy to Jump Off Rock Trail Head on Flint Hill Road. Can also hike a new section north from Jump Off Rock. Contact me if you want a neat medal to remember this hike.”
A medal? Groovy.
In fact, David, in addition to our guide to great hikes near seven major North Carolina cities (yes, another collaboration with our friends at the Great Outdoor Provision Co.) we are about to unveil a list of 25 great hikes in North Carolina. That list, to be posted March 20, the first day of spring, will indeed include the Uwharrie National Recreation Trail, a fave of GetGoingNC. (Until then, you can find information on the Uwharrie National Recreation Trail here — and pardon the self-promotion in advance.)

So there you have it, in time for a springlike weather, updated and accurate info to help you plan an active weekend. In addition to Paddling, Camping and Hiking, you can also find direction in the areas of Climbing, Cross-Country Skiing, Greenway travel, Mountain Biking and Trail Running.

Have a swell weekend.

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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.

Today’s 90-Second Escape: The Uwharrie Mountain Run.

The last time I did the Uwharrie Recreation Trail it took two days, with an overnight stop at a lovely campsite along Dutchman’s Creek. This past Saturday I did the 20-mile trail in 4 hours and 15 minutes.

The first Saturday of every February, 800 or so runners gather at the north end of this trail that runs the length of the Uwharrie National Forest for the Uwharrie Mountain Run. Some runners do and 8-mile stretch of the trail. I and a few hundred others did 20 miles on the trail, while others did the 20 miles out, then ran 20 miles back. It’s not an easy race. The trail is a rock-studded rollercoaster, going up and down through this ancient mountain range in central North Carolina. But it is a lot of fun, as you’ll see in this 90 Second Escape.

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