I used to tell my Intro to Backpacking students that to get the most out of backpacking, to become proficient and competent, you need to take three trips a year. Not necessarily big trips, though one should be at least four days. And a quick overnight just to get away is fine, too. Go any fewer than three times and backpacking could become more of an ordeal: even with a packing list, packing can take twice as long as you fret over each item wondering when you last used it and whether it’s still in good shape. There’s more pressure on trip planning: you only backpack once a year, it better be a ..read more

It was raining. I felt like hiking. So I did.  It wasn’t a long hike. But it was just enough. Just knowing the rain couldn’t stop me was enough. It couldn’t stop me, because I was prepared. Hiking in the rain can be a delight — if you’re prepared. The following tips for hiking in the rain were taken from our GetHiking! Hiking in the Rain tip sheet. For the entire 3-page guide visit our website and enter code RAINTIPS at checkout to get the guide for free through this weekend (March 30). Take note of the sky. Before heading out, check to see which way the clouds are rolling. Then check pe ..read more

Saturday looks rainy, but Sunday looks hiking perfect, with cloudless skies and temperatures in the 50s. Cool weather coupled with the first weekend of spring and our desire to spend more time on the trail seems like a good time for a longer hike. And by “longer” for this time of year we mean in the 4- to 7-mile range. Nothing too strenuous, but just enough to push yourself, to get you building your hiking legs for peak hiking season. So what makes for a good, early-season long hike? A variety of factors. Below, we list five of our favorite longer hikes and what makes them good for a first lon ..read more

Editor’s note: Every year at this time, upon the dawn of Daylight Saving Time (it’s this Sunday, btw; remember to Spring forward), we celebrate the return of afterwork light with a tabulation of tips on how to celebrate this late-day sunlight. Most of these we’ve run before, a few are new. All, hopefully, will help you rev up your outdoor experiences. For much of the winter, the sun set long before we had a chance to enjoy it after getting off work. Now, it stays out later and later, and so do we. Sometimes later than we anticipated.   When we become drunk on sunlight and it leaves the pa ..read more

Now is about the time we start taking notice of how our goals for the new year are going. We’ve got a month under our belt, we have a general idea of whether a goal is going to stick or not. And a month is enough time to tell whether a goal will stick. A goal such as hiking two new trails a month, which is one of my goals for 2024 — the one goal, alas, that looks like it will stick. But hey, it’s the goal that has risen to the top and the one that’s proven the most motivating. Through the first five weeks of the year I have added five new trails to my hiking vitae. They are: Fox Trail Fox Trai ..read more

Here’s our annual note for when the temperature seems too cold to hike. Saturday’s forecast calls for a high of 28 degrees at Hanging Rock State Park in Danbury. That will occur long after we’re off the trail . For the most part, we’ll be hiking in the low 20s. But it will be sunny, and a little sun can make up for a lot of cold. North Carolina has, on average, 28 clear days every winter; only seven states see more cloudless days, according to data compiled from two climate agencies. Virginia averages 25 clear days. In short, you could live in much worse places to avoid feeling SAD SAD, o ..read more

Goals. Intentions. Objectives.  Anything but resolutions. At the start of any new year we look at a blank slate and ponder how best to fill it. Traditionally, we’ve referred to these slate-fillers as resolutions. And over time, the term has become burdened with negative connotations. Primarily because “resolutions” tend to be things we don’t really want to do. They’re things we think we should do. Like lose weight. Admirable and healthy as losing weight might be, in and of itself it’s hard to muster the motivation to see you through 10, 20, 30 pounds or more. This is why I don’t make reso ..read more

How do you follow an event like Year of the Trail? You don’t. But you do build on it. The just-passed Year of the Trail was intended to promote North Carolina’s vast trail system. Hiking trails, sure, but paddling, biking and equestrian as well. Year of the Trail events were held in 94 of the state’s 100 counties, those events ranging from hour-long guided walks on local greenways to three-day festivals celebrating trails across the state. The ultimate sign of Year of the Trail’s success? When the concept was conceived by the state’s General Assembly in 2021, it included $29.15 million for tra ..read more

The question isn’t if you’ll be taking your first hike of 2024 on Monday, but where. Taking a brisk hike to welcome the new year is a long-standing tradition. It became formalized a few years back when American State Parks challenged state parks across the country to hold First Day events. Today, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a state park in the U.S. that doesn’t hold a First Day Hike. That’s especially true in North Carolina and Virginia, where 113 First Day events are planned in state parks; some parks are even celebrating with two or three events. We won’t provide a complete rundown of opt ..read more

As Year of the Trail draws to a close, it should be a time of reflection. It should be, but it’s not, for there is work left to be done. Work in the form of hikes. One of the many objectives of Year of the Trail, as this year has been designated by the N.C. General Assembly, was to have a trail-related event in all 100 North Carolina counties. Going into this month, 91 counties had hosted Year of the Trail events. For those of us not gifted in mental math, that leaves 9 counties to go. All of which are in more remote, rural areas of the state. Since I was hired by the state last year primarily ..read more