Blog

When Elk Knob first opened in the mid-2000s, the climb to the summit was straight up a draw littered with boulders. Thanks to more than 6,000 volunteer hours invested over...

This trip has several 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...

The Cataloochee Valley sits isolated on the northeast end of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, its flat valley floor encircled by ridgeline that gives the feel of an old-time...

This popular 14-mile hike, more frequently done as a two-day backpack trip, is one of the best hikes in the state (to be geopolitically correct, it dribbles over into Tennessee)....

Mount Mitchell, the tallest point east of the Mississippi River, is a must-see spot for NC hikers. While this 6.1 mile loop through the park is challenging due to high...

How do you keep an 18,000-acre state park secret — so secret it doesn’t even show up on Google Maps? Hiding it in a surprisingly open area south of Morganton...

There are several winter camping options at New River State Park, a linear park following its namesake river and known for one thing: paddling. The Wagoner Road Access has 10...

The trails in this section of the Pisgah District of the Pisgah National Forest are open to hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding. From here, you can hike up to...

Perhaps you’ve been driving down a gravel road in one of our four fine National Forests — Croatan, Uwharrie, Pisgah, and in the case of Ammons Branch, Nantahala — and...

Located on the southern shores of Lake Joacassee, this would seem the ideal winter getaway for paddlers interested in exploring the the lake’s many fingers. And it is — for...

The Big Ivy Area — “big ivy” is what the locals call mountain laurel — is one of those areas you may have scoped out on a map — the...

Looking for a cheap mountain getaway this winter? Highlands and Panthertown Valley are not much more than 10 miles from the roadside campsites along Blue Valley Road. Primitive, yes, but...

Johnny Malloy, in his “The Best in Tent Camping: The Carolinas” (see below), writes evocatively of this primitive escape on the edge of the Ellicott Rock Wilderness: “The Chattooga runs...

Davidson River is a great winter campground for several reasons. One, the gate is open late, allowing you to spend those long, cold, dark winter nights in town. Two, there’s...

Badin Lake Campground One of three campgrounds serving the popular Badin Lake area of the Uwharrie National Forest, you’ll find a trail for just about everything here. There are miles...

Stone Mountain is noteworthy on several fronts. For one, there are its catch-and-release trout waters. Then there’s nearly 17 miles of official trail exploring this rugged 14,100-acre park along the...

Like its sister Sauratown peak Hanging Rock, Pilot Mountain is a great weekend destination for the adventurous. The park’s west-facing cliffs are a popular top-roping destination for rock climbers, 25...

There’s a lot to recommend this campground but perhaps its biggest sell is its proximity to 25 miles of mountain bike trail at the nearby Warrior Creek and Dark Mountain...