Meet the MULES

Foster Falls on the New River in Virginia is another area to come and play in falls, drops and surrounding rapids. Say the avid paddlers in our Winston-Salem shop: “There...

A certain degree of bragging rights goes along with paddling Wilson Creek, which forms on the east face of Grandfather Mountain and quickly tumbles down the Blue Ridge Escarpment through...

First, there’s the fact that this stretch of the Yadkin it’s always runnable — can’t beat reliability in a playmate. And not only can you always depend on Section 13...

Yup, you read that right: “upstream.” You got a problem with that? You won’t when you realize that this close-to-town option is a character builder. Or if not a character...

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...

Grayson Highlands is the jumping off point to some of the best exploring in the East, period. Grayson Highlands and the adjoining Mount Rogers National Recreation Area are crossed by...

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...

Need to pad your log book numbers? Maybe get in a faster-than-normal trail run? Or maybe up your miles? Salem Lake Trail is a 7-mile loop around its namesake lake...

Tory’s Den Trail Need some hill work? Some really good hill work? Hanging Rock is where Piedmonters from the east go to get in some simulated mountain training. “Simulated” in...

Pilot Mountain is a tale of two workouts. Need some mountain training? The 7.2-mile loop created by stringing together the Mountain, Grindstone and Grassy Ridge trails offers up-and-down around the...

If Salem Lake Trail (see Salem Lake Trail entry) is your easy day, Sauratown Trail is where you go to pay your dues. It’s not so much the elevation: despite...

Difficulty: Moderate Distance: 10 minutes from downtown Winston-Salem Length: 2-8 miles Time to complete: 30 minutes to 1.5 hours Address: 100 Reynolda Village City: Winston-Salem State: N.C. Zip: 27106 Latitude:...

OLD 421 Park Access Not surprisingly, the Yadkin River has attracted humans since the first ones entered the region 12,000 years ago. Initially, the river’s waters meant survival. Today, recreation....

Section 2 You’ve been paddling for a little while now, entirely on flat water. You’ve gotten to where you feel comfortable on the water. Adventuresome, even. And you wouldn’t mind...

As of October 2012, all water-related activities at Salem Lake had been curtailed due to dam construction. That’s the not-so-good news. The good news is that construction isn’t forever, and...

The Dan poses an unusual problem for a Piedmont river: finding a stretch that’s placid enough to paddle. For the most part, the Piedmont is veined with streams that slowly...