Meet the MULES

Out-of-town visitors are always looking to do “name” adventures — a place the folks back home probably have heard of and would likely be impressed by. Linville Gorge is one...

Like a good stream crossing to cool off in on a summer’s day? Then you’ll love this loop: in the first 8 miles or so there are 16 crossings of...

This is a classic warm-weather water hike, the first mile of which is quite popular. That’s where the trail encounters Harper Creek Falls, which plunges 65 feet into one of...

“Backpacking North Carolina” refers to the 21,000-acre Fires Creek area as “a backpacker’s playground.” For similar reasons, it’s also a hiker’s playground. A 25-mile trail traces the horseshoe-shaped rim of...

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...

Possibly 13.5 of the easiest miles you’ll find in the Smokies. This lollipop loop heads up Deep Creek, the first mile or so of which is popular with tubers (not...

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)....

The beauty of this hike is that it escapes the maddening crowds of Mount Mitchell State Park, yet embraces the 6,000-foot hiking that makes the Black Mountains special. From the...

It is the epitome of competition, yet it eschews the very notion. Thursday night, the Ramblin’ Rose triathlon series held an informational meeting, sponsored by PrAna, at the Great Outdoor...

Oyster Point The Oyster Point Campground provides the perfect base camp for exploring the 20-mile Neusiok Trail, which runs from near the campground north to the Pine Cliff Recreation Area....

Umstead Trail Marathoners show that there’s more than one way to prepare for a 26.2-mile day Runners Taking their Mark before the start of the 10th Annual Umstead Trail Marathon...

After Diane Van Deren finished her record-breaking run across North Carolina on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail last June 1, she did something she’d never done as a professional athlete. She took...

Great Outdoor Provision Co., the southeast’s largest independent specialty outdoor retailer since 1972 was acquired by local staff in 2013. In January of 2013, Raleigh, NC native and founder Tom...

The park has two lakes, one 20 acres, one 12, good for bass, bream and catfish. And, every winter the lakes are stocked with trout. The park also has six...

You’re the anal type: you like the idea of getting away for a weekend escape, but you just don’t feel good about being completely detached from work. We’re not crazy...

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...