Blog

You wanted to take a whitewater kayaking course last year — but didn’t. You swore you’d finally spend that week on the AT you’ve been promising yourself since college —...

A sad thing about car camping in the high country of the Carolinas: come mid to late fall the campgrounds all go into hibernation. Well, not all of them, exactly....

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...

Covering 9,000 acres and with 14 miles of shoreline, Lake Waccamaw is one of the largest remaining Carolina bays. It’s unlike other bays, too, in the sense that while most...

Carolina Beach State Park is a particularly nice winter escape. Six miles of trails take you through a range of environments, from the beach along the Cape Fear River to...

Hike the 5-mile trail around Jones Lake, paddle the 224-acre Carolina bay, swim its dark but sparkling clean waters in summer, challenge your fishing skills in the acidic waters which...

Most people come to this linear state park along the Lumber River for the paddling. The Lumber is one of the few designated wild and scenic rivers in North Carolina...

Cedar Point Campground A good jumping-off point for paddling the popular White Oak River, which quickly winnows from a wide expanse near the campground to a tight, intimate creek. A...

Falls Lake State Recreation Area: Shinleaf Maybe it’s because you have to hike in a ways to the camp sites (up to a quarter of a mile). Maybe it’s because...

Fifteen short hiking trails (none more than three-quarters of a mile in length) allow you to explore this unusual 2,800-acre preserve, which represents a wide range of Coastal Plain ecology....

New Hope Overlook There are more than 1,000 campsites at the Jordan Lake State Recreation Area; the 24 at the New Hope Overlook campground are easily the most serene. From...

There’s a lot to recommend an Umstead-based tent vacation: 20 miles of hiking trail, 13 miles of bike & bridle trail (with connections for mountain bikers to about twice that...

Falls Lake State Recreation Area: Rollingview The rolling terrain at Rollingview insures a sense of solitude at each campsite. The campground’s location insures an opportunity for adventure. For one, the...

Goose Creek offers a civil way to explore a swamp. Eight miles of trail take you past estuaries and through fresh and brackish swamps that will remind you of your...