Have you ever been hiking through an area that was so captivating that you didn’t want to leave — ever? Well, that dream can come true at Bluestem, a fledgling 87-acre nature preserve in northern Orange County North Carolina. Here, you can walk through open pastures, in fringe forest, along a small piedmont creek, past a farm pond … and when you’re done hiking — for good — pick your favorite place in the preserve and stake your claim — for eternity. Because Bluestem isn’t another nature prese...

Back in 2011 I was approached by Curesearch, a nonprofit dedicated to eradicating children’s cancer, asking if I’d be interested in helping with a new fundraising program they were starting, the Ultimate Hike. The deal was this: I would lead a 12-week training program with the ultimate goal of hiking 28.3 miles on the Foothills Trail straddling the North Carolina / South Carolina line — that’s 28.3 miles all in one day. Along the way, they would vow to fundraise a minimum of $2,500 to help fi...

The notion of beginning a new year with a brisk walk goes back ages, but the modern concept of First Day Hikes is relatively new, dating back only to 1992 when a Massachusetts State Park held the first First Day Hike. With the lure of hot soup, the hike drew 380 hikers. Massachusetts State Parks began offering similar First Day Hikes throughout Massachusetts in 2008, and the concept went national in 2012 thanks to America’s State Parks, which represents State Parks nationwide. More than 400 h...

In today's podcast on 2022 hiking goals, we throw out some options. Here are links you can click to learn more:South Beyond 6,000 ChallengePisgah 400Carolina Mountain Club Challenges pageMountains-to-Sea TrailUwharrie National Recreation TrailNeusiok TrailArt Loeb TrailMount Mitchell TrailAppalachian TrailIn our News segment:On road and facility closures, you can find a comprehensive rundown in the Monongahela National Forest here.To keep tabs on closures on the Blue Ridge Parkway, go here.To...

We welcome winter with some great state park programs — and news of seasonal closings. Also, Pilot Mountain State Park reopens after a devastating wildfire.For more infoOn the 5 Virginia State Parks winter programs discussed in today's podcast, go here.On closings: Key links for checking ahead on closings and road conditions:Blue Ridge ParkwayN.C. Department of TransportationGreat Smoky Mountains National ParkNorth Carolina State ParksNorth Carolina National Forests (Croatan, Pisgah, Na...

Tis the season for holiday visitors. And what to do with them while they're in town? Why, take them on a hike, of course. Now, for the non-hikers in your group that may be easier said than done. This week, we offer tips on how to make sure your visitor has a great first experience on the trail.Looking for more tips on how to make sure your visitor's first hike is a great one? You'll find them at a post we wrote for our friends at Blue Cross NC, "Make sure you plan ahead for full-day hikes."Lo...

Ah, winter, beguiling winter, the season that drops its guard when it drops its leaves. Minus the lush canopy, minus the understory and ground cover you see deeper into the woods and discover the forest's hidden treasures: the foundation of an old homestead, an impressive rock outcrop, an old roadbed that leads ... somewhere. The urge to go off trail and explore is a siren song that can be too great to resist. But before you venture from the safety and security of the trail, there are a few t...

We are in the process of turning the corner on fall color and for some, that means the close of the fall hiking season. The color is gone — what's there to see? goes one argument. And there's: the holidays are coming — who's got time to hike with all the demands of the season? In short answer to the latter, who doesn't have time to hike because of all those holiday demands!? I mean, isn't part of the reason we get out to escape the stress of everyday life? As for the former — What is there to...

Now that Halloween has passed and the holiday season is in full swing, we suggest considering the gift of adventure — a gift that can also benefit the places you love to take your adventures. While our focus is on gifts available through Georgia State Parks, every State and National Park in the region has gifts suitable for swell gifts. Click the links below to start your holiday gift-buying:State ParksGeorgia State ParksNorth Carolina State Parks Virginia State Parks South Carolina...

Bryan DeLay was 12 when he took his first backpacking trip, with his Scout Troop, in the mountains of Tennessee; he was smitten. But it wasn’t until he was 35 and realizing there had to be more to life than developing shopping centers that he got into backpacking big time. Over the next 30 some years the Knoxville resident estimates he’s spent 75 to 100 nights a year in a tent, bringing his number of nights on the trail to around 1,600, and the number of states he’s backpacked in to 25. Despi...