Winter Beach Day

Friday, we took Alex and Harper to Wilmington for a winter beach day.  It would be Harper's very first trip to the beach.  We drove through Wilmington and stopped at Fort Fisher State Recreation Area.  We first hiked along the Basin Trail to the WWII bunker and overlook at Zeke's Island.  Then we hiked back and headed out to the beach.  There was almost no one here and we had the beach nearly to ourselves.  We first took Harper down to the water to look at the waves then set up a blanket and she took a little nap.  I walked around and got some bird photos, though there weren't a huge number here today.

There were a few terns and sandpipers right along the water's edge.

A couple flocks of pelicans flew overhead.

I also saw a couple cute willets pecking around in the surf.

After Harper's nap, we took her down to the waves one more time to see the ocean.

We were getting hungry at this point, so stopped for lunch at Jack Mackerels in Kure Beach.  Heading home, we made a stop at Smith Creek Park near where I-40 starts.

A 1.3-mile paved trail makes a loop around the small lake.

We had a nice hike around the lake and then made the drive home.

Saxapahaw Hikes

Saturday, we took Harper for a hike in the small town of Saxapahaw.  We parked at Saxapahaw Island Park to first hike around the island in Haw River.

The water level in the river was very low and the fish weir was visible.  In higher water, it would be completely submerged.

Further on the loop, we had a nice view of the rivermill that is now apartments.

At the north end of the island, we were able to get into the riverbed and view the dam upstream.

After finishing the loop, we walked into town and had breakfast at the general store.  Then we headed over to Saxapahaw Lake and hiked the Scout Loop.

On the hike back, we got on Haw River Trail and headed across the bridge to go northbound.  There was a marbled orb weaver spider along the road.

The trail ran through the grounds of Saxapahaw Campground and to the dam.

The newest section continued past the dam for another 3/4 mile along the lake.

Where the trail ended, we turned around and headed back to the car.

For lunch, we stopped at the Eddy before heading home.

Bill Craft Trail Hike

Sunday, we took Harper for a hike up in Greensboro at the Richardson-Taylor Preserve.  The trail immediately passed by an unusual tree whose trunk was horizontal for a ways before turning to grow up.

Right after here, we came to a split and went right on Wetlands Loop to an overlook of the wetlands on Long Branch before it drained into Lake Townsend.

We then got back on Bill Craft Trail and soon passed the remains of an old car.  Unfortunately, it was vandalized with grafitti.

In another mile or so, a short spur led to another overlook.

The trail continued on another mile, eventually ending at the northern trailhead on Simpson-Calhoun Road.

On the hike back, I stopped for a picture of Long Branch from the bridge.

Back at the parking lot, we took the Watershed Trail Connector down to Reedy Fork Trail for a nice view of Lake Townsend.

After enjoying the view, we headed back.

On the way home, we stopped for lunch at Bright Penny in Mebane.

Early Fall Color at Moses Cone

Saturday, we took Alex and Harper to the mountains to catch some early fall foliage.  We got on the Blue Ridge Parkway towards Blowing Rock and made a quick stop at Yadkin Valley Overlook.

The skies were clearing but the clouds hanging over the valley were really beautiful.  We then continued on to the Manor at Moses Cone Memorial Park and parked.  After getting Harper in the stroller, we followed Watkins Road to Deer Park Road and headed down towards Bass Lake.

There were some nice Indian oyster mushrooms growing in a stump.

At the bottom, we got on the Bass Lake Trail to make a loop around the beautiful lake.

It was still a little early but the fall color was looking very nice.

There was some agueweed flowering along the lake.

Almost around the lake, there was a great view of the manor house way above.

After finishing the loop around the lake, we took Duncan Road back up to the manor house.

Harper's stroller did very well on the carriage trails and she seemed to enjoy the hike.

From here, we made a short drive to Julian Price Memorial Park and managed to get a parking spot at the lake.

The fall color was really pretty, but Alex and Harper were getting tired.

So we only went as far as the boat rental and enjoyed the lake for a few minutes before heading back.

Mile High Swinging Bridge

Friday, I headed to the mountains for a long and challenging day hike.  Parking at Boone Fork Trailhead, I took Tanawha Trail to enter Grandfather Mountain State Park and started off on Nuwati Trail.  In about a mile, I turned on Cragway Trail and started heading up in earnest.

It was really chilly when I had started, but soon took of my jacket as I warmed up quickly going steeply up.  About halfway up this trail was Top Crag View, which has one of the nicest views in the park.

The trail ended at Flat Rock View at the intersection with Daniel Boone Scout Trail.

I turned on that trail and continued heading steeply up.  Near the top, there were a couple ladders to climb to reach the summit.

I topped out at the summit of Calloway Peak, just under 6,000 feet above sea level.  A runner arrived shortly after me, he was the first other person I had seen on the trail.

Heading back down the other side, I made a quick stop at Watauga View.

It was moderately steep heading down to Calloway Gap and then was fairly flat for a short ways.  As I got close to Attic Window Peak, there was some rock scrambling and more great views from the trail.

After crossing Attic Window, the trail headed steeply down through a rocky draw, reminiscent of hiking in the Rocky Mountains.  Then from MacRae Gap, several more ladders to head back up.

Getting closer to the private attraction parking, I was seeing a lot more people and there was a bottleneck at the ladder to get up to the top of MacRae Peak.

I took a break and had an early lunch up here enjoying the view and talked to some guys who had hiked up Profile Trail.  I descended the ladder and continued down.

There were more traffic jams along the ladders heading down and I continued on to upper parking lot for the private attraction and hiked across the mile-high swinging bridge.  It was exceptionally crowded, even on a weekday, but wanted to say I crossed after a very challenging hike.

But it was so crowded, I didn't stay long and started making the hike back.  Past Attic Window, I made a short detour to see Indian House Cave.

I made another detour past Calloway Peak to see the plane crash, just next to the Raven's Roost campsite.

Then I stayed on Daniel Boone Scout Trail the rest of the way down.  There were some cute honey mushrooms growing on a stump.

Daniel Boone Scout Trail ended back at Tanawha Trail and I hiked back to the car.

On the way home, I stopped at Two Boros in Wilkesboro for dinner.