I love North Carolina’s weather. The distinct seasons provide a general schedule I can count on each year. Each season lasts long enough that I don’t tire before the next season begins. Then, sometime in early March the weather consistently warms up, the daffodils start to bloom, and the sun stretches beyond 6:00pm. That’s my signal to put away the snow gear, bust out the springtime table runner, finish birthday planning for my oldest, and welcome spring time.
The other weekend we took advantage of the gorgeous spring weather and headed to Durant Nature Preserve for a hike. We’ve visited Durant Nature Preserve several times over the years (see previous blog posts) but it had been awhile since our last trip. For this visit, we brought fishing nets, our collapsible bucket, and rain boots to play in the streams. Despite predictable resistance to hiking, the girls ended up having the best time!
Border Trail
We parked at the north entrance and set off on the White House Rd Trail (see park map). Despite grumpy moods (including a short sit-in) and warning signs about muddy trail conditions we pushed on. From the White House Rd Trail we veered right onto the Border Trail, which circumnavigates the park. The Border Trail leads downhill to the creek, where at the bottom you turn left to stay on the trail. The creek sits between the wooded Border Trail on the park’s side and the paved Simms Branch Trail on the far side. Simms Branch Trail connects to Abbotts Creek greenway trail which connects to Raleigh’s longest greenway trail, the Neuse River Trail. Despite being close to a residential neighborhood the trail feels miles away. We only heard the crunching of our boots on the leaves and the trickle of the water.
Family hiking success (for us) increases if water is involved. As soon as my kids feasted their eyes (and boots) on the creek, their hiking attitudes instantly transformed! Despite being a sunny day the water was super cold. Since the Border Trail parallels the creek, they flipped between walking on the unpaved trail and the creek. They’d scamper down the creek bank, walk through the water or hop across rocks, and then pull themselves back up the creek bank if the water level threatened to flood their boots. This type of hiking continued until we reached Whale Rocks.
Whale Rocks is a stop along the Border Trail that boasts large rock formations as big as, well, whales. My kids loved jumping from whale rock to whale rock and timing themselves to see how long it took to climb from the creek bed to the rocks and back.
After hiking with the whales we continued on the Border Trail bouncing between walking in the creek and walking on the trail. This trail is mostly flat and features many hardwood trees and rock outcrops. We found dry creek beds and natural sand pits along the way that made for fun imaginary fossil dig play. They also enjoyed climbing across several of the trees that laid across the creek.
When we hiked about halfway around the Border Trail we turned left to follow Order of the Arrow Trail to the lake. Order of the Arrow Trail is a wide, flat trail surrounded by many pine trees. At the fork in the trail we turned left to stay on the trail and continue towards the lake. When the trail intersected with White House Rd, we turned right onto White House Rd. Then we turned left on Lakeside Trail, following the north side of the lake. The map posted along the trails was a helpful guide.
The north side of Lakeside Trail parallels the edge of the lake providing gorgeous views. The girls enjoyed walking along the shore line to spot turtles, lizards, and minnows. We also saw and heard several red-tailed hawks. We walked past campsites, benches, the closed boat house, and the fishing docks before ending at the playground.
Secret Creek Trail
After playing on the playground we followed the Secret Creek Trail, which begins across from the playground. We originally discovered this trail about 3 years ago when my now 4th grader attended a field trip at Durant Nature Preserve. To this day, it was one of her most memorable fields trips. She caught (and released) tadpoles and dragonfly nymphs, and had an awesome time exploring the Secret Creek Trail with classmates.
Secret Creek Trail is an easy trail with a few small hills along the 1/2 mile hike. The trail parallels a section of the creek that has gentle banks and small waterfalls throughout. In past visits we’ve seen a family of deer behind the park office and huge turtles resting in the creek under the large trees. Again, we flip flopped between walking on the trail and walking in the water. The trail’s canopy provides a lot of coverage, making it a cooler walk during warm weather. We also discovered some large sandy spots great for picnics, digging, and relaxing. Secret Creek Trail finishes at Camp Durant Rd, so you have to walk up the hill along the road to return to the main parking lot.
After we finished our hike, we headed to Char Grill for some much needed lunch! As we ate we recounted how fun the hike was and how we can’t wait to explore it again during the warmer weather months!
Thumbs up: improved trail markings and maps, rocking climbing at Whale Rocks, easy access for exploring the creek
Thumbs down: nothing to report
After exhausting the outside area, we dragged the girls (who were pretty willing) through the hallway that showcases their production areas. We glanced at the huge multi-story storage tanks, watched the bottle filling/cleaning process, and saw the packaging area. The girls mildly enjoyed watching the mechanics of how everything worked. Having toured only craft brewery operations, we were blown away by the grandness of everything at Sierra Nevada. I can’t wait to go back!
Since we had a little time to kill before checking into our cabin we headed to downtown Asheville to let the girls run off some energy in the water fountains at 
After recovering from our big hike and nearly rain-soaked picnic, we rallied to explore 
It’s week three of an NC cold wave and I’m longing for our hot summer hike in Kilmarnock, Va. When traveling last summer we started looking for hiking suggestions with the 
After parking at the trailhead we walked along the wooden walkway through the forest. We soon saw a sign post, and turned left to follow the North Loop. Shortly after starting along the North Loop we arrived on the Chesapeake Bay’s beautiful sandy shoreline. The sudden change from forest to deserted beach was breathtaking. The girls immediately waded into the water, while the adults took in the beautiful views. Being a flat undeveloped area, every direction we looked gave different views of a sandy shoreline, endless bay water, or grassy wetlands. It almost felt like we were on a deserted island.
We caught our breath at an observation deck where the swimming crabs distracted the little’s tears. This trail features a few observation decks that overlook the flat and vast wetland areas. After watching the crabs swim through the water we continued walking on the dirt trail back to the parking lot. Unfortunately, we ran into some dense bug families through the forested walk back. Since the girls regained their breath while watching the crabs, they miraculously sprinted through the dense bug fog, and made it back to the car in record time.
For our next Winnie adventure we headed to the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains near Marion, NC. We stayed at the 
The Mountain Stream RV Resort was the perfect spot for camping. They have 40 camp sites situated around a loop gravel road with a grassy median. A cool, clear mountain stream runs behind more than half of the campsites. We stayed in one of their prime spots near the back of the campsite with easy kid-friendly access to the stream. We loved splashing in the water, walking upstream, and sitting at the campsite listening to the babbling stream.
We spent all day Saturday hiking waterfalls in the Pisgah National Forest and exploring interesting places off the Blue Ridge Parkway. First, we explored the Tom’s Creek Falls, located about 20 minutes northeast of our campsite. Tom’s Creek Falls trailhead is about 1.3 miles from the 
After leaving Tom’s Creek Falls, we drove about 45 minutes northwest to the Roaring Fork Falls trailhead. Roaring Fork Falls trailhead is located near the 
Over Memorial Day weekend, my sweet in-laws watched the girls while Bill and I enjoyed a biking and beers day date. Wanting to explore a new (to us) portion of the greenway, we headed to the southern portion of the Neuse River Trail near the Wake/Johnston County border. In all, we biked 15-miles (out and back total), crossed two counties, followed a river, detoured around an unpassable bridge, passed a historic bridge, and saw some art before grabbing beers at Deep River Brewing – a pretty awesome afternoon!
Continuing on Clayton’s greenway (technically called Clayton River Walk on the Neuse), we arrived at the Riverwood neighborhood where we found the bridge damaged and unpassable. At the time we didn’t see signage showing a detour route so I jumped onto the Town of Clayton website. I learned that last fall’s Hurricane Matthew caused near record flood levels for the Neuse River and took out the bridge. The town’s website shows a 
After biking the hilly detour through the neighborhood we met up with the trail and continued south. The trail remains mostly flat and sunny with clear views of the river. We passed a large sandy access spot for the river, complete with benches. Then, we biked under Covered Bridge Rd with a history that dates back to 1863 when it was first commissioned as a ferry replacement. Historians believe the bridge was covered around 1883 and most recently replaced in its current concrete form in 1980.
After safely maneuvering through the sand and dirt construction zone, the 1.25-mile paved trail leads away from the river towards North O’Neil St. Along the way we passed beautiful community art displays of hand-painted wooden fish. Then we biked by a public art garden featuring butterfly-shaped bike racks, benches, totem pole and a little free library. The trail also showcases information signs about forest animals in the area before passing a developing neighborhood and ending at a large greenway access parking lot at 
