KAYAKING ON LAKE NORMAN

It was mid-afternoon when I met my daughter up at Lake Norman. We pulled out the Old Town tandem kayak and dragged it to the dock. We drop it into the lake sending two mallards in flight toward a quieter destination. The sun is piercing and the water is a comfortable 80+ degrees, at least it's wet. After a few clumsy strokes hitting each others paddles we get right into rhythm and start rowing like a couple of pros. On our way out of the cove we encounter two curious turtles poking their heads out of the water watching us row by, and a school of fish splashing around on top of the water. A third turtle peaks out of the water with a golf ball size head. The water was a little wavy with boats passing by but pretty clear up to about 5 feet deep. On my way home I encountered a Blue Heron fishing quite successfully. This was a great outing spending time with my daughter out on the lake. We must do this again.

BASE CAMPING!

If you want to combine your love of camping with your need for relaxation, try base camping. Base or car camping is a great way to enjoy some of the joys of camping without having to carry all your equipment with you. All you have to do is pack up your camping gear, find a scenic campsite, and enjoy the comforts of a home-away-from-home.

Base camping is a more relaxing form of camping than survival type camping or backpacking. However, it is more rustic than RV camping. All you need to take on your base camping trip are your basic camping essentials. You can choose the degree of comfort you wish to enjoy during your trip.

The basic supplies you will need are; a tent large enough to comfortably fit the entire family, sleeping bags, camp stove, food and cooking equipment, wood for the campfire, and a lantern. For a more comfortable base camp you can bring along sleeping pads, an air mattress or even cots. If you have room in your car you can also pack lawn chairs, utensils, plates, cups, a bin to do dishes, and some dish soap. You can bring as much or as little as you choose, just as long as you make sure you bring what you need to be safe during your trip.

Base camping gives you a chance to set up a camp that acts as a home, while taking day trips and hikes. This type of camping allows you to leave your tent set up at your campsite each day. When you are backpacking, you have to pack all of your supplies with you throughout your trip. Base camping allows you to take a much more leisurely trip.

When getting ready for a base camping trip you need to select an appropriate campsite in the area you are planning to visit. If you are visiting a national park you can make a reservation for a campsite for the duration of your stay. Campgrounds provide all kinds of amenities, from restrooms with showers to providing educational events.

Base camping allows you to leave many of your camping essentials at your site when you leave for your day of adventure, but you need to make sure that your belongings remain safe. Make sure you don't leave any valuables behind when you leave. It is best not to bring any valuables that you don't plan on carrying with you at all times. Many parks warn not to leave valuables in your car for the day either. It is always prudent to plan ahead and save yourself potential headaches.  Leave extra credit cards at home, and don't bring any equipment you aren't willing to either lose or store somewhere safe.

Next time you plan a camping trip, try out base camping. You will have a wonderful time having new adventures with the knowledge that you have a comfy tent and campfire waiting for you at the end of the day. Base camping can be as relaxing or as difficult as you would like. Enjoy exploring the wilds of America from the comfort of your home-away-from-home when you next go camping.

Camping.com

STONE MOUNTAIN STATE PARK

It's 5 o'clock Friday and I just got off work ready to head out for a weekend of camping with my Dad, my sister Wesley, and my two awesome nieces Owen and Barrett. Oh, and Lilly (their dog) and my dog Bailey. We are camping at Stone Mountain State Park, NC (not Georgia) this weekend. Wes and Dad hasn't been there for years. Since then, SMSP has added Loop B for RV's, Loop C for additional tent camping, and an extra restroom facility. Stone Mountain State Park is about 1.5 hours away from Charlotte making for a nice getaway site for the weekend. You simply go up I-77 N to exit 83/Hwy 21 N then 13 miles to Traphill Road/State Road 1002 then turn left and go 4 more miles to John P Frank Parkway and turn right straight to the parks gates. I arrived around 8 pm about a half hour after they got there. After everything gets set up Dad and I take a walk down pass the campground entrance to check out two fields where we might see some deer. The first field was empty but by the time we get to the second field it becomes dark so we spotlight the field (not for hunting/just viewing) and see 12 sets of red eyes glowing in the dark. I woke up around 3 am to the start of some heavy, heavy rain. Bailey wakes me up around 6 am to go out, so we take a walk around the campground and observe a few more deer looking for food. Dad is now up making his famous omelettes. They are really good. The girls are ready to jump into a creek or river so we ride over to Willow Falls and play in the water for awhile. The sun is shining and the water is cool. We head over to the nearest country store for some ice cream. Owen tries to catch a blue tail lizard on the porch steps while Barrett chats up a little boy. Dad and I try our hand at some fly-fishing for a few hours. No luck, only 2 horny heads.  Dinners on the grill, BBQ Ribs, grilled corn on the cob, fried potatoes and onions. Now back for our walk to check out more deer. We find a few more and a raspberry patch as well. It's roasting marshmallow time. Bailey and I slept like two babies Saturday night. Sunday morning breakfast consisted of pancakes, eggs over easy, and sausage patties. Then pack up and head home to an end of a very NICE weekend with family.

WNC Park: 8

Woodpecker (photo by Wesley Satterwhite)

Owen & Barrett at Willow Falls (photo by Wesley Satterwhite)

Owen at the Homestead (photo by Wesley Satterwhite)

Deer (photo by Wesley Satterwhite)

Deer Field (photo by Wesley Satterwhite)

Campsite #22 (photo by Wesley Satterwhite)

Rib Dinner (photo by Wesley Satterwhite)

Stone Mountain in Fall

Stone Mountain in Fall

Stone Mountain in Fall

U.S. NATIONAL WHITEWATER CENTER

The US National Whitewater Center is the worlds largest man-made whitewater river providing exciting rafting and kayaking adventures on Class II, III, and IV rapids. USNWC is home to many different water and land activities including but not limited to whitewater kayaking and rafting, flatwater kayaking, SUP, zip-lines, adventure courses, rock climbing, mountain biking, and 14 miles of trails on nearly 400 acres. Parking cost $5. You can purchase an AllSport pass, a QuickSport pass, a CoolSport pass or a Canopy Tour pass depending on what activities your participating. The trail systems is free to hikers, runners, and mountain bikers provided you bring your own bike. Today, I hiked the 3.5 mile Lake Loop Trail that meanders around several ponds. I recommend you buy a trail map and follow the trails opposite the directional arrows so you are facing oncoming bikers. This trail is labeled moderately difficult but is easily marked and well worn out so you absolutely can't get lost. The Lake Loop Trail provides an especially scenic hike with blackberry bushes, honey suckles bushes, a cool bamboo forest, thick forest canopy, four ponds, a black snake, and a raccoon crossing the trail. The Channel Loop hugs the river around the park. It was exciting to watch the rafters and kayakers splashing down the rapids.

Max Patch

Max Patch is well worth the 3 hour trip from Charlotte, NC. To get there take I-85 South to US-74 West to I-40 West to exit 7 at Harmon's Den Rd. Then go 6 miles up a passable dirt road to the Max Patch parking lot. The trail to the left is a nice gradual ascent to the top of the bald. Once at the top of this 4616' bald, the spectacular 360' views just smacks you in the face. The weather was clear blue skies in the 80's with a slight breeze blowing across the meadows of wildflowers. After taking it all in and carrying a full pack I connected onto the Appalachian Trail heading toward the forest edge about 300 yards down the backside of the bald. A perfect campsite only 20' into the woods and 10' cooler. With camp all set up I head down the AT to the shelter (1.5 miles) and back. Mesquite chicken, black beans, and rice wraps for dinner. I hiked back to the top of the bald to watch a beautiful sunset and a picturesque starlit sky. The night brought out the fireflies and barn owls. A firefly was lighting up my tent while an extremely close barn owl hooting up a conversation with a distance friend. Surprisingly, after a restless night, I woke up in time to head back up to the top of the bald for a magnificent sunrise. NO PICTURES will do it justice. It's something you will have to experience for yourself to get the full beauty of this place. Throughout the day, Sunday, I watched and talked to several thru-hikers going from Georgia to Maine. The first three individual hikers seem very determined by hiking very quickly. The next two hikers had a much slower pace and stopped at the bald for  a snack. The last thru-hiker I encountered was in absolutely no hurry and was eager to stop and chat with anyone that would take the time to speak to him. His goal for completing the entire AT was 8-12 months. Max Patch started getting hot again so back to the woods for a quick nap. After seeing two tents erected up on top I decided to pack up and move to the top of the hill. But being so hot earlier in the day, Bailey and I drank an excessive amount of water and ended up running out. With no water for cooking dinner or breakfast and hydrating throughout the next day and no water source anywhere nearby, I decided to pack it out. Sometimes you bring too much (e.i. The Art Loeb Trail) and sometimes not enough. I was disappointed not to camp on top of Max Patch but I will return to do just that. And by the way, I suggest camping of top of Max Patch ONLY if it's a clear day and with very little wind. I don't suggest having a fire at anytime on top of the bald. Don't forget to bring your fishing pole to cast in the trout pond just past the parking lot or the hatchery supported stream at the entrance of Harmon's Den Rd.

Hiking up to Max Patch

View from top of Max Patch

Someone balanced rock along the trail

Marker for Max Patch

View right beside camp

View looking down to the valley

30 minutes before sunset

Another great view

"I like it up here"

Just chillin

Sunset

Sunset

Camping on top of the world

Sunrise over my campsite just within the woods

Sunrise

Hiking the AT up to Max Patch 4X

Napping on my therm-a-rest in a grassy patch

"You woke me up"

Hanging Dog Campground on Lake Hiawassee

Hanging Dog Recreational Area with such amenities as a campground, picnic area, hiking trails, biking trail, boating, canoeing, fishing, and rafting is located within the Nantahala National Forest just West of Murphy, NC. At the western most tip of NC, Hanging Dog Campground is about 230 mile (4+ hours) from Charlotte. With 69 total campsites on 4 loops, we chose campsites 23 and 24 on Loop B, the only campsites on Lake Hiawassee. By far the best two campsites with a handful of large trees providing adequate shade and easy access to the lake. Lake Hiawassee has almost 188 miles of undeveloped shoreline up against a picturesque mountain backdrop. Wesley and Paul brought their canoe to explore this green mountain lake. I arrived a day later, Friday evening, with Dad sitting around the campfire holding Lilly in his lap. Dad makes a couple of burgers for me while I set up my Half Dome 2 tent. PBR, burgers, campfire, and family, what more do you need? Our nighttime symphony included some loud frogs, crickets, and carp splashing around the vegetation in the shallows of the cove. After an awesome omelette and some bacon from Warren Wilson College, Dad, Owen and I paddled out in the canoe to do some serious fishing. We fished every cove and around every fallen tree near the edge of the banks for about 3 hours until lunchtime. To tally it up, Owen caught a bluegill. I caught two bluegills and a catfish and dad caught two bluegills. Bailey and I headed up the Ramsey Bluff Trail for about a mile until we realized this trail has grown over and very seldom walked. So we turned back after the forest started to swallow the trail and I found three ticks on me and Bailey. The other trail, Mingus Trail, was closed due to a controlled burn. Dinner included an appetizer of fried Bluegills and catfish with a shrimp boil for the entree. Paul needed to get on a plane heading for San Diego for work by Sunday afternoon so everyone got up early, packed up, and went our separate ways home. On the way home I stopped by Nantahala Whitewater Rafting Center to observe a few kayakers maneuvering down the rapids. Overall, Hanging Dog Campground was a nice place to visit and Lake Hiawassee was beautiful but had some trash floating BUT a little too far to travel from Charlotte for a weekend getaway. Especially when there are so many great spots in between.

Campsite # 24

Bluegill

Bluegill

Sunset on Lake Hiawassee

Early Morning Lake Fishing