Cragmama "Not all who wander are lost…" JRR Tolkien

Tag Archives: North Carolina

A Blackberry Biking Bonanza

A Blackberry Biking Bonanza

Our family traditionally celebrates the 4th of July in Winston-Salem with both sets of grandparents.  We have homemade ice cream, ping pong and corn hole tournaments, and of course the biggest, most badass fireworks display in the neighborhood!  As the Crag-Daddy’s parents have gotten bitten by the biking bug in recent years, the past couple of Independence Days have also featured a biking adventure – last year we spent a day on the “rails to trails” system in Virginia’s New River State Park.   So much has changed since then!  Not only has Big C graduated from balance bike to…Read the rest of this entry →

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A Hike/Camp/Climb Kind of Weekend in the High Country

A Hike/Camp/Climb Kind of Weekend in the High Country

After enduring a week of daily 90+ temps at home, our family was more than ready to head to the mountains for the weekend!  An indecisive weather pattern kept our plans in limbo until the very last minute, but Mother Nature was on our side, providing us with a delightfully refreshing escape from the heat! HIKE:   Our objective was the Boone Fork Trail, a 5 mile loop through surprisingly diverse terrain.  We made our way through rolling meadows teeming with beautiful fritillary butterflies, then dropped down into the “dark forest” (Big C’s words.)  There were more than a dozen very…Read the rest of this entry →

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Another Round of Pilot Mountain – 22 Weeks Pregnant

Another Round of Pilot Mountain – 22 Weeks Pregnant

Another beautiful fall weekend, another day trip to Pilot Mountain.  Only this time the leaves were in spectacular color, making for a gorgeous backdrop the entire day.  While I didn’t accomplish anything noteworthy, I certainly enjoyed myself.  I got to try out several new pieces of gear, including the latest Phase Quickdraws and Cord Trapper Rope Tarp from Trango. I was even able to get on a few newer routes that were recently bolted.   Pole Dancing (5.7) – A great new addition to the cliff, and a much better option for a beginning leader than other nearby routes at similar grades.…Read the rest of this entry →

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Craggin’ at Pilot Mountain – 20 Weeks Pregnant

Craggin’ at Pilot Mountain – 20 Weeks Pregnant

Pilot Mountain brings about a mixed bag of sentiments for most North Carolina climbers.  Most  beginners LOVE it, and it’s easy to see why – the approach is short, top-roping access is easy, and there are heavy concentrations of routes in the 5.5-5.9 range.  However, once climbers get a little bit of experience under their belts, it’s not uncommon for them to suddenly start sneering their nose up at the crag that taught them how to climb.  It’s crowded, often overrun with large groups of boy scouts, youth groups, and outdoor meet-ups that may or may not share the same…Read the rest of this entry →

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Dixon Bouldering: All’s Well That End’s Well

Dixon Bouldering: All’s Well That End’s Well

  This weekend marked 7 months (almost to the day) since I broke my ankle on a funky lead fall last winter.  I paid my dues in a boot for 6 weeks, worked my butt off on the hangboard, and got back on the sharp end of a rope the second I was given the green light.  I waited a good long while before bouldering in the gym again, and when I finally got back to it I mostly kept it to problems I had wired and could use for 4×4 training sessions.  Because the hubs and I take turns…Read the rest of this entry →

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“Not all who wander are lost.” —JRR TOLKIEN