Posted By auntie on January 3, 2021

Not that 2020 had a lot of great things going for it, but still, some of these hikes were pretty amazing.

#5 Wolf Knob Loop

As I said at the top of the post for this hike, it was great. Perfect weather, a lot of ascent but nothing I couldn’t handle, and I got all “explorer-y” as well. A great day in the woods.

High Point

#4 Homestead, Pinetree, and Explorer Trails

I’m not often given to hyperbole… okay, not VERY often, but I still stand by the statement in this post that this was probably the sweetest walk in the woods I’ve ever taken.

Delightful Little Waterfall

#3 Deer Lake Lodge/Wolf Branch Loop

I remember this hike as being quite rewarding. The rewards included unexpected wildflowers, sturdily-built bridges, vibrant fungi, and some nice old timey trailwork.

Old Timey Trail Work

#2 Laurel River Trail

I’m concluding this list with a couple “flat-lander” hikes, just so my friends up north won’t quail at the thought of coming to visit and going hiking with me. They’re not all up and down mountains! This one was a revelation. It’s an old railroad grade that follows the Laurel River which is just gorgeous.

Laurel River

#1 Warren Wilson River Trail

This was technically illegal… okay, not so technically. But I was not alone in my transgression, so I didn’t worry about it too much. This is a great essentially flat walk along the Swannanoa River. There is more exploring here to do, but I will wait until it’s not illegal to explore it.

Swannanoa River from the Bamboo Grove

That’s it, that’s all I’ve got, except for the next boring meta part that sums up 2020 in numbers and charts. Bear in mind I only started keeping track of total ascent in November, so that number kind of doesn’t count.

2020 In Charts (click to embiggen to make readable)

So this year I did 93 hikes* and walked a total of slightly over 483 miles (pretty far short of my goal for the year, which was 1000 miles!), and it took me 179 hours and 3 minutes, or a half day or so over a week. And that’s 24-hour days, so no, not really. At the somewhat arbitrary rate of 81 calories per mile, I burned 39,168 calories. I’ll take that! And in the short 2 months I kept track, I climbed almost 7000 feet.

Goals for 2021: I’d still love to do a 1,000-mile year. I want to meet my friend Ernie’s 52-hike challenge on Facebook, and I want to climb a, um, a WHOLE LOT. Wish me luck!

*Not all of them were blogged… I keep track of all my walking mileage, even if it’s just a quick walk to the store.

Categories: North Carolina, Walks and Hikes
Tags: NC, Pisgah NF