In the summer of 2003, I moved to Durham, North Carolina from
Plymouth, New Hampshire. Plymouth is a little town in the
foothills of the White Mountains. To many, the White Mountains mean ski
slopes and foliage, but to me they mean hiking. I spent countless
hours wandering the trails of those mountains, enjoying the solitude or
sharing a hike with a friend. Living in Plymouth, it was as if
the White Mountains were my backyard.
Upon moving to North Carolina, I began to wonder what hiking
opportunities were out there. Durham, with its city-like
atmosphere, didn’t appear to present many options. No longer
could I look out my window and see mountains to climb. It was in
these initial homesick moments that the idea for this pathfinder was
born. It turns out that there are hundreds of trails to hike in
North Carolina, a few of them right here in Durham. Western
Carolina’s mountains seem to be appealing to the hiker. There is
even a trail from the mountains to the ocean.
For many hikers, guidebooks are the only resource they will ever
need.
For this reason, guidebooks are the bulk of the sources listed in this
pathfinder. More experienced hikers may also want access to maps,
so I
have included some information on those sources as well.
Additionally,
I have listed a few websites and magazines that will help someone new
to North Carolina become acquainted with the area.
This pathfinder is for those people that, like me, want to hike in
North Carolina, but do not have a clue where to find a trail.
While I
assumed that the user of this pathfinder is an experienced hiker
inexperienced in the geography of North Carolina, I hope that the
sources presented are of use to anyone interested in getting out there
and enjoying the scenery this state has to offer. All of the
sources
presented in this pathfinder are available at the libraries of the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Image courtesy of Orion's US Road Signs