9 Toughest Outdoor Adventures in North Carolina

Home of majestic mountains, immense national forests and seemingly infinite stretches of pristine coastline, North Carolina is not only laden with stunning natural landscapes, it's also full of gritty and grueling outdoor adventures. Take your pick: churning whitewater, storm-swollen Atlantic swells, high peaks of the southern Appalachians – if you can dream it, you can do it in North Carolina.

Bag a Brag-Worthy Day Hike

photo: Chris M. Morris

Bag a Brag-Worthy Day Hike

Take on one of the most challenging hikes in North America, the 13-mile Slickrock Creek Trail in the Joyce Kilmer Slickrock Wilderness, spread between North Carolina and Tennessee. Fondly nicknamed “The Ballbuster” by intrepid locals, the trail includes more than a dozen stream crossings and a total of 3,700 feet of elevation gain. Besides earning bragging rights, hardy hikers are rewarded with stunning vistas of untouched wilderness.

 

Slickrock Singletrack

photo: Jeff Bartlett

Slickrock Singletrack

Ride the rugged, view-laden ridgelines of the sprawling, 10,400-acre DuPont State Recreational Forest. Aside from the quad-burning climbs and technical, white-knuckle descents, both the Big Rock and Cedar trails include expansive stretches of granite slickrock dappled with plenty of dips, divots, drop-offs and sweeping Blue Ridge vistas. Craft your ideal singletrack expedition on the forest’s nearly 100 miles of rideable roads and trails.

 

Surf the Waves Year-Round

Surf the Waves Year-Round

North Carolina’s Outer Banks, a slender string of nearshore barrier islands, offers not only seemingly endless stretches of pristine Atlantic beaches, but also serves up some of the premier swells on the East Coast. The combination of exposure and location – and merging forces like the chilly Labrador Current and warm Gulf Stream – make the Outer Banks, and especially Hatteras Island, consistently surfable any time of year (wetsuits sometimes required). Even better, with an off-road, 4x4 vehicle and a little wanderlust, it’s legal to drive along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (with an off-road vehicle permit) until you find your own secret surf spot.

 

Mount Mitchell Challenge and Black Mountain Marathon

Mount Mitchell Challenge and Black Mountain Marathon

Tackle some of the toughest terrain in the Tar Heel State with western North Carolina’s most arduous duo of adventure races: the Black Mountain Marathon and Mount Mitchell Challenge. The events begin together in the mountain-framed town of Black Mountain. For a stretch, both races follow the same route, but while the marathoners turn around at Black Mountain Gap overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway, the challengers continue to the 6,684-foot summit of Mount Mitchell, covering a total of 40 miles with a staggering 4,324-foot elevation gain in the first half of the race.

 

Climb the Biggest, Baddest Cliff on the East Coast

photo: Flickr @Thomson20192

Climb the Biggest, Baddest Cliff on the East Coast

Rising 4,930 feet above the massive Nantahala National Forest, Whiteside Mountain is one of North Carolina’s most iconic summits – and one of the East Coast’s gnarliest climbs. Streaked with shimmering slivers of quartz and feldspar, the stunning slab of rock is also laced with formidable climbs, from the long routes on the southeast face to the less frequented approaches of the northwest face. If the mountain’s sheer cliffs are a little too foreboding, hit the 2-mile hiking trail leading to the summit and admire the weather-warped tangle of red oak trunks crowning the summit.

 

Cycle 100 Miles in the Piedmont

American Tobacco Trail

Cycle 100 Miles in the Piedmont

Savor the stunning landscapes of central North Carolina with an extensive ride in one of our state’s most eclectic regions. Cycle past groves of towering pines, sprawling horse farms, historic tobacco towns, culture-loaded colleges and some of the country’s most legendary fairways. Cover some serious mileage on the nearly 200-mile Piedmont Spur, stretching from the edge of the Blue Ridge to the outskirts of Charlotte and beyond. Concoct an iconic century loop linking Southern Pines and Pinehurst, known as the “Home of American Golf,” or cycle a circuit on the 23 miles of the American Tobacco Trail in our Triangle region.

 

Thru-Hike the Mountains-to-Sea Trail

photo: Adam Collins/WACphotography and Friends of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail

Thru-Hike the Mountains-to-Sea Trail

Statewide

Stretching nearly 1,200 miles from the edge of the Great Smoky Mountains to the sand dunes of Jockey’s Ridge on the Outer Banks, North Carolina’s Mountains-to-Sea Trail is about half the length of the Appalachian Trail. Winding past rolling blue-tinged peaks, tannin-stained swamps and mixed hardwood forests all the way to the coast, the Mountains-to-Sea Trail is also arguably one of the country’s most unique thru-hikes, rambling over both the loftiest peak (Mount Mitchell, 6,684 feet), the highest sand dunes on the East Coast and past the country’s tallest lighthouse (Cape Hatteras Lighthouse).

 

Paddle the Intracoastal Waterway

photo: U.S. Army/Pamela Spaugy

Paddle the Intracoastal Waterway

Running 3,000 miles along the Atlantic coast, the Intracoastal Waterway was once a major trade artery, offering vessels a sheltered route protected from the perils of the open ocean. Today, the extensive thoroughfare offers excellent recreational paddling, especially along North Carolina’s coast. Sometimes offering up vast stretches of open water, in other places reduced to a narrow channel fringed by tracts of maritime forest, the Intracoastal Waterway passes everything from biodiversity-rich wildlife refuges to historic coastal towns such as Beaufort, the 17th-century haunt of the pirate Blackbeard.

 

Navigate the Narrows

photo: Angela Greenwell

Navigate the Narrows

Featuring rapids with names such as “Pincushion,” “Nutcracker” and “Go Left and Die,” the Narrows section of the Green River is no float trip. The Class V run’s most notorious stretch is undoubtedly a section known as “The Gorilla.” Recommended only for advanced kayakers, this segment requires paddlers to thread a narrow slot called The Notch before taking on not one but two waterfalls, including the 19-foot Flume and the 10-foot Scream Machine. The churning whitewater obstacle course is celebrated every November as gutsy paddlers from all over the globe make the annual pilgrimage for the Green Race, one of the most treacherous and technical kayak races in the country.

 

North Carolina offers the perfect settings for many outdoor adventures. Please exercise caution and heed all safety warnings and regulations when hiking, cycling, kayaking, surfing or engaging in any other strenuous activities. And visit Outdoor NC for additional tips on how to connect with nature and help preserve the natural beauty of our state.