It can be as simple as walking out your front door. Hiking, biking, running, rafting… it’s all available for immediate enjoyment. And if you live in Charlotte, North Carolina, it’s easy to take advantage of all the wonder and opportunities for exploration the Old North State has to offer. With the mountains in your backyard and the beach a few short hours away, we’re home to some of the world’s most beloved outdoor activities.

Rafting and river sports are popular in summer, spring, and well into fall. Two of the most beautiful rivers in the country are yours for the paddling at Appalachian Wildwaters in Oak Hill, West Virginia. Spend the day paddling the New River and the famous (or infamous, depending on the group you go with) the Gauley River. There are several camping options on site including cabin tents, and rooms and cabins within five minutes of the facility. Even in cooler weather people flock to Appalachian Wildwaters, but during these times swimsuits with waterproof windbreakers or jackets, wool or poly-propolene shirts, and wool socks are recommended. Wetsuits, spray-jackets and boots, are available for rent (first come, first serve.) All of Appalachian Wildwaters' trips are full day trips and deli-style lunch is included with the exception of the Sweets Falls BBQ on the Upper Gauley trip. Trips at Appalachian have become so popular rafters have been known to request certain guides a year in advance. Appalachian Wildwater also offers mountain biking, rock climbing and horseback riding.

If your outdoor adventure is a family affair, consider the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC). For kids as young as Age 4, the NOC is the perfect place to introduce kids to a variety of water adventures. From half-day rafting trips to lake touring on the banks of the Nantahala River, the NOC is an adventure resort. There are three restaurants and lodging options on the property, which features rafting, paddling, hiking, biking, riverwalks, lake tours and flyfishing for beginners and well-versed outdoor enthusiasts. Full and half day paddling schools teach canoe and kayak whitewater instruction (open to kids as young as Age 8 with an adult). Private instruction and multi-day paddling school vacations are also available. NOC lodging ranges from cabins with full kitchens for two to 20 guests all the way up to bunkhouse lodging which sleeps up to 66 guests and platform tent camping.

Don’t feel like traveling? Venture just a few minutes outside of Charlotte and raft or kayak along side Olympian-level paddlers at the U.S. National Whitewater Center. This “outdoor recreation and environmental education center” tenders Class III/IV whitewater rafting and kayaking, flatwater canoeing and kayaking, custom high adventure challenge course programs and climbing on one of the largest outdoor climbing facilities in the country. You can also choose from 11 miles of clearly marked trails to test your skills at mountain biking, hiking, and running.

Some people enjoy outdoor activities with a bit of an edge. If this is you, a good one-stop resource for adventure sports and activities is ThrillPlanet.com. This national clearing house of adventure sports including those for the super adventurous invites you to try everything from skydiving to paragliding. The privately owned company also offers hang gliding, gilder plane rides, hot air balloon rides, and a vast array of other activities for the everyday outdoor enthusiast and die-hard thrill seeker. Call for Many experiences have minimum age requirements.

For many, SCUBA diving is a lifelong pursuit for adventure sport enthusiasts. For others, it’s an interesting, but frightening prospective sport. Suspend your fear and improve your skills with the best local resource for diving – Paradise Island Divers in the South End district of Charlotte. Not SCUBA certified? No problem. Owner Wayne Moose has trained people to SCUBA dive for more than two decades. And although a trip to the islands is the ideal destination for many divers, some of the coolest diving is off the coast of North Carolina. Paradise Island Divers offers open water SCUBA certification to a depth of 100 feet and advanced through instructor training. All confined water training takes place in an ultra-modern diving well, and you can obtain the necessary equipment to turn yourself into a SCUBA fanatic in Paradise Island Divers’ retail and rental department. Experienced divers: Paradise Island has trained technicians to service and repair your equipment and the service department is a Nitrox/air station. You can sign up for monthly SCUBA outings locally and abroad, but Wayne's specialty is ship wrecks. His remarkable collection of antique SCUBA equipment and artifacts were recovered off the North and South Carolina coastlines. Find yourself in the middle of a SCUBA story all your own on a dive with Paradise Island Divers this year.

Despite the posh and grandeur of North Carolina’s Biltmore Estate, your best high tea pinky finger will be of no use in the Explore Biltmore Land Rover Experience Driving School. Yes, even George W. Vanderbilt himself loved living in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina for recreational reasons. As much as he adored adorning his mansion with the latest technology, surely Mr. Vanderbilt would embrace this super fun activity along with the adventure demon in the rest of us. Let the more squeamish in the group take a “relaxing carriage ride”, because adventure lovers in your group will prefer to get their tires muddied learning off-road driving techniques from expert instructors. Stuck in the middle? Let the fence riders try the Land Rover Ride-Along Expedition to see if they can take the heat. The Land Rover Driving Experience is pricey, so consider making a weekend vacation out of it. Then at days end, spend the evening at the winery and partake of the many other luxuries offered at Biltmore Estate.

For people who live to hike there are too many options to name in just one article. At CHF we’ve learned we could devote an entire issue to great hiking places. Morrow Mountain State Park has been around for ages, and can boast a diverse selection of well blazed trails. Easy-to-read trail maps detail distance and difficulty, but be sure to grab one before setting off. There are short, self-guided nature trails and extensive hikes into the woodlands. “Steep mountain slopes, hardwood forests, and gentle streams” make up more than 15 miles of hiking trails. The summit beholds a beautiful view of the hills, farmlands, and river system for which this section of North Carolina is known. Equestrians are encouraged to meander through Morrow Mountain’s forests along Mountain Creek to the river and to ride the loop around the base of the mountain. There are 16 miles of bridle trails marked with red blazes. Check in advance for North Carolina state park equine requirements.

Chimney Rock trails (defined by level of difficulty) are great for testing your endurance, feeding your inner nature lover, and experiencing a piece of North Carolina film history. The home of breathtaking Hickory Nut Falls, Chimney Rock is 25 miles southeast of Asheville, North Carolina just two hours from Charlotte. 75-mile views, hiking trails for every fitness level and a 404-foot waterfall make it our choice for a great mountain hiking experience in summer, spring, and fall in particular, when foliage explodes throughout the mountains. Rare and indigenous plants, geological formations native wildlife mark three and half miles of trails (some on the very steep side) all ranging from “easy to strenuous”. Movie buffs won’t want to miss the site where the dramatic climax of The Last of the Mohicans starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeleine Stowe was filmed. The last 17 minutes of the film were shot along the Cliff Trail including the fight scene at the top of Hickory Nut Falls. The trail which leads hikers through the location is listed as moderate to strenuous, totaling 1.5 miles. Allow at least one and a half to two hours to complete the trail, as the first 20 minutes is most taxing. Written trail guides, which detail where scenes were filmed in the park are available at the ticket counter.

Mountain biking anywhere can be tricky, as often trails are not clearly marked. It’s better to be safe than sorry and stick with places you know. The Blue Ridge Mountains is home to the 10,400 acre Dupont State Forest which offers a trail system of almost 100 miles. This Brevard, North Carolina location has been called “ground zero for some of the best mountain biking in the eastern United States”. Dupont State Forest also offers the unique experience of slickrock, similar to the trails at Moab, Utah according to the Mountain Bike Western North Carolina web site where bikers “can ride over large granite domes interspersed with scubby pine trees”. Some of the trails in the forest lead to four magnificent waterfalls.

Adventure sports are for everyone who loves to move – you simply have to know your skill level and limitations. But to quote Richard Bach’s ‘Illusions’ – “argue for your limitations, and sure enough, they’re yours.” So whether you check out someplace you’ve never been, or grab a friend and introduce them to your favorite adventure destination… get moving!