Category Archives: Outdoors

Can I just skip Halloween? (10/31/2012)

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I’m sorry, no you can’t. Unless you stay home and hide, which may not be the worst plan given the rainy weekend forecast.

This weekend, you can pretty much go to any of your favorite hangouts and expect to find a Halloween-themed happening. Long-time readers will know that I often have outdoorsy, or science-y, or artsy, so here one event for each of these three categories:

Let’s start with the outdoorsy stuff: There is a haunted hike on Tuesday at Jordan Lake State Park; walk the 1/2 mile trail anytime between 7p-10p and meet real (and not-so-real) nighttime creatures.

New Hope Valley Railroad does haunted rides this Saturday at 4p, 5:15p, 6:30p and 7:45p. (The 7:45p ride not for small kids, I read.)

The NC Symphony is playing spooktacular music at 1p and 4p. Show up early to try out some classical instruments yourself.

Then there is a new event, Raleigh Living Dead taking place on City Plaza. The website states it is for all ages (before 8p at least) and it does have kids activities, but all the grown-ups walking around in zombie costumes might be a little bit too much. Tickets are $10, and $5 for kids.

 

Sandbox, Michael Franti at Red Hat Amphitheater (10/20/2012)

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The Red Hat Amphitheater is hosting (and PNC is sponsoring) a nice fall mini-festival this Saturday. Admission is FREE, so you might want to get there early. Weather forecast (clear, 70F) should be just warm enough to comfortably sit on a blanket; for running and tumbling around it is warm enough for sure. (But bring a warm jacket and hat; by the time Michael Franti hits the stage, the temperature will drop below 60 despite the funky reggae sound). But first things first – here the line-up:

Sandbox is the band that I wrote about a few weeks back, when they were supposed to play in Fletcher Park. (A threat of rain cancelled that concert.)

Mommie is what happens when rock stars become dads: It is the kiddie music project of Doug McMillan of The Connells fame. Songs like “Dumptruck” or “Mama’s Pajamas” meander between Connells guitar pop and punk rock. Hear (and buy) their album on CD Baby.

Diali Cissokho & Kaira Ba are based in Durham and Orange County, but they sound like West Africa; indeed, Diali is from Senegal, while his bandmates grew up in places like Pittsboro or Saxapahaw. I didn’t know them until researching this article, but their music is beautiful.

Michael Franti & Spearhead, the headliner, will hit the stage at 8p (I hope we’ll last that long!) with their mix of funk, hip-hop and reggae. Like most, I only knew the up-beat “Say Hey! [I be gone today, but I be back around the way]”, but some previews on iTunes promise equally cheerful (and also politically conscious) music.

All in all, an outstanding way to end the festival season 2012!

The image is Michael Franti and Spearhead by Rich Anderson, used under the CC BY-SA license

Festival in Motion (9/29/2012)

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Last year, I think I stumbled upon the Festival in Motion by accident on one of my green-way walks. This year, I’ll make a point to go again. If you haven’t been on the greenway system much, this is an excellent “show case” opportunity, Because with some planning, you can check out

  • Eliza Pool Park
  • Walnut Creek Wetland Center
  • Chavis Park
  • Rocky Branch Greenway
  • Walnut Creek Greenway
  • Little Rock Greenway

All in one loop! See a custom map that I’ve put together, which is a (long) loop walk for anyone living in downtown  proper or nearby. Here is how you could spend your Saturday:

  • Head out along Rocky Branch to Eliza Pool Park, where starting at 11am there will be a bike decorationg session.
  • Around noon (I guess), the decorated bikes will parade along Walnut Creek Greenway to the Walnut Creek Wetland Center with a police escort. Either ride with the bike parade, or head out a bit earlier and watch them ride by.
  • At the Walnut Creek Wetland Center you’ll find food trucks, live music and other assorted merrymaking, culminating in a 5K in the early afternoon
  • Head back toward downtown along Little Rock Greenway, stop for a snack and some more play at the awesome Chavis Park playground
  • Head back top downtown along Chavis Way and Lenoir St.

I’ve walked (and biked) this loop several times now, and it truly is an excellent cross section of Raleigh Parks and Rec; note that this is 6.25 mi, and thus 2-3 hours of walking, breaks not included. Plan to be out for most of the day…

BugFest 2012 (9/15/2012)

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Every year in September, Centennial Plaza and surrounding areas turn into a crawly, fluttery, buzzing celebration of our dear friends, the insects. Everybody working with insects will be there, from the Franklin County Beekeepers to Alberti’s Flea Circus. Special guest this year: The mantids. (The picture above is from our own Boylan Heights backyard; parying mantis are not uncommon around here.)

The one attraction I haven’t been able to stomach in previous years, but may attempt this year is Cafe Insecta. If you have a funny feeling about what this might be, you’re right. We’re not talking about ladybug shaped cookies or spaghetti “worms”. We’re talking bugs. Real bugs. You eat them. The good news? Prepared by famous Raleigh chefs. Try Cricket Bruschetta, courtesy of Wilmoore Cafe. Or Peanut Bugger Crunch from buku. I dare you!

BugFest is on Saturday from 9am-7pm, and beyond grilled bugs, there are tons of other exciting activities and presentations.

Pops in the City: NC Symphony at the Red Hat Amphitheater (9/9/2012)

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NCS Double Bass Section (c) NC Symphony

Most kids have a natural affinity to classical music that seems to eventually disappear as they discover Katy Perry and Justin Bieber. If your kids have not yet reached the Bieber stage, they will have a lovely opportunity this Sunday night: The NC Symphony is playing at the Amphitheater, and it will be a nice program of lively and light classical fare. (Copland, Strauss, some patriotic stuff – crowdpleasers, not Shostakovich).

For anything like this, where your kids may be either mesmerized until the end or may want to go jump around half way through, a large outdoors venue is perfect – my 2-year-old loves always loves an upbeat waltz by Strauss, but he wants to jump around to it; so not quite ready yet for Meymandi hall.

The NC symphony starts playing at 7:30p, but the gates open at 6p. I suggest you get there early, since it will fill up if the weather is nice. No ticket required. Seating is general admission, first-come, first-served.

NC Symphony, “Red Hat” amphitheater (did you hear that?), Sunday evening 6p doors, 7:30p-9p concert.

ShopScotch and Saturday Market (9/8/2012)

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The Saturday Market @ Rebus Works

Do you remember the “City Utopias” of yesteryear, wacky prophecies of skyscrapers that house everything from a farm to entertainment to work to living, with people never venturing outside anymore? Well, the trend scouts and city planners didn’t think it would look quite like this, but Rebus Works’ Saturday Market is very close. Music, Art, Food – you can easily stay the whole day if you want.

Saturday Market is taking place as usual from 9am to 2pm. Starting at noon, everything starts morphing into ShopScotch, which will go from 12p to 5p. In addition to the veggie stands and food trucks of the Saturday market, there will be a large craft vendor gathering (look on their facebook page for details), five bands and more food trucks.

If your kids are not quite ready yet for a full-blown Hopscotch Day party, head to Rebus. “Come for breakfast, stay for lunch, stretch it to dinner!”

Kids Band “Sandbox” playing Fred Fletcher Park (9/2/2012)

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Fourth of July has fireworks, Labor Day has Concerts in the Park. Right? The lovely weather of September makes it perfect to pack up a blanket and a small cooler and head out to Fred Fletcher Park. If you live downtown and this does not ring a bell, boy, you’ve missed something. Scenery-wise, Fletcher it is probably the nicest, and certainly less crowded than Pullen Park. It does not have a lot of playground equipment, other than a sandbox and swings. And speaking of a sandbox, that is also the name of the band that is playing at Fred Fletcher on Sunday night. Lawn chairs and coolers welcome, alcoholic contents not. Sandbox has a nice website that gives you an idea about their style.

What I like is that they play a combination of traditional children songs as well as their own work. Some of their songs can be previewed on their website.

Sunday, Sept-2, 6pm. Fred Fletcher Park (820 Clay Street, Raleigh NC 27605)

Brooke Hatala playing Pullen Park, New King Rippers playing Mordecai Park (8/25/2012)

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Ok, if you haven’t heard of singer-songwriter Brooke Hatala yet, don’t feel bad. Most of her career still lies ahead of her; after all, she is only 11 years old. That said, you should meet her while you can, because before you know it you will need a VIP backstage pass to get close to this young musician!

Brooke is based in Cary, and she will be performing live at Pullen Park tomorrow (Saturday) night 8p-9p. Watch some of her videos on YouTube to get a first impression – then head out to celebrate the end of summer. I usually avoid Pullen on the weekends and leave it to people driving in from everywhere. But the overcast weather is often a good deterrent, and I want to hear how Brooke sounds live.

If Jazz is more your thing, you ‘big night’ is tonight. The New King Rippers, a jazz combo is playing Music On The Porch at Mordecai Park. You can preview them on YouTube as well.

Via credit: I heard about Brooke Hatala via WRAL.com.

Photo credit: (c) 2012 Brooke Hatala.

Paperhand Puppet Intervention (Aug 2012)

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Every year, Paperhand Puppet Intervention puts together a magical, inspiring, frightening, enlightening show with some of the biggest puppets around. While typical theatre puppets are smaller than humans, these are large scale, some of them towering over their tiny human operators. The show takes place at the Chapel Hill Forest Theater, a nice wooden setting. Bringing a blanket and picnic is encouraged.

Today is the 2012 premiere – maybe wait a day or a week, and beat the premiere crowds. They are playing every weekend for a month, and then perform one more weekend at NC museum of art. The program usually starts at 6:20 p.m. and runs until about 8 p.m., but there are several matinees on Saturday at 2:20 p.m. as well.

Paperhand Puppet Intervention has exact play times and information.

The picture is an older photo of Paperhand Puppet Intervention by BellaBim, used under the CC-BY license

Wild Water Wipe Out at Logan’s Trading Co. (7/14/2012)

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If you live around downtown Raleigh and have a house with yard, you’ve probably been to Logan’s Trading Company at Seaboard Station. Together with the ACE Hardware across the street, the are a good reason that you don’t need to go outside the beltline when searching for a hardware store. (Reminder: I’m not paid to write this. I  just mention stuff I like and find noteworthy.) Now it would seem that such a store does not need extra events to attract customers, and my guess is that they are doing it just for fun!

Nooo! -kidding by Hammonton Photography, used under the CC BY-NC licenseAnd fun it is: Every second Saturday of the month, Logan’s is hosting Wipe-Out, a family event featuring a Bouncy House Water Slide, water games, beach music and more.

Kids should wear their swimsuits under the clothes so they are ready for some wet action while the parents check out the rhododendron and hydrangea. When you’re done, head over to ACE Hardware (there’s always something you need from the hardware store) and don’t forget the free popcorn on the way out.

Logan’s Trading Co.: 707 Semart Drive, Raleigh, United States, 27604.
Wipe Out every second Saturday of the month from 11-4.

ACE Hardware: 802 Semart Drive, Raleigh, United States, 27604.
Cool stuff and Popcorn year round.