Some Weird and Wonderful Pictures From Parks Around Durham

Decay Fungi on a cedar in Sandy Creek Park

NCCU Students Discover Eno River State Park

Goofy Staff Challenge on the waterfall trail at the Spruce Pine Lodge--who can keep their feet in cold water longer?

Turtle Beach on the Eno

Happy Earth Day! And ways to celebrate it with DPR





 

So much is going on with DPR and Outdoor Recreation that there's no excuse for staying inside.  First up is s'mores at our Community Campfire at Burch Avenue Park on Friday, April 25 from 7pm--8pm, then Earth Day on Sunday afternoon from 12-5.  DPR Outdoor Recreation will be at the Eco Lounge with the all the cool kids showing people great places for you and your friends to enjoy Durham's natural resources. 

 

On Saturday, May 3 we'll take a day kayak trip to Masonboro Island, and finally,on Saturday, May 17 we'll have our high ropes Discovery Days at the Discovery Course in Bethesda Park.   I probably need to knock wood after making this statement, but Spring has officially sprung, so let's get out and celebrate our local resources and this beautiful weather somewhere outside!

 

 

Kayak Masonboro Island May 3

We just finished our scouting trip to Wilmington to find the best spot for kayaking on our May 3 Surf and Seafood trip, and we think that Masonboro Island is going to be an amazing trip.  It's a barrier island that is home to a huge variety of wildlife and has beautiful beaches we can stop at and play in the surf.  Here's a link to the NC Coastal Reserve page description of the area: http://www.nccoastalreserve.net/web/crp/masonboro-island.  We have five spots left on the trip; we provide the boats, transportation, pfd's and guide service, all you have to do is register.  The link to online registration is located on the right-hand side of the blog, or you may call us at 919-560-4405 to find the nearest DPR location to go in person.
A few images of Masonboro Island to fuel your beach-bound brain:

Fishin', Sailing and Jupiter

I can't really think of one better title that encapsulates what a fantastic weekend we had.  The weather forced our astronomy program to Saturday evening, but that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as we had great views of Jupiter, the Moon, Mars and the International Space Station. What a cool sighting that was!  If you'd like to see the ISS schedule so that you can spot it on your own, go here: http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/ .

On Sunday we had a sailing program and a fishing program at Lake Michie--the windy weather was great for sailing, and the fish were ready to eat, so all in all, a successful weekend outdoors! Below are some images from a most enjoyable run of programs.
 

Star Watch Astronomy Postponed to Saturday, April 5

Unfortunately, the conditions for this evening are not going to be conducive for astronomical viewing--overcast with a chance of thunderstorms.  Also not a great forecast for the equipment.  We're bummed about having to postpone, but the GREAT news is that tomorrow night is forecast to be much better!  We'll be out at Old North Durham Park at 8:30 pm tomorrow evening, so please come join us.  If you're curious about the tool we used to make our decision, check out the website below.  Fair warning, you can lose quite a bit of time in your day on this site.

http://cleardarksky.com/c/DrhmNCkey.html?1

And because this blog is clearly all Steve, all the time, here's a picture of Steve with Diane Markoff, Assistant Professor in the Physics department at NCCU with one of their telescopes.

Lakes Season Opening: Whitecaps on the Lake, Large Mouth Bass and First Catches

Well, I think we all can admit we hoped for better weather for the season opening party at Lake Michie this past Sunday.  The winds were insane, whipping the lake into a fury of whitecaps, but about 45 hardy people turned out for what ended up to be a surprisingly good fishing day. The gentlemen below surprised us with a great catch, and one young man caught his first fish.  All in all, a success for such a wind-blown, chilly day! Perhaps, now that spring appears to have actually "sprung", you'll venture out to the City lakes, rent a canoe, kayak or jon boat, borrow some of our loaner fishing equipment and try out the fishing at Lake Michie or Little River.