“The sun did not shine.  It was too wet to play.  So we sat in the house, all that cold, cold, wet day,”  Dr Seuss.  Dr. Seuss was obviously not a Wednesday Strider.

“It’s not who you were, but who you are. It’s not what you did, but what you do.” Jay Hinze

The Wednesday Strider hikes are at a faster pace and with less frequent stops than the Friday Rollers hikes.  Hikes range from 5 to 8 miles in length.  Please contact one of the hike leaders before hiking with this group. 

COVID 19 Policy: All Wednesday Striders will be required to be fully vaccinated including their booster shots.  This policy will apply to not just carpooling but hiking with the group as well.  Car-pooling allows us the option of featuring some of our popular shuttle hikes. Furthermore, we recommend that all hikers receive the new bivalent COVID 19 shot and flu shot to protect themselves and their fellow hikers.  

The leaders may ask for proof of the vaccination, but neither the leaders nor Pisgah Hikers can undertake to assure that all who hike with this group have been vaccinated or are free of the virus or that COVID-19 will not be contracted on the hike or during carpooling, and our general Liability Disclaimer applies fully to Covid-19 and all associated risks.

Start time:   Winter, Spring Fall; 9:00 AM.  Summer (starting sometime in May);  8:30 AM.  Please arrive 10 minutes early for a prompt departure.

Assembly Areas:  We have three different assembly areas depending upon the location of the hike.  These are Catheys Creek, Pisgah Ranger Station/Visitor Center and the Cedar Mountain Community Center.    

Updates:  Updates will be issued every Tuesday morning before the Wednesday hike.  To receive updates by email, enter your email address in the “+Follow” link at the bottom right corner of any webpage.

Wednesday Strider Hike Leaders:
Jay Hinze–rtbzrh@gmail.com
Vince Castello–vincecas32@gmail.com

Wednesday Striders Winter 2023 Schedule
Note: Starting with the Winter 2023 Schedule, the Wednesday Striders will meet at the Pisgah Ranger Station/Visitor Center instead of the Walmart Assembly Location. We will meet at the spillover lot adjacent to the main visitor lot.

January 4 Hike Cancelled

January 11 Case Camp
6 mi, 1600’cl. R7, $2.00
Meet at Ranger Station
From the gate on FSR 475B we walk the road and hike the Case Camp trail to the Parkway. Then we bushwhack to the MST. From there we hike to the Cherry Cove overlook for lunch. We return by the Parkway and Case Camp trail back to our cars.

January 18 Devil’s Courthouse and Beyond
7mi, 600’cl, R7, $5.00
Meet at Catheys Creek
Starting at the gate on NC215 we hike the BRP to Devil’s Courthouse. We hike the MST to the Little Sam trail to the Flat Laurel Creek trail which we follow to its end on NC 215 where we hike back to our cars.

January 25 Looking Glass Rock
6 mi, 1800’cl, R8, $1.50
Meet at Ranger Station
We hike to the end of the Looking Glass Rock trail and back.

February 1 Pressley Cove -– Maxwell Cove – Bennett Gap
6 mi, 1000’cl, R5, $1.00
Meet at Ranger Station
From the Pressley Cove trailhead on Avery Creek road we hike the Pressley Cove trail to Clawhammer Road. We hike to the Maxwell Cove trailhead and continue down Maxwell Cove to Avery Creek Road. Then we hike up a forest service road to a user trail to the Bennett Gap trail to our cars.

February 8 Trace Ridge – Bad Fork
8 mi, 1400’cl, R9, $3.50
Meet at Walmart or Ingles Mills River
Starting on Wash Creek road in the North Mills River Recreation Area we hike the Trace Ridge trail to the BRP. We hike the BRP through the Ferrin Knob tunnels to the Bad Fork trail. We hike the road back to our cars.

February 15 MST – BRP “Necklace Hike”
6 mi, 1400’cl, R6, $3.00
Meet at Ranger Station
From the Cold Mountain overlook we hike out and back alternately on the BRP and MST.

February 22 Clawhammer – Twin Falls
6 mi, 800’cl, R5, $1.00
Meet at Ranger Station
From the Avery Creek trailhead on Avery Creek Road we hike the Avery Creek trail and Clawhammer trail to Clawhammer Road. From there we hike to Twin Falls and return to our cars via the Buckhorn Gap and Avery Creek trails..

March 1 Bridal Veil Falls
8 mi, 800’, R4, $0.00
Meet at Cedar Mountain
From the Fawn Lake parking lot in Dupont State Forest we hike the Reasonover trail to Lake Julia and Bridal Veil Falls. We eventually find our way back to our cars via assorted trails.

March 8 Ashmore Heritage Preserve
6 mi; 1200′ cl, R7, $3.00
Meet at Cedar Mountain
From the trailhead on Persimmon Ridge Rd off of SC11 in South Carolina we will hike
up the Bridge Passage Trail, around Wattaco Lake to view Ashmore Falls and then up
to High Rock Overlook. Then we will go back to the Bridge Passage trail to go up to a
couple of waterfalls and make our way back to the cars.

March 15 Turkeypen–Pounding Mill Creek
7 mi, 1350’ cl, R6, $1.50
Meet at Walmart
From Turkey Pen parking we hike the Mullinax, Squirrel Gap, Pounding Mill Creek and South Mills River trails back up that tiresome hill we originally came down.

March 22 Wagon Road Gap to Pink Beds
5 mi, 100’cl, R1,$3.00
Meet at Ranger Station
From the Cold Mountain overlook on the Parkway we hike to the Wagon Road Gap overlook. Then we hike down the MST , Barnett Branch and Pink Bed Loop trails to our shuttle at the Pink Beds park lot.

March 29 No Hike. Hike Scheduled for Friday with the Hoofers

March 31 Toxaway River – Lake Jocassee  (Pisgah Hikers Members Only)
6mi. 1100’cl, R7, $2.00
Meet at Catheys Creek
We join the Friday Hoofers for an easier version of their hike. We hike down to the swinging bridge over the Toxaway River at Lake Jocassee. We return by visiting several waterfalls.