Wander Report: Yellowstone Day 1

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Wander Report: Raven Rock State Park - Lillington, NC & Aviator Brewery - Fuquay Varina, NC

Raven Rock State Park

Just a short trip down Hwy 421 from Greensboro, NC is a wonderful little gem in the North Carolina State Park System. Raven Rock State Park is located in Lillington, NC. We had a group of approximately 30 people ages 2 and up. It was an unusually warm Saturday for February and the parking lot was close to full when we got there around 9:45 AM.

The park is not a far drive from Raleigh, so I can imagine it is a popular destination for day hikers to get away from the city for a little while.

We hiked the Raven Rock Loop Trail which is listed as a 2.6 mile loop. The mileage is accurate and we added the trail down to the fish traps as well. Total mileage ended up at 4 miles.

The hike is a great hike for kids of all ages. The trail is not difficult and in the beginning follows a creek through the forest. About a mile into the hike, you reach the stairs down to Raven Rock on the shore of the Cape Fear River. There, you can explore the area around the 150 foot rock wall and marvel at the beauty of the trees, rocks and river. There had been some significant rain the week leading up to our hike, so the river was very high and muddy. On a normal day there would be more fishing on the river, but conditions were not favorable this day.

Our kids really enjoyed the rock and we spent most of our time around this feature.

Unfortunately, there is some graffiti around Raven Rock, but luckily it is not terribly noticeable until you get up close.

After you climb back up the stairs and head further up the trail, you reach the overlook. A beautiful vista of the Cape Fear River and it's surroundings. This is a good photo opportunity here.

Raven Rock Overlook

We added the Fish Traps section on to our hike, but there was really nothing down this trail. The trail leads you back down to the river, and I imagine there is usually fishing going on. Again, I think it was due to the high waters that no one was fishing.

There are some great backcountry camping opportunities in the park and I look forward to returning and getting a chance to experience this.

Route: Raven Rock Loop Trail with Fish Traps Trail added
Distance: 4 miles
Elevation Change: 300 Feet
Difficulty: Easy, some stairs
Date: 2/20/16

Longleaf Pine in Raven Rock State Park

We finished our hike in about 2-1/2 hours and headed to Fuquay Varina to try Aviator Brewery.

Aviator Smokehouse

Aviator Brewery is located in the mid town section of Fuquay Varina. There is the brewery on one side of the street and across the street they have a smokehouse restaurant. We chose the Smokehouse since we had quite a few children in our group and they were very accommodating to our group of 25.

The food was excellent, but the beer was what we came for. I started off with the Saison de Aviator with Habanero. It was a typical farmhouse style but the habanero was the star of the show. I am partial to heat so I enjoyed this brew, but without the pepper it would have been quite underwhelming.

Next, the Wide Open Red was poured. This was a delicious hoppy red ale that looked as good as it tasted. Color was a brown with hint of red and a good head. The taste of malts, caramel and bitter hops blended nicely with a crisp finish.

Finally, I ended on the Frost Nipper. I really dig winter ales, and this was a nice offering. It was a nice deep red color. There was some spice in the ale, but nutmeg seemed to dominate the taste. It wasn't my favorite winter ale, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.