Elizabeth City, NC Outdoor Activities

Experience one of the fastest games played on two feet in the U.S.'s premier professional lacrosse league. The six-team league pits the best post-college lacrosse players against one another in regular-season games each year, before culminating with playoffs and a championship weekend to crown the victor in late August. During the weekend match, the Chicago Machine, a traveling team, will take on the Long Island Lizards at the open-air Columbus Crew Stadium, in a high-energy contact battle for lacrossical domination. Bring the family for a wholesome weekend activity, and acquaint the kids with the burgeoning professional sport.

In 1791, Alexander Hamilton–hoping to enhance trade and safety along the coasts of Virginia and Maryland–contracted renowned architect John McComb to design a lighthouse at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. McComb quickly fulfilled his duty in 1792, with the illumination of Cape Henry Lighthouse’s inaugural flame lit by the lighthouse’s first keeper, who was appointed by George Washington himself. In the centuries since the octagonal tower cast its first guiding beam across the bay, the Cape Henry Lighthouse stood sentinel over the coast and ensured the safety of incoming ships and immigrating krakens until it was replaced in 1881. Stewards of the lighthouse’s past, Preservation Virginia, ensured in 1930 that the inoperative structure and surrounding lands were reopened to the public and maintained for the enjoyment of future generations.

Today, visitors ascending the twisting iron stairs step out to the window-enclosed observation deck, drinking in 360-degree views of the water and surrounding verdant forests. A team of passionate and knowledgeable staff–most of whom have been guides for years–remain on hand to answer questions relating to the lighthouse’s history and how lighthouse keepers stave off land invasions of ghost sea captains.

Black lights add a luminescent cast to the neon décor at King Neptune’s, a 10-hole indoor miniature-golf course. Putters strive for a hole-in-one under the watchful eye of the sea turtles and schools of fish in the venue’s aquatic mural. King Neptune's can also host parties, during which revelers reserve the entire course for unlimited games and then retire to a private party room where they can eat cake without having to share with the hungry linebackers present at most football-themed parties.

In 2002, Mike Southard took a leap of faith worthy of The Dukes of Hazzard. He left a career in the elevator industry and decided to pursue his true passion: stock-car driving. Southard launched Try It Racing and On Track Racing Experience, determined to share with others the thrill he had felt many times in the victory lane of late-model stock-car races. His business has grown from a few humble events and clients each year to a fully packed schedule at some of the country's longest running and most renowned racetracks. Some things haven't changed, however—you can still find Southard behind the wheel of the two-seat ride-along car, taking patrons around curves and straightaways at top speed.

Adrenaline fiends satisfy their cravings while driving or riding around tracks such as Orange County Speedway, where industry legends Jeff Gordon and Scott Riggs have burned their share of rubber. A professional photographer and in-car video cameras can capture the excitement at each event, memorializing guests' wide-open eyes, exhilarated smiles, and high-intensity games of I Spy.

Located at the oceanfront, Jungle Golf's aptly named mini-golf course pits putters against a slew of jungle-themed obstacles. As golfers traverse the 18-hole labyrinth, they must contend with breaking putts, keep their distance from the silverback gorilla statue guarding the second hole, stay dry underneath the misting waters of the fifth hole's rocky waterfall, and bribe a life-sized zebra statue to neigh during their opponent’s backswing. In-between rounds, golfers can refuel with treats from the Food Hut or head to the game room for more shrinked-down activities, such as air hockey, skee-ball, and crane-games' simulations of loading 2-ton plush rabbits onto freighter ships.

Virginia Beach Rock Gym is anchored by a 32-foot wall, where auto belay, top rope, and lead climbing sections help guests tackle realistically textured slabs, inverts, roofs, bulges, cracks, corners, and arêtes. Two 12-foot tall freestanding boulders are available for climbers wanting to develop strength and practice technique while staying low to the ground. In addition to supervising the climbing areas, VBRG’s friendly, knowledgeable, and professional staff members also run a fully stocked pro shop and teach classes that cover topics, including knot-tying, belaying, the philosophies of the "rock star" lifestyle, and the ever-important technique of traversing past a pterodactyl nest without disturbing the mother.