Go Ask Mom

#100thingsWRAL: 100 activities, road trips, destinations for summer fun

Welcome to the Summer 100 - a list of 100 things to do, including activities across the Triangle, road trips and easy recipes when you need a little treat. So, the next time the kids are bored and you're ready for a change of pace, pull up this list and start checking the items off.

Posted Updated

By
Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

Summer vacation is a go! As most kids in the Triangle say so long to their teachers this week, we know parents are wondering how they'll be passing all of those hours until late August.

Need some ideas? We have 100 of them. Welcome to the Summer 100 - a list of 100 things to do, including activities across the Triangle, road trips and easy recipes when you need a little treat. So, the next time the kids are bored and you're ready for a change of pace, pull up this list and start checking the items off.

Each time you do something on the Summer 100, share your pictures with us so we can see the fun you are having! You can tag us on Facebook at WRALGoAskMom. On Twitter, use the hashtag #100thingsWRAL to share your photos and see what other families are up to.

Have a great summer!

1. Stand under the giant bucket at Fuquay-Varina's sprayground.
2. Take a pedal boat ride at Lake Johnson Park in Raleigh.
3. Let the kids dance at The Cary's new Film Day Fun Day series.
4. Take a day trip to Charlotte and test your Rubik's Cube skills against masters at Discovery Place's Beyond Rubik's Cube exhibit.
5. Cheer on the Oak City Futbol Club as the semi-professional women's team plays its first season in Raleigh.
6. Touch everything aboard the Battleship North Carolina in Wilmington
7. Learn something you didn't know about lemurs at the Duke Lemur Center in Durham
8. Say "hey" to the elk calves born at the N.C. Zoo in Asheboro
9. Go bumpity bump down Hill Ridge Farms' giant slide in Youngsville
10. Check out Cary's new sprayground when it opens at Jack Smith Park
12. Take an indoor zip-line ride when American Adventure opens at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh
13. Stomp out a tune on Marbles' new StepNotes in Raleigh
​14. Climb to the top of the rock wall at Kidzu Children's Museum in Chapel Hill
15. Play hide and seek in the Museum of Life and Science's Hideaway Woods in Durham
Courtesy: Museum of Life and Science
16. Relax at one of the region's free or cheap summer movie series
17. Take the kids out to a restaurant where kids eat free
18. See the animals from the trees on Air Hike at the N.C. Zoo in Asheboro
19. Hop aboard the New Hope Valley Railway in southwestern Wake County
20. Zoom down the water slide at Buffaloe Road Aquatic Center in Raleigh
21. Swing with your baby at Knightdale Station Park
22. Pop up from the "groundhog hole" at Prairie Ridge Ecostation's nature playground in Raleigh
23. Find the whisper benches at the N.C. Museum of Art in Raleigh
25. Learn something new about North Carolina in the N.C. Museum of History's junior historian discovery gallery
26. Become a Junior Ranger through N.C. State Parks
27. Listen to "trees talk" on the Talking Tree Trail
28. Make something new at Durham County Library's new MakerLab at Main
29. Ride the Sway Fun at Kids Together Park in Cary
30. Get a slice of triple chocolate cake at Edible Art in Raleigh
31. Try a snoball at Pelican's
Pelican's SnoBall
32. Make s'mores ... or s'mores dip if a campfire isn't handy
33. Reserve a spot at N.C. State Park's new two-bedroom cabins at Carolina Beach
34. Climb as high as 70 or 80 feet into a tree with Piedmont Recreation Tree Climbing in Orange County
35. Go on a nature hike
36. Watch the airplanes fly in at RDU's Observation Park
37. Spend a morning at White Deer Park in Garner, then head across the street to Lake Benson Park for a picnic lunch
38. See a Durham Bulls game
39. Take a day trip to Topsail Island
40. Feed the birds in The Landing Zone at Sylvan Heights Bird Park in Scotland Neck
41. Check out a new planetarium show at Morehead Planetarium and Science Center in Chapel Hill
42. Take a spin on the carousel at Pullen Park in Raleigh
44. Visit the Durham Farmers' Market, then slide down Mount Merrill at Durham Central Park
45. Explore the "castle" of Kelly Road Park in Apex
Playground review: Kelly Road Park
46. Follow the trail to multiple play places at Crowder District Park in Apex
47. Splash in the river at Eno River State Park
48. Sign up for an escape room experience
49. Design your own doughnuts at Duck Donuts
50. Go for a family bike ride along the region's greenways
51. Drop-in for art at Nasher Museum of Art's summer program for kids
52. See animals up close on the N.C. Zoo's Zoofari
​53. Play some music at Marbles' TreeTunes in Raleigh
54. Learn a little something about art during a family-friendly weekend tour at the N.C. Museum of Art in Raleigh
55. Explore a kid-friendly TRACK Trail
56. Try to pick your favorite ice cream flavor at Sunni Sky's Homemade Ice Cream in Angier
57. Dare to swing on the Tarzan swings at Go Ape at Blue Jay Point County Park in Raleigh
58. Take in a Carolina Mudcats game in Zebulon
59. Ride the historic carousel at Chavis Park in Raleigh
60. See and hear the lions roar at the Conservators' Center in Mebane

Courtesy: Conservators' Center. Photo credit: Taylor Hattori Images
61. Shoot down the toboggan slides at Three Bears Acres in northern Wake County
62. Get a cone (or five) at Maple View Farm in Hillsborough
64. Go play outside at Go Play Outside Now in Garner
65. Take in an afternoon tea in the Triangle
66. Or, for American Girl fans, plan a day trip for tea at the Charlotte store
67. Then, head to Historic Stagville in Durham to learn more about the place that was home to the inspiration for American Girl's Addy
68. See the amazing History Center during a day trip to Tryon Palace in New Bern
69. Take the Swift Creek Loop with boardwalks and a long stairway at Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve in Cary
70. Try your hand at paddle boarding on the boards now available at Lake Crabtree County Park in Morrisville
71. Practice your pipette skills in the natural world investigate lab at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences' Nature Research Center in Raleigh
Kids work on a peanut allergy experiment at the Nature Research Center in downtown Raleigh.
72. Celebrate the big wins at the Carolina Basketball Museum in Chapel Hill
73. Search Activate Good for Triangle-area volunteer opportunities for families
74. Go around and around on the turntable at the N.C. Transportation Museum in Spencer
75. Make some easy no churn peach ice cream
76. Take your young children to a Carolina Puppet Theatre show at various venues in Wake County

77. Jump as high as you can at a local trampoline park, including Defy Gravity in Raleigh and Durham; SkyZone in Raleigh and Durham; Launching Pad in Raleigh or Jumpstreet in Cary

78. Drop in for Preschool Playcraft at Bull City Craft in Durham
79. Climb up some guitar "strings" at Notasium in Durham
80. Travel to Lumpy's Ice Cream in Wake Forest for a homemade treat
81. Tailgate before a Carolina RailHawks game in Cary
82. Learn the history of the Duke family at Duke Homestead in Durham
83. Greet the goats at Historic Oak View County Park in Raleigh
84. Check out an Explorer Backpack at Annie Louise Wilkerson MD Nature Preserve in Raleigh
85. Head over to Prairie Ridge Ecostation in Raleigh for one of its regular Thursday morning storytimes
86. See what's growing at the Charlotte Brody Discovery Garden at Duke Gardens in Durham
Charlotte Brody Discovery Garden at Duke Gardens
87. Pick your favorite flavor at Mad Popper popcorn shop in Durham
88. Get crafty at the Scrap Exchange in Durham
89. See a plant eat something at the Carnivorous Plant Collection at the N.C. Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill
90. Make a chocolate wafer icebox cake with your kids
91. Visit a new playground
92. Extract DNA from wheat cells at the micro world investigate lab at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences' Nature Research Center in Raleigh
93. Learn about the beginnings of Raleigh at the Joel Lane Museum House
94. Take a picnic to JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh
95. Spend some gadget-free time during a family road trip

96. Read your favorite book to your children

97. Teach your kids a skill they'll use forever

98. Set up a lemonade stand

99. Catch fireflies

100. Hug your kids because, most of the time, that's really all they need.

Happy summer!

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