Just about every Friday night is a special occasion for area art lovers -- and for area food lovers, crowd lovers and adventure lovers. Here's a rundown of the art walks offered in the Triangle.

First Friday: Raleigh

The Triangle's oldest art walk encompasses about 50 stops spanning the heart of downtown to Glenwood Avenue. That number includes restaurants, bars and coffeehouses plus the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences.

Artspace is the anchor of the scene, with its multiple galleries and studio spaces. Other stops in the Moore Square area include the Visual Art Exchange, the Collectors Gallery and Long View Gallery, and if you're inspired to create, the Amazing Glaze Ceramic Lounge will provide the means.

From Moore Square, the Raleigh Trolley transports passengers west to the Fayetteville Street spots (including Bickett Gallery at Hudson and the Fish Market Student Gallery), the Municipal Building (the Miriam Block Gallery) and the Warehouse District (including Designbox and Vintage21, an emerging church that embraces the arts).

Beyond the trolley zone is a long list of galleries on Glenwood South, among them Lee Hansley Gallery, the Carter Building Studios, Local Color, Points of View Photography Gallery, Tire Shop Gallery and others. And some of the city's most intriguing galleries lie off the main path: Lump Gallery on South Blount Street, Rebus Works on Kinsey Street (off Boylan Avenue) and Flanders Art Gallery, a newcomer at 18 Seaboard Ave.

Maps are available at all the participating establishments (a new version will be printed in January), which will display an official First Friday flag outside their buildings. A map and listings are also available online at www.godowntownraleigh.com/firstfriday.

Second Friday: Chapel Hill and Carrboro

The 2ndFriday Artwalk has a six-year history of getting people out to see art, enjoy music and socialize. Venues range from the Ackland Art Museum, where the Art after Dark event includes live music, to Weaver Street Realty and a couple of law practices that display art.

The central cluster of galleries on East Main Street in Carrboro includes the ArtsCenter, the N.C. Crafts Gallery, Carrboro Century Center and Archer Graphics. At University Mall, Turning Point Gallery and Animation and Fine Art participate, as does Sizl Gallery in Southern Village.

Maps and information about featured art and music can be found at 2ndfridayartwalk.com. Participating establishments also have maps.

Third Friday: Durham

Durham's Culture Crawl is where art walkers have been most likely to find a cultural adventure -- something theatrical, something funky, something cinematic. The new name, Third Friday Durham, sounds much tamer, but that doesn't mean the event will be.

The list of participating venues that appears on the new Web site includes the Bull City Arts Collaborative, The Scrap Exchange, Broad Street Cafe,Through This Lens, the Old Woolworth's Site, Manbites Dog Theater, the Durham Arts Council and The Know Bookstore. It's a work in progress with a couple of weeks to go before the first Third Friday Durham.

Tune into what's coming at www.thirdfridaydurham.com.

Final Friday: Cary

Glance at the list of participants in the Cary Art Loop and you might conclude that there are as many coffeehouses as art galleries. But some of those coffeehouses feature painting as well as java.

Among the galleries to visit from 6 to 9 p.m. are Russian Art Gallery, Cary Fine Art Studio, Cary Gallery of Artists, Rosewood Gallery and Michael LeCher Gallery. The town's Jordan Hall Arts Center, Page-Walker Arts & History Center, Herb Young Community Center, Cary Senior Center and Town Hall are also open.

Find more information -- plus a map -- at www.caryartloop.org.

One more Friday: Hillsborough

Sept. 28 marks the end of the outdoor season for Hillsborough's Last Friday, with the music, vendors and craftspeople setting up on East King Street. But there's plenty of indoor art viewing for the cooler months at the Hillsborough Artists Cooperative, Callaway Jewelry & Spiral Studios, Sovero Art Gallery & Studio, Hillsborough Gallery of Arts, Churton Street Realty Art Gallery and the Orange County Historical Museum.

Get the lowdown at www.historichillsborough.org.

Rest of the weekend

Pittsboro has claimed First Sunday for its monthly art walk. There's no urban sprawl, just a central stretch where galleries and other businesses accommodate visitors from noon to 5 p.m. Among them: Side Street Gallery, Fusions Art and Fine Craft Gallery, and ChathamArts Gallery. The retail mix includes jewelry-oriented shops such as the Bead Hive, Bizu and Vespertine.

Find details at www.pittsboroshops.com.

And Wake Forest has reserved two weekends for its Artists' Studio Tour, showcasing more than 30 artists. There's a preview and reception at 6 p.m. Friday at Sunflower Studio & Gallery. The tour continues Saturday-Sept. 16 and Sept. 22-23.

For a map and details, see www.artistsstudiotour.com.