Spring 2021

Welcome to 2021! Finally the long winter of the pandemic is over. Vaccines are rolling out, and we can at last glimpse an end to the quarantining, distancing, and isolation of the last year.

Blue sky on Little Long Mountain. Photo by Kim Andersen.

Also on the bright side, one “silver lining” inside the dark cloud of Covid has been the fact that more people have experimented with outdoor activities because being outside and distanced has been about the only safe way to visit with friends and family during this time. People who under normal circumstances would have hung out in bars or indoors at home have been walking on greenways and trails, and they have been camping when they would typically have been in hotels. Folks who have never been “outdoorsy” have been getting outside in the woods for the first time. This is fabulous!

However…

Many of these uninitiated newcomers lack knowledge and expertise they are unaware they are missing. They need help to be safe and make the most of their time in nature, and the natural world needs them to know how to be good stewards of the environment.

So now seems like a great time to explore how the Uwharrie Trailblazers can serve our new visitors and simultaneously protect the Uwharries from potential harm. A system of Trail Ambassadors may be the answer!

Basically Trail Ambassadors seek to empower trail users to enjoy, share, and preserve the natural world, to enhance the overall hiker experience, and specifically to disseminate information about sustainable backcountry ethics, local trail protocols, and current trail conditions. Trail Ambassadors are usually volunteers who meet minimum requirements (such as age and having a valid drivers license), who meet a standard of expertise/experience that will make them effective in the trail ambassador role (!), and who will commit to an agreed upon level service.

What might a Trail Ambassador program look like for us in the Uwharries? Do you have some ideas or thoughts on the this? If so, please share them below!

Your input is vital to the brainstorming process! If you have ideas you would like to discuss at length beyond this online form, please do not hesitate to contact the Uwharrie Trailblazers directly at uwharrietrailblazers@gmail.com!

Kim Andersen

From the Chair

Uwharrie Trailblazers 2020 Annual Report

Your UTB Committee:

David Craft, Committee Chair
Dave Gardener, Trail Boss
Joe White, Trail Boss
Gifford Del Grande, Trail Boss
Jim Plant, Treasurer
Mary Joan Pugh, Trail Strategy
Jared Byrd, Maps and Safety
Jeff Grant, Website
Crystal Cockman, Three Rivers Land Trust
Kim Andersen, Secretary and History

2020 saw new committee member Kim Andersen join the committee and longtime committee member Don Childrey stepped down. Are you interested in helping out? Talk to a committee member about how!

2020 Accomplishments

Our workdays this year were limited due to COVID restrictions and volunteer interest; however, trail adopters added significant hours to our total. Over 50 individuals helped on workdays in 2019 for a total of 913 hours including travel. These hours are used as in kind funding for grant requests. (Due to the abbreviated work schedule we are not recognizing most hours or cumulative hours worked.)

The 2020 Annual Meeting was held Saturday, January 11, 2020, and featured a Russell Gold Mine hike and delicious chili! Our guest speaker was retired Catawba College professor of Uwharrie history Gary Freeze. Meeting details may be found here.

The Uwharrie Trail Thru-Hike was held in October, and over 90 hikers started the hike. The club did not officially participate due to COVID restrictions.

The Trail Adoption Program launched with 19 sections and adopters. We still have two openings and may start pairing folks up when the opportunity arises.

We opened the Walkers Creek Trailhead and a new 2.5-mile-long section of the Uwharrie Trail! The history of this part of the trail is chronicled below in this issue of the newsletter. An official soft opening was held January 9, 2021. A larger celebration is planned for later in the summer.

Total 2020 Uwharrie Trailblazers members - 83

Uwharrie Trailblazers Treasury Funds total $3,427.33 locally plus the Three Rivers Land Trust account for Uwharrie Trail related projects.

2020 Projects

Ordered new signs for the rest of the UT.
Replaced and added new trail tools.
Acquired a second water tank for thru hikes.
Ordered shirts and hats for volunteers. More on this soon.
Worked with US Forest Service Uwharrie National Forest Trails Strategy on input and implementing new trails. We hope with a new Ranger on board we can take next steps on putting new trail on the ground!
Assisted the Forest Service with planning for the new Betty McGee’s Creek bridge at the Thornburg Trailhead.

Thanks for all you do!

The New Walkers Creek Section of the UT

Don Childrey

On January 9, 2021, the USFS officially opened the Walkers Creek Trailhead and a new 2.5-mile-long section of the Uwharrie Trail. This trail opening had been a long time coming.

New Walkers Creek Trailhead sign, January 2021! Photo by Mary Joan Pugh.

Backpackers on the first Land Trust For Central NC (now Three Rivers Land Trust) Thru-Hike in 2013 spent a night near the future trailhead. Special permission for camping was granted by the NC Zoo Society, which had recently acquired the property.

The property had previously been owned by Andy and Mary McArthur. When they reached out to Crystal Cockman, with the Land Trust, about making their property part of the Uwharrie Trail, she connected them with the NC Zoo Society. The Zoo Society had donated funds available for conservation projects. Mary Joan Pugh, Gin Wall, and Nell Allen with the Zoo were key supporters of this particular project. The Zoo Society purchased the property from the McArthurs in December 2012.

The McArthur tract’s location made it a key property towards achieving the overall goal of closing the gaps in the Uwharrie Trail route. On the north side, the tract fronted High Pine Church Road. This road was part of the road-walk section required to reach the Birkhead Wilderness from the rest of the Uwharrie Trail.

The south side of the McArthur tract almost reached USFS property. A gap of just 200 feet separated the two. Beyond that point, USFS property stretched continuously to where the Uwharrie Trail dropped down to the Luther Place Trailhead. Fortunately, this 200-foot-wide strip of land was owned by Amy Grissom, a friend and supporter of the Uwharrie Trail. She agreed to transfer a small piece of her property to the Zoo Society to close this 200-foot gap.

The ultimate goal of the Zoo Society was not to keep the McArthur tract forever but to transfer it to the USFS, possibly in trade for other property they were interested in. But land transactions with the USFS rarely move quickly.

In the meantime, the Uwharrie TrailBlazers began working with the USFS on the design and approval of a new stretch of trail from the existing Uwharrie Trail, across the Walkers Creek valley, to the McArthur tract.

Part of the new Walkers Creek section of the trail. Photo by Kelly Heath.

Volunteers, including David Craft and Jim Plant, did a lot of exploring to find the most interesting route through the Walkers Creek valley. The Trailblazers also raised nearly $10,000 to help pay for archaeological surveys required before the USFS would approve the route.

USFS District Ranger Deborah Walker helped move the process forward through the route’s early iterations. Tragically, she died in a motorcycle accident in 2016. The final route was approved by District Ranger Michael Spisak in April 2018. The Uwharrie Trailblazers were ready and put pickaxes and pulaskis in the dirt to start the trail building in May 2018.

The new Walkers Creek section of trail starts close to where the historic trail route dropped off the east side of the ridge above the Luther Place and then headed to the road-walk towards Strieby Church. The new section drops off the west side of the ridge into the Walkers Creek drainage. The trail down the east side of the ridge is now being called the Luther Spur Trail.

Once off the ridge, the new trail crosses the upper reaches of a small tributary to Walkers Creek. The trail then crosses Eagles Field Road, a private gravel road, and climbs over another ridge before dropping down to cross Walkers Creek itself.

One of the interesting spots along the new section is called Biscuit Rocks. These are a couple of large rounded rocks along Walkers Creek, not far from where the trail crosses the creek.

The trail also passes by what appears to have been a cast-iron molasses or sorghum syrup cooker.

Old molasses or sorghum syrup cooker adjacent to the new trail. Photo by Kelly Heath.

After leaving the creek bottom, the trail climbs onto another ridge and onto the McArthur tract. The Trailblazers also received permission from the Zoo Society to build a trail across the McArthur Tract to connect with the new trail on USFS property.

In keeping with the tradition of Scouting involvement with the Uwharrie Trail, several scouts worked on the new trail. Boy Scout Edward Teasley, from Troop 230 in Greensboro, built a mile of this trail as his project. Boy Scout Noah Powell, from Troop 442 in Salisbury, NC, built the split rail fencing at the Walkers Creek Trailhead parking area. Boy Scout Steven Anderson, from Troop 442 in Salisbury, NC, built the kiosk at the trailhead. Boy Scout Bailley Root, from Troop 230 in Greensboro, NC, built a mile of trail in the Walkers Creek area.

Thru Hike Day 3 camp on the McArthur tract, October 2019. Photo by Kim Andersen.

Each year since 2013, the Land Trust Thru-Hike participants have camped on the McArthur tract, enjoying a Saturday evening cookout and beautiful sunset views. They have also been able to hike the route of the new 2.5 miles of trail as it evolved through several iterations from just a flagged corridor to a fully completed and blazed trail.

In October 2020, using grant money from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), the USFS was able to purchase the McArthur tract from the NC Zoo Society. This transfer to publicly-owned land protects the Uwharrie Trail corridor from High Pine Church Road all the way to NC 24-27!

Another major benefit of the new trail and trailhead is that a big chunk of roadwalk has been eliminated from the Uwharrie Trail route. Now only 3.37 miles of road must be walked to get from the Walkers Creek Trailhead to the Robbins Branch Trailhead. Any road walking is less than ideal, but it’s much less pavement-pounding than before!

Other efforts are already well underway to protect a trail corridor all the way to the Birkhead Wilderness and close the final gap. If we’ve learned anything from the process of closing the other gaps in the trail, it’s that these things take lots of patience!

L-R: Phil Horne, Corey Queen, and Charles Lynn installing new trail sign with Billy and Andrew Hagee of 12 Stones Outdoor Adv3ntures, March 6, 2021. Photo by Billy Hagee.

L-R: Andrew Hagee and his father, Billy Hagee, with the new sign they helped install! Photo courtesy of Billy Hagee.

If you haven’t hiked the new Walkers Creek section of the Uwharrie Trail, make time this spring to go visit the new trailhead at 6871 High Pine Church Road, Asheboro, NC 27205 and take a hike!

Use this link to access a Google Map of trailhead location!

Details about the new section of trail are obviously not in the 2014 edition of the Uwharrie Lakes Region Trail Guide, but an update insert with the details is now included with copies purchased from my website - donchildrey.com. If you already have a copy of the guide, you can download the update here.

More Trail News!

Jim Plant, text and photos

Uwharrie Trailblazer Trail Adoption

The club has agreed to adopt all Forest Service hiking trails! These include the Uwharrie Trail, Dutchmans Creek Trail, Badin Lake Trail and all the Birkhead Wilderness trails. We’ve divided these into 19 sections and offer them to our members for adoption. The program has been in place for about a year. Adopters inspect their trail section, do light maintenance and fill out an online form to report their work and any issues. We use those reports to plan work details for our second Saturday Workdays. Currently, there are 3 sections available for adoption. We are accepting applications to fill these vacancies. If you have an interest in helping, please inquire. Jim Plant administers the program and can be contacted at uwharrietrailblazers@gmail.com

New Bridge on Thornburg Trail

Hey Uwharrie Hikers. Good news!

The Forest Service has contracted to have a new bridge built over Betty McGee Creek on the Thornburg Trail. The old bridge weathered for many years and survived many floods. It was tethered to a tree by a cable and still is. However, over the years, the railing got washed away. Then the bridge got tilted. The Trailblazers raised it back, only to have another high water event twist it. Now it resides near its original spot but slanted and tilted, missing a tread.

Over several weeks in late February, two friendly fellows working for a contractor out of China Grove, NC, worked through cold and rain building us a new bridge. And it is a beauty. Check it out!

Spotlight - Trail Adopter Bruce Kolkebeck

Bruce Kolkebeck

I was introduced to the Uwharrie's in the late 1970s while chasing whitetail deer as a first time hunter. The deer were left in the woods unmolested but I came home with an appreciation of the recreational opportunities of the Uwharrie National Forest. I hiked the UT in the early 80's and as soon as my kids were old enough we spent countless days jeeping, fishing for white bass, canoeing or just hiking along the Uwharrie River and Forest. As a scout leader I have probably hiked the UT as a thru hike 8 times and started hiking the new sections in 2015 to prepare for my Appalachian Trail thru hike in 2016.

L-R: Bruce and Scouts Jamir Tucker, Schroeder Walker, and Sam Wilson on a geocaching trip in the Uwharries. Photo by Mark Schiemann.

I was invited to work with the Uwharrie Trailblazers by Crystal Cockman of the Landtrust of Central NC (now Three Rivers Land Trust) in 2009 and have been working with them as a trail worker and eventually as a Trail Adopter in 2020. I have enjoyed meeting the fellow adopters and workers of the Trailblazers. All of us share a great love of this place. As regular visitors we are all very aware of the changes and development encroaching on this jewel surrounded by a growing metropolis. The Uwharrie Trail is the thread that joins it all together. I am proud to maintain my two mile of section over Dark Mountain on Flint Hill Road to Tower Road. If you see me on the trail, say hello!

NEWS from the Land Trust

Mikey Fulk and Crystal Cockman

Three Rivers Land Trust is excited to provide an update on TRLT programs and projects related to the Uwharrie Trail through this Uwharrie Trailblazer Newsletter in each issue.

Two Thru Hikes This Year!

Three Rivers Land Trust and other conservation partners have been working for the past 20 years to reconnect the historic Uwharrie Recreational Trail, and thanks to these efforts it can now be hiked in its 40-mile entirety. As a result, since 2013, Three Rivers Land Trust and partners and volunteers have led an annual Thru Hike of the full 40-mile trail. We are excited to announce that this year there will be two Uwharrie Trail Thru Hikes– April 29th-May 2nd, and October 14th-17th.

The thru hike will go from south to north, beginning at Wood Run Trailhead on Highway 24/27, and ending at Tot Hill /Talbott’s Branch trailhead on Tot Hill Farm Road. Each day will consist of approximately 10 miles of hiking. Due to the current health crisis, we will not be offering transportation at any point in this event. (We will however assist hikers who are not physically able to complete the hike in getting back to their cars).

This is a backpacking trip, so everyone will be responsible for bringing and carrying their own gear and food. We recommend a pack weight limit of 40 pounds. No dogs, and no alcohol other than what is provided by trail angels. Youth must be 16 or accompanied by an adult. You must also bring all your own food for every meal except we are providing a cookout dinner the last night. Water will be provided at camp each night in the form of individual gallon containers.

There is a required fee of $100 to join either of the Thru Hikes. This includes a cookout the last night, a commemorative t-shirt, and a one-year membership in the Land Trust. If you sign up for both the Fall and the Spring hikes, the registration is reduced to $180.

For more information, you can contact Mikey Fulk about the spring hike at michael@threeriverslandtrust.org, or Crystal Cockman about the fall hike at crystal@threeriverslandtrust.org. You can also register here.

Three Rivers Land Trust Hiking Interest Group

Three Rivers Land Trust has started several new interest groups to encourage people to get outdoors and to help support TRLT in our conservation mission. These include a 3D archery group, a paddle group, and a hiking group. We may also add a birding group at a later date.

TRLT’s new hiking interest group will go for hikes primarily on land trust owned properties that are not generally open to the public, on every first Saturday of the month. The first hike was on March 6th at TRLT’s Low Water Bridge Preserve and followed a woods path to a 1700s graveyard and then to a state champion shortleaf pine tree on the banks of the Uwharrie River. (Photos by Billy Hagee and Marcus West.)

Our next hike will be on April 3rd at a location to be determined. Anyone is welcome to attend their first hiking group outing, but after the first event you must be a land trust member to attend. Membership starts at $35, and you can join as a member online here. To be added to the hiking interest club email list, please email Tiffany at tiffany@threeriverslandtrust.org.

The paddling group will have outings on the second Saturday of every month, and the first outing is on March 13th at Falls Reservoir. For more information on the paddle group, please contact Nikki at nikki@threeriverslandtrust.org.

Land Protection Update

Three Rivers Land Trust is continuing to work with the US Forest Service to see the Dark Mountain property and the Dassow Property transferred to Uwharrie National Forest ownership. The Dark Mountain Property is slated to transfer to USFS later this year, and contains the actual peak of Dark Mountain, the highest mountain in Montgomery County. The Dassow Property, which is an inholding in the Birkhead Wilderness Area and contains a stretch of the existing Uwharrie Trail and the majority of the Old Forrester Road, will transfer at a later date.

Welcome New UNF District Ranger Susan Miller

Mary Joan Pugh

“I’m excited for the opportunity to be working on the Uwharrie National Forest where I can encourage the public to enjoy the outdoors and connect with nature.”

— Susan Miller, when asked to comment on her new job

Susan Miller recently became the District Ranger on the Uwharrie National Forest (UNF). Her primary responsibility includes the oversight and support of staff that manages over 51,000 acres. Activities on the UNF include timber management, prescribed fire, and many recreational activities such as hiking, mountain biking, camping, equestrian trail riding, and off-road vehicle trail use.

Susan graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in zoology. She and her husband have two grown daughters and live on a small farm in a 115+ year old farmhouse in southwest Moore County. She and her family are actively involved in habitat restoration on their farm where they have planted native warm-season grasses and longleaf pine to promote wildlife habitat. She also enjoys spending time training and competing with her dogs in variety of dog sports.

Susan is no stranger to the great outdoors having been a Fish and Wildlife Biologist with the US Fish & Wildlife Service in the Sandhills working on Red-cockaded Woodpecker Recovery before joining the UNF. She now represents the U.S. Forest Service at the North Carolina Sandhills Conservation Partnership and Eastern NC Sentinel Landscapes Partnership. She initiated and continues to coordinate the North Carolina Longleaf Coalition and actively participates in the NC Chapter of The Wildlife Society and North Carolina Prescribed Fire Council. The Uwharrie TrailBlazers met virtually with Susan in February and she readily agreed to join them for a field trip to the Birkhead Wilderness to see and discuss top UTB projects in late March.

Daniel Alexi

Kim Andersen

Karen Auman

Michael Baker

Jay Bolin

Trace Brookins

Nate Butler

Brian Clarke

David Craft **

Andrew Davis ***

Gifford Del Grande

Kelly Evans *

Chris Frandock

Brendan Gannon

Dave Gardener

Alan Geiger

Edward Guyer

Bobby Hancock

William Hobbs

Eric Kalin

Kevin Kotek

Kaitlyn Lamaster *

Merritt Maness

Tonya Manus

Hal McKenzie

William Oriet *

Jim Plant *

Mary Joan Pugh

Jim Rich

Dave Schall

Guy & Heather Sholar

Keith Short

Jared Slack

Tammy Slaughter

Michael Somero ***

Abi Winegarden

*** MOFFITT Level Supporter

** CHAMPION Level Supporter

* 40 Miler Level Supporter

Membership begins at just $25 per year. Dues are used exclusively to fund trail maintenance, trail building, and preservation initiatives in the Uwharries. If you would like to renew your membership or become a member of the Uwharrie Trailblazers, please see this link.

editorial policy

The contents of this newsletter are authored collaboratively by the Uwharrie Trailblazers steering committee unless otherwise attributed and are intended to illuminate, educate, and inspire all who enjoy the trails of the Uwharries. The newsletter is edited by Uwharrie Trailblazers club secretary Kim Andersen. We welcome suggestions and questions from all readers.

Please send feedback and questions via email to uwharrietrailblazers@gmail.com and visit us on Facebook!

Uwharrie Trailblazers Newsletter