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Thanksgiving explorations

2010 November 24
by Robert

PHOTO BY DAVE OTTO. Lingering leaf gives way to the beauty of bare twig.

By Ken Moore
Flora Columnist

Here we are observing another Thanksgiving. Folks remaining here at home most likely have family and friends joining them for the seasonal tradition.

This observance is usually accompanied by a food feast beyond reason. Many hosts plan for “walks around the block” as a healthy endeavor or as a ploy to get folks out of the kitchen so the cooks have some room and quiet while they create or simply recover.

We are truly blessed to have many alternatives to “walks around the block.” Numerous trails for exploration of fields, forests and creek and river bottoms are close by. There are no excuses for failing to get out and explore the natural beauty surrounding us.

The brilliance of the last several weeks is subsiding, but foliage colors can still be found all around.

Though fall is my favorite season, I appreciate its progression to my other favorite season, winter, when, without all those leaves, we can absorb the beauty of individual trees and the dramatic contours of forest and field landscapes.

Several nature trail and greenway opportunities are convenient to neighborhoods, such as the trails of Cedar Falls Park in east Chapel Hill and Southern Community Park, south of us.

Carrboro’s Wilson Park provides access to the quiet warmth of pine needle-floored trails of the Adams Tract that lead down through an oak-hickory forest to Bolin Creek.

Neighborhoods near the UNC campus are close to the 93-acre Battle Park forest, stretching from Forest Theatre to the Chapel Hill Community Center. This historic forest is managed by the N.C. Botanical Garden (ncbg.unc.edu) and maps are available at several trailheads.

Northern Chapel Hill and Carrboro neighborhoods are fortunate to be close to Carolina North, some 750 acres of diverse woodlands bordering the Bolin Creek corridor with miles of trails maintained by UNC (fac.unc.edu/CarolinaNorth). In addition, the greenway and nature trail of the Winmore community are also close by.

If you wish to go farther out, there are natural areas with trails worthy of your Thanksgiving outing.

One of my favorite local adventures is walking up through the twisty old chestnut oaks and mountain laurels of Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area (enoriver.org) overlooking Hillsborough.

Another is the gentle level walk around the giant oaks of Big Oak Woods of Mason Farm Biological Reserve, beyond Finley Golf Course. Peering into that island forest makes one pause and reverently reflect.

Triangle Land Conservancy’s Johnston Mill Nature Preserve (triangleland.org), between Chapel Hill and Hillsborough, offers trails through mature pine and deciduous forests along New Hope Creek and over higher ground, featuring an unusual elfin forest of American beech.

And last but not least, Duke Forest (dukeforest.duke.edu), 7,000-plus acres of fields and forests between Durham, Chapel Hill-Carrboro and Hillsborough, provides the opportunity to walk a different trail every week for three months. Duke’s forests include natural features like rhododendron bluffs along New Hope Creek and demonstration areas of forest-management practices.

During this special time of thanksgiving, get out and enjoy and be appreciative of our local natural treasures.

Email Ken Moore at flora@carrborocitizen.com.

PHOTO BY DAVE OTTO. The color and texture of ironwood are part of the beauty of approaching winter.

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