By Valarie Schwartz
Progress doesn’t always feel so good.
A few Saturdays ago, as Greg Kopsch, the forest manager of Carolina North, led a group hosted by Friends of Bolin Creek on a tour, it became apparent that progress means adapting to new ways of doing things, which requires about as many arms twisted as there are trails in the 750-acre woodlands.
From the Seawell Elementary School parking lot, we walked a short distance to Seawell School Road Entrance #3, where Kopsch introduced us to the kiosk that was erected there 18 months ago (made mostly from dead trees harvested from the property) and the notices inside. In order to keep signage down in the trail areas, the intent of the kiosks is to provide information to visitors — hopefully, before they enter — so that the least possible impact will be made upon the land.
That particular day, one of the most important signs was: “Please Avoid Wet Trails.†The forest managers inherited a “natural†area that has endured decades of casual human use that, along with the wiles of nature, has created troublesome erosion, exacerbated by frequent users every time there are significant rains.
“We can’t close the trails,†Kopsch said. But they would really appreciate people avoiding the muddy areas “until we have time to work on the problem trails to make them more sustainable.â€
Gravel has been placed heavily in some spots.
“We’re not out here to pave these roads, but we’re out here to keep them usable, passable,†Kopsch said as we walked along the Duke Power easement used for years by some Chapel Hill Highs School students (and those of Seawell Elementary and Smith Middle School, constructed subsequently).
The entire easement area, which has steep inclines, was seeded with rye grass to help control soil erosion, followed by a mixture of native wildflower seeds in 40 different varieties made in Pittsboro, hand-strewn along the road edges. When the flowers bloom, areas will be augmented with more of the specific seeds doing well there.
A lot of work goes on down in the former Horace Williams Tract (now Carolina North), including bridges being placed across the creek. Kopsch showed the group of over a dozen where a bridge will be constructed over a portion of the creek near the easement — not where people have been crossing (and eroding the creek bank), but where a new gravel pathway can be seen across the creek. A process that will provide the lowest possible impact is still being explored while moving through the permit process. On the second day of spring, the closest Kopsch would come to saying when it would be completed was, “Boy, I hope so,†when someone suggested before the first day of summer.
Since that Saturday, a new sign announcing a new policy has been placed in the Carolina North kiosks. “Pets MUST be leashed. It’s the law!†signs will now have back-up starting April 1. UNC police will begin addressing the issue of dogs off leash. Anyone with an unleashed dog who has a leash with them will be directed to leash the dog for the rest of their visit.
Anyone without a leash will be told that they are expected to have their dog leashed during their next visit. If someone leashes their dog in the presence of forest management staff or UNC police and then removes the leash, the action will be considered “non-compliance and contempt.â€
Continued action in this vein will lead to a trespass order, and belligerence can lead to an escort off the property in addition to the trespass warning or order.
Then there’s the “pet waste station,†where little plastic bags for collections and a closed can, for deposits thereof, can be found. No wilderness remains in Chapel Hill or Carrboro, folks; therefore, we must change our ways.
Loose dogs sometimes chase people or the already-encroached upon deer or nose up to a rabies-infected animal (dead or alive). Additionally, letting a dog do what a bear (if any were left around here) would do in the woods is not the same: What dogs leave behind contains a high degree of E. coli cells (because of the high-protein food we give them), which, that close to a creek running through town and eventually into drinking water sources, could potentially create serious health problems.
The university has taken the path of greatest persistence, but one that will ultimately benefit us all. If you use the trails at Carolina North, check out the website (fac.unc.edu/Campus/CarolinaNorth/CarolinaNorthNews) before heading out and try to help them keep human use and nature in fair balance. No matter how hard it is to comply.
It’s so sad that they no longer allow dogs to be off-leash in the woods of CN. It was one of the last places one could go with their pets to give them some freedom. Is there any possible way this restrictive edict could be reversed?
I walk there daily with two dogs and never saw any problem with pet or people.