WNCOutdoors.info Blog

Although we don’t yet have adequate coverage of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to add it to the sites, it remains one of the most popular spots for hiking in Western NC so we thought this would be worth mentioning. An EF4 tornado touched down on the Tennessee side of the park during the huge tornado outbreak on April 27, ripping down thousands of trees. The park service has closed 7 trails, and more may be closed as cleanup efforts continue. More information, including a list of affected trails, can be found on the National Park Service’s web site (and there’s also a a stunning picture of a mountainside stripped bare of trees):
http://www.nps.gov/grsm/parknews/tornado-closure.htm

Beech Mountain officially opened its Emerald Outback Trail Park, adding 8 miles of hiking and mountain biking trails to the inventory in WNC!  This is Phase 1 of what will be the larger Beech Mountain Trail Park. The trails are open to the public 7 days a week and parking is available at the trailhead. We hope to have more detailed information about the trails posted on the web sites soon; for now, here’s a story about the opening from The Mountain Times:
http://www2.mountaintimes.com/watauga_weekly/Adventure_Park_opens_Emerald_Outback_Trails_id_003449

And here’s a link to the official web site for Beech Recreation, which includes more information about the trails including a map and video:
http://www.beechrecreation.org/

The N.C. Division of Forest Resources lists the following trails as temporarily closed in Dupont State Forest:

• Bridal Overlook Trail
• Hill Top Loop
• Cascade Trial
• Galax Trail

And these appear to be permanently closed:

• Grassy Dam Trail
• Laurel Trail
• Little Briery Trail
• URC Trail
• Vista Trail

The Galax trail closure is a bit concerning, since it’s the only direct way to get from the Hooker Falls area up to Triple & High Falls on a bike. There are some longer, roundabout ways, one of which involves a busy highway. And it’s also sad, since it was closed due to massive erosion taking place along the path. This trail was touted as one of Dupont’s first “sustainable” trail projects back when the waterfalls area was acquired, but it didn’t wear well – horse hooves just tore it to pieces. Hopefully, it can be either re-routed or armored to stand up to the traffic that it gets when open.

The others are mostly short, boring, overgrown, and/or dead-end trails that will have no impact to recreation. In fact, the one time I tried to hike the Grassy Dam trial, I lost it after about 100 yards and struck out through the woods instead.

We just released a big software update to HikeWNC.info and MTBikeWNC.com. Although you won’t notice much difference at first (aside from a few new bugs we’ve inevitably created), lots of things have changed in the background, especially with the way we create the Google maps. This should allow us to put more stuff on the maps and display maps in more places, as well as geotagging just about everything on the site.

And this also means that with the maps project winding down, we’ll have more time to fix odd little bugs here and there and add some features and new information that people have been asking for. I’ve been several new places that I haven’t had time to even put on the site yet – those should start appearing soon. And hopefully we can work in some visual and navigation updates to make finding the information easier than ever!

The Jackrabbit Mountain trail system, located just outside of Hayesville in Clay County on the shores of Chatuge Lake, officially opens on Saturday, April 30th. The trail system offers 14.5 miles of hiking and mountain biking trails, and trailhead facilities were recently finished to complete the visitor experience. It’s been under construction for over 5 years now. Festivities begin at 10:00 AM and include speeches, a ribbon cutting ceremony, music, food, group rides, hikes, and trail running. The weather is forecast to be beautiful, lower 80′s and sunny, and it sounds like a great time to celebrate some new trails, so come on out and enjoy the weekend!

Get more information on this Forest Service news & events page.

Join the Southern Appalachian Forest Coalition’s Hemlock survey team for a field trip to Curtis Creek, where we will have the opportunity to learn a simple technique for assessing the condition of hemlock trees.  Although many hemlocks in our National Forests have already died from the invasive Hemlock Wooly Adelgid, surveys are being done in hemlock stands in order to find remaining healthy trees and determine which areas would still benefit from treatment.  This field trip will provide participants an opportunity to compare Hemlock stands that have been chemically treated to other stands that are in various stages of  die back due to the Adelgid infestation. Other topics of discussion will include methods the Forest Service is using to save the hemlocks. The field trip includes a 2-mile roundtrip hike to a scenic waterfall. Bring a bag lunch.

Date: Sat. April 2, 2011
Meeting Time:  9:30AM
Meeting Place:  Ingles Market, Swannanoa.  Located off I-40 at exit 59 on Rt 70.  Meet by the gas station in the Ingles parking lot to carpool or meet at 10:30AM at the Curtis Creek campground outside of Old Fort.
Contact: Ed Mayer  e-mail:  ednsue74@earthlink.net, phone: 828-505-1080

Please  call  by Thursday, March 31  to let us know if you plan to attend

Directions to Curtis Creek: From Old Fort, NC, take Hwy 70 East 2 miles to campground sign (Curtis Creek Rd./SR 1227) Turn left onto Curtis Creek Rd. and go 4.7 miles to the campground.

Edit: here is a link to the event on SAFC’s web site!

You don’t have to be a great appreciator of the arts, poetry, or even Carl Sandburg to enjoy a visit to Connemara – the poet’s historic homestead at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site. From the moment you start down the path to Front Lake, it’s hard not to feel the peacefulness that pervades the land that the Sandburg’s called home.

A View of the Home from Front Lake

To the right of Front Lake, there’s a wonderful picnic area where you can enjoy a meal with family or friends before beginning a tour of the vast grounds. Kids are welcome to feed the fish in the lake, as they travel over an idyllic white bridge and up an easy trail to the main house. In early spring, there’s bold yellow forsythia to stroke along the way, and lusty pink and white magnolia blossoms beckon you close to the house like a spell.

The bridge over the dam at Front Lake

It’s likely that young children won’t yet have much interest in taking a tour of the home itself. That’s okay, because there is a simple, circular pond directly out front that is full of music making toads. You can also take the kids down to Lilian Sandburg’s famous goat dairy (they breed the same varieties that she once did).

One of the biggest surprises at Connemara is the intricate network of trails that start at the main entrance and end at the top of Glassy Mountain. Both the Memminger (named after the 1st Confederate States Secretary of the Treasury, Charles Memminger) and the Glassy Trail climb gently and smoothly and are in good condition. There are several signed detours along the Glassy Trail that lead back to the main house if you don’t want to climb to the top of the mountain. There’s even one sign that simply reads, “home”.

The Trail Home

It’s easy to spend the entire day at Connemara. I recommend reading some of Sandburg’s poems to your kids in the car, so that they arrive with their imaginations full. It really is a magical place that you’ll want to visit over and over again.

We’ll be adding the trails at Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site as a new Trailhead to hikewnc.info, so look for more details there before you plan your very own trip to the Carl Sandburg Home! Here are a few more pictures from around the area to get you started.

Article by guest blogger Tasha Mitchell

Trails at Carl Sandburg Home are great for kids!

The View from Glassy Mountain

The Memminger Trailhead

S. Trailhead for Little Glassy Mountain

Pisgah SORBA, Trips for Kids WNC, and IMBA present  Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day on Sunday, April 3. Bring the little ones out for guided rides, a Pump Track clinic, Time Trials, Skills clinics, and more! Please RSVP! For more information, see Pisgah Area SORBA’s information page.

Pisgah Area SORBA will be hosting a trail workday at Dupont State Forest tomorrow, Sunday, March 6. Meeting place is at the old Buck Forest parking area (now called High/Triple Falls parking area) at 9am. Work will be clearing for a new trail corridor, which will result in about 1 mile of new trail when completed! You can get more information on Pisgah Area SORBA’s website.

Motion Makers Bicycle Shop of Sylva, NC, has opened a new location in the Asheville area, at 878 Brevard Road. While many area businesses are struggling to say the least, it’s nice to see new activity in town, especially when it comes in the Outdoor industry.

Read the full press release below.

DESPITE THE ECONOMIC CLIMATE NEW ASHEVILLE BICYCLE SHOP THRIVES

ASHEVILLE – Amid dire apocalyptic predictions, rather than hunkering down and waiting for the economy to improve, Kent Cranford, owner of Motion Makers Bicycle Shop in Sylva, opened a new location on Brevard Road in Asheville.

One might think it was a bad idea.  To the contrary, Cranford has found that in a down economy with high gas prices, people are rediscovering the joy of a two-wheeled life.

“The shop in Sylva has been open for 24 years.  Asheville is a cycling destination to the world.  We had seen double-digit growth and were looking to expand. Asheville had a lot of great neighborhood shops but only one large retailer.  With more people excited about cycling, the area needed another store that could offer a large inventory and selection”, says Cranford from his 5,000 square foot stand-alone store with over 200 bikes on display and double that number in stock.

The double-digit growth is due in part to Cranford’s 30 years of experience in the cycling industry, which has helped him develop a simple yet profitable approach.  Typically, a trip to the local bike shop, with its pricey rides and canopy of the hottest cycling gear, can be an intimidating place.  While the apron-wearing, muscular-calved staff are knowledgeable, it’s hard to shake the feeling that one has stepped into an urban subculture rather than a store.

Which is why Motion Makers’ arrival was a welcome addition.  When you walk in, you will be greeted by several people both male and female that may or may not work there and even by Kent Cranford himself.

“We are really focused on the customer”, says Cranford.  “It’s the old cliché, take care of the customer and they will take care of you. Our staff are committed to spending the time that today’s cost-conscious consumer needs”.

A host of former and aspiring racers, tri-athletes, parents, and casual cyclists, the staff at Motion Makers are dedicated to providing a relaxed and friendly atmosphere –which happens to come to them naturally.

Motion Makers boasts the only bicycle service department in Asheville that is run by women.  Advocates and racers, Sarah Jarrell and Jenny Kallista are both certified by the Barnette Bicycle Institute in Colorado and offer over 20 years of mechanic expertise between them.  Father of two, General Manager Ben Hinker, was a bicycle sales representative for 13 years before Cranford pulled him off the road to lend his knowledge of successful customer service.

“It all comes down to being flexible. Today’s consumer is frugal and they need trust that you have their best interests in mind”, says Hinker.  “We want people to be happy and keep coming back.  They can take a test ride around Biltmore Square Mall for over a mile or even head to the nearby Blue Ridge Parkway or Bent Creek for a more extended trial before they make their decision.”

Cranford also extended the store’s hours to meet the needs of today’s work schedule and maintains high inventory levels so that purchasers can walk out the door with the bike of their choice.  Striving to serve every bike buyer, they carry all styles of bicycles including road, mountain, hybrid, sport comfort, commuter and BMX bicycles from: Specialized, Cervelo, Pivot Mountain Bikes, Raleigh and others. Motion Makers even has the largest selection of children’s bikes in WNC and a kid’s bike trade-up program to keep kids on the right-sized bike without breaking their parent’s wallet.

“We want to serve everyone, and serve them well, from a family with kids to a racer’s custom build”, says Kent Cranford.

The last key element to Cranford’s success is his creative approach to consumer buying practices.  For example, Motion Makers is the only bike shop offering the cool new GoPro Helmet Cameras and will let customers rent a helmet and film their ventures before making a purchase.

“It’s been an amazing venture”, says Cranford. “I guess the worst thing that has happened is that we’ve lost some of our Sylva customers to our Asheville store.”

For more information, visit the new Asheville store at 878 Brevard Road, go to:  www.motionmakersbikes.com or see them on Facebook to learn about Tuesday night mountain bike rides at Bent Creek or Friday morning Indoor Training Sessions.