Polk Trails Newsletter

July 2023

2023 is the North Carolina year of the trail and we want you to get outdoors this year! Check out all the wonderful trails Polk County has to offer & go for a hike. This is a wonderful opportunity to check out improvements that trails in the area have undergone. Make 2023 your Year of Adventure.

While hiking tag us on Instagram or Facebook using the #pocoyearofthetrail

We are interested in your input regarding Guided Hikes. Click here to answer a short survey so we can tailor hikes to the Community needs.

Make sure you check out the events calendar for hikes on Polk Trails with some of our Community Partners.

This month we are visiting the Palmetto Passage - Blue Wall Preserve.

This 575-acre preserve, named for this view, is part of a larger collection of 22,000 acres of conserved land that provide clean drinking water, quiet recreation and protection of ecological diversity in the Southern Blue Ridge Mountains.

The preserve was designated as an Important Bird Area by the Audubon Society; 114 different bird species have been observed on the preserve. There is a variety of natural plant communities, including hardwood uplands, Virginia pine succession forest stands, saturated southern shrublands and open-water lakes. There is also a majestic waterfall along the trails.

Information obtained from nature.org

Photo: Christine Massey Skelton

Additional maps & information for the Blue Wall Preserve can be found on our website!

Photo: Christine Massey Skelton

TRAILS COMMITTEE MEETING

Monday, July 24th at 6:00pm

We will meet at the covered pavilion across the street from

Stearns Gym.



We are always looking for new ideas to make our trails better than they already are. Send us your questions and updates via email!

OTHER NEWS

If you are making plans for gatherings this Summer remember that the large picnic shelter at the Recreation Complex can be reserved for private events....birthday parties, showers, family reunions.

In an effort to streamline the process for residents we have created an online form for reservation requests. We will respond to your request with an email confirmation.

MIND YOUR MANNERS

Most trails, if they are open, may not have public facilities that are open, so check ahead of time. Please keep dogs on-leash on any hiking trail, take your trash with you, etc. Thanks for doing your part!

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

In July trail work days will be from 9-11am.

Tuesday, July 11th @ Alexander's Ford

Thursday, July 13th @ Alexander's Ford

Tuesday, July 18th @ Tom Raymond Fitness Trail

Thursday, July 20th @ Tom Raymond Fitness Trail

Tuesday, July 25th @ Recreation Complex

Thursday, June 27th @ Recreation Complex

Tuesday, August 1st @ ICC/Library Loop

If you would like to help us with trail work, please contact trails@polknc.org and we will let you know when additional workdays are scheduled.

If you'd rather work on your own, feel free to walk a trail, picking up trash and moving small branches from the trails. Please don't cut any branches; if a trail needs more attention, email trails@polknc.org and we will take care of it or bring it to that trail manager's attention.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

We manage trail work days, various partnerships and other trail-related initiatives in the county.

The online calendar has been updated for July

check it out!



E-Mail contact information for us: trails@polknc.org