Try these 8 less-traveled trails
Plus: The top news of the week: CMS to consider ramping up in-school plan — former judge expected to enter U.S. Senate race — electric vehicle factory headed to the west side
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Tired of the usual crowded walks? As spring arrives, discover these peaceful local trails filled with natural beauty
Even on a popular walking path like the McAlpine Creek Greenway, you can find solitude in nature if you pick the time of day carefully.
Editor’s note: Today is the first day of spring, so in celebration of warmer temperatures and fresh blooms, we invite you to put on your walking shoes, take your allergy medicine (if needed), and enjoy the sights and sounds of one of these trails.
by Amber Veverka
Mecklenburg County greenways, parks and nature preserves have never seen so many of us. Record numbers have turned to the solace of the natural world to relieve stress and stretch horizons in a virus-cramped existence. In just the county’s nature preserves alone, some monthly visitation jumped almost 30% since the pandemic.
But it’s not easy to cultivate calm when you’re dodging so many other peace-seekers — and their bikes and Goldendoodles — on a crowded path. (Yep, we’re talking about you, Four Mile Creek Greenway at Rea Road.)
Instead, try these eight trails. They’re quiet enough that you can hear the trill of chorus frogs, the “keer keer” cries of red-shouldered hawks and yes, even the thoughts in your own head.
Stevens Creek Nature Preserve. This is the area’s newest nature preserve — so new that on a recent weekend, the property had few other visitors. Expect to get your feet wet as some parts of trails are still under construction. You can combine several trails to make a nearly 3-mile loop. Along the way, admire the stands of stately silvery beech, which keep last season’s copper leaves all winter long. We can all be grateful this nature oasis was preserved. Located at 15700 Thompson Road, Mint Hill.
West Branch Nature Preserve. Davidson residents know this spot, but not many others venture here. Park at 18150 Shearer Road and walk a short section of the West Branch Rocky River Greenway — see if you can spot the stands of pawpaw trees — until you get to the preserve’s edge. The forest trail takes you to an overlook above what Mecklenburg County says may be its most ecologically important wetland. On a warming day, the frogs will be loud enough to drown out conversation. A good spot to spend your next workplace Zoom call?
Irwin Creek and Stewart Creek Greenways. Winding through Wesley Heights and other neighborhoods near uptown Charlotte, these urban walkways are lightly used. Irwin Creek, like the other creeks of our heavily urbanized landscape, has a complicated history. Today it provides a welcoming corridor for green ash, tulip poplar and nesting birds. The greenway paths are well-maintained and peaceful.
Evergreen Nature Preserve. Flanked by Winterfield Elementary, Eastway Middle School and Evergreen Cemetery, this 77-acre woods is an island of peace on Charlotte’s east side. While the woods itself is a little scruffy with invasive English ivy, the trails are lovely, with one paved loop section that’s accessible for wheelchairs and strollers. Did anyone at your house pick up birding as a pandemic hobby? Evergreen is known as a birding hotspot in the spring. There’s a very clean restroom at the preserve entrance, across from Eastway Middle School, 1336 Norland Road.
RibbonWalk Nature Preserve. Located at 4601 Nevin Road in Charlotte, this walk takes you past active beaver ponds and designated “treasure trees” — some of the county’s largest American beeches. On a budget that has fallen well behind demand, Mecklenburg Park & Recreation has still managed to upgrade the trails and install helpful signs. You’ll park near the road and walk a graveled path to the trailhead — the county moved the parking lot closer to the street a few years ago for greater visibility. RibbonWalk was underused for many years, to the point that it sometimes felt unsafe to be there. That’s changed. On a recent Saturday, the lot was full, and families and their leashed dogs were out in good numbers. But don’t worry — there are enough trails in this 187-acre preserve that you can walk even on a Saturday and feel you have the place to yourself.
Twelve Mile Creek Greenway, Waxhaw segment. Want your early-morning stroll to touch two states? You’ve got it at this little-known gem if you’re willing to drive a bit out of Charlotte. Park at 1304 H.C. Nesbit Park Road, Waxhaw. Near the trail’s start, it splits into a Y. The left path is a paved section that skirts the Millbridge neighborhood and is nice for a short stroll. The right trail takes you onto the greenway, which winds 7.4 miles through forest, sometimes perched above a ravine of mature tulip poplar, red oak and beech. At the North Carolina-South Carolina state line, the trail crosses a graceful suspension bridge. Bikers are able to use this trail. The trail is very narrow in places overlooking a steep ravine drop-off, so meeting others could be a squeeze. Your dog, like our collies, might be a bit nervous about the swaying bridge, but it’s undeniably cool.
Campbell Creek Greenway. Many people walk the trails in southeast Charlotte’s McAlpine Park, but not nearly as many continue along the Upper McAlpine Creek Greenway to where it hits Campbell Creek Greenway. Park at 2116 Margaret Wallace Road and be sure to check out the ruins of the Lucas family grist mill, built in the early 20th century to harness the creek’s power. In the spring, wildflowers abound alongside this trail, which takes you under Independence Boulevard. Learn about the mill’s history and the ecological importance of this area.
Southwest District Park. Not far from Charlotte Douglas Airport at 1720 Vilma St., this park is situated next to the Southview Recreation Center and features short loop trails that bracelet a woodland. Warning: You may be dodging mountain bikers here. However, bikers are told not to ride the trails when they’re wet as it can cause erosion, so consider this as a drizzly-day walking escape. This brings up a key tip for achieving alone time during the pandemic: Weather equals space. Over the last year, premier hikes throughout the Carolinas have been so overused that trash, crowds and yes, even human waste on the ground have hurt the experience — and the landscape. If you’re willing to win your solitude at the price of short-term discomfort, your rainy or cold-weather walk will be rewarded. Leave a thermos of something hot in the car for afterward, throw on your rain gear and pretend you’re British.
A few final tips:
Mecklenburg County has created a mobile-friendly mapping app that shows you most area parks and nature trails (some in the southwest part of the county still to be added).
As a reminder, the county advises people to walk with a friend for safety and to socially distance even outdoors.
Dogs must be leashed and please, for everyone’s sake, pick up your dog’s waste and throw it in a trash can. Biodegradable dog-waste bags sitting alongside the trail do not help the environment. Pet waste is a known major source of E. coli in nearly all Mecklenburg creeks.
Last, if you love your nature preserves, greenways and parks, please tell your county commissioner. It can make a real difference come budget time.
Amber Veverka is a freelance writer and editor. She can be reached through her website, amberveverka.com.
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This week in Charlotte: Are tunnels what Charlotte traffic needs?; Will CMS add more in-school days? DaBaby snubbed at Grammys again
On Saturdays, The Ledger sifts through the local news of the week and links to the top articles — even if they appeared somewhere else. We’ll help you get caught up. That’s what Saturdays are for.
Politics
Senate race: (WFAE) Former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley is expected to announce her candidacy for the open 2022 U.S. Senate seat in the coming weeks. Three Democrats have already announced their candidacies for the seat being vacated by Republican Sen. Richard Burr. They include former state Sen. Erica Smith, state Sen. Jeff Jackson and virologist Richard Watkins.
Governor’s powers: (Observer) Two Republican-backed bills working their way through the N.C. General Assembly would require the governor to get agreement from the Council of State for any statewide emergency declaration that lasts more than 30 days. The N.C. Council of State is made up of 10 elected officers including the lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer and superintendent of public instruction.
Education
More in-person days ahead for CMS?: (WFAE) The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board of Education will vote Tuesday on whether to bring middle and high-school students back into the classroom four days a week, a jump from their current two-day-a-week plan. With the state relaxing its 6-foot distancing requirement for grades 6-12, several school districts outside of Charlotte have already voted to send students back into classrooms with increasing frequency. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday said only 3 feet of social distancing in schools is needed if students are wearing masks.
Full-on come fall: (Observer) UNC Charlotte will return to in-person classes and “full operations” for the 2021 fall semester, including full occupancy in residence halls and in-person campus services.
Local news
Sonic CEO charges dropped: (Ledger 🔒) The Mecklenburg County district attorney’s office dropped domestic violence charges against Sonic Automotive CEO David Smith, after concluding it would have a tough time proving its case in court.
Local man performs at Grammys: Troutman resident and international rap star DaBaby performed his hit “Rockstar” at Sunday night’s Grammy Awards. “DaBaby, decked out in an all-white suit with Chanel pins and diamond gloves, simultaneously performed the track while conducting singers dressed like Supreme Court justices,” Rolling Stone reported. BuzzFeed rounded up social media reaction under the headline “OMG, I Cannot Stop Laughing At These Tweets Roasting DaBaby’s Dancers At The Grammys.” DaBaby was nominated in 4 categories, including Record of the Year, but did not win.
Business
Electric vehicle factory coming: London-based electric car manufacturer Arrival plans to build a microfactory in west Charlotte, creating 250 jobs and receiving $1.5M in local government incentives. Arrival says it will create up to 10,000 electric delivery, zero-emission vans each year, many of which will be used by UPS. Last year, the company announced plans to open its first U.S. microfactory in Rock Hill, where it will manufacture electric buses. Microfactories are high-tech factories that have smaller footprints than typical factories, and they require less energy, less material and a smaller labor force. (Axios Charlotte)
Housing market is nuts: Housing inventory in Charlotte has shrunk to new lows, according to data released Wednesday by the Canopy Realtor Association. There are currently fewer than 3,000 homes for sale across the entire Charlotte region, leaving it with just a 0.6-month supply of inventory. During the same time a year ago, there were nearly 8,300 homes on the market. (Biz Journal)
N.C. unemployment rate falls: North Carolina’s unemployment rate fell to 5.9% in January, down from 6.1% in December — but still higher than the 3.5% a year earlier. Employment fell slightly, “marking the first monthly drop since last year's lockdown,” Wells Fargo economists wrote. The state has recovered about 2/3 of the jobs it lost last spring.
Sports
Early exits from NCAA Tournament: The NCAA Tournament kicked off this week for the first time in 2 years, but teams from the Carolinas went out early. Appalachian State lost on Thursday, and UNC Chapel Hill, Winthrop and Clemson lost on Friday. UNC Greensboro plays today. Duke failed to make the tournament for the first time since 1995, and Duke-haters will like to know that coach Mike Krzyzewski said he feels “a little bit empty” about that.
Good read, good pod
Final moments: (Observer) Théoden Janes shares the story of a couple married 61 years — and of the final photo ever taken of them together about a month ago. “I just started snapping,” the couple’s daughter said. “I wasn’t sure if it was appropriate. … But the moments they were having together were so poignant to me that I wanted to capture them.”
South End’s evolution: (Retail Redeveloped podcast 🎧) Retail broker Adam Williams and Charlotte Center City Partners’ Megan Gude discuss the development of South End, from its industrial roots to its apartment- and retail-filled center — and where it’s headed next.
Ledger originals
Dawn of legal sports gambling: (Friday 🔒) North Carolina’s first legal sports gambling operations opened on Thursday on tribal lands in the mountains — and The Ledger was there for the first day at the sports book at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, 3 hours west of Charlotte. We reviewed the set-up, available bets, food, drinks, TVs and more — with all the details potential visitors would want to know — and described the scene on the first night of the NCAA Tournament. Also this week, Axios Charlotte looked at the future of gambling in N.C.
A latte more coffee meetings: (Friday 🔒) Owners of Charlotte coffee shops say more customers have chosen to hold in-person meetings in the last few weeks, as Covid numbers decline, vaccinations roll out and the urge to get out of the house takes off.
40 Over 40 nominees: (Friday) We released the names of the 122 people who were nominated for our 40 Over 40 Awards. Judges are in the process of selecting 40 of the group as this year’s winners, to be announced in about a month.
Central Avenue development: (Friday 🔒) In our weekly segment answering reader development questions, we looked into what’s up with dirt moving on Central Avenue in Plaza-Midwood.
Looking for golf volunteers: (Wednesday 🔒) Usually flush with volunteers, the Wells Fargo Championship said this week that it’s about 100 volunteers short. It likely stems from a few different causes.
Charlotte media study: (Wednesday 🔒) A new in-depth report on the media in Charlotte found that the city has fewer media outlets than other cities our size and that residents here tend to have more negative perceptions of the media than people elsewhere.
Arts Q&A: (Monday) In an extended interview, Tom Gabbard, CEO of Blumenthal Performing Arts, says the nonprofit’s revenue fell by about 90% during the pandemic, and he shed light on issues such as arts funding, venue reconfigurations and just how Charlotte landed a popular Van Gogh exhibit.
Traffic back to normal: (Monday) Location data from mobile phones shows that Charlotte traffic has returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Close to running out of hospital beds? (Monday) New data reported to the federal government shows that Mecklenburg hospitals had about 30 unused ICU beds at the peak of Covid cases in January. Since the summer, hospitals typically had about 30 to 60 available ICU beds.
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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire, CXN Advisory; Reporting intern: David Griffith