“How are we doing?” the guy asked with a bemused look. I was momentarily distracted by the vintage WWII Jeep the guy and his girlfriend were in, and before I could answer, he added, “You weren’t hiking along the river, were you? Because there’s no trail along the river.”
Tag Archives: Haw River
A busy news day on the Haw
Plan A bombed out. So it was on to … to, well, there wasn’t really a backup plan. And that was fine, because don’t we do our best exploring when there is no backup plan?
Plan A had been to paddle the 5.5-mile stretch of the Haw River from Saxapahaw to the take-out at Greensboro/Chapel Hill Road. Trouble was, I discovered, there is no takeout at Greensboro/Chapel Hill Road (though I’m told there will be sometime this year.) Had I been 20 and naive, I might have tried to fashion a take-out from the cliff that dropped down river left and, for the final plunge, included a tattered belay rope. Being nearly three times 20 and keenly aware of my medical deductible, I opted to punt.
Do it all on New Year’s Day
When I first started writing about fitness and the outdoors back in the early 1990s, there were a handful of ways you could welcome the New Year in most communities. There was usually a 5K run, a bike shop sponsored a casual ride, canoe clubs held members-only paddles, there was a hike or two, and some oddball group was jumping into a local lake (and jumping right back out again). You had options for welcoming the new year, but not a lot.
90 Second Escape: Paddling the Haw River
Monday — never an easy time for the outdoors enthusiast. After a weekend of adventure, returning to the humdrum work-a-day world can make one melancholy. To help ease the transition, every Monday we feature a 90 Second Escape — essentially, a 90-second video of a place you’d probably rather be: a trail, a park, a greenway, a lake … anywhere as long as it’s not under a fluorescent bulb.
A cooler weekend, a hike along the Haw River
“You came all the way from Cary?” the woman exclaimed. “That’s, like, an hour away.”
She and a friend were asking directions from a guy who seemed to be something of an impromptu trail ambassador when I walked up. We were standing at about the midpoint of the 4.25-mile Glencoe section of the Haw River Trail, just downstream of the NC 62 bridge. Although an hour didn’t seem like that far to drive for a hike, it did occur to me that it might seem far on a day when the temperature and the humidity were both in the low 90s.
“Have you been here before?” the trail ambassador asked?
“Oh, yes,” I said. “In more hospitable weather.”
The Haw River Trail is a 70-mile work-in-progress that will eventually link two state parks: Haw River State Park to the north with Jordan Lake State Recreation Area to the south. About half of the trail will be part of the statewide Mountains-to-Sea Trail.
At present, less than 20 miles of the Haw River Trail exists. One of the longest stretches is the Glencoe section, which runs from (and along) the Indian Valley Golf Course downstream to the Stoney Creek Marina. It’s an entertaining stretch, for several reasons:
Part of it is on a golf course. On the north end, the trail traces at least three fairways of the Indian Valley Golf Course. (Please observe golf course hiking etiquette, including: speaking in hushed tones when play is in progress and standing still when a player is putting. Also: There is icy cold water at the No. 5 tee box.)
In the gentrifying mill town of Glencoe, the trail does a horseshoe up Hodges Road and back down Glencoe Street, giving you the opportunity to check out the revived mill homes.
Also in Glencoe, the trail passes the Textile Heritage Museum, fascinating look at the local and statewide textile industry. A great diversion that’s free. Hours are limited, though: 1-4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
Just over a mile downstream from Glencoe is the old and abandoned Carolina Mill.
Just beyond that, the trail departs from the dense jungle along the Haw and quickly climbs into a drier oak/hickory forest typical of the Piedmont.
Stoney Creek Marina.
I would not recommend this stretch of trail in 90/90 weather. Even a stout breeze has trouble penetrating the dense foliage along the trail and the occasional stretches of open trail can be broiling.
I would, however, recommend it for more civil weather, such as the weekend ahead, when temperatures are expected to cool into the 80s. I recommend starting mid-trail in Glencoe (you can pick up a trail map at the paddle access at River Road and NC 62), doing an out-and-back (upstream to the golf course, downstream to the marina), then checking out the museum.
A good outing for kids, btw: The trail offers a jungle escape, the textile museum has toys circa grandma & grandpa.