
	Triangle Land Conservancy 1101 Haynes Street Suite 205 Raleigh, NC 27604 919.833.3662

Improving White Pines Trails is Heavy Work

Published November 2005

Map showing the trail improvement area at White Pines

Since TLC began buying land for White Pines Nature Preserve in the mid-1980s, the old logging roads that make up two of the preserve’s main trails had never been maintained. Ruts grew to chasms. Heavy storms washed sediment down the steep trails to the Rocky River.

In the summer of 2005, TLC began a 6-month, $10,000 trail improvement project to address this long-time problem (trail improvement area map at right). The cost could have been higher, but The John R. McAdams Co. provided the stormwater management plan pro bono. The first few weeks of work involved heavy equipment like backhoes, bulldozers and dump trucks.

The first few weeks of work involved heavy equipment like backhoes, bulldozers and dump trucks (photo at right). The main stem of the White Pines Trail from the parking lot to the River Trail was regraded and many loads of gravel and rock were trucked in to stabilize the path.

The River Trail heading down to the Rocky River presented a unique challenge. Several small pools had become established over the years in ruts alongside and even in the middle of the trail. These pools became important breeding grounds for amphibians like frogs and toads and salamanders. To maintain this valuable habitat, the regrading work included digging a few small vernal pools alongside the trail in key locations (photo at right).

Follow-up work on the trails is fueled by people power: spreading mulch, seeding the trail edges, building footbridges, installing erosion check dams. TLC’s stewardship staff expect this work to continue into early 2006 and expect to be making several calls for volunteers to help with the effort.

To get involved, join the TLC Trail Crew; you’ll get email announcements of upcoming workdays at White Pines and other locations.