David Freeze: More state parks in the Piedmont region
Published 12:00 am Monday, August 19, 2024
The Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area Overlook. David Freeze photo
The rapids and big rocks of Eno River near the visitor center. David Freeze photo
The Buckwater Trail along the Eno River. David Freeze photo
The Piper-Cox Cabin from the early 1800s at Eno River State Park is near Fews Ford, a popular river crossing of the era. David Freeze photo
A summit view from Morrow Mountain. David Freeze photo
The suspension bridge over the Eno in Eno River State Park. David Freeze photo
Where the Yadkin River becomes the Pee Dee River and Lake Tillery at Morrow Mountain State Park. David Freeze photo
The reconstructed 1630s home of Dr. Francis Kron, the first trained medical doctor in the Piedmont in Morrow Mountain State Park. David Freeze photo
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Editor’s note: David Freeze is a runner, running coach and long-distance cyclist from China Grove in Rowan County. He is visiting all 42 state parks in North Carolina. Contact him at david.freeze@ctc.net.
By David Freeze
Back on the road, I had a wonderful visit to Morrow Mountain State Park on Aug. 12. Nearest to Badin, the park of 5,881 acres was established in 1939. At the opposite end of the parking lot from the visitor center, I found a wonderful heritage museum that contained plenty of facts about the area’s history and the park’s early years. With interactive displays, the museum is unmanned but still first rate.
The park has plenty to see and do, including an Olympic-size pool and 30 miles of hiking, biking and equestrian trails. An old quarry where Civilian Conservation Corps workers took argillite rock for the park’s buildings, walls and bridges can be seen on the Quarry Trail. My favorite trail was the Fall Mountain Trail. Moderate and 4.1 miles long, much of the trail is along a beautiful segment where the Yadkin River becomes the Pee Dee River and then Lake Tillery. The river is wide and reminds me of the great rivers I have cycled past. With plenty of hardwoods along the trail, this would be a phenomenal fall color hike.
With 54 miles along 11 hiking trails and 33 miles of bridle trails, I was very impressed. The Mountain Loop Trail around the top of Morrow Mountain offers fantastic views of the river and the surrounding forest below. Also, most notable were the reconstructed Dr. Francis Kron house, office and greenhouse. Dr. Kron was the first formally trained doctor in the Piedmont and also supplied veterinary services while making his own medications. He bought his land in 1834, established his practice and then played a big part in establishing Stanly County where the park is located.
My first visit very early on the morning of Aug. 14 was the Eno River State Park. The river is the star of this 4.319-acre park. With plenty to see and do, I kept hanging around for more on a morning when time was short for me. I stopped at the old visitor center first and found a map and immediately walked most of the 1.5-mile Buckwater Creek Trail that followed the river upstream. I met a local who told me what to see as he walks this same river trail every morning. While challenging over rock steps and stairs in a few areas, I enjoyed the river trail and a nice section of rapids past some big rocks. Just before leaving, I noticed a large group of kids loudly enjoying the water around the rocks and the rapids.
I next found the new visitor center near Few’s Ford and talked to a very interesting attendant who gave me the park stamp and asked if I had seen the suspension bridge. I had not and immediately headed that way, then found the impressive piece of engineering. I watched a man walk across it fast and the thing was jumping up and down, but when I walked across it was steady and only slightly moving. Very cool.
Another unusual find not far from the visitor center was a cabin built in the early 1800s, yet a very well done and unusual “cabin” it is. Usually in this historic era, a cabin was very small and rustic. Located near the popular Few’s Ford crossing, the large Piper-Cox cabin is still going strong after 200 years. Before bridges were common, travelers usually crossed rivers at places where the water level was low while the underlying surface was rocky to lessen the chances of getting wagons stuck.
Water-powered milling was popular along rivers during that era and 32 mills operated along the Eno. Several including grist, flour and sawmills operated at one time in the Few’s Ford area. Full of history, the park also has canoeing, kayaking and rafting along with fishing from its banks. Camping is only in back country sites and requires a permit. Other river access points within the park are Pleasant Green, Cabe Lands, Pump Station and Cole Mill. The park has an extensive and varied list of 18 hiking trails of lengths from .5 miles to 7.5 miles.
My final visit was the Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area, but still on the list of 42 state parks. It is managed by the nearby Eno River State Park where I got the passport stamp. Rising more than 350 feet above the Eno River, the mountain summit is said to be the highest point between nearby Hillsborough and the Atlantic Ocean. The park is the smallest I’ve seen at 190 acres and is named after the Occoneechee Indians who lived on the Eno in the early 1600s. Many of their descendants remain in the area. The park does not have its own office but does have two metal boxes with trail maps and other information.
The park has four hiking trails between .10 and 2.2 miles. All are rated moderate to easy, and most have something to do with the mountain summit. There are abundant flora and fauna, much of it usually found on higher mountains. Rhododendron and mountain laurel, as examples, are usually found at much higher altitudes, as are brown elfin butterflies. Two well-stocked fishing ponds are on-site.
Nineteen state parks down, 23 more to go.
