A new multi-use trail system will open Saturday, May 4 at Carvers Creek State Park’s Sandhills access in Cumberland County. The trails will allow hikers, cyclists, and equestrians to explore the park, which opened to the public in 2013.
The Division of Parks and Recreation will host a public event to celebrate the new trails May 4 at 10 a.m. Local leaders will join the new park superintendent, Colleen Bowers, and volunteers and partners who have made the new trails possible, in offering remarks and participating in hikes on the new trails.
“I’m thrilled to open these trails for locals and visitors from all around,” said Bowers. “Hikers, cyclists, and equestrians will be able to explore and enjoy our sandhills ecosystem with ease. I especially look forward to everything our visitors will be able to learn along these trails.”
Carvers Creek State Park is home to Long Valley Farm, the historic retreat of the Rockefeller family. The farm offers scenic hiking through longleaf pine forests and regular interpretive programs, including occasional tours of the historic Rockefeller house. The park hosts over 4,500 acres of sandhills ecosystem including native grasses and wildflowers, forests of longleaf pine, and mixed pine and hardwood forests. Wildlife includes fox squirrels and the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker.
More information about Carvers Creek State Park is available at ncparks.gov/carvers-creek-state-park.
About North Carolina State Parks
North Carolina State Parks manages more than 234,000 acres of iconic landscape within North Carolina’s state parks, state recreation areas and state natural areas. It administers the N.C Parks and Recreation Trust Fund, including its local grants program, as well as a state trails program, North Carolina Natural and Scenic Rivers and more, all with a mission dedicated to conservation, recreation and education. The state parks system welcomes more than 19 million visitors annually.