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American Tobacco Trail - Morrisville Parkway to New Hill - Olive Chapel Road
Overview: This is the most rural part of the American Tobacco Trail. It is marked by farmlands, secluded houses, and frequent animal interactions. Travelers should feel most immersed in nature along this section. Granite screenings composes the path giving the path a rural feel. Although there is little urban or suburban development, people are seen just as frequently as in the more developed parts. The American Tobacco Trail features urban, suburban and rural scenery. No matter which one you prefer, there exists a part that fits your liking. One big change we see in the rural areas of the rail-trail is an increase in landscape diversity. Marshlands, larger forest regions and animate creeks cover this section of the American Tobacco trail.
Trail Information: After leaving the asphalt path in Chatham, the trail in Wake County seems a bit more rural and is totally soft granite screenings. As spread out as houses and buildings are in this area, people still appear at the same frequency as the more populated sections of the rail-trail. The area is surrounded by farmland, so it is clear that people travel from all over to use the American Tobacco trail. The trail inherits a rural nature, is three lanes in width and composed of a sandy stone. Users can easily differentiate between the temperatures and smells of the outside and inside regions. We should keep the smells the same by recycling at the nearest trashcan. At this point visitors lose the option to park alongside the intersections. To fix that problem parking lots appear more frequently. The first rest stop and parking shows up around the five mile mark at 1305 White Oak Church Road. It features bathrooms, picnic tables and a large parking lot. If you need to rest, you are not close to a rest area, sit down at one of the wooden, steel or log benches that are a half mile apart from each other. If you prefer official rest areas, four hundred yards after the four mile mark is another stop at Wimberly Road. You can sit down at one of two picnic tables to gather yourself before going onto the American Tobacco trail. In addition to rest stops, history fills the American Tobacco Rail Trail. Around the 4 mile mark we start to see a signpost. The first signifying a tobacco barn that workers used to dry, cure and bundle tobacco crops and transport them down the rail road. Rail-trails like the American Tobacco Trail help to preserve landmarks like these. At this point on the trail, it becomes easier to cross the intersections so it’s easy to run here without breaking your stride. One way to stay excited about the trail is to try out different starting points and directions. See what each section has to offer; keeping in mind that you have to limit your range in searching for something new. Landowners prohibit leaving the trail along most of the fourteen mile path, but there are still plenty of beauties and dangers around to keep you entertained. Birds singing, horses moving, and beaver tails splashes are all part of the experience on the American Tobacco Trail. All this activity immerses you into the rail-trail experience, but you’re never far from people. No matter where you go, the sounds of cars passing by remind you that you are only one step away from the more social world. Do not forget to stay friendly and say hi to fellow visitors of the trail. Animal habitat surrounds the trail even more as we get closer to the end. It is only appropriate that we find the most scenic views in this rural section. Marshlands made up of countless dead trees, beavers and standing water line the trail along Beaver Creek, the largest creek on the American Tobacco Trail. Sightseers can look for fish or turtles swimming through the water. At 1039 New Hill-Olive Chapel Road we get to the end of the trail where car, bike, and handicapped parking is available.
Parking and Directions – From the Durham or Chapel Hill areas, the best way to get to the Chatham and Wake sections of the trail is to start at Massey Chapel Road and ride the American Tobacco Trail all the way down to Morrisville Parkway. If coming from Chapel Hill on Hwy 54 take a right onto Barbee Chapel Road . This road turns into Farrington Road. Shortly after the switch make a right onto Stagecoach Road. At the end of Stagecoach Road, make a left onto Highway 751 North. Massey Chapel Road is the first right. Travel a quarter mile down the road and you will see the two entrances for the American Tobacco Trail. Take the entrance to your right and go south. You will cross Scott-King Road in about 1.7 miles and to the crossing at Morrisville Parkway in Cary at about 7 miles.
If coming from Raleigh, take I-40 west to Exit 293, merge onto US-1 South. From US-1 South take Exit 89 toward New Hill/Jordan Lake, make a right onto New Hill Holleman Rd. Then continue onto New Hill Road. The entrance for the trail is on your right. Most intersections have signs saying not to park on the side of the road so park in one of these lots. The first one is a 50 car parking lot at 1305 White Oak Church Road. The second one is a 20 car parking lot at 1017 Wimberly road, and the third is a 50 car parking lot at 1039 New Hill- Olive Chapel Road.
Sunday, Oct 14, 2012 @ 4 pm
FullSteam Brewery & Ellerbe Creek Trail
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