Join the Pacolet Area Conservancy (PAC) for two free hikes this week, the first on Friday, April 18 at Pisgah National Forest, and the second on Saturday, April 19 at Chestnut Ridge Heritage Preserve.  PAC’s Director of Stewardship & Land Protection, Pam Torlina, will lead the hikes.

On Friday, April 18, the group heads to Pisgah National Forest for a 6.6-mile, moderate, loop style hike to Twin Falls.  This trek takes hikers along Avery Creek and to Twin Falls, two waterfalls that are not parallel or even very close together.
The first waterfall is higher and has more water than the second, but both are beautiful in their own right. The trail then leads hikers along Henry Branch during the latter half of the hike.  For this trek, hikers will meet at the Columbus Bi-Lo at 8:30 a.m. to check in and start the approximately 1 hour drive to the trail head.
On Saturday, April 19, PAC and the Foothills Humane Society partner for a 5-mile, moderate/strenuous, out and back style hike at Chestnut Ridge Heritage Preserve.  Come celebrate Earth Day and bring your dog (in a leash) for a hike! This hike ascends the south side of Squirrel Mountain to its ridge & down the north side to the South Pacolet River at the base of Chestnut Ridge. Participants will meet at the Gowensville Spinx at 9 a.m. to check in and start the 15-minute drive to the trailhead.
For both hikes, participants should wear appropriate clothing and footwear; bring a bag lunch and/or snack and plenty of water. Please be sure to bring any personal medication that you may require. Hikers should be prepared to return to the area by 3 p.m., at the latest. In case of inclement weather, please check PAC’s website, www.pacolet.org, or Facebook page, www.facebook.com/pacoletarea.conservancy, on the day of the hike to see if the hike will take place.
Those interested in attending either PAC hike should contact the PAC office at 828-859-5060 or e-mail, landprotection@pacolet.org.
If you cannot make this hike but would like to attend future hikes, please visit PACs website, www.pacolet.org/upcoming-events-hikes/, or go to PACs Facebook page, www.facebook.com/pacoletarea.conservancy, for information on upcoming hikes.  Please look forward to PAC’s Fall Hiking Series starting in September.
PAC is a non-profit 501(c)(3) qualified conservation organization (land trust) that works with landowners to ensure the long-term protection of their land through voluntary conservation easements.  Conservation easements enable landowners to maintain ownership and management of their property, preserving precious natural resources (open lands, forests, wildlife habitat, scenic vistas, farmland, stream banks, etc.), and potentially obtain significant federal, state, and local tax benefits.
PAC’s mission is to protect and conserve our area’s natural resources with a vision of a community living and growing in harmony with our natural heritage and a goal to provide a legacy that will endure and be valued by generations to come.
Foothills Humane Society (FHS) is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) open-admission, adoption-guarantee animal welfare organization serving the rural foothills of Polk County, North Carolina and Landrum, Campobello and Gowensville in the northern Greenville and Spartanburg counties of South Carolina, serving an overall service area of approximately 25,000 people and approximately 2,300 animals per year through our various programs. FHS began in 1957 as the volunteer-operated, Polk County Animal Protection Society.
In addition to our successful adoptions and rescue programs, we offer many volunteer opportunities, public training classes, training and behavior assistance for our shelter dogs and boast an average 98% live-release rate, meaning that 98% of our animals are adopted into loving homes or transferred to reputable rescue organizations.  FHS’s mission is to shelter and care for stray and surrendered companion animals within the community; prevent cruelty to animals; reunite lost animals with their owners, adopt animals to qualified homes or place them with reputable rescue organizations; and educate the public about responsible animal ownership and population control.
– article submitted
by Pam Torlina