Polk County Recreation invites you to join in on working the trails at Norman Wilder Forest, protected by the Pacolet Area Conservancy (PAC). The workday will focus on the “Red Trail” where volunteers will make the trail wider and create small features to help drainage and minimize erosion.

Volunteers will meet at the Harmon Field parking lot at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 16 to carpool over to Norman Wilder Forest. They will need to wear weather-appropriate clothing that they don’t mind getting dirty. No prior experience is necessary and all tools will be provided. The workday will conclude around 2 p.m. Volunteers are also encouraged to bring their own lunch and snacks and water. There will be a water cooler provided for refilling water bottles.

Norman Wilder Forest first opened to the public in September 2001 and consists of 185 protected acres of mature third growth mixed hardwood forest located on the steep slopes of Little Warrior Mountain. Trails wind through beautiful vistas and provide hikers with a leafy canopy of shade trees and stunning views of sheer rock walls.

For more information about this workday or future workdays contact Dave Mathern at trails@polknc.org. Mathern is a member of AmeriCorps Project Conserve, serving as the Trails Coordinator for Polk County Recreation.

For the past 27 years, the Pacolet Area Conservancy (PAC) has served as the local and regional land trust for Polk County and surrounding areas in North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina. Through the organization’s conservation efforts, nearly 8,700 acres have been protected. To learn more visit pacolet.org.

– Submitted by Dave Mathern