Carolina Thread Trail: Murray's Mill & Bunker Hill Covered Bridge

Carolina Thread Trail: Murray’s Mill & Bunker Hill Covered Bridge – Catawba, NC
7/4/20 – 4.5 Miles

Travel plans canceled left and right as the world realized that COVID-19 was not going anywhere fast. Beach trips, mountain vacations, Disney World, and visits to Grandma’s, everything seemed risky. 

Canceling the annual 4th of July Thomas family reunion of my mother’s generation (16 siblings!) and descendants was especially disappointing, as folks are scattered far across the land with just this once-a-year chance to see elders, cousins and new babies. There were so many of us, I didn’t know them all. In 2020, no reunion, no Virginia accents, no talk of farming (tobacco has been replaced by hemp!) and…oh, the food! Let’s pause a moment for the food.

Jim and I were itching to do something, wear our masks and be outside somewhere new in the 93-degree heat. He’s mentioned Murray’s Mill a few times as a day outing, so this was our chance. Even if the mill wasn’t open, there is a segment of the Carolina Thread trail to walk on. So we took a little drive to Catawba, NC. A calendar-perfect day for photographing the mill!

Murray’s Mill Lake formed by damming of Balls Creek

The David L. Stewart Trail starts beyond the mill and continues between the edge of Murray’s Mill Lake and a soybean field. Wild blackberries were bursting beside the path. The air was July-still and the mid-day sun produced a stifling heat. 

When I was a kid, the Thomas reunion was held in my own family’s big side yard. Imagine over 100 people, lots of barefoot children, lawn chairs, ice cream churns, and that same July heat. We weren’t allowed in our little house except to use the bathroom. The moms would hustle all the food out onto borrowed picnic tables when it was time to eat and hustle the leftovers back inside when the meal was over. Those who came from out of town left for the drive back home, and the locals stayed around until suppertime, when the moms brought the leftovers back out to the tables.  When I was an adult with kids of my own, our elders finally agreed to move the event to an air-conditioned church basement.

Jim and I followed the trail looking for snakes and other critters, but none were stirring. The wooded area was a respite from the direct sun. 

The trail comes to the edge of Shiloh United Methodist Church’s parking lot, turns right, then skirts the property edge out to Shiloh Road where it crosses Balls Creek. From here, the Murray’s Mill Pond Loop Trail continues to the opposite side of the pond and back to the Mill.

…but we turned back the way we came and retraced our steps to the mill.

Another section of the trail starts at the mill and goes in the other direction, but Carolina Thread Trail signs didn’t continue as far as the website suggests. The path still follows the creek, but it divides and re-divides into social trails and motorbike trails.

Trail passes under the bridge by the mill 

A footbridge crossing Balls Creek had been damaged by high water. It wasn’t broken down entirely and we treaded lightly to see what was on the other side. Many trails intersected without signage, so we headed back once again to the mill.

Inside the little general store was busy and uncomfortable as some people wore masks and some didn’t (still voluntary at this time).  But most importantly, the A/C worked and there were goodies.

Not knowing if there would be any food available anywhere, we’d brought our own sandwiches, and now our picnic was complete with a Nehi Peach and a Sun Drop. We ate lunch at a picnic table, not bad at all when you sat a spell in the shade of the old oak trees – just like at a Thomas Family Reunion.

A short drive away from Murray’s Mill, also in Catawba County, is the Bunker Hill Covered Bridge. Built in 1895, it is one of two remaining covered bridges in North Carolina.

The bridge is part of Connor Park, a nice little picnic area with a nature trail. The Bunker Hill Covered Bridge is a short walk from the parking area. We had the place to ourselves as we examined the bridge from all angles, inside and outside and below. It spans Lyle Creek.

The Carolina Thread Trail segment here follows Lyle Creek upstream for about half a mile to end at private property signs. The path was overgrown and humid and buggy…and what else would you expect on the 4th of July! 

The vision of the CTT goes beyond today and I’m glad that the organization grabs every piece of land possible to incorporate into its master plan. Who knows what this little bit of trail will connect to one day? The next generations will enjoy the benefits.

I hope that all of our 4th of July celebrations will return in 2021. I miss that fried chicken and biscuits and chocolate chess pie and butterbeans and cornbread and squash casserole and home grown tomatoes…

“Family is a link to our past,
a bridge to our future.”
~Alex Haley