Bracken Preserve – Brevard NC - 7/19/22 – 9.3 miles
In July 2022, even the mountains offered little relief from the relentless heat. Still, outside is soothing to the soul and I must go.
Bracken Preserve in Brevard, NC was introduced to me via Conserving Carolina. The organization does amazing work in Western NC, playing the long game of working to protect lands for future generations.
Part of Conserving Carolina’s PR is highlighting gems like Bracken Preserve. They got my attention with the White Squirrel Hiking Challenge 6 because you know I love a challenge list that takes me to new places.
Bracken Preserve is easy to find, at the edge of downtown Brevard yet a world away. The trails have names and color blazes, but I won’t get into all that. The turn-by-turn directions for this hike are here. I followed this route and included the short interior connecting trails. Why not?
All together I hiked every bit of the Preserve and enjoyed every humid moment. A surprising amount of ups and downs have been squeezed into 395 acres, not a leisurely stroll.
Show and tell picture time! Did someone say more mushrooms?
Carlo Renzulli, a native of Italy, was a violinist with the New York Philharmonic. Why does his name turn up in the woods? Members of his family were ardent supporters of nearby Brevard Music Center as well as Bracken Preserve.
Chanterelles
Okay, a break from the fungi. Rattlesnake plantains bloomed in abundance (we all know my poor track record with photographing them) and I spotted a pair of yellow-fringed orchids and a crane-fly orchid. Some slopes beside the trails were thick with rhododendron, others covered in ferns. Birdsong was surprisingly constant, unlike in deep forest. Are the birds more accustomed to people here so near to civilization? Standing still and listening made my spirit soar.
Bracken Preserve has been open since 2012 and in 2019 a new shared use trail was completed. The pink-blazed Pinnacle Trail rubs up against Pisgah National Forest, and mountain bikers as well as hikers are very happy to extend their range. The name refers to the Pinnacle community that once thrived in the area. [Read more here.] From the article:
“Signage in the Bracken Mountain Preserve marks the history of the Pinnacle community. Among the founders of Pinnacle were Laughing Water, a young woman from the Blackfoot nation, and Tom, an African-American, both of whom had escaped from captivity. Laughing Water and Tom moved their large family to these mountains in the early 1860s to avoid typhoid fever.”
The climb up to the boundary is significant, tight curlicue switchbacks, crisscrossing old forest roads. I kept my eyes and ears open but didn’t encounter any mountain bikers today.
A cool breeze awaited at the boundary ridge line as the Pinnacle Trail straightened out and relaxed. The trail doesn’t quite go over summit of Burl Mountain so I detoured to find the top. (I didn’t locate a survey marker so I estimated.) In doing that, I inadvertently stopped the GAIA track but quickly realized it and started a new one. Always learning! As Jim says, “No backslapping ‘til it’s all over.”
Bracken Mountain Trail plunges back downhill on long benches with tight switchbacks. I assume this is the way mountain bikers go up to the top and then careen down the Pinnacle Trail. Brushy Creek comes back into the mix, crossing several times on the descent. Before I could say “Amanita jacksonii” I was back where I started.
For most of my 4.5 hours in Bracken Preserve, I was alone. I encountered six people in the first mile, three people in the last mile, and no one in between. As I was putting my hiking poles in my car, three mountain bikers exited behind me from parts unknown. Retirement hiking on a Tuesday!
Since my hike in July 2022, Conserving Carolina has acquired 34 additional acres to expand Bracken Preserve (read here.)
“There are always flowers
for those who want to see them.”
~Henri Matisse
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