GetHiking! Celebrate Groundhog Day at White Pines Nature Preserve

The 275-acre White Pines Nature Preserve was conserved because of its namesake, a tree more commonly found in higher, cooler climates. Curiously, the white pine (Pinus strobus) was once common here — more than 10,000 years ago during the last ice age. As the climate warmed, the white pine and other cool-weather species (spruce, fir and hemlock) retreated from all but a few isolated pockets of the Piedmont, where conditions created a cooler microclimate. At White Pines, those conditions include cooler, north-facing bluffs and the cooling influence of the Rocky and Deep Rivers.

As you hike the preserve’s trails, you will encounter a variety of habitats, from fern-covered slopes to damp bottom-lands. Mountain laurel and Catawba rhododendron cling to bluffs above the Rocky River. We will cover most the trails by looping them together for about a 6 mile hike.

Lunch or trail snacks, water, clothes for the weather are needed. Rain or temperatures below 35 will cancel this hike.

Due to the limited parking lot at the preserve, I am encouraging carpooling. Those who are interested in doing so, please meet at the Dick's parking lot at Cary Crossroads at 8:30 for a prompt 8:45 departure.
It is customary that riders contribute to the driver's gas. Please indicate in the comment box if you intent to carpool from Dick's.