What we’re about
The primary purpose of this group is to support a community of volunteers focused on building, enhancing and maintaining North Carolina's premier hiking trail, the Mountains-to-Sea Trail!
The Mountains-to-Sea Trail, stretches 1,175 miles from Clingmans Dome State Park in the Great Smoky Mountains to Jockey's Ridge State Park on the Outer Banks. The trail showcases our state's diverse landscape and culture: mountain vistas, rolling Piedmont farms, picture-postcard colonial towns, weathered tobacco barns, old textile villages, country churches, rushing mountain streams, coastal swamps, hardwood and pine forests, lighthouses, sand dunes and miles of seashore.
In addition to joining us on Meetup, where we post numerous MST workdays, we also hope you'll visit the FMST website ([ https://www.mountainstoseatrail.org](http://www.ncmst.org)) to learn more about this wonderful backyard resource and ask that you consider becoming a Friend of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail at:
https://mountainstoseatrail.org//get-involved/become-a-member/
If you'd like to help build and maintain the trail and don't see a workday in your area posted on this Meetup group site, FMST has a workday going on somewhere in the state almost every weekend of the year and on some weekdays too. For more information contact the trail crew leader in your vicinity. You can find a list of crew leaders at:
https://mountainstoseatrail.org/get-involved/trail-workdays/
Come help enhance and give back to hiking in North Carolina by helping build, enhance and maintain the Mountains-to-Sea Trail!
Upcoming events (3)
See all- Celebrate NATIONAL PUBLIC LANDS DAY - Volunteer on Falls Lake Trail!, Sept. 27thFood Lion Parking Lot, Durham , NC
On the 32nd annual National Public Lands Day help celebrate, support and honor our public lands by volunteering to help enhance and maintain the Falls Lake Trail, a beautiful 60+ mile section of the NC Mountains to Sea Trail.
DATE/TIME: Saturday September 27th,2024, 9 am - 4 pm.
If you are unable to stay for the entire time know your contribution is greatly appreciated.MEETING LOCATION: Meet at the outside edge of the Food Lion parking lot at the intersection of Sherron/Patterson Road and Highway 98. The address is 121 Sherron Rd., Durham, NC 27703. GPS: 35.974617,-78.793
Enjoy a complimentary biscuit and coffee before a short safety and organizational briefing after which we will disperse to tend to various sections of the trail.
RSVP: to jdbrewer104@gmail.com or 919-900-0483 by Sept. 24th for this volunteer activity.
BAD WEATHER POLICY: If the workday is canceled due to bad weather a mass email will be sent by 11:00 PM the evening before the event to everyone who has RSVP'ed as described above.
If you are new to trail work please let us know and we can pair you with an experienced volunteer.
What you will need to provide:
Work clothes suitable for the weather,
Solid shoes or hiking boots,
Plenty of water,
Bag Lunch,
Work gloves, if you have them (If not, we have some).We have the tools that will be needed.
WORK SAFELY: This is the most important thing, and our main objective!
In particular:- Use tools carefully. If you do not know how to use a particular tool, or what to do in a particular situation please ask.
- Do not work too close together and be careful with rakes, shovels, and mattocks to avoid hitting the person next to you. When walking past another volunteer, please say something so they know you are there.
- Know your limits. Do not lift anything heavier than you can comfortably lift and lift with your legs not with your back.
- Pace yourself. This is not a race. We will be working on and maintaining this trail for many years to come.
- Take frequent breaks. Make sure to drink plenty of water. Don't wait until you feel thirsty.
- Be aware of hazards. There are holes in the ground to step in; branches, rocks and roots to trip over; thorns; wasps; poison ivy (fortunately not too much of that on this segment of trail); ticks; chiggers; and other hazards.
- Remain alert and be cautious.
Have a good time. This is a scenic area. There are box turtles, heron, woodpeckers, hawks, deer, beaver, and other wildlife in this area as well as scenic views of the lake.
Thanks to:
- Great Outdoor Provision Company for sponsoring our breakfast from Chick-fil-A for our Saturday workdays.
- Starbucks off Falls of Neuse Road and Durant Road for the coffee.
- REI Co-op, whose stewardship grants support our volunteer trail crews, add new miles of footpath, and improve signage which helps more people find and follow the MST.
NOTE: To be added to the official FMST email notification list to receive Falls Lake Trail's and other FMST workday announcements and details, email: bbrown@mountainstoseatrail.org
***
Interested in knowing more this National Park Service celebration? Check out National Public Lands Day ?
- SUNDAY November 2nd, 2025 - Calling all Falls Lake Volunteers!Food Lion Parking Lot, Durham , NC
NOTE: This volunteer day is on SUNDAY due to deer hunting season.
DATE/TIME: SUNDAY – November 2nd, 2025 / 9 am - 4 pm
If you are unable to stay for the entire time know your contribution is greatly appreciated.MEETING LOCATION: Meet at the outside edge of the Food Lion parking lot at the intersection of Sherron/Patterson Road and Highway 98. The address is 121 Sherron Rd., Durham, NC 27703. GPS: 35.974617,-78.793
Enjoy a complimentary biscuit and coffee before a short safety and organizational briefing after which we will disperse to tend to various sections of the trail.
RSVP: to jdbrewer104@gmail.com or 919-900-0483 by Wednesday, Oct. 29th.
If you are new at trail work please let us know and we will pair you up with an experienced volunteer.
What you will need to provide:
Work clothes suitable for the weather,
Solid shoes or hiking boots,
Plenty of water,
Bag Lunch,
Work gloves, if you have them (If not, we have some).We have the tools that will be needed.
WORK SAFELY: This, the most important thing, is our primary objective!
In particular:- Use tools carefully. If you do not know how to use a particular tool, or what to do in a particular situation please ask.
- Do not work too close together and be careful with rakes, shovels, and mattocks to avoid hitting the person next to you. When walking past another volunteer, please say something so they know you are there.
- Know your limits. Do not lift anything heavier than you can comfortably lift and lift with your legs not with your back.
- Pace yourself. This is not a race. We will be working on and maintaining this trail for many years to come.
- Take frequent breaks. Make sure to drink plenty of water. Don't wait until you feel thirsty.
- Be aware of hazards. There are holes in the ground to step in; branches, rocks and roots to trip over; thorns; wasps; poison ivy (fortunately not too much of that on this segment of trail); ticks; chiggers; and other hazards.
- Remain alert and be cautious.
Have a good time. This is a scenic area. There are box turtles, heron, woodpeckers, hawks, deer, beaver, and other wildlife in this area as well as scenic views of the lake.
TYPICAL WORKDAY TASKS:
TRIMMING: Cutting branches and logs across the trail.
RAKING THE TRAIL: It is necessary to rake the trail tread clear of leaves, branches, other debris so that we know where we need to level the trail, fill holes, etc. Please use caution while raking to avoid poking others with the rake handle.
PULLING OUT SMALL SAPLINGS FROM TRAIL TREAD: There will be some small saplings in the trail tread. If these are cut off they tend to grow back from the roots, so we need to either pull them by hand (if they are very small), dig them out with a mattocks, or if they are up to an inch in diameter, pull them out with the weed wrench.
FILLING HOLES: These need to be filled if they are within the 2' wide trail tread, or if they are within several feet of the trail on either side. We have shovels and buckets for this purpose.
LEVELING TRAIL TREAD: Walking across the side of a hill is tiring and increases the likelihood of injury. The finished trail tread should be, in cross section, close to level.
TRASH: We have trash bags to pick up trash along the way. We will carry the trash out to one of the ends of the trail section.Thanks to:
- Great Outdoor Provision Company for sponsoring our breakfast biscuits from Bojangles for Sunday workdays.
- Starbucks off Falls of Neuse Road and Durant Road for the coffee.
- REI Co-op, whose local stewardship grants support our volunteer trail crews, add new miles of footpath, and improve signage which helps more people find and follow the Falls Lake Trail section of the MST.
NOTE: To be added to the official FMST email notification list to receive Falls Lake Trail's and other FMST workday announcements and details, email: bbrown@mountainstoseatrail.org
