Friends of the Mountains - to - Sea Trail

Bellevue Branch Creek Cleanup

May 24, 2025, 9AM -Until

Meet at Gold Park - large pavillion. 415 Dimmocks Mill Rd, Hillsborough, NC 27278

The Appropriate Sanitation Institute and the Wendy Olson Arboretum are organizing a Bellevue Branch creek cleanup day on May 24, 2025. The Bellevue Branch is a tributary of the Eno, which flows through the bamboo forest at Gold Park in Hillsborough. When the Bellevue cotton mill was in operation, it discharged its wastewater directly into the Bellevue Branch. Residents have used the creek as a dumping ground for centuries.

Today, many sections of the creek have become accessible to the public from Gold Park to the Wendy Olson Arboretum. We will be pulling trash out of all the public access areas, starting at Gold Park, and working up along the sewer cuts and on the private property where we can get permission to clean up.

Help us make our creek cleaner and safer to play in and around.

Wear sturdy shoes which can get wet and muddy. Gloves, vests and grabbers provided.

Magnet fishing welcome!

Falls Lake Trail workday - Come help take care of the Falls Lake section of the MST on Saturday – June 7th, 2025 - National Trails Day!
Come for all or part of the day.

Enjoy a complimentary biscuit and coffee before a short safety and organizational briefing after which we will disperse to perform various tasks on multiple sections of the trail.

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

RSVP: Please make sure you RSVP to jdbrewer104@gmail.com or 919-900-0483 by Wednesday, June 7th for this work day.

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 all who RSVP'ed to jbrewr104@gmail.com. So please make sure to RSVP by the RSVP deadline and be sure to check your email first thing the morning of the event before leaving for the meeting site.

If you are new at trail work please let us know and we will pair you with an experienced trailwork volunteer. There will always be experienced volunteers nearby who can answer questions.

What you will need to provide:
Work clothes and solid shoes or hiking boots.
Proper clothing for the weather
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.

> 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.
> Do not lift anything heavier than you can comfortably lift and lift with your legs not with your back.
> Know you own limits. This is not a race. We will be working on and maintaining this trail for many years to come.
> Take plenty of breaks. Make sure to drink plenty of water, even when it's cold outside.
> There are holes in the ground to step in, branches to trip over, thorns, wasps, poison ivy (fortunately not too much of that on this segment of trail), ticks, chiggers, and other hazards.
> Please remain alert and cautious.

Have a good time. This is a scenic area. There are box turtles, heron, woodpeckers, deer, beaver, and other wildlife in this area as well as scenic views of the lake.

TYPICAL WORKDAY ACTIVITIES:

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.
REMOVING 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.
CUTTING BRANCHES AND LOGS: Note - only certified sawyers can operate chainsaws on the trail.

Specifics for this workday will be communicated closer to the meetup date.

Thanks to:

> Great Outdoor Provision Company for sponsoring our breakfast biscuits from Chik-fil-A for Saturday 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, adds new miles of footpath, and improves signage helping more people find and follow the MST.

To be added to the official MST email notification list to receive Falls Lake Trails workday announcements and details, email: bbrown@mountainstoseatrail.org.

Thank you for your support of the MST and Falls Lake Trail!

NOTE:
THIS WORKDAY STARTS EARLY at 8 AM and ENDS EARLY at 12 PM to avoid some of the HEAT.

Help tame Falls Lake Trail's summer overgrowth Saturday, July 12th, 2025.

The MAJOR GOAL of this workday will be to run weed trimmers and DR mowers on sections of the trail known to have excessive overgrowth during the summer months.

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.

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

RSVP: Please RSVP to jdbrewer104@gmail.com or 919-900-0483 by July 9th for this event.

BAD WEATHER POLICY: If the workday is cancelled due to bad weather a mass email will be sent by 11:00 PM the night before the workday to those who have RSVP'ed as described above.

If your MST/FLTF weed trimmer needs maintenance please contact Dan Jonsen ASAP! (dejonsen@gmail.com FLT Section 11E Task Force Leader, Weed trimmer maintenance/repair)

Teams of 3-4 volunteers will be assembled for these tasks with 2 weed trimmers on each team. You are welcome to bring your own weed trimmer from home, however, anybody using a weed trimmer will need to wear safety glasses, wear long pants, gloves and have hearing protection.

If you are new to trail work please let us know and we will pair you with an experienced volunteer.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO PROVIDE:
Work clothes and solid shoes or hiking boots.
Proper Clothing for the Weather
Plenty of water
Work gloves, if you have them (If not, we have some)
Safety glasses and hearing protection if you are going to operate or be near a weed trimmer and/or mower.

We have the tools that will be needed except for WEED TRIMMERS. Bring your own.

WORK SAFELY: This is the most important thing, and our main goal.
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. Do not lift anything heavier than you can comfortably lift.
• Know you own limits. This is not a race. We will be working on and maintaining this trail for years to come. Take plenty of breaks. Make sure to drink plenty of water.
• Beware of hazards. There are holes in the ground to step in, branches to trip over, thorns, wasps, poison ivy (fortunately not too much of that on these segments of trail), ticks, chiggers, and other hazards. Please 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 FMST volunteer trail crews, add new miles of footpath, and improve signage helping more people find and follow the MST.

To be added to the official MST email notification list to receive Falls Lake Trail's workday announcements and details email bbrown@mountainstoseatrail.org.