BURLINGTON, N.C. – It’s the Year of the Trail in North Carolina, and for Nolan Carter it's a time of opportunity.

Carter is the Haw River Trail coordinator for Alamance Parks, and he says it’s a job he fully enjoys.

“This is truly, really my dream job, just being out here on the trails, helping build them, helping design them, acquire new property so that we can continue expanding on what we have,” Carter said.

What You Need To Know

  •  For years, the Haw River Trail has expanded due to volunteers and local support

  •  A state law enacted this summer will allow the trail to become a state trail

  •  The Haw River Trail coordinator says that means more exposure and more opportunities for funding

  • The goal is to create an approximately 80-mile trail that connects five counties

Right now, expansion is the name of the game for the Haw River Trail.

The trail is about 24 miles, and there’s a plan to expand that to about 80 miles, connecting five counties and Jordan Lake to Haw River State Park.

“Conserving these areas is vital because it's much easier to do now than once there are houses on them,” Carter said. “That way it's preserved for the future generations to enjoy and have that green escape from the busyness of everyday life.”

That work should get a little easier thanks to a state law that went into effect this summer.

The law allows the Haw River Trail to become a state trail, which Carter says means more funding and more exposure.

They’re already expanding the trail with a new section, and Carter says this law shows just how far the Haw River and its reputation have come in recent decades.

He says it was seen “as a polluted area that nobody wanted to be in because of the textile mills. But it's really transformed to a place that you can recreate, that you can, you can paddle, that you can swim, that you can hike along, that you can camp along.”

Carter spends his days thinking about the trail and how to make sure it lasts for decades to come. He isn’t alone, however.

Carter says the trail got here because of landowners, volunteers and the local government that partnered to make this a reality.

Now, that work can go to the next level.

“It means a lot. It really, it's always great to have the support of the state behind us and to know that they, they see the value in this and in protecting this for future generations as well," Carter said. "It's so beneficial for all of us.”

For more information on the expansion, click here.

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