Today, June 3rd, is National Trails day. The Town of Chapel Hill celebrated by holding a 5k excursion on the Fan Branch Trail.

I feel lucky to live just a block away from the Fan Branch Trail.  It has provided me and my family countless hours of recreation and connectivity to other parts of the town. One of the reasons I initially moved to Chapel Hill was to be closer to and to enjoy the Bolin Creek Trail.

Where we lived in Durham, our neighborhood had no sidewalks and no greenway, or walking paths of any kind. Back in those days, I had to drive my children to RTP to ride bikes or to go roller blading on the parks nice network of trails.

Two children standing next to bikes in RTP
My two daughters taking a break as we ride a 5 mile loop in the RTP trail network

Once in Chapel Hill, we would roller blade the Bolin Creek Greenway (when it only went to MLK Jr. Blvd) . On the way back, we would stop near the trail that goes up  up to Caffe Driade, swap our skates for sandals, and walk up to have a snack.  I have always really appreciated this trail. And, more and more , I see the importance of everyone having trails and greenways near them for daily use.  I also want you all to to consider supporting more greenways – both in Chapel Hill and in Carrboro.

Two children sitting on a bench in skates
Taking a break as we roller bladed the Morgan Creek Greenway

This morning, I spoke to a Parks and Rec employee about the towns’ event, and was reminded of the town’s plans to extend Morgan Creek to the west.

Please do all you can to support the town in extending the Morgan Creek trail.

This extension will being greenways within walking distance to significantly more residents of the town. Particularly families who reside in Kingswood apartment complex.  Also, if you live in Carrboro, please support the Carrboro Linear Parks project, which works to advocate for a greenway for the residents of Carrboro.

Other greenway articles:

Bolin Creek Trail: The Year of the Trail in North Carolina

Morgan Creek Trail: The Year of the Trail in North Carolina

The Fan Branch Trail: Year of the Trail in North Carolina

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John Rees lives in Chapel Hill. His day job is an enterprise architect for a big IT company. He was, until very recently, a member of the Chapel Hill Planning Commission and former chair. He serves on...