One of the most
picturesque spots on the Neuse River Trail is not far
downstream from the City of Raleigh's sewage-treatment
plant, where the trail runs downhill to a bridge
across the river. To avoid the sewage plant, the trail
provides mountain-like uphill climbs going and coming
--- especially challenging for cyclists.
THE NEUSE RIVER TRAIL:
One of these days you'll be able to bicycle
from Falls Lake all the way to Smithfield!
A
first-hand report from Wingate Lassiter
A group of us started bicycling the Neuse River Trail
about five years ago, not long after the City of Raleigh
finished building the last segment of the 10-foot-wide
paved pathway that runs along the river from the dam at
Falls Lake to its present endpoint below Covered Bridge
Road at Clayton.
The City of Raleigh built 27 and a half miles of that,
from the dam to the Johnston County line. The Town of
Clayton is responsible for another four miles that
carries the trail past the Riverwood subdivision to a
spur, the Sam's Branch Greenway, that leads uphill
toward the heart of Clayton.
The next phase is an extension to Smithfield, perhaps
another 15 miles along the banks of the serpentine
Neuse. That project moved a step closer to reality this
month when Johnston's County Commissioners agreed to
help the state's Division of Parks and Recreation build
it as part of North Carolina's Mountains-to-Sea Trail.
Here's a sampling of photographs I've taken during
various bicycle treks on the trail since 2014. They'll
give you some idea of the surprising variety of sights
you'll encounter along the way....
Here's a view of the Falls Lake dam, taken from a spot
near the trail's beginning.
Almost 20 miles downstream, between the river's
junctions with Crabtree and Walnut creeks on the east
side of Raleigh, are rocks that produce "rapids" when
the Neuse is running higher. I call this spot "Tree Nut
Falls," combining parts of the names of the two nearby
creeks.
Here's a long wooden bridge that carries the trail
around some bluffs not far upstream from
Auburn-Knightdale Road.
This bucolic spot, alongside Baucom Road in Wake County,
shows a portion of the trail that's a mile or so away
from the river. It was constructed there to stay clear of the City of Raleigh
sewage-treatment plant. In fact, the trail for several
miles was built on acreage, including lots of pasture
land, that was acquired years ago by the city as a
sewage-plant buffer.
At the Johnston County line near Riverwood is milepost
27.5, the trail's distance from its starting point at
Falls Lake.
The trail crosses the river four times between Clayton
and Falls Lake. This particular bridge, part of
Clayton's section of the trail, stands downstream within
sight of Covered Bridge Road. Wonder how many times the
trail will have to cross the river between Clayton and
Smithfield. That will depend on availability of
rights-of-way as well as topography.
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