Projects – Page 3 – Nature Trails

Raleigh Private Bike Park

Client: John T. Location: Raleigh, NC John is a new mountain biker who started building a pump track in his front yard in his spare time, but soon realized that building trails is a lot of work! Determined to have trails at his house, John contacted us to design and build him a private bike park where he could improve his current skills and leave plenty of room to improve over time. Our design increases in speed and obstacle size as the trail progresses downhill along his property. Beginning with a straight pump track of 6 rollers, the trail then encounters a 180 degree righthand berm to direct you into two small tabletop jumps. Following the tabletops, the trail berms left into a wooden roller that drops over a retaining wall and into a downhill roller - berm - roller that hits the crescendo with a huge 180 righthand berm with a 6ft curved wall ride! Exiting the wallride, the return trail...

Galloway Ridge Nature Preserve – Phase II

Client: Galloway Ridge Location: Pittsboro, NC After completing the dog park and first walking trail at Galloway Ridge, the residents were so enthusiastic that they immediately expressed interest in having more trail built so that they could enjoy the beautiful wooded areas surrounding the property. We were more than happy to respond and tackle a unique piece of land with several lowland areas by expanding the Chapel Hill grit trail system and using puncheon bridges to span several primary drainage locations. In addition, we constructed a large native cedar trailhead arch at the new entrance as well as using cedar and cypress branches to create a decorative screen around some unsightly electrical panels. ...

Raleigh Private Walking Trail

Trail Steps & Bench-cut Photos Client: Anna T. Location: Raleigh, NC Anna and her husband have a beautiful wooded lot in the heart of Raleigh near the NC State campus. They contacted us to create a path for their family to be able to walk down a steep hillside behind their house for their children to explore safely. Our solution was to build approximately 250ft of single-track trail with several grade reversals to manage the water flow. At the bottom of the trail, we cut sharply down the final grade with 17 steps built with 6x6 pressure treated lumber, backfilled with crushed stone. The crushed stone helps shed mud when walking back from the creek as well as ensuring many years of durability regardless of the creek level. ...

SIM USA ‘Back 40’ Trail Master Plan

Digital Trail Map .embed-container {position: relative; padding-bottom: 80%; height: 0; max-width: 100%;} .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container iframe{position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%;} small{position: absolute; z-index: 40; bottom: 0; margin-bottom: -15px;} Trail Planning & Construction Photos Client: SIM USA Location: Charlotte, NC SIM USA is a global missionary organization dedicated to improving the world through prayer and care. Their people travel the world to improve the lives of those less fortunate by providing healthcare, clean water, shelter, and hope. They contacted us to transform 40 acres at the US headquarters in Charlotte, NC into a natural haven for their guests who return home to reflect and connect with nature. We started by developing a Trail Master Plan that would guide the future construction and development of the property for several years. Next, we developed a construction budget with their land stewardship committee and set out for the first phase of construction. We're happy to say that visitors to SIM USA now...

Galloway Ridge Nature Preserve & Dog Park – Phase I

Walking Trail & Dog Park Photos Client: Galloway Ridge Location: Pittsboro, NC Galloway Ridge at Fearrington Village is a quaint retirement community located in Chatham County just outside of Pittsboro, NC. They reached out to Nature Trails wanting to make use of a wooded buffer around their property and to give residents a place to walk their dogs and get exercise in the shade. Our solution was to build a 1/2 acre dog park that maintained all of the large tree canopy and add a 4ft wide Chapel Hill grit walking trail around the dog park. Later, we added another 1/2 mile extension to the trail to include two additional access locations, a natural cedar trailhead arch, and two beautiful wetland boardwalks! The residents have been so pleased that future expansions are expected soon....

Well of Mercy Property Map

Illustrated Trail Map Before & After Photos Client: Well of Mercy Location: Hamptonville, NC The Well of Mercy is a secluded adult wellness retreat in Hamptonville, NC. We were brought in to do a trail assessment and professionally map the property. Over the years, a hand drawn watercolor map was created, but it was not to scale and lacked necessary detail for proper navigation. We created an enhanced property map to scale while maintaining the hand drawn feel while adding key wayfinding elements and signage to improve the overall guest experience....

Lake Gaston Private Pump Track

Pump Track Construction Photos Client: Aaron H. Location: Lake Gaston, NC Aaron has a lake house in North Carolina and wanted to make use of his wooded lot to create a fun area for his son and he to ride bikes together. We created a small 30'x45' pump track with 1,000ft of winding single track surrounding it....

Briar Chapel Skills Park

Trail Building & Construction Photos Client: Triangle Off-Road Cyclists (TORC) Location: Chapel Hill, NC We were thrilled to partner with Newland Communities, Briar Chapel's HOA, REI, and Triangle Off-Road Cyclists (TORC) to build the first bicycle skills park in Chatham County. Briar Chapel has been a growing destination for mountain bikers in the Piedmont region and now it has even more reason to attract visitors. In designing and building the skills park, we focused on three main goals: Sustainability - Build features and obstacles to minimize erosion and that can be easily maintained by volunteers. Each run aligns with natural topography and includes subsurface drain systems and natural rock reinforcements where needed. Accessibility - All constructed trails were designed to integrate seamlessly with existing infrastructure. The staging area and return paths use existing trail to minimize new construction and provide convenient access to parking and local dining at the Veranda shopping center. Safe Learning - Each obstacle is designed to have progressive options scaling up from the...