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C M Y K
THE NEWS & OBSERVER
Life, etc.
Ma
The American Tobacco Campus/downtown Durham:
Plan to end your trip at the northern trailhead,
then head across Morehead Avenue and under
the Durham Freeway to the American Tobacco
Campus for pizza, sushi, a brewski or coffee in
the courtyard.
Ma
in
22 miles
oro
W Water
Cor
nwa
llis
BYP
15
501
H Horse trailer
access
751
BUS
15
501
F Food
Forest
Hills Park
Rd
.
Fw
y.
Ro
xb
R Restrooms
Creek
Busy intersection
Primeval forest:
1 MILE
c
Ro
A mile-long stretch of forest shrouded
in kudzu shuts out the neighborhoods
and businesses that lie just beyond.
k
Rock
Creek
spur
20.1 miles
Rd.
Ri
dd
le
15
501
St
.
am
rh
Du
P Parking
Susie Post Rust
pauses as she
rides with
daughter Rosie,
in carrier, and
son John on the
Durham portion
of the American
Tobacco Trail
near the Durham
Bulls Athletic
Park.
98
Durham Bulls
Athletic Park
St.
KEY
P W R
ng
um
F
5E
St
.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 2007
Riddle
Road
spur
Open late:
19.1 miles
Mar
.
wy
Pk
F
Jr
.
Pkw
y.
Rd.
lle
Ba
rbe
e
Creek
Rd.
Vall
ey
Ho
pe
Woodcroft
Solite
Park 18.25 miles
.
St
vi
tte
ye
a
F
er
Ki
ng
17.8 miles
16.6 miles
Th
ird
Jordan Lake
game lands
Lut
h
.
Rd
DURHAM
Fork
tin
P W R
llis
wa
rn
Co
The American Tobacco Trail is open dawn to dusk,
except for a 6.6-mile section from N.C. 54 north to
downtown Durham. To accommodate a growing
number of commuters, this section of the trail is
open 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Southpoint Crossing shopping center:
P W R
A good place to start and end your
trip, with water, restrooms and various
types of food.
15.4 miles
Missing
bridge
40
Streets at
Southpoint
mall
Creek
Rd.
54
.
Rd
Gr
an
Massey Chapel
Fayett
eville
le
Hop
e
le
.
Dr
t
Lit
P
13 miles
Water warning:
There is no water
south of here.
Plan accordingly.
Ne
w
k
ee
Cr
P W R
C.M. Herndon Park
Creek
Don’t ford the creek:
d
DURHAM CO.
WAKE CO.
Bridge-to-Bridge stretch:
The most natural part of the
trail. Unimproved surface keeps
the aerobic types away, making
for a more peaceful, solitary
saunter. Eventually, most of this
4.7-mile stretch through
Chatham County will consist of
a 10-foot-wide paved greenway
and a parallel 6-foot-wide
screened, crushed gravel
surface, making the 11.3-mile
Wake and Chatham sections
equestrian friendly. $2.2 million
has been awarded in grants for
this section of trail, including
two pedestrian bridges to be
built using the existing trestles.
The finished trail with bridges
could open by the end of 2008.
Cr
ee
k
k
Cree
Kit
Missing
bridge
O’
Ke
ll
y
ap
Northeast
751
Ch
el
Rd
.
9.75 miles
P
Ford the creek:
r
the
Pan
Though this bridge currently
consists only of supports
(and no decking), at low
water it is possible to cross
Panther Creek on foot. Watch
your footing, though; it’s a
steep drop down to the creek
— and an equally steep climb
up the other side.
ee
Cr
N
ch
an
Br
cy
an
k
ris
Branch
or
Ho
pe
er
wt
Le
R H
Bra
nch
Rd.
Level
e
mb
Wi
Cla
rk
c
an
Br
rly
P
3.65 miles
h
CHAT
HAM
WAKE CO.
CO.
h Rd.
Churc
Ford
Level
ch Rd.
Chur
Gre
en
Rocky
P
Green
k
Oa
Mill
Eventual connections with
Cary’s White Oak Creek
greenway. This greenway will
connect with the greenway at
Bond Park in Cary and run
through Umstead State Park
and into Raleigh, near N.C.
State. More than half of this
trail is complete.
ite
Wh
5.3 miles
Unfinished trail (this is roughly the route).
Rd.
White
ks
Creek
Oak
Rd.
n
Je
APEX
2.3 miles
Hardhat area:
If you are
out for a
nature walk,
try the part
of the trail
marked in
blue in the
map. But be
sure to carry
your own
water.
64
New
1.2 miles
Olive Cha
pel
Hi
ll -
Beavers at work:
Br
an
c
h
Watch for golf balls
from the adjoining
driving range.
e
Re
Rd.
dy
Mile marker:
A five-foot concrete obelisk
bearing a “16” is a remnant
of mile markers once found
along the old railroad.
Oliv
e
A stretch of dead trees
along the trail in wetlands
is the work of industrious
beavers who dammed a
stretch of Beaver Creek
about five years ago.
In the
Jordan Lake
Game Lands
you might
spot a box
turtle. The
Chatham
County
section is
the wildest
part of the
trail.
Future trails:
6.7 miles
Rd.
Shop
Currently, irregular surface consisting of
dirt and some crushed gravel. Eventually,
this section will be a 12-foot-wide paved
greenway.
ch
Rd
.
Am
Currently, an irregular surface consisting
of dirt and some crushed gravel.
Eventually, this section will consist of a
10-foot-wide paved greenway and an
adjoining 6-foot-wide path of screened,
crushed gravel.
On the Wake County end, the ATT runs across Beaver Creek in New Hill.
Other bridges need to be built to make the 22-mile trail complete.
Rd.
CARY
n
ca
i
r
e
Screened, crushed gravel
e
Stor
TRAIL SURFACES
Station
P
Tobacco Tra
il
La
ke
Cr
ee
k
n
dia
Fire
Yates
In
n
12-foot-wide paved greenway with
screened, crushed gravel shoulders.
Carpenter
.
Rd
New
M
Missing
bridge
Ch
urc
h
a
rd
Jo
an
Br
STAFF PHOTOS BY JULI LEONARD
RTP
10.8 miles
People have been known to
cross Northeast Creek —
including a trio of mountain
bikers. But we don’t know
how they did it and we
wouldn’t recommend it.
hen completed, the American Tobacco Trail will be the longest trail
in the Triangle, stretching 22 miles from western Wake County north
to downtown Durham. At present, about 20 miles of trail are open:
6.7. miles in Wake County, 4.7 miles in Chatham County and 9 in Durham County.
The main hurdles to completion: two bridges using old railroad trestles in Chatham
County and a pedestrian bridge over Interstate 40 in Durham near the Streets at
Southpoint mall. Because of these breaks, the trail is divided into four sections.
The ATT is the backbone of a Triangle-wide effort to link as many cities and neighborhoods by greenway and bike path as possible. In one such scenario — a scenario that is about three-quarters complete — using ATT and other greenways,
it will be possible to ride a bike, run or walk from Raleigh, through Umstead State
Park, Cary and Apex, then catch the ATT to downtown Durham.
We made the Wake County end of the trail our starting point at the bottom of
the map at left so the mileage marks are from south to north.
Scott King Rd.
11.8 miles
Cro
oke
DURHAM CO.
CHATHAM CO.
55
da
AMERICAN
TOBACCO
TRAIL
W
el
Chap
Cre
ek
r
ave
Be
Robert Frye
of Apex
walks his
dogs, Willy,
left, and
Jake, on the
ATT at New
Hill. Frye
walks the
trail two or
three times
a week.
DURHAM Area
shown
.
Rd
WAKE
Future trail:
CHATHAM
P
A 20-mile multiuse trail is
in early discussions. It
would extend to Harris
Lake County Park and on to
Raven Rock State Park on
the Cape Fear River. Its
working name: ATT South.
R
H
0 miles
Litt
le
Beaver
k
ee
Cr
Old
1
U.S.
STAFF ILLUSTRATION BY TOM MOSIER
5E-N, THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 2007
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C M Y K