Popular trails in the Shining Rock and Middle Prong Wilderness along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Haywood County, North Carolina are included in a trail improvement plan for the Pisgah National Forest.
“Each year, several million visitors come to experience the natural beauty and rich history of the Pisgah,” said Dave Casey, the head ranger for the Pisgah district of the Pisgah National Forest.
The Pisgah district has 380 miles of trails that “are well- loved by locals,” but have also become a national travel destination, said Casey.
The popularity of outdoor recreation in the Pisgah Ranger district prompted the creation of long-range recreation plan to shore up trails. Trails that are over-used or poorly designed have eroded into deep trenches. Wear-and-tear from pounding feet, bike tires and horse hooves are exacerbated by the elements.
“The project is not intended to address all possible improvements on the Pisgah Ranger District, but includes timely projects that consider the social, ecological, and economic elements of sustainable recreation,” said Casey.
The plan calls for rerouting trail segments that are too steep, too eroded to fix or too close to streams. The plan also calls for connecting trails to make more loop routes and reducing conflicts between hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians.
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I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, producer of this blog, and passionate about hiking. I live in Western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my door, so the content will focus on these areas, but let me know what you would like to see on the site. 
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