1. It's HUGE. 5,579 acres to be exact. In comparison, New York City's Central Park is only 843 acres. The ENTIRE city of Raleigh is 89,550, so Umstead park makes up a little more than 6% of Raleigh's total acreage.
2. It's super accessible. There are two entrances: (1) Highway 70/Glenwood Avenue (between 540 and CarMax), and (2) Right off I-40, Exit 287 (Harrison Avenue). No winding backroads to navigate here.
3. Varied terrain. Depending on the type of outing you're looking for, there is a choice of wide gravel-paved paths, or rugged trail paths.
4. Hidden Gems. A lake only accessible by hiking trail; an abandoned grain mill; river crossings by narrow pedestrian bridges. The idea of hiking/running to something vs. just hiking/running makes the journey that much more enjoyable.
5. Hills. I don't care what people say, Raleigh really doesn't have that many hills. And I miss hills. So its nice to see some healthy inclines every now an then, even if they're only there to make room for the river laying at the bottom.
6. Tree, Trees, Trees. I would even venture to call it a forest. And on a hot day (like today, when it was already 82 F at 11am), this can make all the difference in the world. In the fall, it's a great place to enjoy the changing colors.
This morning as I contemplated taking my dog out for a nice healthy walk, Umstead seemed like the perfect place. I wanted to go somewhere that would allow us to escape the bright sun and rising temperatures, but still provide for a nice Sunday morning adventure. So I made the quick trip over to the Harrison Avenue Entrance, and began the trek down to the Company Mill Site. The views of the creek at the end of the hike are spectacular. Definitely one of my favorite hikes in the Triangle. And so much fun to splash around in the water a bit on a hot day. Here are a few pics from the excursion:
The Barkley!
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