(828) 526-0173 | [email protected] | Copyright 2024 – All Rights Reserved.
National Trails Day, Panthertown Valley
Written By: Jason Kimenker - Friends of Panthertown | Issue: 2018/05 - May
On National Trails Day, Saturday, June 2, local non-profit Friends of Panthertown will host an informal Picnic in Panthertown at the Salt Rock Gap overlook in Panthertown Valley from 11:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. and a Panthertown Valley Expo at Sapphire Valley Community Center from 2:00 to 4:00 P.M. Both events are free and open to the public. Everyone is welcome.
For the Picnic in Panthertown, bring your own chairs or a blanket, gather your friends, and pack a picnic lunch to enjoy at the Salt Rock Gap overlook. There will be an opportunity to go hiking and explore Panthertown both before and after the picnic. Maps will be available.
After the picnic, head over to the Sapphire Valley Community Center anytime between 2:00 and 4:00 P.M. for a Panthertown Valley Expo. Experts will be on hand to provide information and answer your questions about exploring Panthertown, including hiking, mountain biking, riding horses, fishing, birding, and rock climbing. There will be door prizes and giveaways, including maps and t-shirts, plus an opportunity to sign up for summertime guided hikes into Panthertown.
Friends of Panthertown is the 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that protects and maintains more than 30 miles of public trails in Panthertown Valley, a 6,300-acre backcountry recreational area in the Nantahala National Forest. Panthertown offers some of the most scenic public trails in the area.
Salt Rock Gap in Panthertown is located at the end of Breedlove Road in Cashiers. Parking is limited along the bumpy quarter-mile USFS gravel road leading to the trailhead. Signs will be posted at the trailhead directing hikers to the nearby picnic site located about an eighth of a mile from the parking area. In case of rain, the picnic will instead be located at Sapphire Valley Community Center where the Expo will also be held.
Sapphire Valley Community Center is located at 100 Cherokee Trail in Sapphire.
Contact [email protected] or visit panthertown.org for more info on these and other events, including a presentation on August 18 by Jennifer Pharr Davis, hiker, author, speaker, and National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, who has covered over 12,000 miles of long distance trails on six continents and holds the overall record for fastest known time on the Appalachian Trail.
