Those of us in central North Carolina are fortunate to have an extensive trail network, with options including Umstead Park, the southern, cinder-dust portion of the American Tobacco Trail, and the amazing trails of Carolina North.
In today’s Chapel Hill News (article here), Randy Young reveals our best local running secret: the Historic Occoneechee Speedway Trail, a former NASCAR speedway that’s now abandoned and overgrown by trees. The trail network includes a mile or so of singletrack along the banks of the Eno River, and an oval-shaped track of 1400m or so, the remnant of the mile track where the stock cars used to race. You can see trail information and directions here, and a history of the races here. It’s such a cool site—a great place for diehard trail runners to sneak in track workouts.
Do you have a favorite secret trail near you?