The Eno River, at a somewhat underwhelming 40-miles in length, might seem to get get more attention than it deserves. I'm here to tell you, it ought to get more. This short tributary of the Neuse River is one of the most pristine and scenic waterways in the Piedmont and perhaps anywhere in North Carolina. It's clear waters surrounded by lush forests and sprinkled with boulders and ledges provide a wonderfully wild place to escape and unwind in a region of North Carolina becoming increasingly filled by people and development.

Eno River State Park, established in 1975, protects some 9-miles of this valuable waterway within it's 3,900 acres. Five main access areas provide a gateway to the river and also a fairly extensive network of trails. On this day I'd be heading for the Few's Ford Access, the westernmost in the park. My intent was to follow a figure-eight loop of the Buckquarter Creek and Holden's Mill Trails past some of the most rugged portions of the river as well as a couple historic sites dating back to when this stretch of river bottom was a busy commercial location. Numerous mills and home-sites have been located along the Eno in the last 250 years but little remains but piles of stone and old foundations. It was my intent to experience both a bit of the history of the Eno as well as its widely acclaimed scenic beauty. It was a hot one this day, but it was time to put a few more miles on my boots and explore yet another of North Carolina's State Park gems...

Trailhead GPS Coordinates: 36.078024, -79.007112

Route Type: Loop Difficulty: MODERATE (Petzoldt Rating: 4.90 )

Hike Length: 4.5 miles Hike Duration: 2:00

Trailhead Temp: 90'F Trail Traffic: 25-50 people

Min. Elevation: 425' Max. Elevation: ~600'

Total Vertical Gain: 200' Avg. Elevation Gain / Mile: 45'

Trails Used (blaze color): Buckquarter Creek (red), Holden Mill (yellow)

8-21-2014

Eno River State Park (4.5 miles; d=4.90)

Eno River State Park Hike Route Map
The approximate track of my hike at Few's Ford Access, in Eno River State Park, as depicted a la Google Earth...
Eno River State Park Hike Route Map
The approximate track of my hike at Few's Ford Access, in Eno River State Park...
Eno River State Park - Few's Ford Entrance
Welcome to the Few's Ford Access area of Eno River State Park, the westernmost portion of the park...
Visitor Center
The small visitor center is tucked neatly into the trees. I was a bit disappointed to find a complete lack of exhibits on the park, however. Frustrating as I know this area has both an interesting cultural as well as natural history...
Piper-Cox House
My hike for the day began adjacent to the historic Piper-Cox House. Unfortunately the park has not felt the need to place any informational boards around explaining the history of the home so I'm a little lacking for a story here. I did find out it was built in the mid to late-1800's and was one of the finer houses in the region. The back of the house appears to be the original part of the home with the front being added later...
Piper-Cox House
A look at what I assume to be the older, possibly original, portion of the Piper-Cox Home. Another rather disappointing discovery was that the historic home seems to be a huge storage unit for the park as I discovered by looking in a couple windows...
Piper-Cox House
Lying next to the home was a piece of the old mill which operated nearby...
Piper-Cox House
The only shot of the interior of the house I could get without modern tools and equipment in it...
Piper-Cox House
A few hundred feet down the hill from the house is the old spring which supplied water for the farmstead...
Few's Ford
Starting the hike with a quick walk down to Few's Ford...
Few's Ford
Few's Ford, I found out later, has quite a long history. The land surrounding the ford was first settled in 1758 by a man named William Few, Sr. Over the last 250 years the site has had a busy history. A small community sprouted up around it complete with mills and a tavern. Today nothing remains of the ford's rich history and once again looks much the same as it did prior to 1758...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
Heading out on the Buckquarter Creek Trail...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
The signage at the beginning of the trail was a bit lacking. Due to heavy traffic from folks swimming nearby there is a bit of a maze of trails in the first tenth of a mile. The actual Buckquarter Creek Trail continues on past this sign for the group campground...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
A few trees early on in the hike had taken on a rather unsettling lean over the trail...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
The terrain was fairly hilly though not enough to really wear you out at any point...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
Passing through a dry wash. In periods after heavy rains there are more than a few places along this trail where one would have to hop across small streams...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
There were a plethora of mushrooms along this hike so I decided it would be appropriate to include a few like this, the Emetic (or Vomiting) Russula. You can tell by its alternate name what is likely to happen to you if you try to eat this one...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
Not sure what these guys are called but I like em...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
With temps topping 90 I was very appreciative of the abundant shade...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
About a half mile or so in I passed this curious collection of stones. It looked to me like the remains of an old foundation...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
Passing the junction with the Ridge Trail, I'd be continuing on the Buckquarter Creek Trail to the left...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
As I reached the flatlands surrounding Buckquarter Creek the forest floor greened up quite a bit with tall grasses...
Buckquarter Creek Trail
After about a mile I reached the foot bridge across Buckquarter Creek which would take me over to the Holden Mill Trail...
Holden Mill Trail
The lush but rather unimpressive Buckquarter Creek from the foot bridge...
Holden Mill Trail
I decided it was high time I actually saw the Eno so I made a left off the bridge towards the river...
Holden Mill Trail
I reached the Eno where Buckquarter Creek joined it as well...
Holden Mill Trail
For the next mile or so I'd have the Eno River as a close companion...
Holden Mill Trail
Though quite rocky, the Eno was very, very calm...
Holden Mill Trail
Huge logs strewn across the forest floor tell of a much larger and angrier Eno River in the past...
Holden Mill Trail
A short side path led down to this pleasant shoal where I could enjoy the river as it lazily made its way past my feet...
Holden Mill Trail
About a half mile up the Holden Mill Trail the hillsides ascending from the river became much steeper, strewn with countless small boulders...
Holden Mill Trail
One of many tranquil spots I passed along the Eno...
Holden Mill Trail
The water is incredibly clear, allowing you to see every submerged rock ledge and boulder beneath the river...
Holden Mill Trail
Things start to get a bit more interesting...
Holden Mill Trail
Crossing a large rock ledge which protrudes right out into the river. Fun to cross but man was it HOT...
Holden Mill Trail
More large rock formations balanced above me along the river bank...
Holden Mill Trail
A small rapids with conveniently placed rocks allow for a pretty place to hop out into the river without getting my feet wet...
Holden Mill Trail
The sounds and sights of the Eno River along the Holden Mill Trail...
Holden Mill Trail
This could almost be counted as a waterfall in these parts...
Holden Mill Trail
Above the rapids the trail crossed even more open rock slabs...I was starting to feel like I was back in the mountains...
Holden Mill Trail
Making a quick, steep climb up and around one of the larger shoreline outcrops...
Holden Mill Trail
The Eno River was certainly surprising me with its ruggedness...
Holden Mill Trail
Its hard in places like this to not let your troubles slip away for a few moments...
Holden Mill Trail
The Holden Mill Trail making a turn away from the river...
Holden Mill Trail
The Eno River as seen from the Holden Mill Trail...
Holden Mill Trail
The Eno River as seen from the Holden Mill Trail...
Holden Mill Trail
Where the Holdens Mill Trail turns inland a spur trail continues west for those that want to visit the old mill site...
Holdens Mill Spur Trail
The spur trail out to the mill site offers still more tranquil river-side views...

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Eno River State Park

Eno River State Park (4.5 miles; d=4.90)

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