| Preserving the legacy trails of the Carolina foothills hunting country |
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FETA Newsletter
Fall 2011 |
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| Greetings! |
Of the four President's Messages I write each year, the Fall Issue is my favorite. It isn't that the writing of the message is that much different than the other three. It's about what the season itself represents: thankfulness and gratitude in deep and diverse forms. Please forgive me in advance if this reads a bit like an Oscar acceptance speech!
First, I am thankful for the cool fall weather that is, blessedly, just around the corner. I am looking forward to opening the windows, giving our air conditioner a break, and taking full advantage of the reason we came here in the first place - our magnificent trail system and the astounding beauty of the foothills and mountains.
Of course, there is the deep sense of gratitude I feel towards every one of our 184 landowners. They allow us the use of their land for our equestrian endeavors. Because of their generosity, our 150 mile trail system is the envy of trail riders throughout the land. Please make it a point to come out to FENCE on Saturday evening, October 1st, to thank these unselfish individuals and families in person.
Then, there is the profound appreciation I feel towards the fourteen people who comprise our Board of Directors. Without their hard work, FETA would not be the strong, viable organization it is today. I could not do my job as president without their contributions. I am honored to serve with them on our board and consider myself lucky to be able to count them as friends.
Finally, I want to offer thanks to you, my fellow members at large, for the support shown to me and our board this summer as we steered the good ship FETA through some turbulent waters. The fact that so many of you took the time to offer encouragement and thank us for being there to make the tough calls meant the world to me. I look forward to seeing you, either at the barbeque at FENCE or at our upcoming trail workday, so I can thank you personally.
Happy Trails,
President Dan |
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| Member Invitation to Our Annual Meeting and BBQ | |
FETA Annual Meeting & BBQ
Saturday, October 1st at 6:00pm
The Main House at FENCE
FETA landowners and their families are our honored guests.
Please join us to say "Thanks"
for allowing us the privilege of riding these cherished trails.
BBQ with all the fixins, soft drinks and tea will be served.
Bring lawn chairs. |
| Trails Work Day October 15 |
 Saturday, October 15th
9am until Noon
FETA Parking Lot on Hooker Road
(near River Road and Scriven Road)
We are opening a beautiful new section of trails on Hooker Ridge. These trails will be a link to connect the trails on Rondo Ridge to the trails at Scriven Ridge. FETA members are needed to help clear the new trails. Bring water and a snack. We plan to finish around noon. Work to be done includes light clipping, dragging limbs and branches. Trails are hilly. Appropriate footwear is recommended. Bring gloves, rakes, shovels, nippers, clippers, long-handled loppers, and any hand tools that will make the task easier. Please call Dan Hecht at 828-894-2383 for more information. |
| FAQ: Why are the trails closed? |
 The FETA trail system encompasses a large part of southern Polk County with more than 150 miles of trail. All of the trails are on privately owned lands with a few exceptions like FENCE and along roads like River Road. The diversity of the system and the difficulty in managing portions of it separately require that we either open or close the system as a whole. In the first 15 days of August, the northern part of the system received 7.18 inches of rain, the southwestern end received 5.58, while the southeastern end received only 2.81 (www.cocorahs.org).
The worst impact to the trails is horses on them when they are wet. Shod horses can exert up to 1500 pounds per square inch on a trail. Our trails are not designed for heavy usage when conditions are wet. While the general rule-of-thumb is to close the trails when we get one inch of rain, it really depends on the condition of the trails. If it has been a wet period, then lesser amounts of rain will close the whole system; in dryer periods, trails may stay open. You must call each and every time you ride, even if it is on the same day!
FENCE vs FETA: When FETA trails are closed, FENCE trails are also closed. When the trails and FENCE are closed, you may ride along River Road and Carriage Row, but you cannot ride across a closed trail to get there, nor may you venture off the roads onto a trail. If you get caught, your membership will probably be suspended.
Gates: Leave a gate in the same position you found it. Don't presume you know what the owner wants. If you have a question, call someone. If a parking area gate is closed, don't open it to park and ride. If the trails are closed, your membership may be suspended.
If you have questions about the trails, or to report a violation, please call or text the FETA Trailmaster at 828-275-2873
Thank you,
Dave Smith |
| Favoite Loop: From Peniel Parking to Hughes Creek Preserve Trails |
 Park at Peniel Parking.
Ride around the edge of the field until you cross Peniel Road onto McIntyre Trail. Follow McIntyre through a total of four gates, making sure the two inside gates are closed after you pass through them.
Cross Henderson Road and turn left for 100 feet, then right onto Maude Carr's trail system. Take Orchard Grass straight ahead, keeping the field on your left and the woods on your right until you come to an entrance into the woods in the corner of the field.
NOTE: There is one entrance there that is clearly marked NO FETA. This is a private trail. Please respect the owner's wishes.
Once into the woods, follow the trail out of the woods, up a hill with a meadow to your left, back into the woods, until you reach another large field. Turn right on Barn Trail toward Golf Course Road. Follow the trail until it turns sharply left along a fence line. At the end of the fence, turn right onto Hidden Hollow trail and follow it 100 feet or so to Golf Course Road. Cross the road, enter Mike's Way.
Mike's Way takes you down and across Little Mountain Road to the Bridge Trail. You are in Hughes Creek Preserve, formerly called Little Mountain Trails.
Take either the Bridge Trail to the right, or Preservation Trail to the left from Mike's Trail. The Bridge Trail will take you to Preservation. Follow Preservation until you get to Hawk's View. Taking Hawk's View to the right or left will take you in a long loop, back to Preservation. Retrace your route home. Be sure to pack water and a snack. This is a long ride.
McIntyre - 2633 feet
Orchard Grass - 2828 feet
Woods - 2113 feet
Barn Trail - 1397 feet
Hidden Hollow to Mike's - 482 feet
Mikes to Preservation to the left - 1369 feet
Preservation - 1.55 miles
Hawk's View - 3.4 miles
There and back is 7.2 miles plus Hawk's View of 3.4 is a total of 10.6 miles. Not a bad ride at all! Just think, if you were on the range, you would just about be getting to the first fence to mend and the sun is just barely up. |
| Riding in our Region: Big Creek in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park | |
 My favorite ride. It is in the backcountry; primitive and serene. The trail leading out of the Big Creek Horse Camp is an old logging road. It follows Big Creek, a rushing body of water that flows into the Pigeon River at Waterville. There are boulders the size of small houses. We ride Big Creek to the back country horse camp at Low Gap and stop for our lunch break then retrace the ride. This particular route is ten miles round trip. You can continue on to the camp in Cosby, TN or make a 20-mile loop up to Mt. Cammerer at 4,928 feet in elevation.
The trail is rocky. There is a sliding rock at Mouse Falls popular with campers. You are most likely to pass more hikers on the weekend or when school is out. You may encounter youngsters on the first half mile of the trail enroute to the swimming hole. I have passed baby strollers and kids twirling beach towels. Make sure your horse is broke to this kind of activity. On one ride, Bergen and I stopped for lunch at the bridge at Low Gap. Our deadbroke geldings became uneasy. I noticed the tree where Lance was tied had a fresh claw mark. A bear had just passed through and turned over the ground at the base of the trees looking for food. We put our lunch back in our saddle bags and skedaddled. You can see photos from past rides at my Facebook page (including the tree with the claw mark).
Getting to Big Creek Horse Camp is easy. It's about 90 miles from Tryon. Take I-40 west to the first Tennessee exit, Waterville #451. Turn left at the end of the ramp. Cross the bridge over the Pigeon River. Turn left, following the river. At the stop sign, continue straight onto the gravel road. There is a sign for Big Creek. The ranger station is on the right. Pass the ranger station, cross the narrow bridge and turn left into the day parking area or horse camp.
Faith Jorgenson |
| Trail Notices |
 Gated entrance to Chinquapin Farm from FENCE will be closed during all hunter/jumper shows. The gate will remain open during all other shows.
Check the FENCE website for show dates and plan your ride accordingly.
Parking areas are listed in Winter, Spring, and Summer 2011 editions of your newsletter. Check the newsletter archive for this list. |
| Hunting Season | | Hunting season is upon us. It is a good idea to wear orange (vest, helmet cover, saddle pad) and make noise. Wearing a bear bell will help make your presence known. Bells may be purchased at camping stores or Wal-mart. They have a convenient mesh cover with a magnet to silence the bell when not in use.
Hunting is legal in the FETA area. We cannot specifically warn when hunters are out so expect them and use common sense. For more information on dates and regulations check out the website for North Carolina Department of Natural Resources
Archery: Sept 12 - Oct 1
Oct 17 - Nov 19
Muzzleloader: Oct 3 - Oct 15
Gun: Nov 21 - Dec 10
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| Bee Alert | |
This is the time of year to be on the alert for bees. The two most common we encounter are:
Both build paper nests and have colonies of hundreds of individuals. If you are riding with someone who is allergic to bee stings, you should know what to do if they are stung and have a reaction. A severe reaction is commonly called Anaphylactic Shock. More information can be found at http://www.hmc.psu.edu/healthinfo/b/beesting.htmnclude. |
| Agreement Review | | Membership renewal for 2011 is in full swing. Following is an abbreviated list of what we agree to each time we renew our FETA membership. Abide by these simple rules. The future of our trail system depends on responsible member participation.
- FETA trails are on private property. Riding is a privilege, not a right
- Members only
- Guests permitted with a signed release before you ride
- Members must accompany guests on the trails
- Maximum of 6 riders in a group
- Stay off trails when they are closed
- Trails are for mounted riding or carriage driving; no ponying
- Riders/drivers must wear a helmet
- Practice safe horsemanship; no cantering around pastures or barns
- Be courteous and appreciative to landowners
- No dogs, no smoking, no drinking, no litter
- FETA tag on the left side of your saddle or bridle; gladly show your tag if asked
- Decal on driver's side rear window or lower corner of driver's side front window
- Boarders must be riding members
No landowners, no trails. Protecting our landowers is paramount to preserving our trail privilege. Violations of this agreement have resulted in warnings, suspensions, and termination of membership. Protect the trails. Ride by the rules. |
| Guest Release Clause From Your FETA Membership Rules Agreement |
- Members must obtain a properly executed Guest Release Agreement and return it to FETA by mail, fax, or place it in the parking lot mailboxes PRIOR to trail use.
- Members may only bring personal guests who have not directly or indirectly paid for their recreational use. No commercial use of any type is permitted.
- Members are legally responsible for their guest(s), including any liability or damages resulting from any accident, injury, loss or damage, including death.
- Local residents may only ride once per month as any member's guest.
- Employees and trainers who use the Property more than once per month in total must have their own FETA membership.
- Members must accompany their guests at all times, and are responsible for their compliance with the Rules.
- A Guest must carry a guest tag and Current Coggins test.
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Questions or comments? Board members are happy to talk to you any time. They are:
Dan Hecht, President Faith Jorgenson, Communications
Dot Moyer, Vice President Roberta Axelrod, Membership
Judith Kerns, Secretary Rhonda King, Member Relations
Anne Swift, Treasurer Bill Beardslee, Finance
Dave Smith, Trails Chair
At large members: Maude Carr, Holly Dake, Gail Gardner, Nancy Mahler, Ric Rondell, Tina Walker
Trail Area Representatives are:
Nancy: Chinquapin Farm Dot: Pretty Bottom, Stonybrook
Rhonda: Pony Track, Hunting Woods Judith: River Rd, Carriage Row
Faith, Bill: Hunting Country Rd to River Rd Dan, Roberta, Dave: North Peniel Trails
Ric: Rondo Ridge, River's Edge Maude, Tina: Little Mountain Trails
Anne: FENCE
FETA's Board meets the 4th Tuesday evening of the month at 6:30. All members are welcome to attend, raise questions or issues at the start of the meeting, or just observe. Contact Dan Hecht for location. No July or December meeting. |
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Faith Jorgenson
Foothills Equestrian Trails Association
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