The Mountains-to-Sea-Trail is getting a new coastal plains route that will take it away from the Neuse River. The new path tracks through an area of geological significance called the Cape Fear Arch.
It'll also add about 150 miles to the length of the trail. Kate Dixon is executive director of the citizens group Friends of the Mountains to-Sea-Trail. She says the hikers will see what is considered one of the most important natural areas in the whole northern hemisphere...
"Lots and lots of public land, really incredible places.. lots of places for people to see - as well as lots of human history of civil war and revolutionary war history as well as great small towns. It's just a really fun part of North Carolina," says Dixon.
Dixon adds that people who hike the trail are sure to get a very unique experience...
"They're really feel like they not only see this diverse natural beauty of North Carolina but they also meet people and get to see historic sites," Dixon says. "They get to know the state in a way they never envisioned before. And people who've lived in North Carolina their whole lives think they knew it but they go into communities they've never heard of before and it's just really neat."
Dixon's group is working on a turn-by-turn map of the new sections of trail that will be released later this summer. Camping locations along the route are also being sourced.
