Reedy Creek Park and Nature Preserve: Robinson Rockhouse (Blog Hike #296)

Trails: Dragonfly Pond, Sassafras, Sierra Loop, Robinson Rockhouse, South Fork, and Umbrella Tree Trails

Hike Location: Reedy Creek Park and Nature Preserve

Geographic Location: east side of Charlotte, NC (35.26279, -80.71977)

Length: 3.3 miles

Difficulty: 4/10 (Easy/Moderate)

Dates Hiked: March 2010, August 2014

Overview: A mostly easy loop featuring the Robinson Rockhouse ruins.

Park Information: https://parkandrec.mecknc.gov/Places-to-Visit/Nature/reedy-creek-nature-center

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=941304
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: On the east side of Charlotte, take I-485 to Rocky River Road (exit 36).  Exit and go west on Rocky River Rd.  Take Rocky River Rd. 2.7 miles to the signed park entrance on the left.  Turn left to enter the park, and follow signs along the main park road for the Nature Center.  Be careful driving over the speed bumps on the park road: they may be higher than you think.  Park in the large blacktop parking lot for the Nature Center.

The hike: Preserving 727 acres of succession forest in rapidly developing eastern Mecklenburg County, the land today designated as Reedy Creek Park and Nature Preserve has a long history of occupation by white settlers.  The first known white man to occupy this land was John Selwyn, who received a deed for the land from King George of England in 1745.  In 1767, Selwyn sold the land to the Robinsons who built the rock house featured on this hike.

For the next 200 years the land would be subdivided and farmed by numerous families.  In 1981, the City of Charlotte purchased the land to form Reedy Creek Park.  In 1991, park divisions of the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County merged, and in 1997 a master plan for the park was developed.  Today, the park has two fishing ponds, three baseball fields, a dog park, several picnic areas, a disc golf course, and a Nature Center constructed in 1992.

            Although the Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation Department manages many parks throughout North Carolina’s most populous county, most of these parks are small community parks with only a picnic shelter and a playground.  Only 4 of the county’s parks have well-developed nature trail systems, of which Reedy Creek is one.  The highlight of the trail system is the Robinson Rockhouse ruins, the remains of a house built in the late 1700’s.  This hike explores the natural areas of the park while taking you to the ruins with minimal backtracking.

Trailhead: Dragonfly Pond Trail

            Start by picking up the signed gravel Dragonfly Pond Trail which leaves from the left (east) side of the parking area.  Immediately the trail, which is blazed with green squares, enters the young forest.  The forest at Reedy Creek is dominated by maple and beech trees, but a few red cedars still hang on from this land’s early days after farming.  The cedars, however, are slowly losing the battle for sunlight to their taller broadleaf counterparts.  After topping a small rise, the trail begins a gradual descent toward its namesake pond.  Where a side trail exits left and heads for Kingfisher Pond, continue straight to remain on the Dragonfly Pond Trail.

            At 0.3 miles, Dragonfly Pond comes into view on the left as you begin paralleling the southwest bank of the pond.  On the wet, chilly March day I visited this pond, there was very little activity of the human or animal variety.  Some fishing piers can be seen across the pond, and the park’s main picnic area can be seen uphill in the background.

Dragonfly Pond

            At 0.6 miles, you will reach a trail intersection at the dam that forms Dragonfly Pond.  The Dragonfly Pond Trail continues straight and, in only 0.4 more miles, returns to the Nature Center parking lot.  Our hike turns left to cross the dam.  On the other side of the dam, angle right to pick up the Sassafras Trail, which is gravel and blazed with black squares.

Wide Sassafras Trail

            At first the wide gravel trail stays close to Reedy Creek, which can be seen downhill to the right, but soon a sharp left curve leaves the creek behind.  Ignore the Sierra Loop (the first time) and continue a gradual climb on the Sassafras Trail.  At the top of this climb and just before the Sassafras Trail ends at the main picnic area, turn right at the second junction with the Sierra Loop to remain in the natural area.  Unlike the wide gravel trails you have treaded up to this point, the dirt yellow-triangle-blazed Sierra Loop provides more of a true nature preserve feel.  The Sierra Loop was constructed by the Central Piedmont chapter of the Sierra Club, so we can thank them for this excellent hiking experience.

            1.1 miles into the hike, the Sierra Loop passes a couple of large, interesting granite boulders that seem out of place in the relatively flat North Carolina Piedmont.  Soon the trail executes a sweeping right turn to gradually descend to cross a small tributary of Reedy Creek.  A final upland section remains before heading around another sweeping right turn at 1.7 miles into the hike, or 0.75 miles into the Sierra Loop, as indicated by one of the wooden mileage posts that appear every 0.25 miles along this trail.

Hiking the Sierra Loop

            Just before closing the Sierra Loop at its first intersection with the Sassafras Trail, the trail reaches the bank of Reedy Creek and a major trail intersection.  We will cross Reedy Creek on the wooden bridges heading straight shortly, but first turn left on the orange-circle-blazed Robinson Rockhouse Trail to head to the featured attraction of this hike.  As I found out when I hiked this trail in a rain shower, this is the wettest trail in the park.  Fortunately, the worst of the wetness comes in the first 200 feet, so if you can navigate the first bit, the rest should be manageable.

            2.4 miles into the hike, you reach the ruins of the Robinson Rockhouse.  The house was built just slightly uphill from the creek, a reliable water source for the entire year, and this is where you will find the crumbling rock walls today.  When the house was built in the late 1700’s (1790 seems to be the most popular date), most residents of the Carolina Piedmont were building houses out of wood.  Thus, a stone house such as this one was a symbol of wealth and prominence.  Some interpretive signs tell you more about the house and the people who built it.  This makes a great point to stop, have a snack, and imagine what this agricultural area must have looked like around the time this house was built.

Robinson Rockhouse

            The Robinson Rockhouse Trail ends at the ruins, so you must now backtrack to the major trail intersection and turn left to cross a large tributary to Reedy Creek on a nice wooden footbridge.  Across this first bridge, you reach the other half of the major trail intersection.  The Sierra Loop heads right and quickly leads back to the gravel Sassafras Trail.  For more solitude and to remain in the less developed southern part of the park longer, I recommend angling left to begin the South Fork Trail, which is blazed with red squares.

            The South Fork Trail immediately crosses Reedy Creek on another wooden footbridge.  Notice the steepness of the creek banks here.  An interpretive sign tells you that this channel is not natural; rather, farmers straightened the creek’s original channel to improve irrigation and water flow for their creekside fields.  Now on the west side of Reedy Creek, the eroded trail climbs moderately to leave the floodplain before flattening out on the ridgetop.

Large trees on South Fork Trail

            At 2.9 miles, the short South Fork Trail ends at a junction with the Umbrella Tree Trail, so named for the large leaves of the magnolia trees that will be found near this intersection.  Turn right to continue the gradual climb away from Reedy Creek.  At 3.1 miles, you will arrive at a small tall grass prairie planting.  Before this land was farmed, much of it would have been covered with plants such as those you see here.  Today, however, only this small patch of prairie remains.

Hiking beside the prairie

            Past the prairie, another short stint through the forest will lead you to the gravel Nature Center driveway where the Umbrella Tree Trail ends.  Turning left will lead you to the Nature Center, which contains some interesting exhibits on the ruins you saw earlier.  Turning right will lead you back to the Nature Center parking lot and your car, thus completing the hike.