June 2025 Newsletter

ROC Newsletter June 2025

Thank you for being an ROC supporter!

Check out our website for this month’s events, information on the ROC Race Series, local trails, and more.

June Newsletter

Welcome to all of our new and returning ROC members and sponsors!

Caroline Edwards

Joshua Hewitt

Wayne Schwiegerath

The support we receive from memberships helps us to continue improving local trails, lead group hikes and river floats, and create new outdoor programs. Membership is only $35 for individuals and families, and $100 for businesses. We also offer multiple sponsorship opportunities for businesses to help expand and enhance outdoor recreation in Rutherford County.

Members get discounts at Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park, Barley’s Taproom, Copper Penny, Main Street Coffee, The Scoop, and recently added: Grumpy’s Bike Shop! Grumpy’s is located across the street from the ROC Office on W. Main St. in Spindale. Check them out for all your biking needs and great service!

Click the link below for more details about becoming a member.

ROC Monthly Meeting

Join us to hear about all the latest with ROC – including recent updates, upcoming events, how you can get involved with our mission, and more. All are welcome!

When: June 17th at 5:30 p.m.

Where: Barley’s in Spindale

June Events Highlight

Get outside with ROC! Check below for some of our special events, only happening this June!

Tree ID Hike

Learn about identifying tree characteristics with ROC! We’re headed back to River Bend Preserve, this time to explore the world of trees and how to identify them. Join us for this special, educational hike, which will total about 3-4 miles through beautiful forests!

When: Saturday, June 14th @ 9AM

Where: River Bend Preserve

Register: Click here!

 

 

Broad River Summer Sweep with the Broad Riverkeeper!

*If you need to borrow a boat, please call David Caldwell @ 704-300-5069 to confirm PFD size and boat preference
Check out the new river accesses on this special River Sweep! ROC is teaming up with MountainTrue’s Broad Riverkeeper for this sweep, using the two newest public accesses on section 10 of the Broad River. This section of the river is wide and free of obstacles, with a few class I and II rapids. Help us continue the work of cleaning up our river after Hurricane Helene while having fun on this paddle!

 

When: Saturday, June 21st @ 9AM (rain date Saturday, June 28th)

Where: US-221 River Access (address)

Register: Click here!

 

 

Members Hike at Walnut Creek Preserve!

Members are invited to a special hike at a beautiful local preserve! Join us as we are led by Evelyn Grau, a community member at the preserve, who will teach about the history of the land and share its beauty with us. This event is reserved for active ROC members, so please only register if you are a member!

Want to become an ROC member? Learn more about the benefits and how to sign up by clicking here!

When: Tuesday, June 24th @ 9:30AM

Where: Walnut Creek Preserve

Register: Click here!

Broad River Updates

River Scouts of Sections 1 – 10 Complete

ROC staff and Broad Riverkeeper completed sections 1-10 of the Broad River Paddle Trail, documenting debris, damaged banks, and hazards. During these scouts we worked hard to clear paths and hazards to create a more safe and comfortable river experience. The sections we recommend are 221 to 221A and Gray’s Rd to Coxe Rd, while other sections may have multiple hazards or are difficult to access. The following are notes from each scout, note some scouts covered multiple sections.

Our final scout covered sections 7, 8, and 9 (Poor’s Ford Road to access 221). This section was clear of blockages, however, there are some hanging trees, but this section is pretty wide and there is ample room to paddle around. There are some rapids that require quick maneuverability. Debris from the hurricane included some metal roofing, tires, household debris and woody debris piles. Overall, this section was highly ‘paddlable’ requiring little hazard maneuverability.

Things to Keep in Mind: Water level affects hazard orientation, like strainers and/or hanging trees, or cause migration of underwater hazards, like sharp debris clouded by river depth and turbidity. It is advised to stay out of deep sections and inside your vessel as possible debris could be trapped underwater and difficult to see and avoid.

For a more in-depth look at each section please review and save this document: ROC Broad River Paddle Trail Quick Fact Sheet 

Have a report about your trip on the Broad River? Submit a report here or email a summary of your trip to allie@rutherfordoutdoor.org.

 

 

Coxe Road River Access Sweep

Broad River clean-ups continued this month! On May 22nd, volunteers showed up to help clean the Coxe Road River Access. We collected 60lbs of trash ranging from discarded TV boxes, cigarette butts, and fast food to-go containers.

Make sure you take advantage of our sparkly clean river access this summer and stay updated on upcoming litter sweeps both on and off the river!

Annual Spring River Sweep

River sweep season kicked off this weekend! The crew pictured here floated and cleaned up Section 5 of the Broad River from Gray’s to Coxe Road access points. Our group hauled out farm equipment, gas tanks, tires, and many other kinds of hurricane debris from the river. We were lucky enough to be joined by Broad Riverkeeper, who helped haul out a fridge.

In addition to large debris, there were a few new blockages along the way. Some paths were able to be cleared, but others still require portage. Be sure to stay safe and aware as you travel along the river this summer.

Thank you to all of these incredible volunteers for helping keep the Broad River clean and healthy for future generations! 🛶

 

 

ROC Trail Updates

ROC, the Carolina Climbers’ Coalition, Conserving Carolina, and Lake Lure Classical Academy students at Buffalo Creek Park

More progress has been made on our local trails! We worked on all 4 trails we maintain, removing trees, brushing back overgrowth, repairing tread, and reconnecting trail segments!

Accomplishments include:

  • 0.5 mile of trees cleared off Weed Patch Mountain Trail
  • Trees cleared, rock stairs constructed, and trail segments reconnected at Buffalo Creek Park Loop Trail and Upper Boulders Trail
  • Brushing and tree removal at ICC and Dittmer-Watts

Thanks to all our partners and volunteers helping out with this work! Want to join our efforts to maintain, restore, and reopen our local trails? Join our Trail Tamers email list by clicking here, which will also redirect you to our calendar to look for upcoming workdays!

Projects will vary by trail. Contact Maddie at trails@rutherfordoutdoor.org for more information or click here to register for a workday!

ROC and Volunteers at Weed Patch Mountain

Want to stay informed on these opportunities? Join our trail volunteer email list here and be redirected to our events calendar where you can check for upcoming workdays. You can also contact Maddie at trails@rutherfordoutdoor.org for more information.
 

 

Youth Programs Highlight

Trail Building & Orienteering at Lake Lure Classical Academy

LLCA 8th-graders got a hands-on outdoor experience through ROC when Gabe Isaac and Maddie Bartosh taught outdoor education lessons on Orienteering and Trail Building. In Trail Building students learned about how local trails were built and how to be a good trail-user. In Orienteering, students learned how to use a compass and put their skills to the test, competing against each other to complete an orienteering course through the trails and brush.

Adventure Club Campout with Lake Lure Classical Academy

Students at LLCA got their first taste of backcountry backpacking and camping! Among learning the many hard skills of backcountry camping, students got to enjoy group games, a beautiful stream, and Camp Pizza! This program was part of the LLCA and ROC Adventure Club and will be back by popular demand to middle school students at LLCA next year.

Pollinator Course with American Heritage Girls Troup

What’s a pollinator? Why are they important? How can we help them, so they can help us? All great questions that the American Heritage Girls Troup can now answer! This program had students getting outside, playing in some dirt, and creating their own crafty pollinators to understand how pollinators help our plants and us thrive.

Interested in hosting similar programs at your school or for your program? Contact gabe@rutherfordoutdoor.org for more information!

Keep Rutherford County Beautiful:

Earth Month Recap

Spring Litter Sweep

Keep Rutherford County Beautiful’s earth month was a success! Spring Litter Sweep involved 21 litter sweep groups with 173 volunteers and almost 4,000 pounds of litter collected across the county from roads, parks, trails, and more. The sweep took place from April 7th – 30th in coordination with NCDOT’s sweep. Collectively, volunteers and NCDOT crews cleaned up 11,000 pounds of litter from Rutherford County!

RecycleBot Challenge

Rutherford County third graders were invited to participate in the 2025 RecycleBot Challenge. Schools from around the county learned about recycling and upcycling, and created innovative RecycleBots, with 101 entries, 8 categories, and 24 finalists earning prizes from Kidsenses Museum, Cherry Mountain Farm, Scoop Ice Cream, and participation gifts. Congraulations to these young innovators!

Green Scholarship Winner

Aiden Wheeler from Rutherford County Early College (REaCH) was selected as the recipient for the $1,200 Green Scholarship award, a scholarship funding the education of any student pursuing an eco-oriented degree. Congratulations, Aiden!

For more on any of these programs, head to KeepRCNCBeautiful.org or contact krcb@rutherfordoutdoor.org with any questions.

2025 Race Series

Get ready for the next race! Join your fellow runners July 26th for the Meet Me at the Fountain 5K in Forest City. The event is produced by Smith’s Drugs in Forest City and each year they select several local nonprofits to benefit from the race. Based on race histories this could be your fastest 5K course in the race series! They offer a lot of age groups and age group prizes. Click here to learn more about this race and register!

If you’d like to receive the Race Series Newsletter and stay in the loop, click here to automatically join the list. To volunteer with ROC at one of these races, contact Jerry at jerry@rutherfordoutdoor.org.

Rutherford Outdoor Coalition

PO Box 1349

Rutherfordton, NC 28139

 828-351-3235

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