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33 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> V\lP <br /> \IAC <br /> Department of Environment, <br /> Agriculture, Parks Recreation <br /> MEMORANDUM <br /> To: Bonnie Hammersley, County Manager <br /> From: David Stancil, DEAPR Director <br /> Date: September 19, 2017 <br /> Re: Mountains to Sea Trail — Next Steps <br /> On September 19, the Board of Commissioners is scheduled to receive a report <br /> and plans developed over the past 12 months for the portion of the Mountains to <br /> Sea Trail (MST) known as "Segment 11," which runs from Alamance County <br /> northeast to Occoneechee Mountain State Natural Area just outside of <br /> Hillsborough. <br /> As a companion piece to the map and information provided in the agenda <br /> materials, this memo attempts to provide background context and outline <br /> possible next steps to refining, acquiring and constructing this segment of the <br /> MST in Orange County. <br /> 1. Background / Challenges <br /> Over the past 16 months, we have learned a great deal about the interests, <br /> desires, opportunities and concerns that County residents have about the MST in <br /> our community. <br /> As has been stated on a number of occasions, Orange County has a peculiar <br /> segment of this statewide trail in that it contains one of the very few stretches of <br /> proposed trail that 1) cannot follow a natural feature like a stream or a ridge, and <br /> 2) is not primarily on public land. The sub-segment of the trail from lower <br /> Buckhorn Road to the Seven Mile Creek (Upper Eno) Nature Preserve is one <br /> that must traverse a number of private landholdings and cross over the ridge <br /> between the Cape Fear and Neuse River basins. There are no publicly-owned <br /> lands in this stretch, and since it crosses an important (although not particularly <br /> visible) ridge line, there are no streams that can be followed up and over. <br />