New Haw Upstream Access at Bynum Dam

Chatham County Awarded Trail Grant for LOHA

A Carolina Paddler repost of a FLOHA article

By Gretchen Smith

-Anyone paddling down from the Chicken Bridge on the Haw River soon finds the most difficult spot is the take-out at Bynum Dam. It is  deep, muddy and covered in poison ivy. Now, Gretchen Smith brings us welcome news.

Chatham County has been awarded a $100,000 Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grant to build a sustainable paddle launch and natural surface pedestrian trail in the section of the Lower Haw River State Natural Area (LOHA) upstream of the Bynum Dam. This section, known as the “Pegg tract”, is a popular location for paddling, hiking, and fishing. Chatham County is contributing a $25,000 cash match for the RTP grant making the total $125,000 available for the project. The Pegg tract improvements are a high priority project included in Chatham’s Haw River Trail Study adopted by the Chatham County Board of Commissioners in October 2023.

LOHA is owned by NC State Parks, which must approve trail development and other improvements to the site. The Pegg tract is a designated nature preserve in addition to being a natural heritage area. Currently, an unofficial paddle launch is located above the dam and the riverbank is highly eroded. There are also informal “social” footpaths along the riverbank, floodplain, and throughout the site. Many of these social footpaths are low-lying and become muddy when it rains. Sustainable trail planning, design, and construction supports current and future use while minimizing impact to the area’s natural ecosystems. Chatham’s Trails & Open Space Planner, Ben Rippe, has recently been making site visits with State Parks staff to do an environmental review and flag the trail layout.

We appreciate State Parks, Ben Rippe, and the Chatham County Commissioners for support for this project. Friends of Lower Haw is excited to be a partner in this initiative.

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in the Friends of Lower Haw (FLOHA) newsletter in January 2025.  Please see the entire newsletter.  There’s another article about progress on the revamping of the Bynum Mill Access.  It’s going to have the best amenities of any access on the Haw.