During the week, I work in a corporate job that keeps me in a windowless cubicle. My closest connection to the outdoors is the beautiful screensaver on my laptop of places I may never get to visit. Ironically, because I am stuck in a cubicle during the week.
Come Saturday, I want to head outdoors. I want to feel the fresh mountain air and get back to nature. Real nature, not just the kind that flickers in front of you as your computer goes to sleep.
That’s why this past weekend I got in my car and headed to Cleveland County. Just a short drive from Charlotte (home of my cubicle), this county has a system of trails and hikes that is just what I needed. I learned about this place because in 2023, Shelby actually got an award for its greenway system.
The Shelby Greenway System has three trails: First Broad River Trail, Carl Spangler Trail, and the Carolina Harmony Trail. Today, I plan to visit the newest addition to the greenway, the Carolina Harmony Trail.
As I get out of my car in Uptown Shelby, I walked across the street to the trail. With each step forward I heard the familiar sounds of people enjoying nature. The repetitive thuds of determined joggers. The swish of bike tires over fallen leaves. The "Purrdy. . .Purrrdy. . .Purrdy" calls from Red Cardinals. This is what I needed.
Normally I would go on a longer trail. There are two other trails in their greenway system that are 2 to 3 miles in length. These trails are a bit harder. More advanced hikers and bikers tend to gravitate in that direction. However, I hurt my foot while jogging a few weeks ago. I can get around, but it’s still a bit sore. So at only .9 miles the Carolina Harmony Trail was a good choice for me this weekend. The trail is built on top of an old railway track once used by Norfolk Southern. So the trial itself is wide and paved. It’s a real easy walk for those of us looking to be outdoors and be careful at the same time.
At the trail’s entrance there is a tall sculpture and an information kiosk for those who like to know where they are going. However, I prefer to just get lost. So, without a care, I limp forward down the path. The black asphalt with fallen leaves leading me to another place. I breathed in the fresh crisp air and smelled the leaves on the ground. The path turned a corner and I saw a bridge where the trail passes under. As I walked under the bridge the scenery changed from a small town charm to more of a walk in the woods. Oak trees and pines lined the edges of the trail as far as I could see.
Limping along, joggers easily passed. Bikers whizzed by. A squirrel darted past leaving me in his wake, I was faster than a young family with their newborn in a stroller. The parents looked sleepy yet also happy to be out of the house for once. That we all had in common. We gave each other a nod, the Southern equivalent of "Hi, there," and our paths diverged.
A few minutes more down the trail, the scenery changed again. There was a split rail fence on my left and an old cemetery in the distance. To my right, a saw mill hummed along, splitting trees into boards for houses. I even saw a guy riding a Segway. I heard birds singing and watched as squirrels chased each other. Nature was alive. I felt alive. My cubicle was a million miles away.
Then, as quickly as it began, the asphalt path faded into gravel and a gate stopped me from going any further. At least for now. When finished, the Carolina Harmony Trail will connect the city of Shelby with the smaller communities of Patterson Springs, Earl and eventually to the South Carolina boarder with a total length of 10.2 miles. Considering it took more than a decade to get this small strip of the trail constructed, we are probably looking at 5 more years until the trail is complete. I am hoping at that point my limp will be long gone.
On the way back to my car I felt refreshed. The clean air cleared my mind. Thoughts of my cubicle felt like a distant memory. At this moment, I was actually alive. Alive and limping, but alive. That was when I looked and saw the sun setting. Reds, oranges, yellows filling the sky. It was practically begging me to take a selfie. So I did. I posted it to my socials. I liked it so much I even made it my screen saver at work.