Pisgah View becomes state's latest park

CANDLER, N.C. (WLOS) — Buncombe County is now home to a state park.

Gov. Roy Cooper signed bills into law this month authorizing Pisgah View State Park in Buncombe and Haywood counties and three new state trails, including two in Western North Carolina.

The new laws allow the addition of the Wilderness Gateway State Trail in the South Mountains range in McDowell, Rutherford, Burke and Catawba counties and the Overmountain Victory State Trail, reaching across Avery, Mitchell, McDowell, Burke, Rutherford, Polk, Caldwell, Wilkes and Surry counties.

“These new parks and trails will conserve important wildlife habitats and support North Carolina’s flourishing outdoor recreation industry,” Cooper said in a news release.

Pisgah View is full of trails, unique habitats, cliffs, coves and upland forests that are home to several rare plant and animal species.

The Division of Parks and Recreation will also conduct a feasibility study that will further refine a corridor for the new Wilderness Gateway State Trail that would connect Chimney Rock State Park to South Mountains State Park, the town of Valdese, the city of Hickory, the newly authorized Overmountain Victory State Trail and other natural areas in Burke and Catawba counties, the news release said. The division is to report back to the General Assembly by Dec. 1.

A state trail is comprised of multiple connected sections, each sponsored by a state or federal agency, local government or private landowner working in partnership to fund, build, and maintain the trail.

“People love parks and trails, so I’m pleased that we’ll be able to provide new opportunities for our residents and visitors to experience some of the most spectacular places in our state,” Natural and Cultural Resources Secretary Susi H. Hamilton said in the news release.