Not Every Hike is a Perfect Day - Morrow Mountain State Park

Let's get this year off on the right foot (and left). We awoke this morning to Skittles and the Doobs greeting us at the bed. "Are we going hiking today?" they said. This is the best feeling in the world, to have my two children as excited about getting on the trails as my wife and I are. Of course, it is the first day in about a week and a half that we have had a full day with no rain and it has been longer than we have gone all year since our last hike.

We had been planning this hike all week in preparation of the new year. Our State Parks System is celebrating it's centennial anniversary this year and many parks hosted First Day hikes this weekend in our state.

The family headed south to Morrow Mountain State Park. It is nestled near the Uwharrie National Forest area and is neighbored by the PeeDee River basin. It is about an hour and twenty minute drive from the Greensboro area. The family decided on the Morrow Mountain trail for our adventure.

As with many families consisting of children under 6, we had some delays and got to the park about 2:00 PM. We decided to start from the top of the mountain and use the Mountain Loop Trail as somewhat of a warm up to our hike. The Mountain Loop trail is about .6 miles and is a loop around the summit of the mountain. The views are amazing, but beware the trail is quite narrow and has a loose rock trail in many areas. I was on edge, literally, every time my 4 year old would try and jog to catch up with her sister and mother. The drop off is very steep in sections but the views are awesome.

Dad, Skittles and the Doobs on the Mountain Loop trail in Morrow Mountain State Park.

Then, we connected to the Morrow Mountain Trail and began the descent. The trail is listed as a 2.6 mile one way hike on the State Park site, but beware, some of the popular apps are incorrect in describing this trail as a loop. Near the top of the mountain, the beginning of our hike, it is quite steep and the trail does not flow in switchbacks. It is straight vertical and can be slippery in places. About half way down the descent, my kids were already telling me they were tired. 

So, here we were in a predicament. Not only were we fighting tired legs on the kids, daylight was now a factor. Knowing that we were going to be carrying our two young ones back up the hill, my wife and I begrudgingly decided to turn around and head back about a mile into the trail. So, our day was cut shorter than we had planned and hoped, but we were all excited to be back outside and on the trail even for a brief amount of time.

I cannot give an official review of this trail knowing that we did not complete it, but what I can tell you is that this trail is no joke for young children. I also would recommend starting low at the Museum on the Sugar Loaf trail and connecting to the Morrow Mountain trail and climb. Starting from the top is not the most exciting route in my opinion, but I am a big fan of getting rewarded with the view at the top after climbing (not at the start if the climb).

So, we will consider this our warm up for our hiking club outing next weekend. The park looks amazing and we will be back later in the spring to give it a little more attention.