Buffalo Creek Preserve Trail

Two developments you should be aware of hiking this trail in rural Cabarrus County. The first you encounter right off: an effort by the Catawba Lands Conservancy to restore a piedmont oak-savannah forest. Once prominent throughout the Piedmont, such forests have been on the decline. They’re important for various reasons, not the least of which is that they are home to numerous ground-nesting birds and prairie species. Hike a little farther and you’ll encounter another disappearing habitat: farmland. The trail skirts a field leased to a local farmer who is growing hay and grain using Best Management Practices to benefit both farming and wildlife. This is one educational out-and-back.