A Winter Walk on Kitty Hawk’s New Town Hall Trail
It snowed here on the Outer Banks recently, and there was a lot of it. That’s a pretty rare occurrence for us—not necessarily the snow, because we do get flurries and a light dusting just about every winter, but six to nine inches…that’s unheard of.
It disappeared quickly. Snow doesn’t last long when the ocean is at your doorstep, but for those wonderful three or four days, it was magic.
And with all that beauty, fleeting though it may have been, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to explore the newest Outer Banks trail.
The Kitty Hawk Town Hall Trail is a one-mile loop trail that wanders through the forest and hills behind the town’s municipal office. Finished about six months ago, the trail includes some moments of stunning beauty and an amazing walk through a dense maritime forest.
At times paralleling Hobbs Creek, a little-known, almost completely hidden, yet beautiful creek, with snow on the ground, the trail is transformed into a winter wonderland.
At the trailhead, a white-throated sparrow pecks at the ground between patches of snow. There’s a woodpecker somewhere close by; its raucous call and steady taptaptap on a tree is unmistakable. It’s in the foliage somewhere, so there’s no hope of seeing it. Same with the songbirds that seem to be everywhere in the trees.
The sunlight, filtered through the tree canopy, dances across the snow that lies deep on the ground. Here and there, fallen branches break the surface of the white. Leaves and limbs have trapped the snow, and white highlights the trees’ different hues of brown and gray.
The first part of the trail leads to a ridge that overlooks a marsh and swale falling off to Hobbs Creek. The trail runs parallel to the ridge line, then emerges by the parking lot, but quickly reenters the forest.
It meanders through the forest until it comes to a bank overlooking Hobbs Creek.
Hobbs Creek is a hidden gem, its still waters and steep banks create an image of a time long gone, when the forest was a true wilderness, before homes and businesses changed the landscape. This may be the most stunning and surprising find of the Town Hall Trail—the waters of the creek creating a perfect mirror to reflect the trees arching from the banks. The image is of a sun-dappled tunnel leading to some unknown forest destination.
It’s been cold, and there is ice in the creek, although it has not been cold enough for the whole creek to freeze over. It’s a real toss-up whether the creek is more stunning with snow on the ground or when the woods are filled with many shades of green that come with spring and summer. The snow is an unexpected gift, but the colors of summer are something from a painting.
There are two bridges that were constructed for the trail—the bridges built by the members of the town’s Recreation Committee and a few volunteers. The bridges span the marsh and allow hikers to walk between ridges and stay on a dry trail.
The town has placed some picnic tables along the path. There is one overlooking Hobbs Creek, but if there is a personal favorite, it is the table by the massive American Beech on a rise by a fork in the trail.
The trail crosses a power company right of way—ok…not the most attractive part of the trail, but then it reenters the forest, and the world surrounding the trail seems to recede, and the sheer beauty of nature reappears again.
Some quick tips about the trail.
The total trail length is about a mile. Depending on how much sightseeing is done along the way, it will probably be a 20 to 30-minute trek.
Bikes and horses are permitted on the trail, but that comes with a bit of a caveat. Some sections are cut into the side of a hill and may be difficult for a horse or bike to navigate. The trail is a minimum of four feet wide, but there are one or two places where it’s a very tight four feet.
It will be buggy in the summer. Insect repellent will be a very good idea.