Lower Haw River State Natural Area

Lower Haw River State Natural Area is approximately 1,000 acres, ranging along both sides of the river from just south of the old Bynum Bridge to just beyond the US 64 bridge to just north of Jordan Lake State Recreation Area. This section of the river has long been popular with hikers and canoeists, remarkable for its steep slopes and rock outcrops. Formerly, it was referenced as the Haw River Division of Duke Forest.

Since the New Parks for a New Century initiative was launched in early 2003, several significant sites have been added to the state parks system as State Natural Areas. In this way, the state parks system is working to fulfill its mission to protect representative samples of North Carolina’s archaeological, geological, biological, scenic, and recreational resources. Identified in the 1992 Chatham County Natural Heritage Inventory as an area of statewide importance, the property boasts multiple significant features, including providing habitat for rare species and more than four miles of river and stream buffer to protect the water quality buffer of Jordan Lake, which serves as drinking water source for many Triangle-region communities. Preservation of the natural area aids in protecting the water quality of the Haw, a major tributary of the Cape Fear River. The Haw is home to at least two endangered species: the Cape Fear shiner and Septima’s clubtail dragonfly. Other critters include Bald Eagles, Osprey, Grey Blue Herons, Beavers, Mink, River Otters, Eastern Painted Turtle, and many more!