Hide and Seek at Hyde Farm: Helping on National Trails Day while Hiking by the Hooch!

We're proud to continue the AOC's fine tradition of supporting National Trails Day ("NTD," the first Saturday of June each year) by volunteering - i.e, giving back to the parks and trail networks that we love so well.  Hope you can plan to join us for this worthy NTD project in the historic "Hyde Farm" unit of metro Atlanta's Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA). Our National Park Service friends who are hosting the event call it "Hide & Seek at Hyde Farm."  The focus of the project will be to maintain established trails in that area and to "hide" inappropriate small trails by piling brush, etc. to discourage their use.  No previous experience or special gear or expertise is required!  Saturday morning's weather is expected to be nice!  - partly cloudy with virtually no chance of rain, and in the comfortable mid-70s to mid-80s.

Here's the announcement from the CRNRA webpage at this link: www.crnra.vip/volunteer-opportunity/national-trail-day-at-hyde-farm

"Please join us at the National Trails Day work party at Hyde Farm in Marietta.  We will be closing over a mile of 'Social Trails' that have cropped up in the park over the past few months.  The Chattahoochee Parks Conservancy will provide some beverages and snacks at the end of the day.  No experience necessary, we will provide tools, gloves and training.  Please be sure to wear sturdy shoes, long pants to protect yourself from poison ivy.  Please be sure to bring water and a lite snack while out on the trail."

Hundreds of trails improvement projects are scheduled throughout the USA on Nat'l Trails Day 2018.  In addition to this local Hyde Farm project, the AOC is assisting REI and the GA Appalachian Trail Club with trail maintenance at Gooch Gap in the North GA mountains, organized by our past president Paula Schubert.

Hyde Farm is a rare example of a twentieth-century historic farm on the Chattahoochee River.  The site preserves one of the last remaining farms in Cobb County, with terraced fields, woodlands, and historic structures dating to the nineteenth and early twentieth century. The Power family established the farm in the 1840's and the Hyde family bought the property in 1920, remaining there until 2004.  This relatively new Nat'l Park Service "CRNRA unit" conveniently connects to the "Johnson Ferry North" unit via wooded hiking trails that adjoin the west bank of the Chattahoochee River - a.k.a "the Hooch."  Hyde Farm is also conveniently near the popular "Gold Branch" park unit, which is about a 2-mile drive NE via Lower Roswell Rd.

ADDRESS for GPS & MAPS.GOOGLE.COM Users:  726 Hyde Road, Marietta, GA

Lat/Lon of our Hyde Farm meetup spot, as alternate GPS destination address  (being sure to include comma & minus sign):  33.9657, -84.3905

For a zoomable Map / Satellite view of Hyde Farm vicinity:  Click the square blue &  green "Event Location" icon near the top of this article.

Driving Directions from Parkaire Shopping Ctr vicinity in East Cobb:
1.  From the fraffic light at the junction of Lower Roswell Road and Johnson Ferry Road, take Lower Roswell Road 1.1 mile toward Roswell (eastward) and look for the "Hyde Road" sign on your right.
2. Turn Right onto Hyde Road  (southward) and go just 1/2 mile and  look for the CRNRA Hyde Farm facility and community garden on your left (just before a red gate across the road).  Our Nat'l Park Svc. hosts suggest that we "park in spaces that are as close as possible to the red gate."

FREE!  The usual $5 daily CRNRA National Park Service parking fee will be waived for this special event.