Life to the Jewel – Matthews-Belk South Fork River Corridor
My name is Ashton Lamb and I am a Community Coordinator here at the Catawba Lands Conservancy and Carolina Thread Trail. My wife, Emily, and I moved to Gaston County in 2021 a month after we got married. I actually was offered this job opportunity on my way to our wedding rehearsal dinner.
One of the first places Emily and I visited as we considered a move to the Charlotte area was Rocky Branch Park in Belmont. Rocky Branch Park is a part of the Matthews-Belk South Fork River Corridor (MBSFRC). Emily and I enjoyed a nice walk through the beautiful hardwood forest of Rocky Branch Park and then we traveled a short distance to downtown Belmont for lunch. The remainder of our trip we reflected on how much we loved the beauty of the area and the quaint but vibrant communities.
A couple months later Bret Baronak, Director, informed me that I would be leading a trail project located along the South Fork River. Who knew that on our first visit to the Charlotte area we would hike a trail that would become a part of the main focus of my professional life and it would also be in the same area in which we would reside. The opportunity to work on the MBSFRC and to live in Gaston County has changed my life.
The MBSFRC is an iconic 23-mile planned trail from Spencer Mountain, our region’s third highest peak, to the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden that follows the beautiful blueway paddling trail that is the South Fork of the Catawba River. In 2022 Emily and I had our first child, Addilyn, and now we are expecting our second within the next few weeks! Our family has walked every segment that exists of the MBSFRC while also enjoying the quaint communities that the trail connects.
It has something for everyone. Small and vibrant communities, exciting parks, places to paddle, paved trails, dirt trails, cool destinations like the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, and public art. We have lived in Gaston County for three years now and somehow the MBSFRC always offers something new.
Every community in the MBSFRC (Belmont, Cramerton, Lowell, McAdenville, and Ranlo) offers their own charm and character while introducing exciting ways to enjoy the outdoors. When you travel the MBSFRC, take notice of the hospitality of the people and genuine love they have for their community. This formula of beautiful nature, exciting destinations, charming towns, a variety of trails, exceptional artwork, and genuine people make it truly a jewel of the Charlotte region. I joke at our office that I don’t know who I am without the MBSFRC. Honestly it is now a part of my DNA, embedded in memories made as I have gone from a newlywed to a father alongside my remarkable wife.
You just never know where life will take you… and I have been led to the banks of the South Fork River.
As a Gaston County resident and project manager of the MBSFRC I want to invite you to join me on a walk. Come travel the South Fork and see it for yourself. Reflect on its natural beauty and talk to the people who call it home. After your journey I think you will understand why we call it the “Jewel in the Crown”.