TANGLEWOOD PARK

 SURBURBAN TRAIL

Tanglewood Park in Clemmons is owned and operated by Forsyth County, North Carolina.  It was given to the county by Tobacco magnate, Will Reynolds, the brother of R.J. Reynolds. He bought the 1100 acre tract in 1921 from the Johnson heirs who had owned the property since the mid 1700's.  It is now a multi use recreation site famous for its Christmas Festival of Lights but also boasts two golf course, horse stables, steeplechase track, lakes, picnic shelters, mountain biking, BMX track, cottages, Bed and Breakfast, restaurant, swimming pool, campground, dog park and a tennis center.  But today, we got to check out a relatively new addition to the park, the multi use trail.

The trail is essentially a paved greenway that begins on the campground road and circles the park. We logged about 4.5 miles looping the park and taking in the many scenic vistas.

The park is located off of Interstate 40 at Harper Road exit between the Village of Clemmons and the Village of Bermuda Run.  Entering the Park, the campground road is the first left and the trail head is about a quarter of a mile on the right.  A moderate size parking lot seems sufficient for traffic on a busy Saturday.  The trail is two loops. The red trail is a short 1.5 mile loop but if you add the intersecting black trail you can push the distance to a little over 4 miles.

As a youngster growing up in Forsyth County, Tanglewood Park was a treat to visit.  Spending countless weekends in the campground, I was surprised to see the transformation.  No longer are there sites in the woods, the sites are arrayed on the flat area and seems to cater to RV's.   The wooded sites are now the site of a mountain bike trail and the paved greenway trail separates the RV lot from the bike trail.  It is a pleasant stroll through the woods.  

The trail leads to the back of the campground where the red trail diverges to the right and the black trail begins running parallel to a gravel service road.  Not far from the intersection the trail emerges from the woods and leads to the horse barns. 

Several horses dotted the pasture.  Many horses are boarded at Tanglewood Stables and riding lessons are taught.  In addition trail rides and carriage rides can be scheduled.  The scenic horse pasture was a treat as we booked our first mile of the day.

Near the horse stables two horses were cuddled up to the fence when a lady who appeared to be walking the trail loop went up to them and begin petting one.  The horse seemed to enjoy the attention very much.

The horse barns and stables were a part of the Will Reynolds estate and have been at this location as long as I remember.  It is good to see that they remain an active part of the recreational program of the park.

Not far up the hill from the stables is the Manor House.  When Will Reynolds and his wife, Kate Bitting Reynolds purchased Tanglewood property from the Johnson heirs in 1921, the Manor house was built very near to the original homesite of the William Johnson family. A historic marker notes the site of the Johnson fort.  

Will and Kate built new wings to the existing house expanding it from an 18 room home to a 28 room mansion. Today the house is the site of a 10 room bed and breakfast and a reservation only restaurant,  Tanglewood Bed and Breakfast

I learned a bit of history about the Linville family from a new marker at the Manor House.  Turns out the man whom Linville Gorge is named after lived nearby and both he and his brother were early settlers of Forsyth County.

When I was a boy the swimming pool at Tanglewood was the place to go.  It sported both a low and high diving board and was where my father took me to learn how to swim.  Today the old pool has been replaced with a modern swimming center that was full of old and young alike.  Across the street from the pool are cottages that can be rented and a large picnic area.

Next to the pool is my favorite childhood memory.  A steam locomotive!  When I was a child the train consisted of a locomotive, coal car and red caboose.  The orginal Tanglewood train was replaced due to asbestos contamination.  Now there is a 1894 version which is still well worth a visit.

The park still provides access to the engine.  For a few moments I got to sit in the engineer's seat, put one hand on the throttle and another on the brake and relive a childhood memory.  What a treat!

The black loop trail essentially connects every activity center in the park. Just up the hill from the Locomotive is a large shelter that sports three large grills and a large play area for children.  At the top of the hill there is a view of the 18th hole of the PGA Championship Golf Course.  The PGA was held here in 1974 and for years thereafter a major senior golf event, the Vantage Championship brought famous golfers to the Park.  Both golf courses are public courses and sport a very reasonable greens fee. 

The trail turns downhill at a little over two miles into the hike.  It runs past the Red Barn and Walnut Hall heading to the Skilpot Lake and in my opinion the most scenic event center on the park.

At Skilpot Lake the paved greenway trail ends, but the loop continues along the one way road back to the Manor House.  But we were intriqued by a trail sign across the street from the Skilpot Lake.  The sign indicated a 2.46 mile nature trail that bordered the Yadkin River.  We chose a different trail north along the river which indeed made all the difference today! 

The gravel trail led to a sunlit grass meadow and as we approached I could see a small deer standing there looking at me. As I began to approach, taking pictures, I found deer to be unfazed by my approach.

As I got closer, it was not one deer but two!  As the gravel road disappeared into a horse trail we passed by the sunlit meadow and the two deer finally got bored and left, scampering into the green underbrush heading to the river.  But before they left, I got one really nice photograph of "Bambi".

We continued along the horse trail and tried several times to try to get to the river but none led to the river banks.  But as we crossed into another meadow, I saw three more deer emerge from the forest soon followed by a fourth.  They were very nervous by our presence and soon left the way the came, disappearing into the green forest. 

As we approached a large horse pasture, I paused to take a few photographs before we followed the fence back to the road and we soon found ourselves 3.5 miles into the hike and headed back by the Manor House and on to the stables.  

We continued past the stables and connected to the red trail loop at Picnic Shelter #2  back to the red trail beside the RV park and returning to the Trail Head.  We put in about 4.5 miles total.  The access is a 10....easy to find and great parking.  The trail is a paved greenway and very well maintaind and marked...10;  the scenery is interesting, lots of things to see but not always a spectacular vista-9; The effort to view ratio leans toward an easy trail with a moderate payoff as to views...but a solid 9 trail.  It is a great suburban trail using the existing park infrastructure  to create a great walking and biking trail.  We can't wait to return for the fall colors!