Speight Property

The LandTrust for Central NC is pleased to announce its recent acquisition of a unique and naturally significant five acre property immediately adjacent to Morrow Mountain State Park. The purchase of this property provides for protection of a nationally significant and globally rare hillside seepage bog, which is home to a variety of frogs, toads, and salamanders, and a rare plant, crested coralroot. The property also has an abundance of mature hardwood trees and large rock outcroppings and boulders, which are habitat for timber rattlesnake, a state endangered species.

Not only is this property adjacent to the State Park, but it shares two of its three boundaries with the park, and is also prominently situated in the scenic viewshed of Valley Drive, which is a North Carolina Scenic Byway. Executive Director Jason Walser comments on the significance of this property, “Although a small property, this was truly a unique opportunity. There are not many large tracts we run across with more conservation values than this small property has, and certainly there will not be another opportunity to add a tract like this to the park in the near future. We are glad to be a part of this unique project.”

The heirs who recently inherited this tract needed to dispose of the property and The LandTrust was able to raise money and make the project happen quickly. The LandTrust plans to work with the State to transfer these five acres to Morrow Mountain State Park in the near future. This project was made possible by significant funding from The Cannon Foundation, and also a private donation made in honor of Ron Bryant, an easement donor in Stanly County and long time conservation advocate, by his son Jeep Bryant. The NC Scenic Byways grant also provided funding for some of the legal and transactional costs for this project. The LandTrust would like to say thank you to those who made this project.