Park Information

Park Hours: 8 a.m.-one hour before sunset, seven days a week

Announcements:

• The Chatham County section of the American Tobacco Trail is CLOSED to the public for trail construction. Please remain out of this area until construction is completed.

PLAN AHEAD!

General Information:

• The American Tobacco Trail (ATT) north from Wimberly Road to White Oak Church Road is approximately 2 miles.
• The trailhead on White Oak Church Road has parking for 45 vehicles and 10 trailers.
• Restroom facilities are located at the New Hill-Olive Chapel Road and White Oak Church Road trailheads!
• The total mileage of trail managed by Wake County Parks, Recreation and Open Space is 6.5 miles.
• New Hill parking lot and the restroom buildings, located at White Oak Church and the New Hill parking lot, open and close at times posted at their entrance gates. Wimberly and White Oak Church parking lots are open for 24-hour trail access. Contact park office for more information. If suspicious activity occurs in these parking areas in the evening, please contact Allied Security at 919-856-7007.

Trail Rules & Info

The following rules have been established to ensure a safe and pleasant visit:

1. Trailhead parking hours: Opens at 8 a.m., closes one hour before sunset and will be appropriately marked.

2. No littering (including cigarette butts). Take out what you take in.

3. Animal waste must be removed from the trail by the owner.

4. Stay on the trail. Do not trespass on private land.

5. The following are PROHIBITED:

• ATVs and other motorized vehicles
• Overnight parking and camping
• Open fires

6. The following regulations apply to hunters using the trail to access NC Wildlife game lands:

• No loaded firearms on the trail
• No discharge of firearms on or across the trail

7. During hunting season you may see a hunter on game lands in close proximity to the American Tobacco Trail (ATT). Hunters are allowed to gain access to game lands from the ATT corridor. During hunting season this activity is permitted as long as they are on game lands and are wearing hunter orange attire.

Sights and Sounds
Along the trail, you can expect to see and enjoy a variety of wildlife, including beavers, great blue heron, red-tailed hawks, woodpeckers, a variety of songbirds, squirrels, owls, whitetailed deer and other animals. Please try not to disturb the wildlife in their habitat.

Amenities

• Restroom facilities are available at the New Hill-Olive Chapel and White Oak Church parking areas; however, no water is available at the trailheads.
• Picnic tables have been installed at the New Hill-Olive Chapel, Wimberly and White Oak trailheads.
• For those interested in knowing how far they have traveled, mile markers are located every ½-mile along the trail.
• Benches are located throughout the trail and within 400 yards of each trailhead.

History

The American Tobacco Trail is a recreational rail-trail located on an abandoned railroad corridor of the Norfolk Southern Railroad. Constructed in 1906, the original railroad traveled from Duncan to Durham near the New Hope River, transporting tobacco leaf from farming communities in Wake, Chatham and Durham counties for processing at the American Tobacco Company in Durham. Construction of Jordan Lake in 1971 necessitated moving a section of the railroad corridor (from Bonsal to southern Durham County) several miles eastward, onto higher ground. Railroad traffic decreased after this time due to competition from interstate trucking. One of the last major uses of the railroad was to haul materials for the construction of the Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant near New Hill. With the railroad no longer in use, the tracks were removed in 1987.