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SAY NO TO A RURAL HALL DATA CENTER
JOIN US AT THE WINSTON-SALEM CITY HALL TO SPEAK OUT AGAINST A RURAL HALL DATA CENTER
Prior to the meeting, at 3:30 PM, there will be a gathering outside City Hall to speak against the proposal. All are welcome to meet and speak out.
Immediately following the Planning Board decision, there will be a gathering for reflection and celebration of our efforts! Join us for food and friendship and planning next steps after this pivotal decision!
Parkway United Church of Christ 1465 Irving Street
Winston-Salem NC 27103 * Please contact debdemske@gmail.com if you need assistance attending the hearing or if you plan to attend the after-party!
Protect Rural Hall's Character, Farmland, and Quality of Life
A rezoning application has been filed to convert approximately 99–130 acres of agricultural land along Glade Street and Bethania-Rural Hall Road from its current designation to light industrial use, to accommodate four large data center buildings and a utility substation. The Forsyth County Planning Board is scheduled to review the proposal on June 11, with the Board of County Commissioners to consider it later, possibly in July. We are working to be sure every person in Rural Hall and near the proposed data center is informed about plans to put a data center on the edge of town and beside the elementary school, and prepare for the upcoming Planning Board meeting on June 11.
Anyone who can help take a shift, canvassing or tabling to let neighbors know about the DC, please email debdemske@gmail.com and join us to get the word out!!
Support the Rural Hall Opposition to the Data Center by contributing to the GoFundMe campaign! Your donation will help educate people about the realities of data centers and why it's not right for Rural Hall!
Join us for any of the following Foothills events or the many activities that we and other environmental groups co-sponser. Want to volunteer with the Foothills Group?
Sign up here to volunteer: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E054FA9AD23A46-62946084-foothills#/
ADOPT-A-HIGHWAY SERVICE OUTINGS
Check back here for our next scheduled Adopt-a-Highway Service Outing
Saturday, April 25 · 8:00am: Join us for the Foothills Group Conrad Road Adopt-a-Highway Service Outing
Join us for our community service event on Conrad Road in Lewisville as we prepare it for the spring blooms, picking up trash, recyclables, and other "interesting" things. It's rewarding to see a clean road at the completion of our task, and great fun to talk to others while we work. Safety vests, gloves, trash bags, and pick-up sticks will be provided. Wear layers and footwear to keep your feet dry. The pickup takes about 3 hours. Contact Joel Wooten for details at joeltotopmountain@gmail.
ADOPT-A-TRAIL
Our most recent Adopt-a-Trail Work Day was Saturday, May 16, 2026
Check back here for information about our next work day.
Saturday, May 16 · 10:00am: Adopt-a-Trail Work Day on Cumberland Knob Trail
Join us for our Cumberland Knob Trail service day. The Cumberland Knob recreation area will soon be open, and we want to make sure our trail is ready for the hikers. The trail is composed of three spur trails and is about a mile in length, with a 100-foot change in elevation.
We will meet at the first entrance traveling south. Tools will be provided, but if you have pruning shears, loppers, or garden rakes, please bring them along with work gloves. You will need hiking footwear, rain gear, water, and lunch.
Here is the location: https://www.nps.gov/blri/planyourvisit/cumberland-knob-trail.htm.
Sign up Here.
The Foothills group maintains the Cumberland Knob Trail, their adopted trail at Cumberland Knob Recreation Area on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Henry Fansler leads Foothills volunteers at the recreation area to clear the trail. The Cumberland Knob Recreation Area has restrooms, parking, picnic tables, and grills. Our trail will be open for hiking, thanks to the hard work of the Foothills crew. The trail has been cleared of fallen limbs and is ready for pruning and tread work.
FORSYTH CREEK WEEK
The Foothills Group co-hosted several Forsyth Creek Week Events - March 21-29, 2026
See you next year at our Foothills sponsored Forsyth Creek Week Events!
Photos from 2026 Forsyth Creek Week: Bethania Bottoms Long Creek Park
HIKES
FUTURE HIKES
RESCHEDULED: Riverbluffs Trail Slow Hike in Hanging Rock State Park
Saturday, June 20th, 10am-12pm
Riverbluffs Trail Slow Hike in Hanging Rock State Park
Location: View Map to the trailhead/parking lot
Hosted by Henry F. and Angela S.
Join us on a slow, contemplative hike along the beautiful Riverbluffs Trail on the Dan River in Hanging Rock State Park. Our founder, John Muir, disliked the term “hike,” and we will take time to enjoy the trail and let the river and forest speak to us. This is a part of the park that is seldom seen by visitors. The trail is a 1.3-mile loop, rated easy, and we will add a portion of the Indian Creek Trail, which will have a stream crossing. We should be back at the trailhead by noon.
You will need hiking footwear, rain gear, water, and snacks. We will meet at the Indian Creek /Riverbluffs trailhead at the park's Dan River access ramp. Participants will need to sign the Sierra Club waiver. We’re planning to gather for a casual post-hike lunch at River Rock Cafe in Danbury. We'd love for you to join us!
Sign Up Here, or contact Henry Fansler at henryfansler@windstreram.net to participate.
PAST HIKES
Sunday, May 17 · 9:00am: Elk Knob State Park Hike
Join us for an Elk Knob State Park day hike on the Summit Trail, 3.8 miles total with 961.3 elevation gain to a 365° view of the mountain around you! Meet at 9:00am in Yadkinville. There will be Trillium and Trout Lilies in bloom on the trail. This is a moderate day hike. Bring water, lunch, rain gear, and hiking footwear. For more information, contact Joel Wooten at [joeltotopmountain@gmail.com] or call before 8:00pm at 336-466-1314.
Sign Up HERE
Sunday, April 19, 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM EDT: Hike Rock Castle Gorge Loop Trail - 11 miles - STRENUOUS!
This is a classic spring hike that used to be an annual tradition of the Sierra Club Foothills Group. Rock Castle Gorge is in the Rocky Knob Recreation area of the Blue Ridge Parkway between Stuart and Floyd, VA. The trail is an 11-mile loop trail with about 2,700' of total elevation gain along the way.
We start this loop trail at the bottom of the gorge along Rock Castle Creek and climb unrelentingly and seemingly endlessly (actually about 2.5 miles) up to the Blue Ridge Parkway at the crest. The trail includes beautiful rock-strewn meadows, lots of wildflowers, cows, cattle guard ladder crossings, rhododendron tunnels, and mountainside traverses, ending with a 4-mile descent along the gorgeous Rock Castle Creek.
This will be a long day. It's a 1.5-hour drive to the trailhead, then about 7 hours of hiking to complete the loop. We will be starving by then, so bring some $$ for a stop at Stuart, VA's finest Mexican food restaurant before heading back home.
This hike is not for the faint of heart or weak of leg or lung. Wear sturdy, comfortable hiking boots/shoes, bring rain gear regardless of the forecast, and plenty of food and water. Trekking poles are also highly recommended.
We will have a special hike outing this month. On Sunday, March 29th, we'll enjoy a Slow Hike in celebration and honor of the life of our dear friend, Charlie Wilson.
Dr. Charles E. Wilson died January 19th at home in Winston-Salem.
Born in 1931 in New Jersey, he and Elizabeth, his wife of 67 years, moved to North Carolina. He leaves behind his devoted wife Elizabeth, three daughters, Susan Cuthbert (Oxford, England), Laura Porter (Greenock, Scotland), and Jennifer Chrysson (Lewisville, NC), and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Charles earned bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from the Newark College of Engineering, NY University, and Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn. He served in the Air Force and as Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the NJ Institute of Technology.
He authored and co-authored several engineering textbooks, some of which were translated into Spanish, Korean, and Mandarin Chinese. An expert in noise and vibration, he did work for NASA and Mitsubishi during the Gemini space program.
A man of the outdoors, Charles loved swimming, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, skate sailing, and snorkeling. He marked and preserved walking trails in the woods and local mountains. He was active in the local and national Sierra Clubs and Natural Resources Committee, even in his 90's. Charlie has requested his memory be honored by a hike.
We'll meet at the Bethabara Park parking lot beside the Visitor Center at 2pm for a slow walk along the trails of Bethabara and the greenway. We'll get to Charlie's home at 1173 Edgebrook Drive, arriving around 3:00. We'll visit with Liz and Jennifer for light refreshments, then return to our walk back to the parking lot. Anyone who would like to visit with the family but is unable to enjoy the walk is encouraged to visit with Liz and Jennifer and meet us there!
We'll meet at the Bethabara Park parking lot beside the Visitor Center at 2pm for a slow walk along the trails of Bethabara and the greenway. We'll get to Charlie's home at 1173 Edgebrook Drive, arriving around 3:00. We'll visit with Liz and Jennifer for light refreshments, then return to our walk back to the parking lot. Anyone who would like to visit with the family but is unable to enjoy the walk is encouraged to visit with Liz and Jennifer and meet us there!
Please contact Henry Fansler at henryfansler@windstream.net or 336-473-0283 if you plan to join us.
FOOTHILLS CAMPING TRIP 2026
Sierra Club Foothills Group Grayson Highlands Camping Weekend
Friday, August 14 – Sunday, August 16, 2026
Grayson Highlands State Park • Virginia
Come Join Us!
About the Trip
Near Mount Rogers and Whitetop Mountain - Virginia’s two highest peaks - Grayson Highlands offers stunning alpine-like scenery above 5,000 feet.
Expect sweeping views, cascading waterfalls, and direct access to the Appalachian Trail.
🐎 Wild Ponies of Grayson Highlands 🐎
Hikers on the highland trails are likely to encounter the park’s famous wild pony herd. Introduced in 1974 to prevent reforestation of the highland balds, the herd is managed by the Wilburn Ridge Pony Association. Please admire from a respectful distance!
What to Bring
Come prepared with:
Tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, flashlight or headlamp
All meals, snacks, and water (aside from our group meals!)
Layers — highland nights can be chilly even in August
Rain gear (mountain weather changes quickly)
Sturdy hiking boots
Daypack for hikes, sunscreen, insect repellent
Logistics & Registration
Visitor center on-site
Developed campgrounds
Hiking trails to waterfalls & overlooks
Year-round Appalachian Trail access
Horse trails & equestrian camping area
To Join Us
Contact debdemske@gmail.com to RSVP