Bays Mountain Park and Planetarium reopened today

Bays Mountain Park and Planetarium reopened today (Wednesday, October 9) at normal hours. The park has been closed for more than a week as staff, volunteers and private contractors have worked to repair the damage done by Hurricane Helene.

Hurricane Helene caused numerous trees to fall on paths, trails and across the park in general. The storm caused damage to the Nature Center, the caretaker’s house and the fencing of one wolf habitat. Power, phone and Internet service was also down for much of the past 10 days.

Due to the professionalism and dedication of staff, no animals escaped or were harmed by the storm.

When the park reopens on Wednesday, the following trails will be open to the public – Azalea, Chestnut, Big Oak, Moonshiners, River Mountain Road, Fire Tower, Lakeside, Towhee, Food Plot, Sweet Gum, Hemlock, Chinquapin, Lake Road, Bays Ridge Road, Dolan Branch, Cliffside and Pine.

Our goal is to have the western end of the park open by Friday. There are small branches along River Mountain Road and Chinquapin. Please be careful when mountain biking along this area.

Work is continuing every day to remove trees, limbs and debris from the trails at Bays Mountain Park. Updates will be provided on the condition of the trails once more information is available. We appreciate the public’s patience during this challenging time.