Last week, we welcomed a spring break service group from Georgia Gwinnett College, organized and hosted by our friends Wanda, Cornelius, and Scott DeWaard through their Earthkin program. These students worked hard, got muddy, and had a great time while improving a section of swampy trail by constructing a turnpike.
This improvement was made on the Orchard Hollow Loop, a 0.3-mile loop built over the past year by dedicated volunteers and students from UTK’s Jones Center for Leadership and Service. With a wide path and minimal elevation change, this trail offers a relatively accessible space for programming – a valuable entry point for shorter programs, visiting groups, or anyone who may not feel comfortable or have time to hike deeper into the forest.
A turnpike is a raised section of trail that helps keep hikers’ feet dry while protecting wet, muddy areas from erosion and widening. By framing the trail with logs, filling the center with rock and soil, and creating a slightly elevated walking surface, the group helped water move through the landscape while giving visitors a sturdier path forward.
The trail infrastructure was built using materials already on site. Rocks and dirt left over from trail grading became the base, while logs from small downed trees were used to frame the turnpike.
Thank you to Wanda, Cornelius, Scott, and Georgia Gwinnett College students for all of their hard work on this day, and to our dedicated long-term volunteers for the many, many hours spent constructing this trail.
Photos and video by Elizabeth Davis.
