Raven Rock State Park (Lillington, NC)

Overview: Raven Rock State Park, located south of the Triangle in Lillington, North Carolina, revitalizes one's senses on a cold, winter day with its dramatic scenery. The major attraction, the Raven Rock itself, is easily reached on the Raven Rock loop trail (2.6 miles). The Raven Rock loop trail is an easy hike, until climbing back up the stairs that take one down to the banks of the scenic Cape Fear river.

Directions: Raven Rock State Park is located in Harnett County, west of Lillington. From the intersection of US 1 and US 421, take US 421 south. Turn left onto Raven Rock Road, which will take you straight into the park. More detailed directions can be found here.

Observations & Ponderings: Raven Rock State Park's topographic extremes (high jutting cliffs, hilly uplands and muddy bottomlands) provide abundant habitat for numerous tree species. On this trip, we identified blackjack oak (Quercus marilandica), black oak (Quercus velutina), chestnut oak (Quercus montana), shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata), loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), northern red oak (Quercus rubra), white oak (Quercus alba), water oak (Quercus nigra), American beech (Fagus grandifolia), and dogwood (Cornus florida) in the upland habitats alone.

Black oak (Quercus velutina) at Raven Rock SP, January 11, 2009 (© Nicolette Cagle 2009)

Black oak (Quercus velutina) bark at Raven Rock SP, January 11, 2009 (© Nicolette Cagle 2009)

Below the Raven Rock along the Cape Fear River, Raven Rock SP, January 11, 2009 (© Nicolette Cagle 2009)

For me, this journey to Raven Rock State Park on January 11, 2009, had a much deeper meaning. At nearly 40 weeks pregnant with a baby boy, the spectacular view of the Cape Fear river and valley was particularly poignant. It triggered thoughts about the vastness of earth's history and how the landscape is continually changing at all time scales, macro and micro. This made me consider how my own life was about to change, how I was bringing a new life into the world and that this new baby would see changes that I never would. When I took this hike, I knew that baby Grant would be arriving soon. This hike, in fact, seemed to jump start labor contractions. After 27 hours of labor, baby Grant Joseph Cagle arrived into this ever-changing, awe-inspiring world.

Overlooking the Cape Fear River, Raven Rock SP, January 11, 2009 (© Nicolette Cagle 2009)