The Dan River Basin Association’s Annual Membership Celebration on Saturday, March 7 at 10:00 a.m., in the City Hall of Eden, North Carolina, will include all the major elements of the Association’s mission in its business session, invited speaker and after-meeting hike. The organization’s mission is preserving and promoting the region’s rivers and culture through education, recreation and stewardship.

The short business session will include recognition of exceptional volunteer service, election of board members, and staff reports on the Virginia and the North Carolina activities of the Association.

Featured speaker for the Celebration is Kate Dixon, Executive Director of the Friends of the NC Mountains-to-Sea Trail, who will bring the audience up to date on the rapidly developing trail, which seeks via foot paths, waterways, and multi-use trails to connect Clingman’s Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains to Jockey’s Ridge, which overlooks the Atlantic Ocean.

The trail’s primary and alternate routes pass through portions of the Dan River Basin, including Hanging Rock and Mayo River state parks, and follow the Dan River in Stokes and Rockingham counties. In October the Association held its first two-day paddle on the Dan River in Stokes County as part of the commemoration of Mountains-to-Sea Trail Month.

“The Dan is such a beautiful and historic river,” Kate Dixon says, “and we know that future hikers will enjoy the opportunity to see it as they explore North Carolina on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. I look forward to talking to DRBA members,” she continues, “about how we can work together to build the trail along the Dan in Stokes and Rockingham counties.”

Members and guests will hear reports from the Association’s staff, including those who have joined the DRBA team since the celebration last March. Jenny Edwards and Chad Hall, Program Managers in Virginia and North Carolina, respectively, are located with Executive Director Katherine Mull in the Association’s Eden headquarters. Assisting them is the Association’s first office manager, Robin Light, who has been with DRBA since January. Jennifer Doss, Rivers and Trails Project Manager, and Brian Williams, Education and Conservation Coordinator, work out of DRBA’s Virginia office in Collinsville, assisted by administrative assistant Vicky Thomas.

Following the meeting and lunch at a local restaurant of the participant’s choosing, Lindley Butler will lead a hike for members and visitors on Eden’s Smith River Greenway, a 1.5-mile smooth path between the Eden YMCA and Meadow Road. The Greenway is part of an alternate route for the Mountains-to-Sea Trail.

The hike, rated as easy, can be a three-mile round-trip, or a one-way walk for those who wish to take part in a shuttle. Hikers can see the site of a new Smith River Access point near the Lone Island Bridge on Meadow Road. Participants in the walk are asked to wear hiking boots or walking shoes, dress in layers and bring water to drink.

To reach the Eden City Hall from the north, take NC14 into Eden. At Meadow Road the highway widens into five lanes. At the next traffic light turn left onto Stadium Drive. Go through the next traffic light (Pierce Street). The Eden City Hall is on the right, the large white building set back from the road on the corner of Stadium Drive and Pierce Street.

From the south, take NC14 north into Eden. Cross the Dan River, and go about 1.5 miles. You will pass Morehead Hospital (on the right). At the next traffic light, turn right onto Stadium Drive. Go through the next traffic light (Pierce Street). The Eden City Hall is on the right, the large white building set back from the road on the corner of Stadium Drive and Pierce Street.

Meetings and outings of the Dan River Basin Association are free and open to the public.

For information about the celebration or the hike, contact T Butler, 336-349-5727 or members@danriver.org .