Cedarock Park is a nature preserve, historic farm, and passive-use park located near Bellemont in Alamance County, North Carolina. The park opened in 1975 with Ronald Dean Coleman being the Parks Director at the time in the county. He envisioned a natural area a few miles from town where anyone could come and explore some of the most beautiful property Alamance County has to offer.

Geographic setting

Cedarock Park sits on the banks of Rock Creek, a tributary of Great Alamance Creek on the northwestern side of the

Cane Creek Mountains Cane Creek Mountains is a small mountain range that lies south of Burlington, North Carolina. The range covers an area including Alamance County, Guilford County, Randolph County, and Chatham County in North Carolina. Formation The mountains a ...

. Located in the

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region of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

, the land is hilly and occasionally steep.

Human history

Prior to its use as a park, the land was used as a farm by the Garrett family beginning in 1830.Farm History – Alamance County
. Alamance-nc.com (2010-05-03). Retrieved on 2010-12-25. The site of the Garrett farm is part of the

Cedarock Park Historic District The Cedarock Historical Farm, located at Cedarock Park in Alamance County, North Carolina, provides an example of life on a farm in North Carolina during the 19th Century. Populated with farm animals, antique and replica farm equipment, and a ...

and is known as Cedarock Historic Farm, an educational site where visitors can learn about farm life in 19th-century North Carolina and can encounter

goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...

s and

donkey The domestic donkey is a hoofed mammal in the family Equidae, the same family as the horse. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a ...

Activities

The park has of trails for

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

mountain biking Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

, and horse riding, including some trails that are handicapped accessible. It has numerous

picnic A picnic is a meal taken outdoors ( ''al fresco'') as part of an excursion, especially in scenic surroundings, such as a park, lakeside, or other place affording an interesting view, or else in conjunction with a public event such as preceding ...

shelters, campsites, a

fishing pond A fish pond or fishpond is a controlled pond, small artificial lake or retention basin that is stocked with fish and is used in aquaculture for fish farming, for recreational fishing, or for ornamental purposes. Fish ponds are a classical ...

playground A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people ...

s, three

gazebo A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands. Etymology The etymology given by Oxford Dictionaries (website), Oxford D ...

s, and two courses.Cedarock Park – Alamance County
. Alamance-nc.com (2010-11-18). Retrieved on 2010-12-25. The most popular trail at the park is the handicapped-accessible trail that leads to an old rock dam used for water diversion for a now-demolished

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

. The dam site is erroneously called a

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

in several places in park literature.

References

Protected areas of Alamance County, North Carolina Museums in Alamance County, North Carolina Farm museums in North Carolina Farms on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina History museums in North Carolina Parks in North Carolina National Register of Historic Places in Alamance County, North Carolina Protected areas established in 1973 1973 establishments in North Carolina {{AlamanceCountyNC-NRHP-stub