By Kevin Redding. Last week I was on carpool duty. I had to take my son and his friend to soccer practice. Following drop off I had 75 minutes to utilize before it was time for pick up. Thankfully, soccer practice is a just a few miles down the street from Price Park.
Price Park was at one time, and may still be, PLC’s most well-known project. In the late 1990s Jefferson Pilot was preparing to sell the property for development. In a whirlwind of conservation, PLC was able to raise the $3.5 million necessary to acquire the property. Then, as we often do with land, we turned around and gave it to the City of Greensboro to be used as a passive recreational park.
At nearly 100 acres, Price Park provides room to roam in a rapidly developing section of Guilford County. Since completing the project, PLC has remained active in the management of the property. We’ve completed a prescribed burn, planted a fallow field with native, warm-season grasses, installed bird houses and led an effort to remove invasive species. As with most land management activities, the results often takes year to come to fruition.
As my daughter, Molly Ruth, our puppy, Rosie, and I followed the trails through the Bird and Butterfly Meadow, I was struck by how quiet, peaceful and beautiful the evening was. The setting sun glistened off the seed heavy heads of Indian grass, plume grass and little bluestem. Birds darted around the natural area almost nonstop. We passed a young couple using the early fall colors as a backdrop to photograph their toddler-aged son. Then, as we rounded a corner and looked ahead up a wooded trail with the glistening sun providing a backdrop, we spotted a deer completely silhouetted by the few remaining minutes of sunlight. For just a minute time froze. Molly Ruth halted and reported the deer sighting to me. We both looked at Rosie to see how she would respond. She was staring intently at it but more in a “hey there – how ya doin’” kind of way than a “you look like my dinner” way. After a few seconds the doe broke our gaze and slowly continued her stroll in to the hardwood forest where she was first heading.
We moved along as well. Rosie left with some good exercise and few cockleburs buried in her fur. Molly Ruth had the excitement of sharing a moment with a beautiful, wild creature. I, meanwhile, had a memorable moment with my daughter that I’ll treasure for years to come.
Visit Price Park here.
