Programs are free of charge and cover a range of topics from Forest, Water, Soils and Wildlife. 

There is a minimum of 10 students required for a program and can go upward to 100 or more students depending on the needs of the school. Large groups are hosted by up to three Rangers and rotate through different activities, one of which being a hike along one of our audio trails known as the Talking Tree Trail or our Talking Rocks Trail. There is a large Picnic Shelter that can be reserved by large groups for lunch and other occasions and restrooms are located nearby. The outdoors is a great place to be especially during the wakening of Spring. If you or your school would like to schedule a program at the Forest, you can visit www.ncesf.org and link to the Forest near you and learn more about the classes being offered.  

Returning visitors will find some charring in stands from prescribed burns done this winter along with sections of trail improved with additions of wood chips and new water bars for erosion control. The addition of wooden timbers to our water bars on the trails have reduced water bar maintenance by 95%! Additional tree ID flip tags have been added along the Demonstration Trail for those practicing their tree ID skills. New gravel has also been added to our parking lot to improve its surface wear.

The Forest is physically located at 2256 Old US HWY 70 West, Clayton, NC 27520 and the mailing address is 2411 Old US Highway 70 West. Hours of operational can be found on our official website noted above.