Before it was the site of a newly opened trail system, Durham was a booming coal mining town located atop Lookout Mountain. Active from the late 1800s to the early 1900s, the town had electricity before Chattanooga and was home to about 30,000 people. However, once the mines ran dry of resources, mining operations ceased, leading to the abandonment of Durham.
The land remained abandoned for decades. The mining industry had stripped the area of its natural beauty, but over the years, the land recovered and is now home to a thriving ecosystem.
In 2019, Lookout Mountain's Lula Lake Land Trust purchased more than 400 acres of the Durham land just north of the popular 5 Points mountain biking trail system.
Since the purchase, the trust has spent hundreds of hours planning and building a trail system that now boasts more than 12 miles for hiking and mountain biking. In March, it hosted a grand opening to welcome the public to Durham Mine Trails.
With a mix of low- to high-difficulty trails, the new system has something for all skill levels.
"[The Durham Mine Trails have] a lot of good, easier cross-country-style trails, so they're not super technical," says Cody Roney, Lula Lake Land Trust's executive director. "They're flowy; they're good for newer bikers or trail runners or hikers. It does have some more difficult terrain as well. We've got a little skills park with jumps and berms."
Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Doug Carson takes a hike along the newly opened Durham Mine Trails in March.
At the grand opening, hikers, trail runners and mountain bikers of all ages and abilities took to the Durham Mine Trails to explore all the land offers. Patrick Ellis, an Ooltewah resident, says he's been trail running for about five years and is glad to have more options in the region.
"The trails are really challenging. There's a lot of variety," Ellis says. "It's really solid trails for bikes and for runners."
While experienced individuals like Ellis will enjoy the more challenging parts of the trails, the system is just as accessible for people seeking a pleasant outdoor experience.
"You could bring anybody you wanted to up here and find a trail that would suit them," says Doug Carson, a Flintstone, Georgia, resident who took interest in the trail system's mining history and recovered ecosystem.
Unlike the trust's core preserve which is only open to the public on the first and last weekends of each month, the Durham Mine Trails are open daily from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Learn more about the Durham Mine Trails at lulalake.org.
Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Part of the Durham Mine Trails are seen.