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Nature Conservancy presents Nags Head Woods annual report; highlights visitation, trails and conservation needs
Summary
Aaron McCall of The Nature Conservancy briefed the Nags Head Board of Commissioners on the Woods’ annual report, citing rising visitation, expanded volunteer support, invasive‑species removal efforts and fundraising goals for improved visitor exhibits and long‑term conservation of an adjacent 248‑acre easement under board consideration.
Aaron McCall of The Nature Conservancy presented the Nags Head Woods annual report to the Board of Commissioners on Nov. 6, outlining visitor counts, site amenities and conservation priorities.
McCall said the Woods includes about eight miles of hiking trails, an ADA trail, four wooden boardwalks, roughly 1,000 linear feet of ADA boardwalk and about 62 signs, and noted a bilingual (English/Spanish) audio tour. He reported average monthly trail user counts of 700–1,000 hikers and vehicle counts of just under 3,000 per month on the gravel access road, and said audio‑tour usage was roughly 2,000 plays over the reported period.
McCall thanked local partners and volunteers: the Woods hosted multiple interns (including students from the Coastal Studies Institute and the Outer Banks field site) and recorded just under 1,000 volunteer service hours last year. He described education programs — field trips serving fifth‑grade classes from Nags Head and Kill Devil Hills and summer interpretive days — that the conservancy supports using endowment funds to subsidize participation.
On ecological management, McCall said invasive plants (Russian olive, oriental bittersweet, Japanese stiltgrass) and an uptick in nutria activity have posed challenges to freshwater marsh habitats. He said staff worked with a certified trapper to remove 11 nutria last winter and that deer management through a bow‑hunting program continues (37 registered hunters last year; 45 registered this season with three deer harvested so far).
McCall identified planned improvements and fundraising goals for the coming year, including refreshed educational exhibits and a three‑dimensional model of Nags Head Woods to help visitors visualize the site’s topography and ecological value. He also thanked town staff, specifically Amy Miller, for work on a potential easement for a 248‑acre parcel that would connect conserved lands and secure trail access in perpetuity.
The board thanked the presenter and had no objections; the report preceded other agenda items on staff recognitions and employee awards.
