Visitor’s Guide
The Eno River Association respectfully acknowledges that the land we are on today is the traditional and ancestral homeland of the Eno, Shakori , Sissipahaw, Occaneechi, other people of Siouan descent, and their descendants, the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation. Although they lived in separate villages and developed distinct identities, they spoke a common Tutelo-Saponi language. In this language, their descendants call them Yésah, which means “the people.” The Eno River Valley was their home for thousands of years before the arrival of people from other continents. Indigenous people are the original stewards of this land.
Eno River Association Land Acknowledgement
Sustain the Eno. Give today.
Join us in protecting parkland, conserving farms and forests, and making nature accessible to everyone. With as little as $10/month, you can become a Sustaining Member and provide a steady stream of support to the Eno River. Ongoing investments from individuals like you help ensure a clean, resilient Eno River for generations to come.
Make an Impact. Volunteer.
Enjoy the Eno and make a difference! A significant portion of the skills and time needed to maintain Eno parks, deliver education programs, and support the Festival for the Eno come from volunteers like you. Dozens of opportunities are waiting for you to make an impact on the plants, animals, and programs supported by the Eno River Association.
![Woodland forms of buffalo and elk once ranged the mountains and the northwest piedmont in scattered herds. Yet even by the arrival of the early European explorers, their numbers were scarce. Both species were largely eliminated by hunting and indigenous tribes most likely traded these animals on the Great Indian Trading Path. While buffalo were occasionally seen between 1720 and 1750, they were gone by 1765. Elk may have died out even earlier, around 1700. Remnants of the buffalos statewide presence persists in many place names like Buffalo Creek in northern Orange County. Some say that even our earliest roads, deeply carved with curved banks, were buffalo trails.
📸: Betsy Russell
Text source: 1985 Calendar
[image description: river in winter sunlight with trees and banks dusted in snow]](https://www.enoriver.org/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)