By Taylor Holcombe
A colorful mural welcomes visitors at the entry point of Braselton’s Mulberry RiverWalk, a fixture in the community for 25 years.
“Riverwalk,” the mural reads – simple, but bright and bold, with a background as vibrant as the flowers next to you, as welcoming as the grass beneath you and as blue as the skies above you. Local pop artist Chris Hobé was commissioned by the Braselton Arts Council to depict the scene, which perfectly captures the hiking trail’s essence.
Just last year, the town completed some major upgrades that have made a lovely addition to the trail, including new crushed slate paths, landscaping, art installations and updated signage, officially reopening the trail at the beginning of the year.
From sunrise to sunset, the Mulberry RiverWalk offers 4.4 miles of out-and-back nature trails tracing the Mulberry River. Though no public restrooms are offered, the park is dog-friendly and free public parking is provided at the trailhead. Interestingly, the trailhead is located right next to a suburban neighborhood but a few steps in and you’ll realize you’ve truly escaped.
Trails are shrouded in the trees’ barren branches, making you feel like you’ve stepped into your own wooded sanctuary. The crisp winter air and the crunching of the previous season’s leaves underfoot remind you that some of the best walks can be taken on the coldest of days.
Braselton Mulberry RiverWalk includes perennial gardens, charming footbridges and secluded picnic spots. It is also home to a small waterfall and natural river shoals. Perhaps one of its most unique features is a granite historical monument and small rest area at the point where all four of Braselton’s counties – Barrow, Gwinnett, Hall and Jackson – meet.
Along the path, the Braselton Arts Council plans on including many more murals — transforming various functional utility structures into places where art meets nature. In fact, currently located along the path, a mural is painted on the side of a well house, depicting the park’s hills in the warm embrace of Mother Nature.
As visitors make their way through the trail, they’ll notice an art installation entitled “Horizon’s Window,” donated by sculptor Brian Seay. It’s a standalone structure — a slab of marble abstractly shaped and molded, designed to blend into the landscape. In the center is a small cut-out space – a window, presumably – encouraging passersby to peer through, looking outwardly at all the Braselton Mulberry RiverWalk offers – and inwardly into what the trail does for the soul.
To learn more, visit the park’s website or go hike the trail for yourself to learn what it’s all about: 940 Liberty Church Road.