The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) has recognized Warriors’ Path State Park for excellence in sustainability as part of the 2020 Tennessee State Parks Awards of Excellence.

“Sustainability is an important part of our mission at TDEC, and Warriors’ Path has shown a commitment to that principle in the way it manages the park,” TDEC Deputy Commissioner Jim Bryson said. “The team has used common sense and even gotten creative in order to achieve this goal, and it is worthy of this recognition.”

The staff at Warriors’ Path has reused parts of every tree that has been knocked down in storms or removed due to a hazardous condition. It made LED lighting conversions in the camp store, campground pavilion, maintenance compound, and park office. On the golf course, it replaced tee markers, cart path barricades, out-of-bounds fences, scorecard boxes, and benches with material from downed cedar trees. The park replaced 40-year-old single-pane Plexiglas and single-pane windows in the camp store with new, energy efficient double-pane windows. It installed a new, mini-split HVAC unit. It implemented upgrades to the golf course irrigation system to create savings, all efforts to enhance sustainability at the park.

Warriors’ Path State Park was named for the Great Cherokee War and Trading Path. The park land has a long history of travelers and is still a pathway for modern-day outdoor enthusiasts. It is on the shores of the Patrick Henry Reservoir on the Holston River. The park is home to premier boating and fishing, hiking trails and a renowned mountain bike trail system, an award-winning nature education program and a nationally recognized golf course.

The 2020 Tennessee State Parks Awards of Excellence were presented on Sept. 29 at Montgomery Bell State Park as part of an in-person and virtual annual park management meeting. Managers had an option of attending in person with social distancing or participating virtually.

Other winners included Frozen Head State Park as Park of the Year; Norris Dam State Park for community engagement; Montgomery Bell State Park for facilities management; Cummins Falls State Park for innovation; Booker T. Washington State Park for interpretation; and Fall Creek Falls State Park for resource management.