Starting at Baker’s Pond in Benton County, Miss., and meandering though several small towns in North Mississippi and West Tennessee before reaching its confluence with the Mississippi River near Downtown Memphis, the Wolf River and its subsequent watershed provide some 105 miles of textbook bottomland hardwood forest – an indigenous and scenic ecosystem native to the southeast United States.
    The Wolf River is generally divided into the Upper Wolf and Lower Wolf. The Upper Wolf is extremely popular with canoeists and kayakers for its beautiful scenery and iconic wildlife which
include minks, otters, darters and even bald eagles. As a result of the efforts of the Wolf River Conservancy, the Upper Wolf still remains largely unspoiled, and sensitive species like these can survive. 
    The Lower Wolf runs through the middle of Memphis, and as a result it has been channelized, urbanized, dammed and polluted for almost two centuries. However, as a result of the annual flooding, the surrounding area around the river remains undeveloped, and provides a sanctuary for heartier species such as kites, hawks, herons, coyotes, foxes and various reptiles and amphibians to thrive.

   The East Memphis section of the Wolf River provides the backbone for Shelby Farms, which is one of the largest urban parks in the world. Shelby Farms provides park goers with 4,500 acres of lakes, forests, paved and unpaved trails, and other natural areas. 
    The Wolf River Trails wind through the Lucius E. Burch Natural Area south of Walnut Grove Road. The trails can be hiked, biked or ran, and dogs are allowed on leashes. Horseback riding is also allowed in certain parts of the trails. 
  The Wolf River Trails can be traversed as an 8-mile loop, 4-mile loop, or even shorter due the many switchbacks,  According to All Trails. The Blue Trail is generally more popular during the
spring and summer months due the alluvial nature of the river that sometimes floods the Yellow Trail. However, the more scenic Yellow Trail is more popular in the fall and winter because the BlueTrail tends to remain muddy longer after rain due to the lower elevation and thicker canopy. 
   While it is much more urbanized and generally less pristine than the Upper Wolf, the Wolf River Trails are still a valuable natural resource. Whether it’s an after work trail run to clear your head, or a Sunday nature walk with the family, these trails can provide access to the great outdoors without ever leaving the city limits.

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   Next time you take a drink of Memphis tap water, remember that you are taking a drink of history.
   “Most people don’t realize that the water MLGW pumps out of the ground in Midtown started off as a rain drop in Fayette County 300 years ago,” Stewart Austin told a group of onlookers at the Cooper-Young Festival. 
   The Cooper-Young Festival started out as a small arts festival, but has grown into the largest single day event in the city. While the focus is still on local artisans selling pricy slices of Americana, many other companies, clubs and associations also purchase booths in order to peddle information.
   For instance, two enviromental themed groups, The Wolf River Conservancy and Citizens to Preserve Overton Park, manned booths with diagrams, volunteers and pamphlets outlining their causes and highlighting their upcoming events.  
   Citizens to Preserve Overton Park traces its roots back to the 1960s when the group was formed to block the construction of Interstate 40 through Overton Park. They gained national notoriety by taking the case against the Department of Transportation to the Supreme Court--and winning. 
   Now the group’s main focus is alleviating the parking situation in the park.
   “It’s time to get creative with a solution, and stop just parking cars in the grass,”said CPOP volunteer Naomi Van Tol. “The zoo doesn’t want to do it, they need an alternative.”
   Alternatives in the works include a new parking lot inside the zoo’s property and possible shuttles that run from Overton Square to the park courtesy of Bob Loeb. 
   The group also hosts nature hikes along the park's Old Forest Trail on the second Saturday and last Sunday of every month.

   The Wolf River Conservancy is a non-profit land trust working to maintain the Wolf River watershed as a sustainable natural resource.
   While most Memphians may only be familiar with the section of the river that runs through the Interstate 240 loop, The Wolf River watershed actually covers 522,000 acres and stretches from downtown Memphis to Michigan City, Miss.  
   “We do three things: conservation, recreation and education,” said Stewart Austin, board president for the WRC. 
   Conservation involves protecting the land and the river, recreation refers to the canoe trips, bike rides and nature hikes they sponsor and education pertains to programs designed to use to the river as a teaching tool in the communities and schools. 
   However, the events are available to members only, because the fees make up a large portionof the WRC’s funding.
   “By joining you are helping us to protect the watershed and the aquifers that supply the city’s drinking water,” said land protection associate Ryan Hall.