Place: Chattahoochee National Forest
Kelly Ridge and Mountaintown
Wilderness
(Georgia)
Threat: Logging, Changes to Roadless Rule
 At only a few miles away from roads and phones, Kelly Ridge in the Chattahoochee
National Forest is an exemplary and accessible part of the Appalachian Trail where one
can hike the entirety of the ridge with family and friends.
A hub of ridges and coves just
north of the Tray Mountain Wilderness, Kelly Ridge shelters some of the finest wild land
and water that is left in the Blue Ridge Mountains. As one starts on the Mountaintown
Creek Trail, hiking on the ridgeline bordering the Cohutta Wilderness, be ready to splash
around as you drop down into the Mountaintown Creek Gorge with its waterfalls across
rocky and narrow sections of the forest. One of the most remote regions in north Georgia,
Mountaintown has countless recreational activities including kayaking, canoeing, hiking,
backpacking and biking.
These days, while exploring through Kelly Ridge and Mountaintown in the
Chattahoochee National Forest, snapping pictures of the wildlife and the untouched land,
one might want to buy extra film as the threats to this natural wonder are being
heightened by Bush administration policies.
After the draft forest management plan for Georgia’s National Forests was released in
March 2003, citizens used a public comment period to speak out against the draft and in
support of plan revisions to protect these unique areas. The proposed Kelly Ridge and
Mountaintown Wilderness would cover 21,650 acres of priceless untamed country.
However, public opinion was cast aside along with the future of this priceless national
treasure. The final draft of the Forest Management Plan announced on January 23, 2004,
which went into effect on March 1, maintaining the two areas under the Roadless Area
Rule Conservation Rule without recommending the designation of wilderness protection.
Without the wilderness designation and with the recent changes to the Roadless Rule,
these special places could be left at risk to destructive logging activities and development.
One of the main issues of debate around the management plan is the potential effect of
Wilderness designation on wildlife management practices and public access. When the
U.S. Forest Service considered the possibility of recommending Kelly Ridge and
Mountaintown for designation as Wilderness, some were concerned that it would
sacrifice wildlife management alternatives and impede public access. However, scientific
research has shown that maintaining some large, undeveloped blocks of habitat, as are
found in Wilderness areas, is essential to maintaining healthy populations of fish and
wildlife. Wilderness designation also maintains the types of non-motorized access,
including hiking, boating and by horseback, currently enjoyed by the public, striking a
balance with other areas of the forest where use by off-road and other vehicles is
prevalent.
Mark Alexander, a Sierra Club volunteer in Georgia, sees a grim future for the forest if
action is not taken soon: “The forest without wilderness designation would be at greater
risk for destructive off-road vehicle use as well as logging. Rebuilding old roads is also a
possibility which could make these roadless areas ineligible for wilderness protection in
the future.”
There is a better way. We can protect these special places in the Chattahoochee National
Forest and protect their extraordinary recreational opportunities. The Sierra Club, along
with other conservation organizations, is in the middle of an administrative appeal to
fight the final draft and protect Kelly Ridge and Mountaintown.
Kate Smolski with the Sierra Club in Georgia sees that, with the absence of a strong plan
to guard these invaluable places, timber sales must be challenged on an individual basis
and a local level to protect the wild forests: “I like to think of our forests in the East as
precious and few. We don’t have many, so we need to take care of the ones we have left.”
Sierra Club Contact:
Kate Smolski, Georgia: (404) 607-1262 x222
katherine.smolski@sierraclub.org
Additional Information:
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