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| last updated August 15, 2008 03:45PM |
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Forest Service To Allow Boating on Upper Chattooga?
For several years a debate has been roiling over the fate of the upper Chattooga River.
For more than three decades, the U.S. Forest Service has managed the river corridor allowing foot traffic only, and this zoning has created one of the most wild and secluded experiences to be found in the Southeast. The river is a gem for trout anglers, hikers and primitive campers alike, but that could soon change.
American Whitewater, a nationwide whitewater paddling group, filed lawsuits in 2006 for boat access to the upper portion of the river even though boaters are already allowed almost unregulated access to the lower 31 miles of river below the Hwy 28 bridge in Rabun County. Since then, the Forest Service has held multiple public meetings, conducted numerous surveys and analyses to come up with a list of alternatives for management of the upper Chattooga.
The preferred alternative in the U.S. Forest Service's recently released environmental assessment for recreation on the upper Chattooga River would allow limited boating. The preferred alternative is an attempt to solve the dispute between whitewater paddlers and trout anglers and other conservationists who are concerned about protecting the river.
In the preferred alternative, boating would be allowed from the County Line Road Trail in North Carolina to the Burrells Ford Bridge in Clayton County from Dec. 1 -March 1 during high-water conditions. This stretch does not include the portion of the river below Burrells Ford in Georgia under delayed-harvest regulations for trout, but it does include prime trout waters.
To view the draft environmental assessment, see the Sumter National Forest website at http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/fms
Let your voice be heard! Sportsmen must act to preserve this river for future generations of anglers. The deadline for submission of comments is Monday, Aug. 18. Speak up now or lose.
Send your comments directly to the Forest Service by filling out this form: http://www.georgiaoutdoornetwork.org/save-the-upper-chattooga-river/chattooga-river-form.php
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