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Highlands Cashiers Land Trust
Written By: Julie Schott - Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust | Issue: 2018/10 - October
You are enjoying autumn in the best place around, in our humble opinion. The Highlands-Cashiers Plateau has some of the most spectacular natural amenities and many of them are preserved by Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust!
HCLT helps protect some of the area’s most iconic views. The jaw-dropping “Shadow of the Bear” at Rhodes Big View is a must see for many. It, as well as many of the peaks you see in the distance, are HCLT preserved. The Satulah Mountain Preserve, HCLT’s first protected property, stretching back to 1909, has near 270-degree views overlooking three states. Ravenel Park, home of Sunset Rock overlooking Highlands, is the go-to spot for picnics and sunsets.
Want a leisurely hike through the woods, stop by one of HCLT’s other public trails at Dixon Woods off Bowery Rd, the historic Kelsey Trail at the end of Fifth Street, or our newest trails at the Brushy Face Preserve off Hwy. 28.
Though the land trust has more public properties in Highlands, we actually conserve more acreage in Jackson County. The Cashiers skyline is defined by Rock, Chimneytop, and Big Sheepcliff Mountains – all privately-owned and largely conserved with HCLT. Botanists have described our newest property as the best Appalachian meadow – McKinney Meadow. It preserves a portion of the historic 107 corridor and, as a haven for pollinators, is a stop on The Butterfly Highway.
While HCLT is host to several amazing public parks and trails, most of the over 3,000 acres we’ve preserved are private. Our most recent, High Knob, protects an additional 150 acres and was supported by funding from CTNC and through the O.S.I. Resilient Landscapes Initiative. Peter Howell, executive V.P. of the O.S.I, said, “O.S.I. is proud to have partnered with the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust to protect this land, once slated for development, which is an important inholding in the Nantahala National Forest.”
HCLT is an accredited land trust and is proud to preserve what many call the oldest mountains in the world. To join us, visit hicashlt.org, email [email protected] or call (828) 526-1111.
