SAHC protects additional land adjoining the Sandy Mush Game Lands

Land adjacent to the Sandy Mush Game Lands in northern Buncombe County has been donated to the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy. The newly donated 88-acre tract of land will connect the Sandy Mush Game Lands on two different sides.

This property bridges the gap between major portions of state-owned game lands, which are managed by the Wildlife Resource Commission (WRC).

“SAHC has played a role as a major partner in the protection of the Sandy Mush Game Lands,” said Carl Silverstein, SAHC’s Executive Director. “This property will protect a corridor for wildlife in the largest contiguous network of protected lands in this portion of northern Buncombe County. We are so pleased we were able to continue our work in preserving this area.”

The state holds a conservation easement on the donated property. The land will be enjoyed for birding and hunting in the future.

“It is always encouraging to protect land that benefits the public,” said SAHC’s Land Protection Director, Michelle Pugliese. SAHC hopes to utilize this protected property this Spring or Summer with a creek walk or hike along one of the streams.

SAHC purchases 248 acres in Sandy Mush community – the Robinson Rough property

On December 28, 2011, the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy saved another special piece of land from development in the Sandy Mush community of Buncombe County, North Carolina. The 248-acre property holds pristine streams, steep slopes, and is adjacent to working farmlands. Due to a slow economy and eager seller, SAHC was able to acquire this valuable property at a great value.

“The property could have been sold to a developer in a heartbeat, but we acted quickly and protected another striking piece of land,” said Carl Silverstein, SAHC’s Executive Director.

Cabin on the Robinson Rough Property. This purchase preserves a valuable nugget of Appalachian heritage.

Located at the end of a state road with excellent access, southern exposure and creeks, the property was just waiting for a developer to buy it, according to William Hamilton, SAHC’s Farmland Program Director.

“It would have been a shame for a large development to go in right next to properties that SAHC, Buncombe County, and landowners in the area have worked so hard to preserve,” said Hamilton.

Hamilton continues, “The property was a developer’s dream. Robinson Rough has beautiful creeks, sun exposure, views into the Sandy Mush valley, and includes an 1885 farm house and hand-hewn cabins. It was a great success for SAHC to acquire such an impressive property.”

SAHC purchased the property in order to safeguard the mountain from development. The deal is a major addition to the protected landscape in Buncombe County, and a good deal for conservation.

“We have adjoining property under conservation easement, and we’re really happy that the property is going to stay as it is and not be developed,” said Bill Duckett, neighboring farmer and cattleman.

The parcel bookends a ridge in the Newfound Mountains that SAHC has been working to protect since the 1990s. The purchase will also protect the headwaters of a major tributary of Sandy Mush Creek.

Hamilton adds, “We did what we’re good at – we acted quickly to protect a piece of property with exceptional conservation values and ensured that the land would remain a positive resource for the Sandy Mush community.”

Landmark Protection Project Finished on Little Pisgah Mountain

On December 22, 2011, the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy recorded conservation easements protecting 474 acres in southern Buncombe County. This project combines with neighboring conservation easements and other preserves to bring the total amount of land protected on Little Pisgah Mountain to more than 1,400 acres.

“The Little Pisgah project is a major step in preservation of mountaintops in an important focus area of the Buncombe County land conservation plan,” according to Albert Sneed, chairman of the Buncombe County Conservation Advisory Board.

The property contains 100 acres of high elevation pasture, rock outcrops and cliffs, and 374 acres of forested land, rising to an elevation of 4,400 feet on the top of Little Pisgah Mountain.

Tailoring the conservation easements in this complex project involved six separate parcels, and was made possible by the dedication of the MacKay family to protect the unbroken scenic views, wildlife corridors, and water sources afforded by the property. Two generations of the extended MacKay family came together with SAHC to protect this large tract that has been in their family for over 60 years.

“For each of us and our children and grandchildren, the Little Pisgah tract has meant camping, hiking and experiencing the unique joy of unspoiled wildness.  We are thankful that the dedicated people of Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy have made it possible for us to preserve this unique place for future generations,” said members of the Mackay family, Elizabeth MacKay Fisher and her husband Bob, who live in Buncombe County, and Buddy MacKay and his wife Anne, who have a summer home on the Little Pisgah tract.

The four branches of the MacKay family came together to protect the tract from unplanned development that could have added 47 ten-acre home sites on the highly visible mountain top property.

The family worked cooperatively with SAHC to limit the number of future home sites to six. In addition, they worked with SAHC and an experienced landscape architect to locate those home sites in areas that protect the overall conservation values of the land.

“It was a pleasure to assist the MacKay family over 18 months as they worked through the many issues that are part of a project as significant as this.  This project is the culmination of work by an experienced team of conservation professionals at SAHC and willing landowners,” said Michael Green, who led the efforts on behalf of SAHC. Green won SAHC’s 2011 Volunteer of the Year award for his extensive work on the combined Little Pisgah conservation easements.

With 20% of the land open for pasture or farm use, the project particularly appealed to SAHC’s mission to preserve farmland and agricultural heritage. In all, SAHC has helped protect over 15,000 acres in Buncombe County, including over 700 acres in the Fairview farming community.

Buncombe County’s $337,000 contribution toward the project was matched by more than $1.2 million in donations by the landowners and a private philanthropist.

Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy purchases 90 acres adjacent to public trails and the Woodfin watershed in Buncombe County

View from Snowball Mountain

On Friday, December 16, the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy (SAHC) purchased 90 acres on Snowball Mountain in Buncombe County, permanently preserving scenic views for recreational visitors, clean water sources for area residents, and habitat for native species. Nestled in the publicly treasured Craggy Mountains, this tract is highly visible from the Blue Ridge Parkway and national forest land, and it adjoins the publicly accessible Snowball Mountain Trail and Camp Sequoyah Trail.

“Protecting part of Snowball Mountain is a beautiful example of what we try to do here at SAHC,” says SAHC’s Land Protection Director, Michelle Pugliese. “Snowball Mountain holds immense conservation value as it will protect viewsheds, threatened wildlife habitat, high water quality, biodiversity, and pockets of quality high elevation northern hardwood forest. We are thankful to work with such generous landowners and conservationists on this project.”

This 90-acre purchase will particularly help preserve the wilderness experience for hikers along the Snowball Mountain Trail, accessible to the public off the Blue Ridge Parkway below Craggy Gardens.

Additionally, the property is adjacent to the Woodfin Watershed and contains the headwaters of Reems Creek. Permanently protecting Snowball Mountain from development will secure these headwater streams from sedimentation and other sources of pollution while preserving drinking water resources.

This is the second land protection project that SAHC has accomplished this year adjacent to Buncombe County watersheds. In October, SAHC purchased 225 acres on Laurel Ridge between the Bee Tree and Burnett reservoirs, adjacent to the Asheville watershed. SAHC protects the high-elevation properties near these watersheds to help ensure a clean water supply for residents of the region.

An Eastern Columbine found on the property

The Snowball Mountain tract joins a significant swath of state and federal protected land, contributing another piece to a vast network of over 125,000 acres of contiguous protected forestlands.  SAHC’s Snowball Mountain acquisition will safeguard wildlife corridors, habitat for native species, and diverse plant communities adjacent to the Pisgah National Forest. With development spreading towards the Black Mountains, many large areas of biological habitat, old-growth forests, and Blue Ridge Parkway viewsheds remain at risk. The Snowball Mountain purchase helps further insulate these protected areas from encroaching developments.

Protecting noteworthy, high elevation viewsheds has always been a priority for SAHC. Since Snowball Mountain is the 76th highest peak in the southern Appalachians and now one of many high elevation properties protected by SAHC, this acquisition is truly worthy of celebration, according to Peter Barr author of Hiking North Carolina’s Lookout Towers.

Although acquiring Snowball Mountain was important to SAHC, finding the funding to purchase such a significant property was a difficult process in this tough economic climate.  Fortunately, due to the generosity of the property landowners and a donation from Fred and Alice Stanback, SAHC was able to buy the land below appraised value through a bargain sale. SAHC’s executive director, Carl Silverstein points out, “Because Snowball Mountain is an intrinsically important property from a conservation standpoint, we are thrilled to protect such a beautiful peace of land at such reasonable price.”

Buncombe County Conservation Hall of Fame Awards

Thursday, September 16th, the Members of the Buncombe County Land Conservation Advisory Board held the 3rd Annual Buncombe County Conservation Hall of Fame Awards at Claxton Farm in Weaverville, NC to celebrate the extraordinary accomplishments in  conservation in Buncombe County. The LCAB helps promote the use of voluntary land conservation easements to preserve the county’s beauty and ecology.  Buncombe County is the only NC County to develop this citizen, private/public partnership.
Executive Director of the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy and Board Member of the Buncombe County Land Conservation Advisory Board, Carl Silverstein, presented awards to landowners that had given donations of conservation easements during the past year through SAHC. Among those who received awards were Martha Ann and Porter Claxton and Fairman and Kate Jayne who are both landowners that have partnered with SAHC to establish conservation easements on their properties. The Claxton’s hosted the event on their property and were named Conservationists of the Year.