U.S. Forest Service managers on the Chattahoochee and Oconee National Forests anticipate a busy season as many recreation sites begin reopening to visitors after being closed for the winter.

“People enjoy escaping to the mountains of North Georgia and getting outdoors. The Forest Service has been working hard to get our roads, trails, and campgrounds ready for the upcoming season,” says Towdy Tipton, who is responsible for managing the recreation and maintenance on the Blue Ridge Ranger District covering nearly 300,000 acres of forest among the highest elevations of Georgia.

Over the past year, District staff worked to maintain and improve more than 515 miles of roads in the District by blading road surfaces, upgrading water drainage features and mowing roadside vegetation.

After a flash flood took out a trail bridge to High Shoal Falls, District staff worked with volunteers to haul lumber and materials down a mountainside so that it could be reopened to visitors seeking access to the breathtaking waterfall, located between Hiawassee and Helen. Because of the recent wet conditions and increased traffic levels, more needed repairs and maintenance to District roads will be completed the coming months.

Additional improvements within the 10 developed campgrounds on the Blue Ridge Ranger District have been completed in recent months in preparation for reopening in March and April. These include new picnic tables, fire rings, water hand pumps and fee tubes, and repair of swim beach docks and water lines. DeSoto Falls and Deep Hole Campgrounds were upgraded to the Recreation.gov reservation system, allowing visitors to secure a camping spot at these locations. Hundreds of miles of trails criss-cross the District, including the Appalachian National Scenic Trail and the Benton MacKaye Trail.

“We could not manage the recreation opportunities without our volunteers, who provide such a value to the public with all of the donated hours of service,” says Tipton, who manages a diverse staff of developed and dispersed recreation managers, engineers and support staff – all based out of the District Office in Blairsville.

“We ask visitors to enjoy the forest and recreate responsibly, follow CDC guidelines, and practice ‘Leave No Trace‘ and ‘Tread Lightly!‘ principles,” Tipton adds, citing two national campaigns to protect the forests from damage.

For more information about volunteer opportunities, or the status of roads, trails and campgrounds, visit the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests’ website at www.fs.usda.gov/conf or follow the Forest on Facebook and Twitter @ChattOconeeNF. You can also call the District at (706)970-9776. While the office is not open to visitors at this time, services are being provided virtually, and staff are available to assist during business hours.

Please visit the Recreation Condition Report to learn status for developed recreation sites: www.fs.usda.gov/recmain/conf/recreation.