Conservation Story

“Reems Creek is an important tributary of the French Broad River,” says Executive Director Carl Silverstein. “The headwaters of Reems Creek originate in a quiet mountain cove approximately eight miles east of the town of Weaverville, in the Great Craggy Mountains.”

Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy recently closed on a 172-acre conservation easement on South McDaris Ridge, part of SAHC’s long term strategic conservation plan to protect water quality in the headwaters of Reems Creek. Other notable successes in this plan include the 1,840-acre Woodfin Watershed conservation easement completed in 2005, 37-acre Camp Sequoyah conservation easement and 105-acre Herb Mountain Farm conservation easement completed in 2009, 90 acres at the summit of Snowball Mountain that SAHC purchased in 2011, and the 229-acre Reems Creek Bowl Preserve SAHC purchased in 2022. Additionally, SAHC has protected water quality in tributaries of Reems Creek at Ballard Cove (63-acre conservation easement, 2022) and more.

“SAHC has been working in this vicinity since 1996 when we accepted the donation of two adjoining conservation easements in the headwaters of Ox Creek, a tributary of Reems Creek,” says Land Protection Director Michelle Pugliese. “Today, with the addition of the South McDaris Ridge conservation easement, SAHC’s conservation easements and preserves in this vicinity total just under 3,000 acres. We continue to prioritize protection of this scenic valley, which contains state-designated Trout waters, historic sites, and diverse forest communities.”