NC Outward Bound and SAHC team up for conservation management & community service
In fair weather and foul, these young volunteers energetically persevered – sparking a great new partnership that pairs conservation management, education, and community service.
On June 26th and July 11th 2012, the SAHC Stewardship Team partnered with North Carolina Outward Bound volunteers to begin constructing a trail on a protected property in the Highlands of Roan. When completed, the trail will be a little over a mile long, and could be incorporated into SAHC’s outings program to help educate others about our conservation work. Read more
On Saturday, June 2nd, eight 
Sunday, May 20th, was a beautiful day for a hike in the Highlands of Roan. Thirty six ambitious hikers joined SAHC and Highland Brewing Company for a full day of hiking.
The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, we acquired the title to a critically significant property in the Yellow Mountain State Natural Area in the Highlands of Roan. This 225 acre tract will be protected forever.
SAHC and a slew of volunteers spent a full day mowing, trimming, and cutting to create additional habitat for the rare and “near threatened” golden-winged warbler on Little Hump Mountain in the Highlands of Roan. The Golden-winged Warbler (GWW) is an early successional species that is dependent on a unique habitat consisting of sparse trees, shrubs, and abandoned fields. Unfortunately, the GWW’s habitat is rapidly disappearing, as old farmsteads and other early successional habitats are developing back into forested land.
Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy recently added 199 more acres of protected land within the Yellow Mountain State Natural Area planning boundary through a land purchase. Located along the North Carolina/Tennessee state line, the Highlands of Roan project has been SAHC’s top priority since its founding in 1974. Since then, we have led an effort to protect nearly 19,000 acres in the landscape. Other key partners working in the landscape include The Nature Conservancy, state parks agencies in North Carolina and Tennessee, the US Forest Service, and the National Park Service. 
When you hike to the top of Little Hump Mountain in the Highlands of Roan, you see a completely unobstructed view of the surrounding mountains from its high elevation grassy bald. The Ridge and Valley Province lies to your west in Tennessee and the renowned peaks of Grandfather Mountain, Table Rock, and Linville Gorge rise to the east in North Carolina. Depending on the season, you could have bluets at your feet and flame azaleas in your line of vision as you look out across the mountains. When you visit this special place, you understand why conservationists have made this area a priority for protection. 
