Chattooga Quarterly
Summer, 2008
Director's Page
The Upper Narrows in the Chattooga Cliffs Reach of the Chattooga Headquarters
It is completely understandable that, in the eyes of the public, the degradation of the once wild character of the Chattooga River below Highway 28 can be attributed to the main user group, namely, whitewater enthusiasts. Total use by commercial and private boaters can exceed 80,000 people on the lower Chattooga in some years. So, when American Whitewater proposed to lift the ban on boating above the Highway 28 bridge, where the last vestige of wildness still survives in two small remote sections of the Chattooga River in the Rock Gorge and the Chattooga Cliffs reaches, it touched off a powder keg of debate. Read more.
The Last Wild River
Thick strokes of early-evening crimson smeared across the rolling mountains of Rabun County as I drove up Highway 23 from Atlanta toward Clayton. The whole world looked like it was burning up right behind the horizon line. It was the nine-degree, molar-rattling middle of January in North Georgia, and I was on my way to visit the Chattooga River, fifty-seven miles of fierce backcountry water and etched stone where the film of my father's first novel, Deliverance, was shot in the summer
of 1971. Read more.
Junior Crowe Interview
Junior Crowe is the embodiment of the self-reliant man of the Blue Ridge Mountains. He was raised in the remote foothills of Oconee County, South Carolina, as the son of a share-cropper trying to make a living during the hardscrabble times of the post World War II 1940's. Junior learned to play the banjo from his parents, no doubt to find respite from hard times. He also learned the fine art of making good liquor from a hearty, native corn. When the law got too hot on the trail to his still, Junior moved across the Chattooga River into the deep hollers beneath Rabun Bald where he could apply his craft, raise his family and play his music. I sat with Junior one summer morning in his home off of Warwoman Road, not far from the West Fork of the Chattooga River, as his life story flowed from his memory like a mountain spring. His stories of making his way in the mountains were laced with humor and wisdom. Junior is a little bent with age, but his spirit comes through with a wry smile and a twinkle in his eye.
Here is what he told me on June 4th, 2008.
Read more.
Monarch Watch
The changing seasons of summertime to autumn in the Chattooga River watershed mark the appearance of Monarch butterflies traveling through this area en route to their winter home in south-central Mexico's Sierra Madre. The fall migration period for Monarch butterflies through our tri-state area is mid-September through mid-October. Less noticeable is the return migration of over-wintering monarchs in April. Useful indicators of the fall migration through the Chattooga watershed is the onset of bloom by the wild asters, goldenrod and Joe Pye weed. Read more.
- Milestone Reached in Chattooga Headwaters Controversy
- Progress on the Horizon for Stekoa Creek
- Georgia Water Plan
- I-3 Request for Proposals Expected Soon
- Public Land Woes: Yet Another Round
Members' Page
Many thanks to everyone who recently renewed their membership, joined, or donated goods or time to the Chattooga Conservancy. Your generous contributions will help us continue to work on all of the important conservation issues facing the watershed. Read more.