Post by L Roebuck on Feb 7, 2007 10:19:19 GMT -5
Chimney Rock purchase is a win for future generations
by Katherine D. Skinner
Monday’s announ-cement that an agreement has been reached to purchase and permanently protect Chimney Rock Park is a conservation victory that all citizens of North Carolina should celebrate. It is the latest success in a nearly 30-year effort that has quietly and effectively protected more than 5,000 acres of biologically-important land in Hickory Nut Gorge.
Hickory Creek and the Broad River carved this magnificent gorge, which runs from Hickorynut Gap near Gerton and drops 1,800 feet in elevation over eight rugged miles before it ends at the shores of Lake Lure. If you were a peregrine falcon, an Indiana bat or a green salamander, it is hard to image that you would find a better home than the gorge’s steep cliffs, deep caves and rushing waterfalls. Its forested slopes are home to 13 rare animal species, including the crevice salamander — whose worldwide existence is limited to the gorge — and 37 rare plant species, many of which are ephemeral wildflowers that explode in color early each spring.
Full article
by Katherine D. Skinner
Monday’s announ-cement that an agreement has been reached to purchase and permanently protect Chimney Rock Park is a conservation victory that all citizens of North Carolina should celebrate. It is the latest success in a nearly 30-year effort that has quietly and effectively protected more than 5,000 acres of biologically-important land in Hickory Nut Gorge.
Hickory Creek and the Broad River carved this magnificent gorge, which runs from Hickorynut Gap near Gerton and drops 1,800 feet in elevation over eight rugged miles before it ends at the shores of Lake Lure. If you were a peregrine falcon, an Indiana bat or a green salamander, it is hard to image that you would find a better home than the gorge’s steep cliffs, deep caves and rushing waterfalls. Its forested slopes are home to 13 rare animal species, including the crevice salamander — whose worldwide existence is limited to the gorge — and 37 rare plant species, many of which are ephemeral wildflowers that explode in color early each spring.
Full article