Scenic Overlooks of the Tennessee River Gorge

Scenic Overlooks of the Tennessee River Gorge

By Eliot Berz

The Tennessee River Gorge is full of scenic vantage points looking into the twisting canyon and these viewsheds hold much more meaning than first meets the eye. Viewsheds were historically a focus for many of the conservation efforts of early land trusts. Although protecting viewsheds is still prominent, the modern land trust model has expanded far beyond solely protecting viewsheds. Land trusts, like TRGT, and other conservation non-governmental organizations often prioritize working beneath the canopy through community engagement, research, providing public access, and habitat improvement. It is well accepted that conservation is much more than protecting a pretty view, but these views are still important, and their benefits are far reaching. These viewsheds offer moments of awe and inspiration to its visitors. The vantage points on the edges of bluffs serve as destinations for hikes and other outdoor excursions. But above all, these views of vast expanses of intact wilderness reveal a history of conservation. In the modern eastern United States, few undeveloped landscapes occur by happenstance. It is fair to say that a large swath of forest is not there by mistake. These areas often exist thanks to intentional efforts by communities, governments, and organizations to leave the important places untrammeled.

For visitors, scenic viewsheds of wilderness help us comprehend the region’s conservation landscape from a macro level. The next time you find yourself gazing over a bluff into a wild viewshed, take a moment to consider and appreciate why that viewshed looks as it does. Then, allow yourself to be entirely present in the moment as you soak in the awe-striking view.

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Enjoy this video showcasing five of the many scenic overlooks in the Tennessee River Gorge!

Lawson Rock- Lawson Rock on the Prentice Cooper State Forest is accessible by hiking the Cumberland trail. The nearest access points are the Cumberland Trail crossing at Suck Creek Road and the Cumberland Trailhead on Prentice Cooper’s Fire Tower Road. The viewshed contains properties owned by TRGT, Prentice Cooper, and private landowners.

Snoopers Rock- Snoopers Rock is one of the most popular overlooks of the Tennessee River Gorge. The rock got its name from the law enforcement officers, also known as revenuers, that would “snoop” on illegal moonshine operations from the rock’s vantage point around the prohibition era. The overlook is accessible by foot, bike, or car. Snoopers Rock is located just off Prentice Cooper’s Fire Tower Road and is adjacent to the Cumberland Trail. The viewshed includes TRGT, Prentice Cooper, and private properties.

Laurel Point- Laurel Point, located on Tennessee Valley Authority’s Raccoon Mountain, looks over the lower section of the Tennessee River Gorge. This area is accessible by foot, bike, or car with a short walk. Visitors can park at the picnic area surrounding the overlook or can utilize the Raccoon Mountain trail system to reach Laurel Point. The point looks over TVA, TRGT, Prentice Cooper, and private properties.

Edwards Point- Edwards Point is one of TRGT’s most recent land acquisitions. This popular overlook on Signal Mountain is accessible by the Cumberland Trail, Rainbow Lake’s trail system, and intersecting spur trails. The viewshed includes TRGT, Prentice Cooper, Town of Signal Mountain, and private properties. To the east is downtown Chattanooga while the heart of the Tennessee River Gorge can be seen to the west.

The Behind the Scenes of Protecting Land

The Behind the Scenes of Protecting Land

By Angie Langevin

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Have you ever wondered what happens after TRGT purchases a property? It may seem like a matter of sitting back and letting the forest simply “be,” but there is a lot more that goes on behind the scenes in the world of land conservation. Many people devote their entire careers to it!

To protect land, we need to first know what exactly we own. This process begins before the closing date is even set. We take time to research the property; we read deeds, peruse surveys, and talk to the landowner. The first step TRGT takes after we buy land is to visit the property and mark all the boundaries. Imagine hiking and mapping the perimeter of a property like a surveyor would do. We mark our perimeter to let everyone know that the land inside is a protected area, just like a National Park or National Forest Service does. You can read more about this process in our blog post about it here.

After we map the properties’ boundaries, we can use GIS technology to create and share maps of our lands with the community. If you haven’t seen our interactive land map yet, check it out here.

The next step in conservation is to study the ecosystem of the new properties. Over multiple site visits, we map rare species, special habitats, unique geological features, and hydrology. We also study the cultural history of the land. It is important that we at TRGT understand how we fit in to the fabric of the land stewards that came before us. Much of the land we now protect was once stewarded by the Cherokee people and by other Indigenous people before them. Our goal is to understand the land as a whole so we can make the best plan for protecting it going forward. 

Some properties may have amazing scenic views or recreational opportunities such as great potential campsites, hiking trails, rock climbing areas, or caves. Edwards Point is a great example - it already hosts a stellar view and a popular hike along the Cumberland Trail. In many cases like Edwards Point, we work to keep compatible recreation access open to our community. We also work with conservation partners like the Cumberland Trail, Southeastern Climbers Coalition, and Southeastern Cave Conservancy to preserve access to special recreational sites. Our goal is to balance low impact recreation with habitat conservation in these cases. We use information we learn from studying these properties to make these important decisions about how the lands will be used in the future.

As you can see, land conservation doesn’t end once the property has been bought. It takes time, expert staff, and passion from our entire community. This iterative process of walking the land, studying the ecosystem, and enacting a plan also includes one final key element - you! Any time you take a hike on one or our trails, tell a friend about the story of the gorge. When you enjoy an amazing view at Edwards Point, you become a steward of the land. We can't do it alone- it takes a community of individuals caring about land in order to protect it. After all, our community is helping us raise the dollars to pay for these lands. However, it doesn't end there - your word and passion go farther than you'd think. Please share our story with your friends, take a hike on one of our trails, and spend some time becoming part of our community of conservation! If you’d like to donate to our capital land campaign, click the link below! If you'd prefer to help in other ways, please share our story with your friends.

The Great Recyclers of the Planet

The Great Recyclers of the Planet

By Angie Langevin

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There is a fascinating organism in the river gorge that can emerge during any season. It does not require sun to grow, can grow virtually anywhere, and is more closely related to humans than it is to plants. It reproduces using a fruiting body that is tasty when cooked with butter and garlic but, depending on the species, can also be deadly. Some people are afraid of these living beings, but others obsessively hunt them. Have you guessed the organism yet?

  We are talking about – you guessed it - Fungi! Fungi are all around us – in the soil, in the bark of trees, on the fur of animals, and even on the human body.  But what makes a fungi a fungi? The term refers to an entire group of species. Fungi, like animals, eat food rather than producing it themselves like plants do. They reproduce using spores and have a substance called chitin in their cell walls. Arthropods and fungi are the only organisms on earth that use chitin.

  When most people think of fungi, they immediately picture a mushroom. Not all fungi make mushrooms, but mushrooms are the reproductive fruiting body of many species of fungi. Mushrooms often emerge after a rain on a mission to deploy billions of moisture-loving spores into the forest. However, mushrooms are only part of the fungal story. These beautiful structures don’t last long in the environment. After (or even before) spore production finishes, they are quickly gobbled up by creatures like insects, deer, squirrels, and wild-foraging humans! The rest of the time, a fungus exists as a mycelium. When a spore germinates in the environment, say in the soil or the bark of a dead tree, it grows into a stringy, nerve-like network of cells called a mycelium.  It grows and expands inside its substrate, digesting it as food. This mycelium is everywhere in the forest – under your feet in the soil, around the roots of trees, in rotting logs, and sometimes even in other fungi! You can’t always see it, but it has a very important role in the ecosystem.

Indigo Milkcap

  Fungi are decomposers. They are the great recyclers of the planet, breaking down dead plants to make new soil. The mycelium breaks down the strong, carbon-rich cell walls of trees. In this way, they play a big part in carbon sequestration, holding carbon in the soil for thousands of years. Oyster mushrooms, Reishi mushrooms, Chicken-of-the-Woods, Turkey Tail, and Lion’s Mane are all examples of Tennessee River Gorge mushrooms that consume dead trees.

Chicken of the Woods

  The Chicken-of-the-Woods mushroom (Laetiporous sulphureous) is a choice wild edible that can grow up to 12 inches across on fallen logs or standing dead trees.  The top of the mushroom is bright orange, while the porous underside is a brilliant sulphur yellow. This extremely distinct mushroom is sought after by many mushroom-hunters and reportedly tastes just like chicken!

Chanterelle

A wild edible mushroom that does not eat dead trees is the Chanterelle mushroom. There are many species of chanterelle that live all over the world. The chanterelle is an example of a symbiotic mycorrhizal soil fungi. These fungi live on and around the tiny, hair like rootlets (mycorrhizae) of trees in a mutualistic relationship. These partnerships are essential to the lives of trees in every ecosystem across the globe. The tree provides essential carbon for the fungi to survive, and the fungi supplies the tree with nutrients like phosphorous, calcium, nitrogen and potassium. Fungal mycelial networks can also extract water for their host trees from a greater volume of soil (hundreds of thousands of times larger) than the host tree could access by itself.. Trees also use these fungal mycelium networks in the soil to “communicate” with other trees, sending chemical signals to each other. The bright orange fruiting body of the chanterelle is a choice edible worldwide and a TRGT favorite!

  Fungi are ubiquitous, fascinating organisms that recycle decaying material to make new life. Next time it rains, try hiking around in the woods over the next few days to see if you can catch a glimpse of some of these captivating organisms that are essential to life on earth. You can try to catch a glimpse of mycelium by turning over a pile of mulch, grass clippings, or compost. The stringy white mass you see there is the mycelium. These great recyclers remind us that life in the forest never ceases to teach us something new, and that we are all connected through the internet of mycelium under our feet! If you see a cool mushroom in the Tennessee River Gorge, let us know by tagging us in your picture.

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*Mushroom hunting in the forest can be fun and rewarding, but it is important to go with an expert to learn how to positively identify the species before ever attempting to harvest one. This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a guide to edible mushrooms. Guidebooks, online videos and apps are a great place to start, but they are no substitute for learning from an experienced mushroom hunter. Check out your local mycological society for resources!

New Camping and Climbing in the River Gorge: Lower Pot Point Boulders

Lower Pot Point Boulders

Hike, Camp, Climb!

By Eliot Berz

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Over millennia, chunks of sandstone broke away from the bluff and tumbled down the mountain into the Tennessee River Gorge. Many of these giants’ journeys came to a halt on flat terraces along the mountainside. Today, these tranquil boulders show no sign of their chaotic past as they rest on the terraces providing habitat for an array of plants, animals, and fungi. For our community, they offer a glimpse into geological history and opportunities for meaningful experiences within wilderness. One of these remarkable boulder fields sits on the Tennessee River Gorge Trust’s Pot Point Property.

Photo by David Campeotto

TRGT is expanding our Pot Point Nature Trail to include 3 backcountry campsites within the Lower Pot Point Boulder Field to enable our community to experience this unique place. The new recreation area will provide 3 free campsites equipped with elevated camping platforms, picnic tables, fire rings, and a shared composting privy. The facilities, manageable hike-in, and proximity to downtown Chattanooga will help promote the use of this new site to a range of users from beginner backpackers to seasoned outdoor enthusiasts searching for an easy backpacking trip in the gorge. A portion of the boulder field is also being developed for rock climbing in partnership with the Southeastern Climbers Coalition (SCC). Although these boulders have been historically climbed, the use has been seldom. Our partners at SCC and wonderful volunteers have further developed the area and identified over 30 boulders with unique problems (climbing lingo for a specific route up the boulder).

  These campsites will help fill the void of designated camping options in the immediate Chattanooga area. The Lower Pot Point Boulders will open in the fall of 2021. This project was made possible by the Lyndhurst Foundation, Black Creek of Chattanooga, and the Chattanooga Hiking Club. TRGT and our wonderful partners hope you get outside this fall to experience it for yourself! To learn more about this site or reserve a campsite for your next adventure, visit the Lower Pot Point Boulders page.

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Check out this short virtual tour of one of the new campsites!

Beetlemania in the Gorge

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Beetlemania in the Gorge 

If you’ve ever been lucky enough to go on a road trip with our Executive Director, Rick Huffines, you’ll likely hear him lamenting the cleanliness of your car windshield at every gas stop. Last year, when a few of us TRGT staff traveled to a conference in Maryland, it was the first time I had heard of the windshield phenomenon.  Many scientists are now noticing that there are far fewer insects smashing against their windshields on long car rides then there were 10-20 years ago. There is not a data-driven explanation for this phenomenon yet, but many insect scientists (aka entomologists) have a guess. Recent studies have revealed global declines in insect biodiversity and abundance. Much of this decline is likely due to habitat loss, use of agricultural pesticides, urbanization, and climate change. Less insects in the world might mean cleaner windshields, but that causes alarm for many conservationists.   

Even so, insects might not be at the top of most folks’ lists of favorite organisms. Their creepy crawly nature means that they are often ignored in favor of more charismatic (furry and feathered) species. However, there are some local entomologists that are paying attention to insect biodiversity here in the Southeast. A team of UTC researchers, lead by Dr. Stylianos Chatzimanolis recently reported new state records for 53 beetle species in 13 different families, many found in the Tennessee River Gorge. Their findings are published in the scientific journal Coleopterists.  For the study, the Chatzimanolis lab at UTC extensively surveyed lands conserved by TRGT and nearby Lula Lake Land Trust. They used an array of different types of insect traps including pitfall traps to catch the beetles and then identify them. Entomologists bury the plastic cylinder-shaped pitfall traps so that the top of the trap is level with the ground. Beetles and other ground-dwelling insects crawl into the traps, falling into the plastic cylinder. After a few days, they are collected and brought back to the lab for identification. 

The news about the new state records for 53 different beetle species on lands conserved by TRGT and our partners at Lula Lake is exciting for a few reasons. First, beetles are an excellent organism to study in order to learn more about global biodiversity. Beetles make up the insect order Coleoptera (latin for “folded wing”) which represents over 40% of all insect species. Insects themselves account for over half of the biodiversity of all living organisms on earth! The species that the UTC team discovered in and around the river gorge could be indicators that TRGT’s conserved lands are providing good habitat for beetle biodiversity. The Cumberland Plateau and Tennessee Valley regions are well-known for their rich aquatic, plant, and bird biodiversity, but insect biodiversity has only been explored by a few entomologists like Dr. Chatzimnolis. The new beetle species records help paint a better picture of the story of insect biodiversity in our region. 

Healthy insect biodiversity is important for many organisms on earth, including humans. You might remember that last year the journal Science reported that there has been an almost 3 billion bird loss since the year 1970 (you can read more about this in our blog here). Many of our favorite birds rely solely on insects for their food, and many biologists think there is a connection between bird declines and insect declines. Insects (especially beetles) also have other important roles in ecosystems – they break down dead plant and animal matter into soil nutrients, they pollinate plants that make our food, and help keep the soil healthy.  

It's easy to see why the windshield phenomenon bugs conservationists like Rick so much. Without beetles, mayflies, ants, honeybees, we’d have much bigger problems than an extra trip to the car wash. Next time you see a squished beetle on your windshield, rejoice! (or at least appreciate it before grabbing the sponge). Want to learn more about beetles and other insects? A great way to start is by identifying organisms you see in your backyard. Check out the Seek app by iNaturalist. You can also nerd out by digging through UTC’s virtual insect collection.  

By Angie Langevin

Photos by the University of Tennessee Chattanooga

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Vanishing Bird Populations: What is TRGT doing to help?

Vanishing Bird Populations

What is TRGT doing to help?

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You may have recently read the news about a study announcing an alarming decline in North American bird populations. The study, from the renowned journal Science, estimated that bird populations within the two countries have declined by 2.9 billion birds or 29 percent since 1970 (read this NY Times article to learn more)! It is no secret that birds, among many other types of wildlife, have been in trouble for a number of years. The leading cause of this population decline is habitat loss. Habitat loss includes the destruction or alteration of habitat to the point where it no longer meets the basic life needs of a species. A bird species’ specific habitat needs vary depending on the species. For instance, some bird species may need mature forests, while others may require grasslands or early successional forests (young forests). Once habitat is converted from functional ecosystems to incompatible land uses, the overall amount of suitable places for these species to live will be reduced, in turn reducing population numbers. Other reasons for the declines include pollution, adverse effects from invasive species, and other complex factors.

These sobering bird population declines have been brought to the spotlight by this high-impact study in the journal Science, which we hope will initiate conservation action. Mitigating this downward trend in North American bird populations is no easy task and many groups have been working to curb this decline for decades. These collective efforts include land protection, habitat restoration or creation, research, and education.

What has TRGT been doing to conserve bird populations?

TRGT has been working on multiple fronts to mitigate these worrisome population declines. Here are some of the many ways we are doing our part to help:

1) Land Protection-

Photo by Kevin Livingood

Habitat loss is the leading cause of these population declines, so protecting habitat in perpetuity is a direct way to help conserve bird populations. Since 1981, TRGT has been protecting land in the Tennessee River Gorge. Over 6,000 acres of wilderness have been protected by TRGT through fee simple ownership, and TRGT partners with the State of Tennessee and the Tennessee Valley Authority to oversee 17,000 acres. These lands include a variety of habitats that are critical for migrating and residential bird populations. Additionally, we work as stewards of these lands to ensure they are healthy and functional ecosystems. To learn more about TRGT’s land conservation, visit this link.

2) Research-

TRGT conducts innovative bird research to better understand the complex dynamics of the species that depend on the Tennessee River Gorge. Over the past four years, TRGT has been tracking the migration of two songbird species, the Louisiana Waterthrush and Worm-eating Warbler. This research will help us learn more about their enigmatic migratory behaviors and wintering grounds. Information like this is essential for effective long-term conservation efforts. To learn more about this migration research, check out this link. TRGT also operates a bird banding station to monitor and take inventory on the bird species in the Tennessee River Gorge. Learn more about the TRGT Bird Observatory at this link.

3) Education-

Education is an essential component of conservation. A more environmentally aware community is better suited to step up and take conservation action. Knowledge of bird population declines and broader environmental topics need to permeate beyond the scientific and conservation world and into the general public. We all depend on a healthy and functional ecosystem for our everyday life. By learning more about our environment, we are far more likely to make environmentally conscious decisions and support conservation initiatives. TRGT leads a variety of educational and community engagement efforts with all ages. Whether it be classroom presentations, community lectures, professional bird banding workshops, or field trips to the Bird Observatory, TRGT offers a wide variety of environmental education activities. To bridge the gap between the international communities that serve as the winter homes of many migratory birds from the eastern United States, TRGT has initiated a cultural exchange between the Chattanooga community and the Petén Region of Guatemala. Through this partnership, TRGT and our Guatemalan partners have directly engaged over 600 people regarding our shared responsibility to protect migratory bird species. You can find more about the Guatemalan partnership at this link.

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TRGT could not do any of this important work without the help of our incredible community. If you would like to support TRGT’s conservation efforts, please consider donating. Thank you!

Guatemalan Conservationists Visit the Tennessee River Gorge

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It all started with TRGT avian researchers attaching geolocators to a particular migratory bird species, the Louisiana Waterthrush. After wearing the tracking devices for a full year, five of these birds returned to the Tennessee River Gorge equipped with units full of fascinating data. The geolocators revealed the migratory pathways and wintering destinations of the five birds; two of which spent their winter in Northern Guatemala. Part of the Lynhurst Foundation grant funding this project included a cultural exchange component in partnership with La Paz Chattanooga. The plan was to connect with communities on the other end of the migration to engage in a cultural exchange centered around neotropical bird migration. In the fall of 2018, TRGT and La Paz Chattanooga traveled to the Petén region of Guatemala to meet with partners and commence the cultural exchange program. For information about our initial visit to Guatemala, check out this link.

In the spring of 2019, TRGT brought our Guatemala partners to Tennessee to continue this cultural and scientific exchange. Representatives of the Petén Birders Association and the Wildlife Conservation Society flew over the Gulf of Mexico, just as the Louisiana Waterthrush had done earlier that month, and began an exciting two week adventure. The group traveled to Chattanooga area schools, community lectures, and meetings in which we personally engaged over 430 people. The representatives from each community shared artwork and letters between students from Guatemala and Tennessee followed by moving messages about how these migratory birds connect us. Our partners taught science classes about conservation in Guatemala, Spanish classes about Guatemalan culture, and community members about our shared responsibility to protect the environment. Each day before we met with classes and community groups, our Guatemalan partners accompanied the TRGT bird research team into the field to capture Louisiana Waterthrushes that had just traveled from Central America themselves.

Our Guatemalan partners are doing incredible work in Petén, Guatemala. Both the Petén Birders Association and Caoba Birders Club (a partner organization in Petén) work day in and day out to educate their surrounding communities about bird conservation and more broadly, the long-term benefits of protecting their environment. The group is also leading by example through demonstrating how eco-tourism and birding can provide economic incentives to leave their forests and farms intact, rather than selling the lands for incompatible land uses such as monoculture oil palm plantations. Our other partner, the Wildlife Conservation Society office in Flores, Guatemala, works to use compelling science to inform the protection of Guatemala’s unique wildlife. These organizations work to protect many of the same migratory species that we protect here in Tennessee, and in some cases, even the same individual birds!

This program taught us and the broader community how connected we all are and emphasized our shared responsibility to protect the species that call both places home. This exchange is still growing. We have partnered with Velo Coffee Roasters on a microlot coffee sourced from Guatemala. The proceeds from this coffee will support the Petén Birders Association in their mission to promote bird conservation and environmental education in the Petén region of Guatemala. For more information about this product, click here.

Stay tuned for more exciting news. This is just the beginning!

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Photo Gallery

This project was funded by the Lyndhurst Foundation