# Cohutta Wilderness on Fire



## Timber1 (Oct 30, 2016)

You guys wanting to hunt secluded wild mountain gobblers mark this spot on your map.


----------



## whitetailfreak (Oct 30, 2016)

Awful smokey in town today. Last I heard, Rough Ridge fire was around 300 acs. FS is taking a hands off let nature take it's course approach. This is about as close to management as we get inside the wilderness. I believe the cause was lightening.


----------



## fountain (Oct 30, 2016)

When was the last time yall had a storm up that way that had Lightning in it???


----------



## whitetailfreak (Oct 30, 2016)

fountain said:


> When was the last time yall had a storm up that way that had Lightning in it???



Thursday before last. The fire has been burning very slowly for the last 9 days.


----------



## whitetailfreak (Oct 31, 2016)

Update


----------



## ChattNFHunter (Oct 31, 2016)

whitetailfreak said:


> Awful smokey in town today. Last I heard, Rough Ridge fire was around 300 acs. FS is taking a hands off let nature take it's course approach. *This is about as close to management as we get inside the wilderness.* I believe the cause was lightening.



Couldn't agree more.  I'm glad to see this healthy fire.


----------



## deadend (Oct 31, 2016)

Can't do anything but help. Nature does this from time to time.


----------



## tonyrittenhouse (Nov 1, 2016)

*Fire*

This is the best thing that could happen to the wilderness area. I'm so glad that they are letting it burn. Maybe it will burn up some of those small white pines that are taking the hardwood forest over.


----------



## fountain (Nov 1, 2016)

I'm headed up there tomorrow to work on the fires.  Not sure exactly what area I'll be in, but we will be headded to the Dawson County area first I believe


----------



## The Cohutta Strutter (Nov 2, 2016)

tonyrittenhouse said:


> This is the best thing that could happen to the wilderness area. I'm so glad that they are letting it burn. Maybe it will burn up some of those small white pines that are taking the hardwood forest over.


Guess what type tree got hit by the lightning? Lady said at the meeting that it was a big white pine,lol.


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 2, 2016)

Fire is at around 3000 ac


----------



## ChattNFHunter (Nov 3, 2016)

Thanks for posting whitetailfreak!


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 4, 2016)

...


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 4, 2016)

...


----------



## Jcurtis4 (Nov 4, 2016)

Good thing I took off for the hunt this year..not


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 4, 2016)

Lots of ground outside the wilderness to hunt.


----------



## Jcurtis4 (Nov 5, 2016)

Someone told me the whole WMA was closed until further notice. Is this true


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 5, 2016)

Press release just states wilderness area closed.


----------



## The Cohutta Strutter (Nov 5, 2016)

Whitetailfreak, reading the last update it sounds like they may let the fire sweep over rough ridge and then down to rough and back up to east cowpen and hickory ridge trails. Is that your take on it?


----------



## deadend (Nov 5, 2016)

The Cohutta Strutter said:


> Whitetailfreak, reading the last update it sounds like they may let the fire sweep over rough ridge and then down to rough and back up to east cowpen and hickory ridge trails. Is that your take on it?


 That's kind of what I was told at the meeting last week if the fire kept going in the absence of rain.


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 5, 2016)

This is the latest update. I do know resources have quadrupled in the last 4 days.


----------



## The Cohutta Strutter (Nov 5, 2016)

Sounds like they are willing to let this thing run its course if it just will. It might could get around or across Rough in it's headwaters but not so sure on the lower end. These updates are much appreciated !


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 6, 2016)

....


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 6, 2016)

Fort Mtn barely visible from Chatsworth today.


----------



## Timber1 (Nov 8, 2016)

Yesterday looking eastward. And this morning at sunrise.


----------



## whitetailfreak (Nov 8, 2016)

5000+ acres now coming West across East Cowpen.


----------



## turkeykirk (Nov 10, 2016)

Must be a good fire. Had smoke at my house 50 miles south of Atlanta last night.


----------



## EAGLE EYE 444 (Nov 10, 2016)

Smoke from the north Georgia and also some south Tennessee fires was even in the Augusta area yesterday too.  The weatherman on two local competing networks showed those results last night.   

I've heard that one of these Georgia fires has been burning for around a month now and that is surely scary as it will probably be a while yet to get contained as such in that kind of mountainous elevations etc.  We really do need a hard rain-soaking rain for a few days to help this fire and drought situation.  I know that several trees are dying on my property and the main creek is completely dry and the four ponds are at least 3 feet low now.


----------



## Luke0927 (Nov 10, 2016)

And why dont we have good controled fires in mountains any more....? .Gov ?


----------



## Timber1 (Nov 12, 2016)

Went to check out the fire situation this morning. Pretty much everything is closed.
Did see a group of gobblers. Cant remember exactly where. Off mill creek rd. Somewhere between lower orv trail and cowpen rd. There is a gobbler in the bottom picture. I need a better camera. I was surprised they didnt fly. Maybe all the thick smoke.


----------



## GLS (Nov 12, 2016)

The smoke made it to Savannah yesterday. Gil


----------



## oldfella1962 (Nov 12, 2016)

EAGLE EYE 444 said:


> Smoke from the north Georgia and also some south Tennessee fires was even in the Augusta area yesterday too.  The weatherman on two local competing networks showed those results last night.
> 
> I've heard that one of these Georgia fires has been burning for around a month now and that is surely scary as it will probably be a while yet to get contained as such in that kind of mountainous elevations etc.  We really do need a hard rain-soaking rain for a few days to help this fire and drought situation.  I know that several trees are dying on my property and the main creek is completely dry and the four ponds are at least 3 feet low now.



I live in Augusta too - I hunted yesterday morning until about 10:30 AM and by that time it was really starting to get unpleasant and thick. As for Atlanta I think the wind will be straight out of the north tomorrow - they will get hammered being so close to the Cohutta fire. Then again Augusta might be hammered by the fires in general in NC and Tennessee.


----------



## turkeykirk (Nov 13, 2016)

Ought to be some good hunting in those burned areas next Spring!


----------



## JWT (Nov 13, 2016)

Why would I want to hunt a mountain gobbler ? Same as every turkey, just like a bear, a deer , a grouse , oh yeah , he's smarter than anything on this planet because he's a different bird because he lives in the mountains&you walk miles in the dark to kill him , & you use homemade whistle to kill it with, mountain birds are special & different , very hard to kill, glad I killed some before they disapear into that vast wilderness to be never seen again


----------



## Timberman (Nov 13, 2016)

Smoke drift from the mountain fires...


----------



## Timber1 (Nov 14, 2016)

JWT said:


> Why would I want to hunt a mountain gobbler ? Same as every turkey, just like a bear, a deer , a grouse , oh yeah , he's smarter than anything on this planet because he's a different bird because he lives in the mountains&you walk miles in the dark to kill him , & you use homemade whistle to kill it with, mountain birds are special & different , very hard to kill, glad I killed some before they disapear into that vast wilderness to be never seen again



I guess when your just in it for the "killin" it doesn't matter what you hunt, where you hunt, how much you pay to hunt. Long as you kill something, and cover your wall eh?


----------



## antnye (Nov 18, 2016)

I fear for the effect on the wild trout come next summer.  If the mature trees around the headwater creeks are gone water temps will be fatal. Especially if we have drought like this year. Buddy at the Forrest service says they aren't sure how many of the mature trees it will kill. But could be a high percentage. The wilderness area is definitely gonna look different. Being untouched for 40 years.


----------



## Timber1 (Nov 19, 2016)

Be interesting to get up there and look around after it burns out.


----------



## Luke0927 (Nov 20, 2016)

antnye said:


> I fear for the effect on the wild trout come next summer.  If the mature trees around the headwater creeks are gone water temps will be fatal. Especially if we have drought like this year. Buddy at the Forrest service says they aren't sure how many of the mature trees it will kill. But could be a high percentage. The wilderness area is definitely gonna look different. Being untouched for 40 years.



Is it burning slow enough to kill mature trees?  I fish native headwaters too more in central CNF, i would have thought how dry it was it would be a quick fast burn across the floor.  But if its been decades since a burn that is a lot of fuel on the floor.


----------



## Timber1 (Nov 21, 2016)

28,000 acres burned. 75% of the wilderness area burned. Thats enough room for 2 or 3 of us.


----------



## antnye (Nov 21, 2016)

Luke0927 said:


> Is it burning slow enough to kill mature trees?  I fish native headwaters too more in central CNF, i would have thought how dry it was it would be a quick fast burn across the floor.  But if its been decades since a burn that is a lot of fuel on the floor.



That's what I was thinking. I Didn't really worry about it until he expressed his concerns. I know the long leaf pines have taken a beating up there already with that fungus or whatever it is that is killing them.  



Timber1 said:


> 28,000 acres burned. 75% of the wilderness area burned. Thats enough room for 2 or 3 of us.



You can have big bald. I ain't chasing that gobbler off the back of tearbritches again. Burned or not


----------



## ChattNFHunter (Nov 22, 2016)

antnye said:


> That's what I was thinking. I Didn't really worry about it until he expressed his concerns. I know the long leaf pines have taken a beating up there already with that fungus or whatever it is that is killing them.



You talking about the Hemlocks and the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid Infestation?  I was under the impression that it was a low burning brush fire and because of that it wouldn't kill the mature trees.  But I hadn't thought about root damage and such.  A biologist at UGA mentioned that fall is the best time for a burn since the trees are dormant.  Hopefully the laurel and mature trees around the streams will survive and continue to shade the trout.


----------

