What is it with Western North Carolina's Pisgah National Forest, a nationally-recognized pristine trout stream, and nutcases?
(Map of the Pink Beds area)
Today's Asheville paper reports that up to 400 acres between the Pink Beds campground and Forest Road 476 (the South Mills trailhead) will be the site of a prescribed burn this week to ensure any hidden caches of ammunition or explosives possibly left by a recently arrested fugitive can be destroyed, and the area safely searched. John Joseph Hiles was arrested in late November while hiding in the area since August, meaning those Fiberglass Flyrodders Forum members camping and fishing along the river during the Autumn Clave in October might have said "Howdy" to him along the trail, never knowing his camping gear included a whole lot more than pork & beans, Clif Bars and maybe an overrated graphite rod. The area has been closed to visitors since his arrest.
(Custom McFarland build on the South Mills River)
A hike-in feeder of the region's mighty French Broad River, the South Mills has previously figured on TU's Top 100 list and offers abundant wild rainbows, browns and brookies to anglers willing to hike.
The lonely and beautiful South Mills trail (FS 133) was also the location two years ago of the abduction and murder of local hikers John and Irene Bryant. The prime suspect, a drifter named Gary Hilton, is currently in a Georgia jail convicted of the murder of a 24-yr-old woman hiking on a section of the Appalachian Trail. And who can forget ol' Eric Robert Rudolph, who eluded capture for years hiding out in the region's National Forests?
(High Falls on the South Mills River)
With due care by the Forest Service, a prescribed burn should have limited effect on the streams except as to short-term aesthetics... explosives, that could be a whole different matter.
Glass rodders- step lightly in the Pisgah!
To follow what happens next with the Pisgah National Forest prescribed burn visit www.citizen-times.com.
3 comments:
Seems like a pretty strange way to solve this problem. It would have made more sense to burn the area while the fugitive was still in hiding!
Yes...I agree. Smoke'em out!
This isn't the same area that Burt Reynolds and Ned Beatty camped at is it?
Just kidding.
We had a prescribed burn here a couple years ago. 40 acres were supposed to burn.
That was until the wind came up.
Someone got fired (no pun intended) and almost set a whole mountain on fire.
Wouldn't dogs be a little more effective, and how much ammo did this guy allegedly have. These guys are going to really look more stupid than our guys did when they burn half the forrest down and next year someone find this guys cache miles away from the burn.
Post a Comment