Press release from the National Park Service and Appalachian Trail Conservancy:
The National Park Service (NPS) and Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) announce that the fire restrictions placed on 27.7 miles of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail (A.T.) in Virginia, from Newport Road (Va. 624) north to Mountain Pass Road (Va. 652), will be lifted at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 7. This section of the A.T. includes the popular viewpoints of McAfee Knob and Tinker Cliffs.
Fire hazard conditions have become less severe due to recent rainfall, allowing campers to once again utilize fires only in established fire rings at designated campsites.
This announcement follows the lifting of the fire ban throughout Shenandoah National Park (SNP) on Dec. 5 and the George Washington and Jefferson, Chattahoochee, Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests on Dec. 6. Prior to the lifting of these bans, restrictions have been in place continuously from the northern boundary of SNP 965.5 miles south to the southern terminus of the Trail at Springer Mountain, Georgia since the middle of November.
Fire restrictions remain in place along the A.T. in Grayson Highlands State Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia and in the Cherokee National Forest and Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee and North Carolina. These restrictions will remain in effect until sufficient precipitation occurs in these areas.
28.6 miles of the Trail are currently closed to visitors — from Dicks Creek Gap/U.S. 76 in Georgia (mile 69.9) to Mooney Gap USFS 83 (mile 98.5) in North Carolina — due to wildfires in the area.
The Trail north from Mooney Gap to the Nantahala River (U.S. 19/U.S. 74, mile 137.1) was reopened on Dec. 6 after being closed for several weeks due to wildfires. Hikers are asked to be very cautious of hazard trees and other potential dangers within the burned areas.
For up-to-date information on A.T. closures and conditions, visit appalachiantrail.org/updates.
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