A draft plan for sustainable river access on the upper segment of the Chattooga Wild and Scenic River is now open for review. 

The plan stems from a years-long fight to allow paddling on the upper waters of the Chattooga, ending a longstanding ban. Opponents had feared paddlers would diminish the wilderness experience and cause lasting environmental damage to the river, but in 2012, the decision to end the ban was finalized. Now the U.S. Forest Service must determine the specifics of how the river may now be used. 

Included in the plan is a decision to replace 19 miles of “eroding, unsafe, unmaintained user-created trails crisscrossing the banks of this wild and scenic river” with 1.63 miles of “sustainable foot trails,” said Chattooga River District Ranger Ed Hunter.

In North Carolina, those trails include:

• 0.28 miles at the Greens Creek put-in.
• 1.2 miles at the County Line put-in and take-out.
• 400 feet at the Bullpen Bridge put-in and take-out.

The plan will soon embark on a 45-day formal objection period, which is expected to begin with legal publications in area newspapers this week. 

The plan is online at www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=42568.