Hunt is on in some northwest Georgia forests despite Rough Ridge Fire

Forestry officials are warning that the Rough Ridge Fire, though 75 percent contained, could revisit previously burned areas. The buck and bear hunt in the Cohutta Wildlife Management Area will occur Nov. 30 through Dec. 4, but many areas will be inaccessible due to road closures. Roads that are open will see traffic from emergency vehicles, so drivers are urtged to go slowly and avoid blocking gates or parking in burned areas.

Here’s an update as of Friday from the U.S. Forest Service:

The following areas and roads will be closed during November 30th through December 4th for the hunt:

• Cohutta Wilderness south of Jacks River

• WMA lands east of Forest Service Road 16 and east of the Conasauga River to the Cohutta Wilderness boundary

• WMA lands north of Forest Service Road 64 to Buddy Cove Gap and generally west of the Pinhoti Trail to Forest Service Road 126

• WMA lands north of Forest Service Road 126 and generally west of the Benton MacKaye Trail to the Wilderness boundary

• Forest Service Road 51 (East Cowpen/Jigger Creek)

• Forest Sevice Road 126 (Elliot Road/West Fork Jacks River)

• Forest Service Road 64 from Three Forks Trailhead Parking Lot to Jacks River Fields Campground is closed to motorized vehicles because of a landslide

• Forest Service Road 18 between Emery Creek Trailhead Parking Lot and Shanty Creek is closed to motorized vehicles because of a landslide

• Forest Service Road 630D (Rocky Flats) is closed to motorized vehicles because of a sinkhole

The following roads will be open during November 30th through December 4th for the hunt:

• Forest Service Road 64 from Watson Gap to Jacks River Fields Campground and FSR 64 from Potato Patch to Three Forks Parking Lot

• Forest Service Road 16, 17, 17B, 22, 49, 68, and 630

The following seasonally-gated roads will be open during November 30th through December 4th for the hunt:

• Forest Service Road 151 (Mooneyham)

• Forest Service Road 17A (Pleasant Gap)

• Forest Service Road 630C (Lackey Knob)

• Forest Service Road 304 (Barnes Creek)

Updates: www.fs.usda.gov/conf, @ChattOconeeNF or by downloading mobile apps for Android or iPhone at http://tinyurl.com/CONFmobileapp.