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Save
Parklands
To the editor:
During these past three weeks since learning of the proposed land exchange between Shenandoah National Park and three private individuals, I have been impressed by the amount of shared concern which has been expressed by citizens who oppose the release of Park lands into private hands.
It is obvious that Rappahannock residents care deeply about what happens to the Park.
Many people have contributed generously in time, energy, and ideas to this initial movement to Save the Parklands. One of the results has been numerous offers to circulate petitions to get the signatures of neighbors, requesting public hearings and a 90 day extension of time.
On the Community Hike last Saturday to Oventop Mountain to see the land which the Park plans to trade, I was struck again by the beauty of that ridge. Photographers among us found numerous vistas to record, particularly as our way led through laurels at the height of their bloom.
It seems to me that the Park was designed to provide for many different needs, tastes, and levels of energy, and this special ridge has some unique advantages. It is close at hand for many Rappahannock residents, offering a variety of terrain from woodland to cliffs, and an opportunity to discover unusual plant and animal life. In the Park’s own words in its Environmental Assessment, "This tract, in particular the shady rock outcroppings and mature cove hardwood forest, has the greatest potential of the four tracts examined for containing species which are rare within the Park.”
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