Coordinates: 38°20′00″N 79°20′42″W / 38.3333333°N 79.345°W / 38.3333333; -79.345
Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness
Part of George Washington National Forest
Wilderness Area
Country  United States
State  Virginia
County Augusta
Elevation 3,400 ft (1,036.3 m)
Coordinates 38°20′00″N 79°20′42″W / 38.3333333°N 79.345°W / 38.3333333; -79.345
Highest point Hardscrabble Knob
 - elevation 4,282 ft (1,305.2 m)
Lowest point
 - elevation 1,300 ft (396.2 m)
Area 6,518 acres (2,637.7 ha) [1]
Established 1984
Management George Washington and Jefferson National Forests
Owner USDA Forest Service
IUCN category Ib - Wilderness Area
Nearest city West Augusta, Virginia
Location of Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness in Virginia
Website: George Washington and Jefferson National Forests – Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness Area

Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness is a designated wilderness area in the North River Ranger District of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests of Virginia in the United States. The wilderness area was established in 1984 and comprises 6,518 acres (26.38 km2).[1] It is administered by the US Forest Service.

Contents

[edit] Topography

Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness is located between the crests of Shenandoah Mountain and Bald Ridge, north of U.S. Route 250 and approximately 20 miles west of Staunton, Virginia. Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness ranges in elevation from 1,600 feet (488 m) to 4,282 feet (1,305 m) at Hardscrabble Knob. The wilderness is named after its primary drainage stream. A "draft," is a local term for a creek.[2] Ramsey’s Draft is a tributary of the Calfpasture River, which feeds into the James River and the Chesapeake Bay.

[edit] History

The US Forest Service first purchased land in this area in 1913 for Shenandoah National Forest, the precursor to the present day George Washington National Forest. The Forest Service has managed the Ramsey’s Draft area essentially as a wilderness since 1935 as much of it had never been logged.[3] A road more than three miles upstream from U.S. 250 constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930’s lasted until 1969, when rainwater from Hurricane Camille wiped out much of the road at the stream crossings. Another flood in November 1985 further eliminated the original road and changed the course of the stream in multiple areas,[3] shortly after the area was officially designated a wilderness under the Virginia Wilderness Act of 1984.[4]

The boundaries of Ramsey’s Draft wilderness remain the subject of discussion. In 1985 a larger tract, named the “Shenandoah Wilderness” was proposed that would have included the entire Ramsey's Draft Wilderness. In 2001, a group called Virginians for Wilderness proposed the Ernie Dickerman Wilderness.[5][6] This proposed tract would be the largest wilderness east of the Rockies and would stretch from the south boundary of the NSA’s communications base at Sugar Grove in Pendleton County, West Virginia southward to U.S. 250 in Virginia’s Highland and Augusta counties. It would include Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness, plus stretches of the Little and North rivers north of the present wilderness.[5]

The Forest Service in 2009 has been working on a revision to its Forest Plan for the George Washington National Forest that proposes adding wilderness acreage to the present Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness eastern boundary.[7] The Forest Service notes that a major concern about the Ramsey’s Draft addition is the opposition of the county board of supervisors.[7] Public meeting comments about the proposed revision also indicate a desire from mountain bikers to adjust the present western boundary of Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness to take the Shenandoah Mountain Trail out of the wilderness area and open the entire length of that trail to bikers.[8]

[edit] Vegetation

Ramsey's Draft looking north from near the Wilderness's southern border, along the Ramsey's Draft Trail.

Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness is well known for its stands of old-growth Canadian Hemlock, particularly in the northern reaches of Ramsey’s Draft, however these stands are under attack by the hemlock woolly adelgid and may not last much longer.[9][10] Other large trees in the wilderness include Tulip Poplar, Eastern White Pine, Sugar Maple, Black Birch, Shagbark Hickory, and Northern Red Oak. Over 250 species of vascular plants have been identified and logged in Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness.[10]

[edit] Wildlife

Ramsey’s Draft is one of the stops on the Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trail established by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.[11] In its description of Ramsey’s Draft on the Birding and Wildlife Trail website, the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries explains that this site “is probably popular among birders because it provides nesting grounds for neotropical migrants that typically nest at high elevations.” [11]

Common wildlife found in Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness include white-tailed deer, black bear, wild turkey, squirrel, grouse, raccoon, beaver and rabbit, among others.

[edit] Recreation

The property has been used for recreation for many years. The Potomac Appalachian Trail Club constructed a cabin within the present wilderness boundaries around 1937.[12] This cabin was removed when the area officially became a Wilderness Area,[9] with the logs being used to construct another PATC cabin.

The major trail through the center of the wilderness is the Ramsey’s Draft Trail. This trail follows the streambed and the old road (where possible), and has been described as “one of the most popular on Virginia roadless lands” in one guidebook.[13]

Other trails in and around Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness include:

  • Jerry's Run Trail
  • Shenandoah Mountain Trail
  • Road Hollow Trail
  • Bridge Hollow Trail
  • Bald Ridge Trail
  • Wild Oak Trail
  • Sinclair Hollow Trail
  • Hiner Spring Trail

The Shenandoah Mountain Trail is one of the trails projected for inclusion in the proposed Great Eastern Trail project.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Ramsey’s Draft Wilderness: George Washington National Forest
  2. ^ Ramseys Draft Wilderness - Wilderness.net
  3. ^ a b “Ramsey's Draft is long on hurricanes and floods” – Roanoke.com
  4. ^ Virginia Wilderness Act of 1984
  5. ^ a b “65,000-acre Wilderness Area Proposed on Virginia Border” – reprinted from the Charleston Gazette, August 28, 2001
  6. ^ “More on The Ernie Dickerman Wilderness (Proposed)”
  7. ^ a b Forest Service Summary Plan of 2009 Revision Issues
  8. ^ Forest Plan Revision Public Meeting Comments: Lexington, VA January 29, 2009
  9. ^ a b PATC History of Ramsey's Draft
  10. ^ a b Forests of the Central Appalachians: Ramsey’s Draft
  11. ^ a b Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trail: Ramsey’s Draft
  12. ^ History of PATC’s Sexton Shelter Site
  13. ^ Carroll, Steven; Mark Miller (2002). Wild Virginia: A Guide to Thirty Roadless Recreation Areas. Globe Pequot Press. ISBN 0-7627-2315-7. 

[edit] External links