Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust

 

Who owns this View?

There are a number of answers to that question. You could respond “Why of course, God does”, or perhaps  ”it belongs to Mother Nature.”  Or the one I really like is, “it belongs to all of us.”  While all these statements may be true there is of course more to the story.

The picture above was taken at Rhodes Big View on Highway 64 at the Macon-Jackson County Line.  The labels on the picture are the named features found on the USGS 7.5 topographic maps for the region.  The 10 acres where the picture was taken is owned by the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust, a property donated by the Rhodes children.  A more down to earth answer to the question of “Who owns this View” is that five of the nine named peaks are owned by the US Forest Service (which is course means they belong to the citizens of the United States) and the other four are owned privately. Three of those nine peaks will forever remain undisturbed in their natural state because their owners, folks like the Warren Family and Will McKee, placed their land into a conservation easement.  In an easement the owners agree to limit their development of their lands forever.

So next time you stop at the Big View and say Thank God for the incredible sight, take out some time and also say a silent thank you to the US Forest Service and the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust and its donors.

 

“The mission of the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust is to

protect valuable land resources for all generations.”