The Georgia Conservancy gratefully acknowledges the following sponsors who made the publication of the original guidebook possible: Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Georgia Power Company, Nell H. Jones, The Lyndhurst Foundation, Thomas D. Perrie, Charles and Deen Day Smith, Charles A. Smithgall, and Charles H. Wharton.
Any project attempting to cover an area as expansive and complex as the Georgia mountains naturally requires a great deal of effort and cooperation from many sources. This mountain guidebook is certainly no exception. So many individuals gave of their time and talents to make the guidebook a reality that it would be impossible to recount every contribution. Without certain dedicated Georgia Conservancy volunteers, however, this mountain guide could not have been published.
Foremost among these was Dr. Charles Wharton, adjunct research associate at the University of Georgia's Institute of Ecology and acknowledged expert in the field of natural environments in the Southeast. We are most grateful for his unflagging dedication and support, which were an inspiration to all who worked with him.
Other steering committee members worked to shepherd the guide on its perilous passage from planning to publication. Committee members Donna Wear Veal, Frank McCamey, and Jack Byrne served tirelessly as team leaders of more than 150 volunteers who went enthusiastically into the field to obtain much of the basic data used in the book. Priscilla Golley spent months organizing, further researching, consolidating, and writing text from reports as they were received. Tom Perrie displayed infinite patience in setting up computer forms and formatting graphs, memos, and agendas. Other invaluable committee members included Steve Bowling and Bob Kerr, who participated in every phase of the book's development and production.
The Georgia Conservancy is especially grateful to Mildred and Philip Greear, who diligently reviewed site selections and data and wrote and rewrote several portions of the text. Other volunteers contributed reports and graphics, wrote and proofread text, and carried out numerous special assignments. These included Miriam Talmadge, Chick Gaddy, Judy Alderman, Edwin Dale, Anthony Lampros, Jim Renner, Tracy Battle of Gainesville Whiteprint, Jim Mackay, Kathy Mackay, George McGee, Pat Marcellino, Bill Mitchell, Michael Terry, Sherri Smith, and Bob Humphries.
Acknowledgments are also made to the Georgia Department of Industry, Trade
and Tourism; the Northwest Georgia Travel Association; the Georgia Department
of Natural Resources; Georgia Power Company, and the U.S. Forest Service,
Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests, for providing and testing key information.
As subsequent editions of the book have required revisions and updates to the original text, the assistance from Georgia Conservancy volunteers, staff members, and others who are knowledgeable about the mountains has continued with the same dedication and enthusiasm that was the hallmark of the first edition: Brian Boyd revised the Chattooga River text; Jack Byrne improved the Tallulah Gorge material; Darcy Douglas added a new section to the Benton MacKaye Trail; Peter Kirby provided important current information about mountain wilderness areas; Anthony Lampros added to the material on Black Rock Mountain State Park, Rabun Bald, and the physiography of north Georgia; Jim and Kathy Mackay reorganized the material on Lookout Mountain; and Dan Pitillo improved the Bartram Trail information. Mike Palmeri of the Cartecay River Bicycle Shop in Ellijay provided the descriptions of the biking trails. Tim Homan, author of The Hiking Trails of North Georgia, reviewed the text and allowed us to use some of the information from his excellent resource. Billy Grimes, Cecil Philips, and Bob Lipscomb provided the photographs in the book.
U.S. Forest Service employees in the field and in administrative offices in Atlanta and Gainesville who were extremely helpful in reviewing and updating information include Steve Bailey, Bill Black, Karen Braddy, Erin Bronk, Virginia Brown, Tom Fearrington, Tom Hawks, Dave Jensen, Joe King, David Kuykendall, Larry Luckett, George Martin, Terry McDonald, Jeff Owenby, Jerry Pless, Janet Thomas, Larry Thomas, and Michael Wilkins.
Others who assisted with revisions by providing current information about the mountains include Bob Beck, Arthur Blakenship, Marcie Diaz, Kim Coons, Ann Gale, Ame Gasque, Bruce Hare, Joe King, Mike Magley, Kristi Ogle, Shirl Parsons, Joe Patterson, Bill Porter, David Schubert, Stewart Stoker, Ken Thomas, and Susanna Wallace.
All the volunteers listed who walked trails, researched destinations, and provided insight and information for the first and subsequent editions of The Georgia Conservancy's Guide to the North Georgia Mountains, now known as The Highroad Guide to the Georgia Mountains, have helped make it the finest resource of its kind ever published.
Cary Aiken, Lamar Edwards, Jim Kidd, Ann Rhea, Judy Alderman, Bud Elsea, Reggie Kimsey Rope Roberts, Walter Allen, Betty Fairley, Mark Kinzer, Carol Schneier, John Ambrose, Willard Fairley, Peter Kirby, Damaris Schotsmans, Pat Axsiom, Larry Farist, Tom Knight, Diana Shadday, Crawford Barnett, Elaine Fatora, Christy Lambert, Ed Shanahan, Tracy Battle, Pat Fincher, Anthony Lampros, Sandy Shobe, Peter Beney, Henry Finkbeiner, Bobby Ledford, Nancy Shofner, Joseph Biesbrock, Louise Franklin, Debra Lee, Becky Shortland, Toby Blalock, Dave Funderburk, Terry McCallum, Judy Silverman, Polly Boggess, Mozelle Funderburk, Frank McCamey, Bob Slack, Steve Bowling, Chick Gaddy, Jerry McFalls, Andy Smith, Brian Boyd, Jerry German, George McGee, Cina Smith, Gary Breece, Frank Golley, Ed McGowin, Sherri Smith, Priscilla Golley, Lucia McGowin, Betty Smithgall, J. Marion Brown Jr., David Gomez, Gwyn McKee, Brian Smithgall, John M. Brown, Norma Gordon, Jim Mackay, Annice Snyder, Barbara Burch, Vernon Gordon*, Kathy Mackay, Lloyd Snyder, Elmer Butler, Tom Govus, Pat Marcellino, Marvin Sowder, Jack Byrne*, Alyce Graham, Brian Markwalter, Rosalie Splitter, Larry Caldwell, Delbert Greear, Holly Markwalter, Mary Jane Warren Stone, Darcy Camp, Mildred Greear, Frances Mason, Kathryn Stout, Chris Canalos, Philip Greear, Barbara Massey, Allen Stovall, Terry Centner, Wilson Hall, Marie Mellinger, Miriam Talmadge, Linda Chafin, Fran Hallahan, Bill Mitchell, Al Tate, Henry Chambers, Jane Harrell, Michelle Moran, Alice Taylor, Bob Clark, Baker Harrison, Ed Morgan, Claude Terry, Linda Cobb, Mahala Harrison, Marilou Morgan, Michael Terry, Nancy Coile, Anne Heath, Mark Morrison, Dale Thorpe, Taylor Crockett, Maryann Herbermann, Paul Nelson, Bill Timpone, Edwin Dale, Linda Hinton, Sharon Nelson, Dawn Townsend, Tony Darnell, Jan Holland, Hans Neuhauser, Richard Tunkle, Lisa Davis, Amy Horne, Steve Nix, Ann Vanderbeek, Chris deForest, Carol Howel-Gomez, Carolyn Nourse, Glen Vanderbeek, Jeanne deSana, Bob Humphries, Hugh Nourse*, Donna Wear Veal, Jim deSana, Dick Hurd, Mark Ogilvie, Sheila Ward, Huck DeVenzio, Janet Hurlburt, Martha O'Kelley, Richard Ware, Harriett DiGioia, Mary Ann Johnson, Steven Pagano, Burt Weerts, Mary Lou Dixon, Nell Jones, Dan Patillo, Charles Wharton, Marty Dominy, Bill Kaliher, Tom Perrie, Endra Widianarko, Frank Drago, Lorraine Kaliher, Ray Pierotti, Kristin Williams, Diana Durden , Eleanor Kelly, Annette Ranger, Sue Worley, Lisha Duvaritanea , Bob Kerr, Scott Ranger, Janie Yearwood, Bo Edwards, Carolyn Kidd, Ted Reissing, Bob Zahner, Jim Renner, Glenda Zahner, * Team Leaders
Read and add comments about this page