SUCCESS: George Washington & Jefferson National Forest Districts Reopened
Victory for SW Virginia public lands.
I’m typing this from an airport in Krakow, Poland, en route to Copenhagen, Denmark. I spent the last few days in Osweicim, the town where the former concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau (now Museum and Memorial) is located. I just completed the journalist seminar here and am stopping over in Copenhagen to visit some friends from my Leadership Institute days before returning stateside. I’ll have a Townhall column on the experience this Friday and a full Substack dedicated to the experience next week.
Hurricane Milton, as we speak, is hammering much of Florida and many of my friends have evacuated to other parts of the Sunshine State and nearby states. Please join me in keeping them in your thoughts and prayers.
My purpose for writing this dispatch is to reflect on a story I was heavily involved in before my European trip: the wide-sweeping closure of large swaths of the Virginia portion of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest. In particular, the Clinch Ranger District and the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area.
On October 2nd, the Forest Service announced a “temporary closure” - in effect through October 1, 2025 - in response to Hurricane Helene. I was first alerted to this by , conservative radio host and my former editor at The Resurgent website from 2016-2020. Erick tweeted:
On October 1st, Joby Timm - the Roanoke, Va-based forest manager of G.W. and Jefferson National Forest - issued FOREST ORDER NO. 08-08-00-25-1 impacting Clinch Ranger District and Mount Rodgers in GW & Jefferson National Forest until October 1, 2025.
A temporary closure valid up to a year? Yes, you read this right. Something stinks to high heaven here.
Oh, and if you access any closure area, expect a penalty of $5,000 and/or up to six months in jail if/when this directive is enforced.
Locals interpret it as a blanket closure of countless public land acres untouched by Hurricane Helene. They’re not wrong. This is, by all accounts, was unreasonable and excessive. Par for the course of the Biden-Harris administration (see here, here, and here). But I digress.
When I asked Erick where he heard this from, he pointed me to Substack - administered by fellow Virginia hunters Mark and Shallon. I highly recommend you read their original post:
The forest closures, wrote the couple, is not just about access. It’s about survival in their southwestern Virginia county.
Then came the national forest closures. The USDA’s decision to shut down all national forests in the region hit us harder than most outsiders can understand. For my family, and thousands like us, these forests aren’t just places to hike or camp. They are food sources. They are where we gather herbs, hunt, fish, and collect firewood to heat our homes through winter.
When those forests are closed, it cuts off more than just access to nature. It severs a vital link between us and the land. Hunting season was set to open this weekend, and instead of putting up meat for winter, families are left scrambling for alternatives. No refunds are given on our licenses, which are not cheap. This isn’t just about a temporary inconvenience—it’s about survival.
As a Virginia resident, sportswoman, and public lands supporter, I was obligated to cover this under-the-radar story involving large swaths of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest being closed off to hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities in wake of Hurricane Helene.
I spoke to Mark and Shallon for District of Conservation Saturday and published our conversation the following day.
Listen on Apple Podcasts
I’m happy to report that my podcast, coupled with help from Virginia Delegates Nick Freitas and Israel O’Quinn - plus amplification by Cable Smith of Lone Star Outdoor Show and 81K comments (!) - the Forest Service reopened much of the affected closure areas.
The power of social media speaks volumes. I was thrilled to play a small but important role in getting this information out. If any closures remain or become instituted, I’ll be sounding the alarm again with more force.
Yours, in freedom and public lands access.
-Gabriella