Elkins, W.Va. (WVDN) —The Monongahela National Forest announced the purchase of the Cunningham Knob Addition, a 427-acre tract in Randolph County, from The Nature Conservancy. The addition expands public ownership near Cunningham Knob and the Laurel Fork area and supports long-term stewardship of this working landscape. The newly acquired land will be managed under existing Forest Plan direction and applicable laws and regulations. The Forest Service will continue coordinating with neighboring landowners, permittees, and partners as stewardship of the area moves forward.
“Through the generosity of The Nature Conservancy, Monongahela National Forest recently acquired a 427-acre parcel of land connecting the Laurel Fork Wilderness to the Cunningham Knob Range Allotment. This is a key landscape on the Greenbrier Ranger District increasing public access, protecting trout streams, improving high-elevation spruce ecosystem connectivity, protecting cultural resources and sustaining heritage grazing activities in this unique landscape near the famed Sinks of Gandy.” – Shane Jones, Greenbrier District Ranger.
Todd Miller of The Nature Conservancy West Virginia said, “The Nature Conservancy works with public and private landowners to protect and restore our most resilient landscapes to support nature and people. The Cunningham Knob area is one of those landscapes. Its limestone geology has created rich pastures along with cold, spring-fed streams and unique wetland habitats, surrounded by remnant red spruce forests. These ecosystems support native brook trout, rare plant communities and numerous wildlife species, as well as a proud local cattle ranching tradition.
We acquired this beautiful property to restore and protect its unique habitats, and to eventually transfer ownership to the Monongahela National Forest. We made a substantial investment to not only purchase and hold the property, but to reforest stream corridors. And we worked with local landowners and contractors to fence the reforested areas and property boundaries so that portions of the property and adjacent private lands could be managed for cattle grazing, continuing historic local land use that maintains lush pastures for grassland birds and other wildlife species.
We truly value our long-term partnership with the United States Forest Service. Our work together has enabled conservation at the landscape scale. We are excited to see this land added to the Monongahela National Forest, where it will be stewarded for nature and future generations.”
Visitors are asked to respect the existing closure order affecting two limited locations in the area. The closure order can be found on our website here.
About the Forest Service: The Forest Service has, for more than 100 years, brought people and communities together to answer the call of conservation. Grounded in world-class science and technology — and rooted in communities — the Forest Service connects people to nature and to each other. The Forest Service cares for shared natural resources in ways that promote lasting economic, ecological, and social vitality. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains the largest wildland fire and forestry research organizations in the world. The Forest Service also has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 900 million forested acres within the U.S., of which over 130 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live.
