Photo © Steve Orr

The Mission of Headwaters State Forest is to protect, manage, and promote the lands encompassing the French Broad and Savannah River headwaters to provide high quality water, natural resources, forest products, dispersed recreation opportunities, and education for the residents of North Carolina.

About Headwaters State Forest:

After nine years of effort, Headwaters State Forest opened to the public in September 2018. The 6,730-acre conservation project is the result of a collaboration between the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, its N.C. Forest Service division and several other partners.

Headwaters State Forest is a unique property in that it combines natural resource conservation objectives while providing recreation opportunities to the residents of North Carolina. Headwaters State Forest will be managed by the N.C Forest Service with help from the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. The property will be managed as a working forest and will be open for hunting as a public Game Land. Management of the forest will demonstrate good forest stewardship principles while providing a platform for education and opportunities for low-impact recreation.

Management at Headwaters State Forest will focus on three themes:

1. Conserving Natural and Managing Natural Resources.
2. Providing Opportunities for Learning.
3. Sustainable Dispersed Recreation.

Please visit our Headwaters Frequently Asked Questions page for more information about this exciting new state resource!