CHICKAMAUGA AND CHATTANOOGA
NATIONAL MILITARY PARK
CHICKAMAUGA AND CHATTANOOGA
NATIONAL MILITARY PARK
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED ACTION
Lookout Mountain Location Map
Climbing Area Map
III. DESCRIPTION OF THE EXISTING ENVIRONMENT
Non-Living Components
- Air
- Water
- Land
Living Components
- Vegetation
- Wildlife
- Human Values
Archeological Resources
Toxic or Hazardous Materials
IV. ANALYSIS OF PROPOSED ACTION AND ALTERNATIVES
V. RECORDATION OF PERSONS, GROUPS AND GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES CONSULTED
VI. INTENSITY OF PUBLIC INTEREST
A. Purpose and Need
The purpose of this assessment is to fulfill the requirement of the National Environmental Policy Act to provide evidence and analysis for determining environmental effects of the proposed climbing management plan.
B. Proposed Action
The Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park proposes to manage rock climbing in the Park to protect park resources and the quality of the visitor experience.
C. Purpose and Need
The preliminary climbing management plan for Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park was developed in recognition of an increase in climbing activity and resulting impacts on park resources and visitor experiences. Advances in technology such as the use of power drills, an increase in bolting, and the diversification of climbing styles have contributed to the increase in these impacts. The climbing management plan provides the framework for evaluating the impacts of climbing on park resources, and for taking remedial action when the impacts become unacceptable.
The principal area of interest for climbers in the park is on and around Sunset Rock, a cliff on the northwest tip of Lookout Mountain, Hamilton County, Tennessee. The general area of Sunset Rock has many cliffs and has become increasingly favored by rock climbers and rappellers in recent years.
GENERAL LOCATION MAP
To obtain a copy of this map, contact the park at 706-866-9241, extension 112. A copy will be sent via fax or regular mail. Please include your preference and the appropriate fax number or mailing address.
LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN UNIT MAP
To obtain a copy of this map, contact the park at 706-866-9241, extension 112. A copy will be sent via fax or regular mail. Please include your preference and the appropriate fax number or mailing address.
Park Management’s proposed alternatives have been developed with the input of many interested parties, including climbing organizations, local citizens, and park personnel.
Alternatives to close the entire park to climbing, or allow unrestricted climbing, were both considered and rejected. Neither alternative would allow management objectives to be achieved.
The "No Action" (status quo) alternative would not address the increase in the use of this resource in recent decades, and would not include the increased resource protections of Alternatives B, C, and D. For these reasons, the "No Action" alternative is not considered reasonable or feasible.
See Section IV. p. 10 for an analysis of the proposed action and alternatives, and Appendix I "Climbing Management Plan – Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park" for a copy of the alternatives considered.
III. DESCRIPTION OF THE EXISTING ENVIRONMENT
A. Non-Living Components
The climate of this area is dominated by hot, humid summers and mild, damp winters. Records show that January is the coldest month in Chattanooga, with an average high of 9.7 degrees C and an average low of –1.1 degrees C. The hottest month is July, with an average high of 31.7 degrees C, and an average low of 19.8 degrees C. Annual precipitation averages 132.1 centimeters, with wettest periods in the spring and winter. Winter snowfall averages 12.7 centimeters per year (Jackson, 1982).
Air quality in the Chattanooga area currently meets all EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standards for the six criteria pollutants: ozone, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, lead, and particulate matter. The park is classified as a Class II area under the Clean Air Act, as amended in 1977 and 1990. Air quality problems in and near Chattanooga are amplified by the surrounding mountains and ridges, which contribute to frequent temperature inversions above the city. Temperature inversions trap and concentrate anthropegenic and biogenic emissions close to the surface, compounding air quality problems.
3. Water
Creeks border areas of the park on both the Chickamauga Battlefield and Lookout Mountain. Smaller streams are located throughout the park. An abandoned rock quarry, now filled with water, is located in the southern part of the Chickamauga Battlefield. Several springs, and the underground water system associated with the caves found in the area, provide water for wildlife on Lookout Mountain, including endemic cave species.
4. Land and Land Use
Lookout Mountain is a part of the Cumberland Plateau physiographic province. Elevation is highest on the northern end of the mountain (near Chattanooga, Tennessee) at over 610 meters. The Sunset Rock climbing area ranges in elevation from approximately 457 to 616 meters.
The top of Lookout Mountain is a gently rolling plateau formed by weathering of the erosion-resistant, sandstone caprock (Milici, 1968). Below the escarpments or bluffs of the caprock are steep talus slopes. Although the Chattanooga area is famous for its system of caves and sinkholes formed by the solution of the limestone, only one sinkhole is found in the immediate area of Sunset Rock (Dickson, Nixon, 1989).
Soils are assigned to the general group Lily-Lonewood-Ramsey on the mountaintop and to the Bouldin-Gilpin-Allen group on the mountainsides. Soils along the face of Sunset Rock are classified as Bouldin-Gilpin complex with 20-60 percent slope. These deep, well-drained, steep and stony soils are developed from colluvium of sandstone and shale (Jackson, 1982).
B. Living Components
1. Vegetation
A study done in 1989 by Catherine Dickson and Christopher Nixon from Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama, on vegetation in the immediate area of Sunset Rock includes the following notes on plant communities:
Ravines and talus slopes contain cove hardwood species such as Betula lenta,(sweet birch), Celtis occidentalis (common hackberry), Cornus florida (flowering dogwood) Morus rubra (red mulberry), Prunus serotina (wild black cherry), Ulmus alata (winged elm), Quercus rubra (northern red oak) , Q. shumardii (shumard oak), and Q. velutina (black oak).
Shrubs such as Philadelphus hirsutus (streamback mock-orange), Calycanthus florida (sweet shrub), Rhododendron calendulaceum (flame azalea), Toxicodendron radicans (poison ivy), and Viburnum rufidulum (rusty blackhaw) are common.
Herbs include Aruncus dioicus (common goatsbeard), Aster infirmus (cornel-leaf aster), Cimicifuga racemosa (black bugbane), Eupatorium purpureum (sweet joe-pye weed), Pilea pumila (canada clearweed), Sedum ternatum (wood stonecrop), and Spigelia marilandica (woodland pinkroot).
The dominant fern in such areas is Dryopteris marginalis, or marginal wood-fern. Another common fern, Polypodium virginianum (rock polypody) is found growing in protected areas in moist mats of humus on tops of large boulders and ledges.
Many ravines are being overwhelmed by introduced exotic species such as Hedera helix (english ivy), Lonicera joponica (japanese honeysuckle), and Vinca minor (periwinkle).
Trail edges are characterized by Danthonia spicata (poverty oat-grass), Deschampsia flexuosa (crinkled hairgrass) Aster divaricatus (serpentine aster), Antennaria plantaginifolia (plaintain-leaf pussytoes), Epigaea repens (trailing arbutus), Campanula divaricata (southern harebell), Sedum ternatum (wood stonecrop), Porteranthus stipulatus (American ipecac), Desmodium nudiflorum (bare-stemmed tick-treefoil), Silene stellata (starry catchfly), Aquilegia canadensis (wild columbine), and Euphorbia corollata (flowering spurge).
Vascular plants inhabiting cliff faces are not abundant. Asplenium montanum (mountain spleenwort) is the only fern species commonly found on these surfaces. Common herbs include Campanula divaricata, Deschampsia flexuosa, Danthonia spicata, Silene rotundifolia, Solidago sp., and occasionally Mitchella repens. Shrubs along such cliff faces are not numerous, but include Amelanchier arborea, Kalmia latifolia, Sorbus arbutifolia, Rubus enslenii, and Vaccinium stamineum. Rarely, specimens of tree species such as Celtis occidentalis, Betula lenta, Pinus virginiana and Ulmus alata are also found there. Three or four small specimens of Pinus strobus (eastern white pine) were also observed in cracks of the more protected cliff faces.
Cliff faces provide optimal habitat for several species of lichens. Crustose lichens cover the more exposed cliff faces. On more protected cliff faces foliose and fruticose lichens predominate.
2. Wildlife
The Park has diversified habitat suitable for many species of wildlife. White tail deer, gray and red fox, raccoon, opossum, weasel and beaver are the most prominent land mammals. The mixture of forest and field provide excellent cover for a diverse bird population. Note that habitat suitable for the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker, an endangered species, is found in the Park. However, no sightings of this bird have been made since 1964 (CHCH, 1985).
3. Human Values
Documented use of the Sunset Rock area by humans dates back over 100 years. Confederate Generals Braxton Bragg and James Longstreet observed Federal forces from Sunset Rock in the fall of 1863. In the late 1800’s a photographer built a studio at the top, and it was used extensively into the early 1900’s (Sutter, et al,1994).
Because the Sunset Rock area is historically significant, it is of interest to many groups and individuals that study Civil War history.
Today, visitors can park at a small parking area on West Brow Road and walk down a stone-paved path to reach the Bluff Trail, which runs north and south along the base of the cliffs. Rock climbing on the face of Sunset Rock has become extremely popular in the past 25 years.
The parking area on West Brow Road is located in an affluent neighborhood on Lookout Mountain. The increasing number of park users coming and going from the Sunset Rock area in recent years has caused nearby residents to become concerned with overflow parking and increased vehicular and pedestrian traffic through their neighborhood.
The availability of adequate parking spaces for climbers and other users will continue to be a problem for both park visitors and residents near Sunset Rock. Although parking problems are involved in several of the issues involving climbing management, the park’s management authority is limited to the use of the parking area at Sunset Rock and the Point Park visitor center. While both areas are available for climber-related parking needs, the needs of other visitors require parking space to be made available for other users as well. For this reason, the current combination of "One Hour" and long-term parking spaces will be retained at the Sunset Rock parking area, and parking for a limited number of climbers will also be available at the Visitor Center. The park will continue to encourage climbers to use legal alternate parking areas located away from Sunset Rock, and will support the efforts of the town of Lookout Mountain to manage climber parking problems within the town. The climbing community will also continue to be encouraged to develop solutions to this problem.
C. Archeological Resources
There are no known archeological resources known to exist in the immediate area surrounding Sunset Rock.
D. Toxic or Hazardous Wastes
No toxic materials or hazardous wastes have been reported or found in the rock climbing areas.
The National Park Service proposes to implement a Climbing Management Plan as part of the General Management Plan for Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, in order to manage rock climbing in a manner that does not cause degradation of park resources or conflict with the intended purposes of the park.
The federal action of implementing a Climbing Management Plan (CMP) as a part of the General Management Plan for Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park could formally put in place several new policies to strengthen the protection of natural and cultural resources surrounding the hiking and climbing trails on Sunset Rock, while also assisting in protecting the quality of the visitors’ experience (See Appendix I – Climbing Management Plan, for a list of components that is shared by all proposed plans). Since the short and long-term impacts of the draft alternatives differ, they are presented separately.
1. Anticipated Impacts
Alternative A: While putting present policies and procedures in an official Climbing Management Plan, Alternative A continues to allow for tying off to trees, an activity which is considered to be a major contributor to soil compaction and vegetation damage in the Sunset Rock/Bluff Trail area.
Short and Long Term Impacts
Under Alternative A, current issues would continue to contribute to controversy and resource degradation including:
Continued vegetation damage and soil loss at the top and bottom of the climbing routes.
Continued trip hazards where ropes and webbing are rigged to trees back from the edge of the cliff.
Continued intrusion of climbers descending/ascending over the cliff edge, impacting the experience of some park visitors.
Alternatives B and C: Alternatives B and C adopt several new policies, including permitting the installation of fixed protection 1 to 2 feet below the rim at Sunset Rock while prohibiting rigging to trees in that area.
Short Term Impacts
There could be some increased activity, temporarily, in the area of the west brow away from the face of Sunset Rock while the new fixed anchors were being installed.
Long Term Impacts
Vegetation damage and soil loss on the rim would decrease dramatically, and potential trip hazards would be greatly reduced in the Sunset Rock area, as climbing lines would then be attached below the cliff edge. Intrusion of climbers on the experience of other park visitors would be greatly decreased for the same reason. Areas at the bottom of the climbing routes would continue to require maintenance to protect plants and soil.
Alternatives B and C address the pressures of increased numbers of climbers differently, making the long-term impacts of the two plans different. Alternative B would close a portion of the cliff adjacent to Sunset Rock to climbing, while Alternative C would leave that area open.
Alternative D: Under this alternative, climbing zones would be established. The National Park Service would establish daily use limits for each zone, and permits would be required for climbing.
The impacts of this alternative would be very similar to those of Alternatives B or C (depending on which routes, if any, are closed), except that the National Park Service, in restricting the maximum number of daily permits per climbing area, could distribute the use of routes more evenly to protect the resource and reduce congestion among hikers and climbers.
2. Mitigating or Enhancing Measures
The National Park Service has committed to include the following components in whichever climbing management plan is implemented:
- National Park Service
- Alabama State Parks
- Colorado State Parks
- Texas State Parks
- Tennessee State Parks
- Boulder Mountain Parks, Boulder, Colorado
- The City of Lookout Mountain
- American Mountain Foundation
- Chattanooga Nature Center
- Chattanooga Civil War Roundtable
- Civilian Conservation Corps Alumni
- Friends of Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park
- The Access Fund
- National Parks and Conservation Association
- The Nature Conservancy
- Southeastern Climber’s Coalition
- University of Georgia
- University of North Carolina
VI. INTENSITY OF PUBLIC INTEREST
A popular guide book to rock climbing opportunities within Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park traces the early history of climbing in the park back to the 1940’s. It was not until the 1970’s, however, that rock climbing in the Sunset Rock area became a popular activity, with climbers developing a large number of routes. As the numbers of climbers increased, local residents began to express concerns about the associated increase in vehicular and pedestrian traffic in the area. Many people were also concerned about the increase in soil erosion and loss of vegetation around Sunset Rock.
The park conducted a public meeting to address climbing management issues in 1987. No consensus was reached, and the problems remained unresolved. In 1994, climbers concerned about the erosion and vegetation loss initiated a successful trail rehabilitation project targeting areas around Sunset Rock. This on-going joint effort between the climbers and the NPS as been described in nationally circulated climber’s publications as one of the premier trail restoration projects in the United States. Also, in an effort to reduce conflicts with other recreational users, The Access Fund and other climbing organizations proposed and completed, with NPS assistance, an alternate parking area at the base of Lookout Mountain.
Public interest in resolving the issues involved in managing climbing activities within the park has remained high for a number of years. The NPS received comments on the draft climbing management plan from a variety of groups and individuals nationwide.
- Pat Reed
- Sam Weddle
- Hank Snyder
- Rebecca McCune
- Charles Spearman
- Dennis Curry
3. Dickson, C.C. and Nixon, C.F. 1989. Taxa of Special concern, Sunset Rock area, Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, with attached flora. Institute of Ecology, U. of Georgia, Athens, GA.
4. Jackson, B.W. 1982. Soil survey of Hamilton County, Tennessee. U.S.D.A., Soil Conservation Service.
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Last edited: 01/15/99