RED HILLS

The Red Hills are a fascinating and unique region of northen Florida/southern Georgia. They occur between the Ochlocknee River and the Aucilla River.  They are more distinct than any other area in the United States

The Nature Conservancy consider the Red Hills to be one of America's last great places.  The landscape rolls, and contains pine parklands, hardwood forests, grassy plains, natural lakes, and the area has a great deal of historical significnace.  This area provides a bio-reserve that ensures habitat corridors and genetic diversity that is necessary for the survival of far-ranging mammals and migratory birds.  It provides a safe habitat for the federally endangered red-cockaded woodpecker, the gopher tortois and other animals and native plants.  At least 64 threatened species are currently documented in the Red Hills region

There are more than 300 miles of paved and unpaved roads that wind through the quail hunting plantation of the Red Hills.  Driving along these road, you will see a great diversity of unusual plant species which thrive in the clay like sand and loam soils.  These soils sit on top of dense layers of clay, and they sit on top of a limestone base.  When the water works its way past the clays to the limestone, it dissolve the soft rock forming fissures and sinkholes.  As a result, streams will disappear underground and not reappear sometimes for miles.

In prehistoric times, Native Americans farmed the region until European settlers arrived and established cotton plantations.  After the Civil War, the region prospered when the great plantations turned into winter retreats for northern visitors, and became bobwhite quail hunting plantations.  In the late 1800s , landowners from the North, along with relatives, friends, and business partners, acquired large amounts of land between Albany and Tallahassee as hunting grounds, taking advantage of the region's superb quail population.

Land management techniques, such as periodic burning have been practiced on these lands, thus maintaining a proper quail habitat.  The result is the largest collection of undeveloped plantation lands in the country. Much of the land has retained its pristine beauty by virtue of this unique pattern of land ownership and mangement that developed in the last 100 years.

Tall Timbers Land Conservancy has an excellent brochure with a good map of the entire region.   The brochure also gives a great deal of informationre sights to see and visit in the Red Hills region. 850-893-4153  www.talltimbers/org