Affiliations
In 1984, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) and U.S. Department of Interior signed an agreement delegating unprecedented responsibilities for management, development, and maintenance of the Appalachian Trail to ATC and its member clubs. As a result, Georgia Appalachian Trail Club maintains the Appalachian Trail in Georgia and has strong affiliations with the following organizations:
Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC)
Georgia
Appalachian Trail Club has an affiliation with the Appalachian Trail
Conservancy (ATC) as one of its 30 trail-maintaining clubs.
ATC traces its roots to the vision of Benton MacKaye, a regional planner who convened an Appalachian Trail “conference” in 1925 in Washington, D.C. That initial gathering of hikers, foresters, and public officials laid the groundwork not only for the creation of a trail, but also for an organization to build, manage, and protect it. Today, through the efforts of volunteers, clubs, and agency partners, the A.T. extends more than 2,170 miles from Maine to Georgia within a protected 250,000 acre greenway. See: www.appalachiantrail.org
Len Foote Hike Inn
Georgia
Appalachian Trail Club has an affiliation with Appalachian Education and
Recreation Services (AERS), a not for profit corporation that operates the
Hike Inn at Amicalola Falls under contract with the Georgia Department of
Natural Resources. Its voting members are persons who serve on the Board of
Directors of the GATC.
The purpose of AERS, and the Hike Inn, is to promote the conservation of all natural resources, both within and without the state of Georgia; to foster in the general public an appreciation of outdoors recreation; to encourage the preservation of wilderness areas; to coordinate with governmental agencies, the GATC, and other organizations to educate the public concerning conservation of natural resources, and the practice of outdoor safety. See: http://hike-inn.com
Cooperative Management Partners
The Cooperative Management System is the concept of joint management of the Appalachian Trail by the ATC, the maintaining trail clubs, the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service and such other organizations or individuals that have a delegated responsibility for the Appalachian Trail.
GATC's cooperative management partners include:
- Appalachian Trail Conservancy
- U.S. Forest Service
- Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest
- National Park Service
- State of Georgia
- Other Appalachian Trail Maintaining Clubs
- Environmental Groups
- Landowners