Approximately two miles of the Appalachian Trail in central Virginia along Tar Jacket Ridge between Hog Camp Gap (mile 815.4) and Salt Log Gap (mile 817.6) will be temporarily closed during a prescribed burn conducted by the George Washington National Forest. The burn is expected to take place on Wednesday, April 7; a determination on the timing will be made at the end of the day today. The closure would last for one day and the Trail would re-open the following day. Due to the ongoing pandemic, shuttling services cannot be provided. There is no alternate route for this section.

The burn area is located in Amherst County eight miles northeast of Buena Vista and will reduce encroaching vegetation and restore the existing open fields, maintain views as seen from the Appalachian Trail, and to create a mosaic of early successional wildlife habitat.

For more information, visit www.appalachiantrail.org/updates.