A view of Cloy County*» Tusquitee Mountoin».
lively «uni Lillie Known
CLAY COUNTY
By KILL SIIAKPL & SUSAN S.
/АНН
Hardly anyone* seems to know Clay
County, so here it is in capsule:
It is one of our smallest and young¬
est counties — 213 square miles, 5,-
526 population:
Most of its small territory is in for¬
ests. and most of those woods lie in
the great Nantahala National Forest
preserve;
In southwest North Carolina, it has
an exceedingly attractive setting,
including several rugged mountain
ranges, lush valleys (where most of
the people live), a lake good for fish¬
ing and unmatched for its views;
It is famous for trout fishing, and
deer and other hunting;
It is an interesting place for visiting
and vacationing, in spring, summer or
autumn. It has a dozen out-of-the-way
scenic drives.
The boundaries of Clay County are
well and scenically defined. The
14
traveler on U.S. 64 crosses the Clay-
Macon line at Black Gap in the Yel¬
low Mountains. The boundary runs
southeastward to Standing Indian,
thence to the Georgia border. There it
runs on a true compass course west
with the state line until it passes Pine
Creek at the Cherokee County line.
At this point it turns northeast to
Brasstown, and follows the crest of the
Valley River Mountains, curves east¬
ward to Tuni Gap. nicks the edge of
Nantahala Lake, and returns to Black
Gap.
Clay's geography is often tumultu¬
ous. In addition to the ranges which
ring it. there is another major range
inside the borders. This is the inter¬
esting Tusquitcc Mountains, which
reach as high as 5,334 feet. The Tus-
quitecs run parallel to the Valley River
Mountain, and the two form an
oval at the bottom of which is deep,
narrow Fires Creek Valley, now a 25.-
OOO-acrc Wildlife Refuge, and a real
wilderness. This valley’s main stream,
Fires, is a prize trout stream, and the
refuge itself is hunted for deer.
Fires Creek spills into the Hiwassee
River, which now issues from man¬
made Lake C'hatuge. The lake is half
in Clay County, half in Georgia, al¬
together covering around 8,000 acres,
and is popular with fishermen of both
states.
Down the eastern slope of the Tus-
quitee Mountains pour numerous
streams into Tusquitcc Valley. This val¬
ley was the first of Clay’s areas to be
settled and contains some of its best
land. All of this rather complex geog¬
raphy may be followed in the diagram¬
matic map.
Climate
Clay has a continental climate. It
varies greatly, however, according to
altitude. Summers are comparatively
Cloy'* boundorici ore simplified in Ibis schematic
drawing.
