French Broad River Valley Focus Area
Hogeye Bottomlands Scenic, fertile Sandy Mush Farmland
This property is part of the beautiful landscape of Sandy Mush. Photo by Courtland White, CNPA
In Sandy Mush, scenic views of fertile bottomland, rolling pastures, and distant mountain ridges create a stunning backdrop for those who work the land. Thanks to your support, another tract of farmland has been preserved, adding to a network of protected agricultural lands and wildlife corridors throughout Sandy Mush. Farmers Aubrey and Rieta Wells graze cattle and produce hay on the 88-acre Hogeye Bottomlands — now permanently protected through a conservation easement. Sections of Sandy Mush Creek and Hogeye Branch run through the tract, which contains prime soils (a designation for soils of national
importance) as well as soils of statewide and local importance. Found along waterways and formed over long periods of time, these soils are important agricultural resources — and relatively rare in mountainous areas. Both Aubrey and Rieta grew up in families with long farming traditions and wanted to see this farmland protected for future generations.
Aubrey and Rieta Wells ran the last dairy in Sandy Mush. They now use the Hogeye Bottomlands for Black Angus cattle. Photo by Jorja Smith, CNPA
“We’d like to see the Sandy Mush area stay as undeveloped as possible,” shares Aubrey.
10 | View from the Highlands Winter 2020 | Land Protection Updates
Family History of Farming Aubrey and Rieta Wells met through their shared family experience in farming. “Farming is all we’ve ever known,” says Aubrey. He says his family has been farming for many generations. “Both my father and Rieta’s father were in dairy. That’s how we met.” They purchased farmland in Sandy Mush from Aubrey’s father in 1980, starting their own dairy and working it together. They began leasing the Hogeye Bottomlands property in 1996 to add land for hay production and grazing pasture for their herd. Both their home farm and the Hogeye Bottomlands tract were used for dairy production until
