Holmes Educational State Forest (HESF) is a

state forest A state forest or national forest is a forest that is administered or protected by some agency of a sovereign or federated state, or territory. Background The precise application of the terms vary by jurisdiction. For example: * In Australia, a ...

, located in Henderson County,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. It is near the much larger

DuPont State Recreational Forest DuPont State Recreational Forest, commonly known as DuPont Forest, is a state forest, located in Henderson and Transylvania counties of North Carolina. The name originates from the fact that the DuPont company arranged the sale of the original t ...

, which is responsible for its management. The forest is in the

Blue Ridge Mountains The Blue Ridge Mountains are a Physiographic regions of the world, physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Mountains range. The mountain range is located in the Eastern United States, and extends 550 miles southwest from southern Pennsy ...

, and it has rugged terrain with a mixture of

hardwood forest Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest is a temperate climate terrestrial habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature, with broadleaf tree ecoregions, and with conifer and broadleaf tree mixed coniferous forest ecoregions. These fo ...

, rhododendron, and flame azalea. The forest's primary purpose is education and promotion of forest resources. Forest rangers regularly conduct outdoor classes for schools and other groups from spring to fall. The forest also has self-guided interpretive trails, which teach visitors about

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

through the use of trail-side exhibits, displays and audio boxes. In addition, the forest offers a small network of hiking trails, a picnic area with a shelter and a group campground. The state originally purchased the forest in 1938 to establish a

tree nursery A nursery is a place where plants are propagated and grown to a desired size. Mostly the plants concerned are for gardening, forestry or conservation biology, rather than agriculture. They include retail nurseries, which sell to the general ...

, which was subsequently constructed by the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

. The state received a federal grant in 1972 to convert the nursery into an educational state forest. The forest was opened in May 1977, during its dedication to North Carolina's first state forester, Dr. John S. Holmes.

Nearby state parks

The following state parks and state forests are within of Holmes Educational State Forest: *

Caesars Head State Park Caesars Head State Park is a park in northern Greenville County, South Carolina, that borders Transylvania County, North Carolina, and is reached via US 276. The eponymous rock formation, one of the highest points in Greenville County, is a gran ...

(

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

) * Chimney Rock State Park (North Carolina) *

Devils Fork State Park Devils Fork State Park is in northwestern South Carolina on the eastern edge of the Sumter National Forest at the edge of 7,500-acre (3,035 ha) Lake Jocassee. It is located three miles (5 km) off SC 11, the Cherokee Scenic Highway, n ...

(South Carolina) *

(North Carolina) *

Gorges State Park Gorges State Park is a North Carolina state park in Transylvania County, North Carolina in the United States and along with other conservation lands is part of a 100,000+ acre conservation corridor stretching some 80 miles along the NC/SC state ...

(North Carolina) * Headwaters State Forest (North Carolina) * Horsepasture State Natural River (North Carolina) *

Jones Gap State Park Jones Gap State Park is a South Carolina state park in northern Greenville County, near Marietta. The park, which includes the headwaters of the Middle Saluda River, is, with Caesars Head State Park, administered by the state Department of Par ...

(South Carolina) *

Keowee-Toxaway State Park Keowee-Toxaway State Park is a state park in Pickens County, South Carolina. It was created in 1970 along the shores of Lake Keowee from lands previously owned by Duke Power. The Keowee-Toxaway Museum includes exhibits about the area Cherokee ...

(South Carolina) *

Paris Mountain State Park Paris Mountain State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of South Carolina, located five miles (8 km) north of Greenville. Activities available in the park include hiking, biking, swimming and picnicking. The Lake Placid offers swimmin ...

(South Carolina) *

Pisgah View State Park Pisgah View State Park is a developing North Carolina state park in Buncombe and Haywood Counties, North Carolina, in the United States. The center piece of the park is the approximately Pisgah View Ranch, which has rental cabins, equestrian ...

(North Carolina) * Poe Creek State Forest (South Carolina) * Table Rock State Park (South Carolina)

References

External links

*
Holmes Educational State Forest
on Henderson County Tourism Development Authority's website. North Carolina state forests State forests of the Appalachians Protected areas of Henderson County, North Carolina Education in Henderson County, North Carolina Open-air museums in North Carolina 1977 establishments in North Carolina Protected areas established in 1977 {{HendersonCountyNC-geo-stub

Nearby state parks

See also

References

External links