A special ceremony recognizing the transfer of 394 acres of protected land from Naturaland Trust to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) was held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. The Little Eastatoee Connector includes forests and streams in the 234-acre Winchester Tract and the 160-acre Keasler Tract and expands the nearly 33,000-acre Jocassee Gorges Wildlife Management Area. Officials from Naturaland Trust, SCDNR, South Carolina Conservation Bank, Duke Energy, and Trout Unlimited met for the special ceremony, held on property on Eastatoee Creek Road near Sunset.

Below, listen to the audio recording of speakers Willie Simmons (South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, Assistant Chief of Wildlife), Frank Holleman (President of the Board of Directors of Naturaland Trust), Raleigh West (Director of South Carolina Conservation Bank), Alan Stuart (Duke Energy Keowee-Toxaway Habitat Enhancement Program, Senior Project Manager, Regulated and Renewable Energy), and Ben Clauss (Trout Unlimited).

As officials gathered near Little Eastatoee Creek at the conclusion of the ceremony, Naturaland Trust Board member Wes Cooler spoke about the future and said that he hopes to see people there with their grandchildren, because, as he said, one day, those grandchildren will be the ones who will care about this place. “And, so, the magnification of accessibility of this humble little stream can’t be measured in dollars,” he said.

“Acquiring this property was a very important acquisition,” Cooler told The Pickens County Chronicle, “as it tied the Nine Times Forest and Preserve to the greater Jocassee Gorges tract north of Highway 11, and it protects over a mile of both sides of Highway 11 from development.”