Page 19 - Georgia Forestry - Issue 1 - Winter 2024

How Outdoor Recreation Benefits Landowners and Communities
By John Casey
Nestled in the heart of Culloden, GA, the Oxford Family Trust’s sprawling 3,000-acre forestry prop- erty is a place where the
whispers of pine trees, the shimmering allure of ponds and the wide-open fields create a natural tapestry of beauty. In the family since the 1780s, this land has been the backdrop to cherished memories for generations — an incomparable sight that Mike Harrell, one of the family farm’s business organizers, hopes to share with family members for years to come.
“One of the things I’ve been tasked with is how do we generate interest in the property for the younger generations that don’t remember it as well as the older generations,” said Harrell. “We want to make sure that generationally there’s that love of the property.”
As the family has expanded over the years, so have the challenges. Family gatherings are now filling up the houses on the property to occupancy. So, the question emerged: how can we grow this space and our experience for this family so that they are inspired to love the land in the same way that we have for years?
And then it dinged — why stop at family?
Providing Learning Experiences
in Nature
Harrell, passionate for the industry that he’s known his entire life, saw an oppor- tunity: generate additional revenue to help build up the property to sustain it for future generations while simultaneously extending the outdoor experience to those that otherwise may never know it. Recall- ing his time participating in the Advanc- ing Georgia’s Leaders in Agriculture and Forestryprogram,Harrellfeltacalling.
“One of the things that stood out to me as I went through the program was that people want to get out in nature and
LIST YOUR LAND OR FIND LAND FOR YOUR RECREATIONAL NEEDS
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they are desperate for it. Parents want to provide learning experiences for their children,” said Harrell. “I’ve been a for- ester my entire life. It dawned on me one day that I need to be involved if I want to continue my career, and not just my career but the industry itself. If this can be a tool to promote forestry and agricul- ture, I want to promote it.”
From there, Harrell approached his family with the idea to begin leasing the property for day and overnight outdoor recreational activities. At first it was met with uncertainty, so they landed on a test run to try it out.
“We decided just to dip our toe in. It’s very easy within our family business to make money growing and cutting timber, and we didn’t want to change the look of the farm. The family likes the open spaces, theopenpastures,”saidHarrell.“Overtwo years of trial and error, without spending a lot of money, we just wanted to try it out and see if there’s even an interest in this.”
Activating the Land While Keeping it in Trees
The test was a resounding success. The small town of Culloden, with a popula- tion of only 200 people in rural Central Georgia, was already surrounded by short-term rentals, but very few offered the range of activities and experiences that could be found on the sprawling acreage of the Oxford family’s farm. Best of all, it could all be done with minimal impact on regular forestry operations.
“What we strive to do is a farm vacation Airbnb feel. You can go to the pond and fish, bring your mountain bikes and ride around, or just watch the sunset. Any kind of unplugged activity is what we strivefor,”saidHarrell.“And100%of the farm remains managed forestland. Some is maintained forest, where we are just keeping it healthy and looking how
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PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OXFORD FAMILY TRUST