Bark Camp Barrens WMA

Site Directions: From Nashville, take I-24 east to Manchester exit 111 (Hwy 55).

Go north on Hwy 55 and take the first right (Ragsdale Road). Go 4.6 miles to the first of three access points via Ragsdale Rd.

From Hwy 55, go 4.7 miles on Ragsdale road to access with a parking lot. At 6.8 miles from Hwy 55, turn right on Hickerson and follow to WMA signs.

For access to the south side of Bark Camp Barrens WMA via Asbury Rd, take I-24 exit 114 and travel south on Hwy 41 for approximately 0.7 miles and turn left on Asbury Rd.

Travel a couple of miles and turn left on Warren Rd (look for white house with a green tin roof on left). At the sharp left turn, there is a gravel road and WMA sign by a red barn/shed.

Park at the open barn (100 yds from Warren Rd) for access to pond and fields.

Barn on Warren Rd - Lat: 35.47485°N Long: -85.97550°W

Hickerson Rd access - Lat: 35.4937°N Long: -85.9619°W

Hours: daylight hours

Seasonality: year round

Fees: none

Site Description: Approximately 250 acres of native warm season grasses are found on the south side of the WMA, behind the red barn. Mature oak-hickory forests and wetland mitigation of hardwoods is along Hickerson Rd and Ragsdale Rd.

Along Hickerson Rd old and young pine stands are currently present. In total, 2,800 acres comprise Bark Camp Barrens WMA with the majority being in mature hardwood forest.

Wildlife to Watch: Henslow's sparrow is a common breeding bird with 25-40 breeding pairs annually.

Other grassland birds include Dickcissel, Grasshopper Sparrow, Blue Grosbeak, Northern Bobwhite, and Field Sparrow.

Prairie Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, and White-eyed Vireos are found in the hardwood mitigation, while Yellow-throated Vireo, Ovenbird, and Kentucky Warbler are commonly found in the mature hardwood forests.

American Kestrel, Northern Flicker, and Red-headed Woodpecker nested in dead pines just south of Hickerson Rd along with the sod farm through 2008, however most snag trees fell in late 2008 and European Starlings were present in 2009 with a pair of American Kestrels.

Most of the snags are gone as of 2012 as are the Red-headed Woodpeckers and Northern Flickers.