Warning: Clark’s Bluff Off Limits to Law Breakers
After receiving numerous complaints from citizens about illegal and disruptive activity at the Clark’s Bluff park on the Oconee River, the Wheeler County Sheriff’s Office got busy.
Reports included excessive littering, open drug use, fighting, and other behavior “that have no place in a public recreation area,” Sheriff Glenn Giles said in a post on the WCSO Facebook page.
In the past, the county built a shelter at the site, but it was burned by vandals, according to County Commission Chairman Keith McNeal. Picnic tables at the site were also destroyed over the years.
Sheriff Giles, Chief Deputy Jesse Webb, Deputy Jamie Ricks, and a work detail went to Clark’s Bluff, located south of Glenwood on Georgia Highway 19, to clean up the mess. “We removed two full truckloads of garbage — cans, broken glass, used diapers, drug paraphernalia, and more. This kind of filth and criminal activity is unacceptable and will no longer be tolerated,” Giles said.
The Sheriff noted, “Clark’s Bluff is supposed to be a safe, family-friendly place. The Sheriff’s Office is fully committed to making sure it stays that way.” He said his office is partnering with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Georgia State Patrol (GSP) to intensify patrols and aggressively enforce the law.
He said to all would-be violators, “This is your final warning. If you come to Clark’s Bluff to use drugs, fight, destroy property, or commit any other crimes, you will be stopped, you will be arrested, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
He further emphasized, “We’re not asking. We’re telling. Stay out of Clark’s Bluff if you’re coming to break the law. This community deserves better, and we’re making sure they get it.”
The Sheriff said he and his officers and the work crew may have missed a few pieces of trash, “but we left the area in far better shape than we found it — without question.” A series of photos on the WCSO Facebook page showing before and after scenes tells the story.
