Hickory Flats is a remote headwaters landscape in western Virginia’s George Washington and Jefferson National Forests, valued for its roadless character, secluded wetlands, and unusual blend of southern Appalachian biodiversity. Bordered by Peters Mountain and Big Stony Creek Road, it includes the headwaters of Stony Creek and Potts Creek, rare wetland communities, beaver meadows, and habitat for black bears, songbirds, salamanders, and the candy darter. Early twentieth-century logging left old roads and railroad grades, but the area remains biologically significant. Recent disputes over timber and habitat management have centered on whether to protect its old growth, rare communities, and sensitive stream headwaters.