 "It is a beautiful book with gorgeous color pictures. Text boxes detailing a particular subject such as rhododendrons or Daniel Boone are sprinkled throughout. But why did they have to use black text on a dark purple background for these boxes? They are so difficult to read. Except for that shortcoming, this book is meant to be used, not to be left on the bookshelf. I take my copy wherever I think I am going to be on the Parkway. As for the answers to the questions above? Check pages 120, 129 and 108, respectively." I couldn't agree more...
Today for lunch I joined a friend I've never met. We walked along a creek with no name under hemlocks in a valley I've never seen. We passed a barn I've only envisioned in painted light upon my screen. The sun I couldn't see glistened on grasses in the field to dry the dew I did not feel. I wasn't there, and yet I was, visiting with Fred on Goose Creek in the mountains of Floyd County.
I'll go there again tomorrow for lunch as I revisit a "Slow Road Home". Won't you come along? We'll visit Anns Falls, we'll sit a spell under the white pines, we'll wave at the neighbors from the front porch. We'll while away the time as we discuss the important issues of the day, the bumblebees at play, and the hawks upon the wing. We can discuss anything at all as we visit there on the creek with no name along that "Slow Road Home".
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The second annual SDAD will be held at the Blue Ridge Institute at Ferrum College in Ferrum, Virginia on the 17th and 18th of September 2010
Wendell Berry will be our guest speaker on Saturday afternoon in the auditorium on campus. Stay tuned to the web site for more details.
Advance tickets will be available.
$12.00 per day or $20.00 for the weekend
Send Checks or money orders to:
HHFF Admin. Office
P.O. Box 32
Dugspur, Virginia 24325
via Southern Draft Animal Days | Modern Draft Animal Expo | 2010 Ferrum Virginia.
January 26, 2010
WASHINGTON, D.C. – To commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Blue Ridge Parkway, U.S. Senators Jim Webb (D-VA) and Mark Warner (D-VA) are joining North Carolina Senators Kay R. Hagan (D-NC) and Richard Burr (R-NC) today to introduce legislation authorizing the National Park Service to acquire up to 50,000 acres of land surrounding the historic roadway. In the House of Representatives, Congressmen Rick Boucher (D-VA), Tom Perriello (D-VA), Heath Shuler (D-NC), and David Price (D-NC) introduced companion legislation. The Blue Ridge Parkway’s anniversary will be celebrated in September.
“The Blue Ridge Parkway is one of the Commonwealth’s most significant tourist attractions, providing economic benefits to communities in Southwestern Virginia,” said Senator Webb. “As a longtime supporter of natural and cultural landmark preservation, I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to pass this legislation.”
“The Blue Ridge Parkway, the nation’s first and longest rural parkway, connects Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina,” Senator Warner said. “The Parkway links dozens of outdoor recreation and tourism options, and this legislation will help us continue to preserve and promote Appalachia’s unique culture and history.”
The Blue Ridge Parkway Protection Act will authorize $75 million over five years to allow the National Park Service to acquire and preserve high priority land surrounding the Blue Ridge Parkway. The bill will adjust the park’s boundary to include the new land acquisition, but no land would be acquired through eminent domain. The Conservation Trust of North Carolina proposed the legislation as an appropriate commemoration of the 75th anniversary.
Construction of the Blue Ridge Parkway began in 1935 near Cumberland Knob, NC. Today, it stretches 469 miles across North Carolina and Virginia, and its breathtaking views attract nearly 20 million visitors per year, making it the most visited site in the National Park Service. One of the strongest economic engines in the region, the Blue Ridge Parkway generates an estimated $2.3 billion in North Carolina and Virginia annually.
via Webb, Warner, and North Carolina Senators to Introduce Bill to Preserve Blue Ridge Parkway .
ROANOKE, Va. (January 14, 2010) – The Roanoke Regional Partnership today launched RoanokeOutside.com – the most comprehensive and interactive resource to learn about and explore the Roanoke, Virginia region’s outdoors.
The new site (www.RoanokeOutside.com) — the first of its kind dedicated to the Roanoke, Virginia region — was developed with hundreds of suggestions from area residents who shared their favorite hiking and biking trails, fishing holes, camping spots, kid activities, gear shops, as well as features they wanted to see on the site. Others employed GPS-equipped phones to map out trails and wrote descriptions of outdoor activities.
RoanokeOutside.com covers the greater Roanoke, Virginia area that stretches from Douthat State Park to Smith Mountain Lake between the James River and New River. The site includes an event calendar, suggested itineraries, list of guides, gear rentals, maps, photos, videos, message boards, blogs, gear reviews, cabin rentals, classifieds, and other features to help make getting outside easy, educational and sustainable.
“With the help of outdoor enthusiasts from throughout our region, we have dedicated more than a year to develop the leading source of information about all things outside to properly leverage the Roanoke, Virginia region’s greatest asset – the outdoors,” said Beth Doughty, executive director of the Roanoke Regional Partnership. “Making the outdoors an important part of our region’s narrative and economy starts with a dynamic Web site that catalogues our natural resources and makes it easier for people all over the world to learn about and enjoy what we have to offer.”
It was made possible thanks to a $25,000 grant from the Virginia Tourism Corporation’s Virginia Is for Lovers Marketing Leverage Program.
Much like RoanokeOutside.com was developed with the help of the region’s residents, the site will continue to be a conduit of connectivity using interactive blogs, discussion groups and social media outreach using Twitter and Facebook.
“The Roanoke, Virginia region is one of the best spots anywhere for outdoor recreation, and RoanokeOutside.com tells that story in a way we’ve never been able to do before,” said Pete Eshelman, director of outdoor branding for the Roanoke Regional Partnership. “It provides an interactive platform to continue to share tips and connect with people passionate about the outdoors or those simply wanting to take the first steps toward getting outside for fun and exercise.”
Press Release via Roanoke Regional Partnership – News.
Enter to win a The Classic Family Road Trip to Virginia from the Official Tourism Website of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Blue Ridge Parkway 75th Anniversary Sweepstakes, for your chance to win a seven-day / six-night vacation along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Included are airline tickets for four people and a hybrid rental car. Entrant must be a legal resident of the United States aged 21 years of age or older.
Entrant will also receive a copy of the 2010 Virginia Travel Guide.
See the Official Rules and Prize Details. Sweepstakes ends November 1, 2010.
I know I’ll be ordering my copy…
RICHMOND, Va. (December 23, 2009) – The 2010 Virginia is for Lovers Travel Guide is now available, featuring stunning photography, insider tips and hundreds of ideas for travelers looking to relax and reconnect with loved ones on vacation in Virginia. The free guide is available at www.Virginia.org or by calling 1-800-VISITVA.
The new guide’s commemorative cover stars the 75th anniversary of the Blue Ridge Parkway, with a panoramic photograph taken by Cameron Davidson, an award-winning photographer from Virginia. Inside, travelers will see Virginia’s breathtaking sites along the Parkway and the best places to visit in 2010 to celebrate 75 years of America’s Favorite Drive.
Families love visiting Virginia and the new guide is full of ideas to inspire new family traditions. Fun in the sun rules in Virginia with pages dedicated to theme park thrills, kid-friendly resorts and a new Just for Kids section, with insider tips for family favorites.
People who love the outdoors will love Virginia. The 2010 travel guide showcases Virginia’s beautiful hiking and biking trails, state and national parks, fishing, and water and snow sports, including the only place in the nation to ski and snowboard outdoors, year-round.
As the 150th anniversary of the Civil War approaches in 2011, Virginia’s central role in this important period of American’ history will be front and center. The 2010 travel guide highlights Virginia destinations preparing to commemorate the anniversary with a fresh approach to interpretation at museums and sites across the state.
Other guide highlights include Virginia’s four hundred years of history, rich music and cultural heritage sites, movie locations, Virginia Green destinations and hundreds of special events and festivals. The guide also captures the Virginia wine travel experience with info and trip ideas around the state’s nearly 150 wineries.
2010 will be an ideal time to visit Virginia to reconnect with family and friends on a memorable vacation. To request a free copy of the 2010 Virginia is for Lovers travel guide, call 1-800-VISITVA or go to www.Virginia.org, where an electronic version is also available.
via 2010 Virginia Travel Guide Now Available – Virginia Is For Lovers.
floydfest starter line-up includes
The Levon Helm Band
Railroad Earth • JJ Grey & Mofro
Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe • Soulive
Blue King Brown • Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba
Konono No1 • Eric Krasno & Chapter 2
Pimps of Joytime • Mountain Heart
The Low Anthem • Cornmeal • Flam Chen
Joe Pug • Bearfoot • WIYOS • Adrienne Young
R.I.S.E. • Dangermuffin • Miss Tess & the Bon Ton
Cristabel & the Jons • Boulder Acoustic Society
Holy Ghost Tent Revival • Packway Handle Band
Alexis P Suter Band • Soulhound • Two Man Gentleman Band
The Mantras • Sol Driven Train • William Walter & Co
Folk Soul Revival • The Barefoot Movement
Papadosio • Thunderdrums • 3 Minute Lovin
Plus the Under The Radar Series
American Aquarium • The Atkinsons • Big Daddy Love • Corduroy Road
Diane Durrett Band • Do it to Julia • Doco • Dot Line Projekt • Electric Codpiece
Farm Vegas • Funkuponya • Galen Kipar Project • The Honey Dewdrops
Jason Spooner Trio • Jesse Chong Band • Joe Pitts Band • Johnson’s Crossroads
Lefty Williams Band • Lingo • Mitch Barrett • The Mumbles • Pedro Arevalo
Ralph Roddenbery Band • Rootstone Jugband • Shortwave Society
Tennessee Boltsmokers • Travis Elliott • Uncle Mountain • The Wave
The Werks • The Young Sinclairs
and we’re just getting started!
For more information go to: FloydFest 9 :: Breaking Ground :: Presented by Across-the-Way Productions, Inc..
From our friends at Virtual Blue Ridge…
January 6, 2010
(Asheville, NC)— Due to recent severe winter storms and heavy accumulations of snow and ice, as well as downed trees, the majority of the Blue Ridge Parkway is closed. While many sections of the Parkway are gated closed at this time, motorists should be aware that it is not physically possible to gate many hazardous sections of the Parkway.
North Carolina counties of Alleghany, Ash, and Wilkes, and Virginia counties of Franklin, Floyd, Patrick, Carroll and Grayson all have sections which are NOT gated and extremely hazardous or, in fact, impassable due to snow, ice and downed trees.
For more details please see Blue Ridge Parkway Travel Advisory.
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