The 4th Of July And The Blue Ridge Parkway
Fireworks visible from two different communities as seen from the Funnel Top Overlook
Hobie Cawood, our board chairman, was in our office last week to wish everyone a happy 4th of July. He remarked as he was leaving that “I have attended 19 consecutive 4th of July celebrations at Independence Hall.” That did not strike me as particularly noteworthy because he had served as superintendent of Independence Hall National Historic Site — one of the country’s over 390 national park units — for 20 years. The significance of that did not strike me until after he left.
Imagine! To be able to celebrate the birth of our nation right where it actually happened …
For me, our national parks create the same sense of awe and wonder as has the Parkway this 4th of July weekend. Every campsite was taken at the Mt. Pisgah campground, a very rare occurrence. What is particular significant about this location, from Mt. Pisgah itself (6,000 feet) one can witness 12 different fire works displays at the same time. We saved the 3.0 mile round-trip hike in the dark and instead chose the Funnel Top overlook south of Pisgah as a preferred alternative location. We bagged eight different displays as did the multitude of overlook onlookers who joined us.
The Parkway,too, like Independence Hall can be the place where it actually happens. The palpable feeling on that moonless night was that everyone in the overlook was proud to be an American.
