Ahh, the great outdoors. Even if you don’t consider yourself an enthusiast, you’ve probably camped, or taken a quick hike at some point in your life. Or you may be an avid cyclist or runner, and have come to appreciate the Blue Ridge Parkway as a personal track of sorts. You can find related posts on these topics here, as well as find out about motorcycling, photography, fishing, driving, and other popular attractions.
In 2001 The Blue Ridge Parkway started the multi-year process of developing a General Management Plan for the park. A major component of this process was public comment. When asked what issues or concerns the public had about the park there was one subject that buried any other topic, bicycle use. What made this result interesting was that comments were split 50/50 between those that were pro cycling and those that were anti cycling. Public suggestions ranged from building a bike lane the entire length of the Blue Ridge Parkway to completely banning bicycles from the park. National Park Service planners and managers were amazed at the emotional dichotomy on this topic.
In 2005 a contactor was given the job of examining the bicycle use on The Blue Ridge Parkway and the feasibility of building a bike trail along 469 mile length of the park. Although cycling is commonly found anywhere on the Parkway the study conducted by David Evans and Associates found that most of the day use was concentrated in four areas.
Waynesboro Mile Post 0 – 14
Roanoke Mile Post 105 – 121
Boone/Blowing Rock Mile Post 270 – 305
Asheville Mile Post 375 – 398
The Study’s look at the possibility of constructing a multi-use or bicycle trail along the length of the Blue Ridge Parkway found that in only 20% of the park would it be physically practicable for such construction. The majority of this would be in the Roanoke area. Such construction would take millions of dollars and at present there are no plans to even plan such a major project.
Watch for future blog entries with more information on bicycle use on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Towards the end of my parkway journey, I passed under the “Little Switzerland Tunnel” on the parkway, drove thirty more minutes, and started to see signs for Crabtree Meadows campground. At the entrance I noticed a store and decided to check it out. Inside there was a gift shop, restrooms, parkway maps, and even a place to eat. This little restaurant served hot dogs and sandwiches. It was a laid back atmosphere and housed quite a few hungry travelers.
About 20 feet from the gift shop and camp store, was an amphitheatre for the campground. Here, campers could go for solitude as it stretched out across a grassy field and was far from disturbances. The campsites were just beyond the amphitheatre and could be reached by a short trail leading from the gift shop. That way, if campers ever forgot an essential like their toothbrush, were craving some candy, or wanted ice to keep their food cold, the gift shop wasn’t far for them to journey.
Crabtree Meadows Campground was the quietest campground I have been to thus far. Tucked away beyond the parkway main road, it was very serene and peaceful. Whether you have an RV or a tent, you are handicapped or ready to hike; Crabtree Meadows has facilities for the whole family. Campsites were surrounded by large trees and spread out from neighboring sites.
This campground is near an ample amount of activities for folks of all ages. The ranger programs go on throughout the summer and different activities happen in the evening at the amphitheatre. Mt.Mitchell is only a couple miles from Crabtree Meadows and accessible by car for a daytime adventure. Also Crabtree Falls is only one mile from the campground entrance sign. Which means the trail is smack dab in the middle of the campsite for hikers to utilize during the daytime hours.
Visit Virtual Blue Ridge to view and print a free map of this campground.
The National Park Service Maintenance Crew from the Blue Ridge Parkway are continuing their work on the boardwalk for the handicap accessible trail around Abbott Lake at the Peaks of Otter (see blog post dated July 3, 2010).
On August 23rd workers were placing the boardwalk planking over the first section. The planking is made of recycled plastic boards. This section of the trail will include an approximately 6′ by 6′ deck where those in wheelchairs can sit and enjoy the view of the lake and lodge. A future section of boardwalk will include a larger deck directly across Abbott Lake from the Peaks of Otter Lodge that could allow for those in wheelchairs to fish in comfort and safety.
The walkway will include bumper type curbing along the edges and handrails where the boardwalk crosses feeder streams above the lake such as the one shown above.
This project was originally planned eleven years ago and is finally coming to fruition.
Most visitors zip past the James River/Otter Creek area of The Blue Ridge Parkway in their cars headed to the higher elevations of the Peaks of Otter or Humpback Rocks. This is one of the few areas of the park that you will find straighter and flatter stretches of road that prompt people to speed by attempting to make time traveling north or south. The road here follows Otter Creek, one of the longest water courses within the park boundary and through the lowest elevations (649 feet) along the entire Blue Ridge Parkway. If a visitor would take the time to stop and get out of their vehicle, they would be rewarded by the nature and history that abounds between mile posts 60 to 64.
There are the obvious facilities in this section; the Otter Creek Campground with its new entrance bridge and Kiosk, the concession operated Otter Creek Restaurant, and the James River Visitor Center. But there is so much more.
The inquisitive visitor will discover the Otter Creek Trail. This 3.5 mile trail meanders along the creek and Parkway motor road from the campground to the visitor center. The trail is easy to walk and crosses the creek numerous times on stepping stones and pedestrian bridges. Sharp rock bluffs, mountain laurel, redbud, and bird life are abundant. At State Route 130 the trail travels through an underpass of the road. If you are observant you will see what appears to be a ditch that follows the edge of the trail. This is the remains of what was once a large mill operation that was obliterated when the present bridge for 130 was built.
The trail forks and makes a loop around Otter Lake. At the north end of the loop you will find the skeletal chimney and foundation of what was once the Nathaniel Sledd Cabin. This site is believed to have been the home of the first European settler in Amherst County, Virginia in the early 1700s. He was drawn to this location to trade with Native Americans for beaver pelts. Otter Creek was a heavily used travel route from the mountains above to the James River and above the threat of flood. Otter Lake did not exist at that time being built when the Blue Ridge Parkway came through in the late 1950s. Beaver still live in Otter Creek today. Hikers can see their handiwork in dams and the stumps and bases of trees that they have felled for food and construction materials. Trees around the trail have wire mesh around their base to protect them from the industrious rodents.
Beyond the James River Visitor Center you will find a remnant of our Country’s transportation history. On the opposite bank of the James River is a fully restored canal lock from the Kanawha Canal System that served as the main commercial transportation from the Shenandoah Valley to Richmond, Virginia before the Civil War. Looking up river you will be looking into the James River Water Gap, a geological feature left from a millennium of the river cutting its way through the Blue Ridge Mountains. This makes the James one of only two rivers that flow from west of the Blue Ridge toward the Atlantic Ocean.
So the next time you are driving through this area stop and get out of your vehicle and see what wonders await you.
One very special and anticipated feature of the Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition is its rotating Share the Journey® category theme. This year, The Parkway Tree Project has been established to document significant trees that contribute to the character, environment, and/or aesthetic of the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Photographers are encouraged to capture images of trees along the Blue Ridge Parkway that stand out as the most beautiful, the oldest or largest, trees that tell a story or have a place in history, and those that are unique for their shape, species or character. Read more »
