Making friends on the Blue Ridge Parkway
On Tuesday morning, we met with the Roanoke chapter of the Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway, at a former campground turned picnic area at the base of Roanoke Mountain. We were grateful that they were excited to host us, since the Blue Ridge Parkway is itself a unit of the National Park, and stretches from Virginia to the Great Smoky Mountains, our first stop. We learned about this region (milepost 100-150 on the Parkway) from organizers Heidi & Kyle, and from a small group of those who lease land along the Parkway, those who have biked and backpacked the entire 469 miles of the Parkway, and musicians and carpenters who live in the area. They say the Smokies are the most visited National Park in the country, and the Blue Ridge Parkway, and its accessibility, play a large part in that claim. We were blown away by the passion of this Friends group for the Parkway. Here are just a few things we heard:
“One thing about the Parkway, it seems to bring together stories. The music that’s up here, the arts that it inspires: the natural arts, people who carve sculptures, people who build instruments. Art, music, nature, inspires people. I see it kind of like an 'emerald palace,' where you become replenished, so that when you do go back into the day to day grind of concrete and hard surfaces, that you have a sense of being part of the earth, and not a blight on it.”
“It’s an easygoing place, the people are welcoming, the land is gentle and diverse. I just look at pictures of the Rocky Mountains, and then these gentle mountains, and the people are gentle, the land is gentle. I hope after reading stories about this place, somebody will feel lighthearted and warm.”
“The Parkway, I think of as a community asset. But so many people think of it as a cut-through. And they don’t stop to consider what’s going on... The threat to the Blue Ridge Parkway is that people won’t care. To hear the stories, it would be my hope that it would take away the apathy, and ignite people to commit to join friends, or join organizations that preserve.”
“How do we preserve the original intent? We have huge issues now with people wanting to use the Parkway differently then what it was envisioned. It’s described as a 'historic motor road.' And that’s why bicycles are not encouraged. Bicyclists need to be on a hard surface, but there’s been opposition because it’s a historic scenic motor road. I think that bicyclists are the key to preserving the Parkway.”
“That’s the thing, it’s a connection. That roadway there, it connects you to to people, to wilderness, but it also connects you to other places that are like Roanoke, and you hop back on, and you get off then at Floyd, and every place is so unique… It’s such a beautiful ribbon. Like a ribbon wrapped around a great big present.”