The Blue Ridge Parkway: Journey through the mountains of our Ancestors.
I live in one of the most beautiful areas on the Earth. The mountains of Western North Carolina have some of the most amazing views, majestic waterfalls and beautiful hiking adventures that you can find.
One of the main routes to all of these things is the Blue Ridge Parkway. We utilize it often to reach various trailheads throughout the mountains.
At 469 miles long, the Blue Ridge Parkway is the longest linear park in the United States. This All-American Parkway runs through Virginia and North Carolina and connects the Shenandoah National Park to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
With no fee required to use it, The Blue Ridge Parkway has been the most visited unit of the National Park service every year since 1946 except for 4 years.
The Parkway also offers a visitor center and a Folk Art Center, both located in Asheville NC.
Construction of the Parkway began during the administration of Franklin Roosevelt and was initially going to be called The Appalachian Scenic Highway. The original route had the Parkway going through Tennessee and not North Carolina. One of Roosevelt's friends and former superiors during World War 1, Josephus Daniels, wanted the route to go through North Carolina and persuaded for it to be changed to that.
Being built through their lands, The Eastern Band of Cherokee were affected by the Parkway. Resisting the building of a portion of the Parkway, they were able to negotiate a $40,000 payment to the tribe from the US government, and required the state to build a regular route of travel to their lands.
For those who like tunnels, there are a total of 26 tunnels on the Parkway, 25 in North Carolina, and the majority of them were dug by hand.
The roads on the Parkway are not maintained in severe weather conditions which results in frequent closures in the winter. Always check ahead to see if the Parkway is open before setting out on your journey.
On most nice days be prepared to encounter many other visitors on the Parkway. Don't be surprised to see many motorcycles, bicyclists, hikers, funny cars, old cars as you travel along the Parkway. You can include all of the various wildlife too, particularly the bear population in the mountains.
I have given some information on the history of the Parkway and told just a little about its beauty. I have not personally traveled the entire Parkway, but have visited most of the main attractions in the North Carolina portion.
Some of my favorite spots are Linville Falls, Grandfather Mountain, Craggy Gardens, the Folk Art Center, Mt Mitchell and Mt Pisgah to name just a few.
While the Parkway offers access to so many wonderful and beautiful locations, I have to stop and think about the ancestors who the land had belonged to.
Even though construction of the Parkway provided numerous jobs for local people, one of the major downfalls of the construction was that many people were displaced from their homes.
Would our ancestors want all of this attention on the land that was once their home? I think that if it was done in the correct, peaceful manner, the ancestors would want visitors to see how beautiful their land is. They may even give you something to take back home with you when your visit is over.
But unfortunately today there is little regard to the land that the Parkway cuts through, nor respect for the ancestors who once lived there.
On many hikes I will find trash, litter, beer cans, just left laying in the forest destroying and ruining the Earth. People will take resources, plants , minerals, for their own profit, not realizing the damage it causes to the forest home.
The carelessness and disregard to campfires or cigarettes being tossed away has led to numerous forest fires destroying the forest and the home for the creatures who lived there.
Homes are being built as close to the edge of the forest property as possible. Destroying much needed trees for the environment and driving animal populations such as bears and coyotes into the city because they have nowhere to live.
With all of that said, some may wonder if the Parkway has allowed too much access to the beautiful mountain land.
I am guilty of utilizing the Parkway to get to many of my destinations. However, I do treat the land with respect and recognize and honor the Ancestors who lived there.
There is nothing wrong with enjoying the beauty of nature. It can be therapeutic and relaxing. But there is a right way to do it.
We live in an era where we have the privilege of having access to many amazing things the world has to offer. But with that privilege comes great responsibility. We must protect our Earth, our land, our forests, our environment to ensure the future of Earth and its civilization.
The Blue Ridge Parkway. It offers miles of access to our ancestors' lands and the beauty of nature. It offers miles of responsibility to carry on the ancestors journey.
Blessings!
By Michael Walters
The Ancestor's Fire
Writing the voices of the unheard
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