Fall Color Update for the Blue Ridge

These are the latest photos of my indicator tree. We had our first hard frost this morning (October 1) and more color should start to move into the trees during the coming week. If one looks now they can see some examples of color in individual specimins.


All these photos were taken on the Blue Ridge Parkway today from elevations of 2600 to 3000 feet.

Park Ranger Retirement Tip # 2

·I I If you decide to get a new pet, get one that is not high energy or very intelligent. Remember to always match the pet with the owner.

Fall Motorcycle Safety Tips

Due to the fall color season October is the the month of highest visitation on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is also the month with the highest number of motor vehicle crashes. Every year a large proportion of those crashes involve motorcycles. Research has shown that most of these crashes involve large touring type bikes and experienced riders.

So what is it about the Blue Ridge Parkway that results in significant motorcycle wrecks?

The Blue Ridge Parkway was designed in the 1930s and 40s by engineers and landscape architects for slow moving scenic travel by motor car. One of the elements incorporated into the design were descending radius curves. These were utilized to maximize the beauty of the land while hugging the contour of the mountains. These types of curves are not used in modern highway construction. It is safe to say that even motorcyclists who have been riding for most of their adult lives will encounter curves the likes as they have never seen on the Blue Ridge Parkway and other national park roads. That is why even the slightest distraction or looking off at the scenery at the wrong time can result in disaster.

The Park Rangers on the Blue Ridge Parkway conducted analysis of motorcycle wrecks and identified specific areas where accidents were regularly occurring. An example would be south bound at mile post 36 in Virginia where eight motorcycle crashes occurred in one year. At these locations large and more "aggressive" warning signs were placed directed toward motorcycles. Following the placement of the signs there were no motorcycle crashes at mile post 36 for two years.

One theory behind the number of crashes involving large touring style motorcycles is their design with a wide bottom or base of the frame. As motorcyclists enter these deceiving curves they tend to over correct and catch their foot pegs on the pavement. This common factor in many wrecks then causes the motorcycle to spin out of control.

Despite the new signs and an aggressive education program, motorcycle wrecks are still occurring in the park at an alarming level. The Blue Ridge Parkway is often referred to as one of the best roads in the world to tour by motorcycle. I do not doubt that is true. Motorcyclists need to be aware that they are traveling on a road surface that may include challenges they have not seen before. They need to watch both their speed and full attention to controlling their bikes down the entire length of the Blue Ridge Parkway so they can return home safely.

Park Ranger Tips for the Fall Color Season

If you are planning a trip to the Southern Appalachians for the fall color season and want to stay in hotel or lodge accommodations, have reservations in advance. Many times I have seen travelers on the Blue Ridge Parkway in October thinking that they would just take a leisurely drive and find a motel room at the end of the day. In many cases they would find no room at the inn. I have seen people drive seventy five miles or more away from the park to find a vacant room.

October is the peak visitation season for this region of the country and a pretty weekend can see huge crowds in the parks.

October is also college football season. Colleges also sponsor their family and alumni weekends durng the beautiful fall weather. Such events can fill hotels for miles. You can check college web sites for their schedules. Some of the key colleges that may affect hotel availability are:

The University of Virginia
Virginia Military Institute
Washington and Lee University
Virginia Tech
Appalachian State University
University of North Carolina At Asheville

Fall festivals in specific communities can be a great attraction to visit, but also fill hotels.

Traffic in prime viewing areas may also become congested which will result in slow downs and delays. So make your plans for the distances you travel are reasonable and attainable. Come the end of the day you do not want to be hundreds of miles away from your planned stop for the night.

When ever possible travel during the week. Weekends are always the peak traffic times. Hotels rooms are also more easily obtainable on weekday nights.

Retirement Tips for Park Rangers

I wrote a series of retirement tips for a good friend that ended an incredible career with the National Park Service last January. Several people had enjoyed these tounge in cheek tips, so I thought I would share them with you over the next few weeks.

Park Ranger Retirement Tip # 1

· Get a watch that tells the day of the week. You may find this information more valuable than what time it is.

Fall Color Update for the Blue Ridge

The same fall color indicator tree photographed on September 16 showing the coming of fall color on the Blue Ridge Parkway


Fall color is just starting to show its face in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. But do not get to excited. It is common for the color to start in some specimen trees and then slow to almost a halt before completing its final run to full color. Many factors affect the timing and brilliance of falls colors. They include rainfall, temperatures, daylight, storm damage from the preceding year, and a variety of conditions that place stress on trees. The first heavy frost seems to be an indicator that the color change my be imminent.

The number one question to Park Rangers each year from "leaf peepers" planning to visit the southern Appalachians to view the colors is, "When will the fall colors peak." That is always a difficult question to answer.

One Chief Ranger years ago would get calls at his office from a multitude of media outlets asking for the time of the fall color peak. He would pick a day and time such as Wednesday October 22 at 2:15 pm. It was amazing how many people would take this seriously and plan their entire fall vacation around this specific point in time. When they arrived they were generally disappointed that not every leaf on every tree was vibrant with color.

Another Park Ranger I worked with that had been on the Blue Ridge Parkway since the 1940s used a different formula. He told me to look at the calendar and pick the weekend nearest to the 15th of October. That would be the weekend nearest the peak of color. I found this to be somewhat accurate.

The truth is that there is no time when the entire Blue Ridge Mountains are in peak fall color. The level of color displayed by nature will vary based on elevation, aspect of the slope (what direction it faces), and the dominant species of tree you are viewing. The result is that at anyone time in October there will be sections of the mountains in beautiful radiant color and others that are not quite yet there or past their peak and dropping their leaves.

The best advise is to plan on traveling through larger sections of Shenandoah National Park, The Blue Ridge Parkway, and the Great Smokey Mountains National Park to have the best opportunity to find that one special display of color that makes your heart sing and will be saved on the camera of your mind for a life time.
My fall color observation assistant, Baird the golden retriever enjoying the Whetstone Ridge Trail in Virgina.

Park Rangers Catch More Plant Thieves

The following incident occurred at Cumberland Gap National Historic Park and appeared in the National Park Service Morning Report for Tuesday September 22. One again Park Rangers caught individuals stealing plants from a National Park.

Cumberland Gap NHP

Three Ginseng Poachers Caught

On September 16th, ranger Brad Cope came upon a vehicle parked adjacent to the park boundary in an area known for ginseng poaching. The vehicle was registered to a man who was suspected of ginseng poaching from prior contacts in the park. Rangers launched an operation that consisted of covert surveillance on the vehicle and park boundary, an undercover vehicle, and a take-down vehicle. Three men walked out of the park boundary and placed a backpack in the trunk of the vehicle, which was stopped about a half mile down the road. The three men, identified as Mark Seals, Todd Reynolds and Bryan England, were interviewed and provided conflicting information on their activities. All three had evidence of digging on their clothing and hands. Rangers conducted a search of the vehicle and found the backpack in the trunk with approximately 401 ginseng roots in three separate bags. They also discovered three large screwdrivers used to dig up the roots and a walking stick. In depth interviews revealed that the three men were digging and collected all the ginseng that they could find in the park. They also provided a wealth of information regarding past activities, describing the number of plants and dollar amounts on what they
had earned from digging in the park. The green ginseng roots weighed approximately three pounds. Rangers Cope and Greg Johnston are case agents.

[Greg Johnston, Park Ranger]

Boxerwood Gardens Nature Center

Although retired from the National Park Service, I remain dedicated to advancing the ideals and goals of our park system. One of those missions I attempt to promote is an interest in the outdoors and our environment among children. An organization that is located in Lexington, Virginia is allowing me to fulfill this objective by permitting me to volunteer assisting in the facilitation of environmental education programs for elementary and middle school age students. Utilizing the beautiful facilities and resources at Boxerwood Gardens and making use of other sites through the community, programs on watersheds, soils, animal life, recycling, waste, and other topics not only illustrate the interrelationships of these resources but engage these students with their natural environment.

For more information on Boxerwood Gardens and the Boxerwood Education Association, see the link on this page.


Fifth graders learning about geology of the area in a Boxerwood off site program.

Fifth graders looking for stilithus fossils in the Maury River of Virginia.


Adults and children join in the fun of a creative dramatics fantasy play at the Boxerwood Fall Family Festival on September 19.

Plant Theft in Our National Parks II

The following is taken from the National Park Service's Morning Report for Monday September 21, 2009.

Blue Ridge Parkway
Plant Poacher Sentenced In Court

On Friday, June 17th, rangers received a report that a man
had been seen taking a backpack out of the trunk of his
car, at which time the reporting party noted that the
trunk was full of live plants. Ranger Miranda Cook waited
for him to return to his car. When she contacted him,
she found that his pack was full of plants and digging
tools. Ranger Kathryn Brett assisted with the investigation
and interview. The two rangers determined that the man had
stolen several plants from six locations along the parkway
and that he planned to sell seeds from those plants
as part of his overseas business. On September 17th,
he plead guilty in federal court and was ordered to
pay a significant fine and restitution. [Kurt Speers,
Ridge District Ranger]

This serves as another example of the problem faced in our National Parks of the theft of plants for an international market. More information on this growing problem will be found in the soon to be released book A Park Ranger's Life: True Stories from Thirty Two Years Protecting Our National Parks.

Fall Coming to the Blue Ridge

Summer is coming to an end and fall is slowly arriving in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. For twenty four seasons working on the Blue Ridge Parkway a specific tree always served as a sentinel announcing the first start of fall. Although not quite so majestic, the maple stands at the junction of the Blue Ridge Parkway and Rt. 56 near Montebello, Virginia. Every year this was the first tree that showed a hint of orange tinge as the harbinger of the season to come.

I revisited my old friend this past week and sure enough it has begun to signal fall. I plan to revisit the site through the coming month and document its progression.