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The Blue Ridge Parkway license tag continues to gain momentum with increased sales and visibility. "Parkway Champion" awards have been made to the Orchard at Altapass, Chetola Resort, the Switzerland Inn, Italian Restaurant (Pineola), Grandfather Mountain, and Mast General Store for commercial entities who promote the tag through their businesses.

First Allocation From Tag Proceeds Directed to Moses Cone Estate

The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation has granted the National Park Service $10,000 towards restoration of the cultural landscape around Bass Lake at Moses H. Cone Memorial Park. The historic planting of white hydrangea's by Mrs. Cone has been overgrown with large trees since they were planted in the early 1900's. The funds will be used to remove the large trees in October. Lowell and Ineke Thomas, of Blowing Rock, have led the volunteer effort for the "cutbacks" on individual specimens.

The Multi-Club Event for 2005 has been cancelled due to extremely low turnout. All registrants have already been notified of the cancellation and their checks have been returned. The purpose of this email is to inform other interested parties of the cancellation and ask them to spread the word to club members who may have been considering attending the event without registering in advance.

The decision to cancel was a difficult one considering the history of the event and the amount of effort that had been expended in the planning of the event by both NBATC and many other parties, but also a very easy and quite obvious one considering the low turnout. The expectation of people to come to the event and meet, hike, camp and socialize with people from the other clubs could just not have been met due the low turnout.

The general feedback that we have received from several clubs is that with the Regional Partnership Meetings and The Biennial Meeting in the same year there was just too little need and time for yet another meeting. David A. Helms

September 16 – 17 – Do your feet a favor…Get fit with Phil. If you’re a hiker or just spend a lot of time on your feet, you know how important a good fitting pair of shoes is. If you have hard to fit feet, that great fit can be very elusive. Here’s an opportunity to have your feet assessed by a master boot fitter and other highly trained fitters. A boot camp is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, September 16 and 17, at the Mast Store in Waynesville. Friday night is an introductory “fit feet seminar” featuring Phil Oren, the developer of the Phil Oren FitSystem. The seminar is FREE and helps explain the steps to achieving a great fitting pair of boots or shoes. The seminar begins at 6 p.m. and is held at the Waynesville store. On Saturday, fit sessions are scheduled beginning at 10 a.m. There is a $20 fee for the session, and all participants receive a goodie bag filled with socks, shoecare products, coupons, and informative literature. To reserve your spot, call Mast Store On-Line at 866-FOR-MAST.

In cooperation with the US Forest Service, the Jackson-Macon Conservation Alliance (JMCA) is sponsoring the Friends of Panthertown Valley. The group will work with the US Forest Service to address the pressing needs in the Valley.

After two successful public forums, the group has organized the first volunteer workdays to help conserve the Valley and enhance the area for its users.

The volunteer workdays will be held on August 19th and 20th from 9am - 12 noon each day.

Scheduled work will involve installing TerraCell (http://www.webtecgeos.com/TerraCell/default.htm) in 11 locations to replace damaged and ineffective culverts. Native plant species will be installed as part of this trail maintenance project. If time allows, we will also be removing debris along the main Salt Rock trail. There will be work available for all levels of strength, but be advised that we will walk/hike approximately 1/2 mile to the work site.

The Forest Service will be providing tools and materials for this project, but any tools you wish to bring will be helpful. Water and a light snack will be provided by JMCA and the Friends of Panthertown. I encourage everyone to bring a bagged lunch as well. We will be working up an appetite!

We are hoping to have 20 volunteers on each day, but certainly could use more. This is a great team-building project for students or co-workers. FORWARD THIS EMAIL & TELL YOUR FRIENDS!

To sign up or for more information, please respond to this email (melaniejones@earthlink.net ) or contact Melanie Jones at 828.506.3124. Once you sign up, I will send more specific instructions about the project.

Don't forget about our next progress meeting for the Friends of Panthertown being help at the cashiers Public Library on August 23rd at 7pm. Also, plan to attend National Public Lands Day (http://www.npld.com/) in Panthertown Valley on Saturday, September 24th. Details on that project will be announced soon.

The support for the Friends of Panthertown has been tremendous thus far! Let's keep the momentum going.

Alternate MST Section Maintainers Wanted!

The CMC has 2 Alternate MST sections open. One is from Pressley Gap to Buckhorn Gap 2.7 miles and the other is Cat Gap to Neil Gap 3.0 miles. Both of these trails are in good shape and are waiting to start a love affair with an affectionate maintainer! If interested please contact Jim Tanquary, jdtanquary@juno.com or Don Walton at donwalton@bellsouth.net .

There is also a MST section open from Craven Gap to Ox Creek Road. This is close to Asheville and won't last long. donwalton@bellouth.net

MST Coordinator wanted!

The CMC position of Coordinator of the Section Maintainer System for the Mountains to the Sea Trail is open. This prestigious duty for the CMC includes supervising the 5 big sections of the MST (160 miles) which includes 100 volunteer section maintainers. The job is about 1/3rd recruiting of maintainers, 1/3rd communicating with all of the various federal and state agencies and 1/3rd management including recording and reporting all of the hours worked to various places. If interested, please contact Don Walton

Community Events

*Hendersonville Street Dances – August 15, 22, 29 – Put on your dancin’ shoes for an old-fashioned street square dance. Don’t worry if you don’t know the steps. The dancers from the Southern Lights will help you. Held at the Visitors Center on Main Street. The festivities start at 7 p.m. and go until 9 p.m. For more information, call 800-828-4244.

*Main Street Jazz – August 12, 19, 26, September 2, 9 – Enjoy jazz in the open air at the Hyatt Regency Plaza in Downtown Greenville. Festivities begin at 5:30 p.m. and go on into the night until 9:30 p.m. Food and beverages are available along with children’s activities. For information on performers, click here.

*Summer Evening Concerts at the Biltmore Estate – August 19, 20, 26, 27, September 2 – Enjoy a wide variety of music at Biltmore’s 9th annual summer evening concert series. Country classics Loretta Lynn and Doc Watson perform August 19, pianist and bandleader Bruce Hornsby is slated for August 20, Motown artists The Four Tops and the 5th Dimension take the stage on August 26, 70s super group Three Dog Night arrives on August 27, and rock stars The Guess Who close out the series on September 2. For tickets and more information, click on Biltmore.com.

*Valle Crucis Park Auction – August 27 – Come ready to bid at the biggest fundraiser of the year. You’ll find gift certificates from local restaurants and stores, tickets to attractions, antiques, works of art, pottery, whatchamacallits and domajiggies, tasty food, and more. Viewing begins at 9 a.m. and bidding at 10 a.m. Held at the Valle Crucis Elementary School. All proceeds benefit the Valle Crucis Park located directly behind the Annex.

*Banner Elk Fine Arts & Mastercrafts Festival – August 27 and 28 – Held on the grounds of the old Cannon Memorial Hospital off Highway 184 in Banner Elk, this festival features fine art from throughout the Southeast. For more information, call the Banner Elk Chamber of Commerce at 800-972-2183.

*33rd Annual Smoky Mountain Folk Festival – September 2 and 3 – This festival features regional old-time and bluegrass music, clogging demonstrations, children’s performances, and jam sessions. It is held at the Stuart Auditorium at Lake Junaluska in Waynesville. You’ll see some of the finest traditional musicians in the region…who play for free because they enjoy it so much! For more information, call 828-452-1688.

*50th Annual Apple Festival – September 2 – 5 – Downtown Hendersonville becomes Apple City USA over the Labor Day Weekend. If it can be made with apples, look like an apple, or has apple in the name, you’re likely to find it in Hendersonville. Events include a craft fair along Main Street, tours of orchards, 8k run, demonstrations, the King Apple Parade (Monday at 2:30 p.m.), and concludes with a street dance on Monday evening. For more info, click here.

*HART presents Camping with Henry and Tom – September 2 – 11 – In 1921 Henry Ford, Warren G. Harding, and Thomas Edison went on a camping trip in the Maryland woods. What transpires is fiction suggested by facts. Performances are at the Haywood Repertory Theatre in Downtown Waynesville. For more information, visit harttheatre.com.

*MountainHome Music Community Dance – September 3 – The Laurel Creek String Band helps celebrate the closing of the MountainHome Music Summer Season with a community square dance. The setting is the beautiful Apple Barn at the Valle Crucis Mission School – located along Highway 194 toward Banner Elk. The performance begins at 8 p.m. Advance tickets are available at the Mast General Store in Valle Crucis and Boone. Also check out the Annual Celebration for Labor Day featuring the Bluegrass Boys performing songs of truck drivers, railroad workers, farmers, mill workers, and other who have made this country great. The performance is on September 4at 8 p.m. at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Boone.

*2005 Annual Carolinas Dahlia Society Show – September 10 and 11 – Did your grandmother grow dinner plate flowers? Here’s an opportunity to find out more about these beautiful flowers that have been gracing mountain gardens for decades. The event is held at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville. Short talks on taking care of your dahlias are featured.

*Moonlight Classic Movies – September 14 – Watch your favorite classic movies under the stars. Bring a lawn chair, blankets, a snack, and cooler to the Peace Center Amphitheater in Downtown Greenville. The movie is free and so is the popcorn (as long as it lasts….). For more information, call 864-467-6667