Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy

History. Art. And the Great Outdoors.

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Listening to the Land: Reimagining the Bartram Trail – Free Public Reception

Listening to the Land is a visual exploration of the Blue Ridge Bartram Trail, or Bartram National Recreational Trail, that features photography and photo-based installations by thirty-two artists. The photographs featured in this resonant and varied exhibition celebrate the region’s rich biodiversity while honoring each person’s unique relationship with the land.

Drawing inspiration from Bartram’s Travels and the enduring wisdom of land-based and indigenous peoples of this region, photographers were invited to enter an intimate world where the landscape was alive and waiting to be met, understood, and listened to. This exhibition invites you to contemplate your own wild origins while visually reimagining a time when humans moved in respect, harmony, and co-creative kinship with the natural world.

GALLERY: Bunzl Gallery
ARTIST(S): Angela Martin, Anna Helgeson, Anna Norton, Anne Cannon, April McNiff, Barron Northrup, Beate Sass, Brent Martin, Casey Visco, Drew Jorgensen, Eric William Carroll, Erik Mace, Frances Bukovsky, Joanna Parkman, Kaoly Gutierrez, Kaye Savage, Laura Rudkin Miniot, Lesley Ann Price, Liliana Vitale, Lisa Stockton Howell, Lu Mann, Lynn “Cricket” Woodward, Lynne Buchanan, Mike Belleme, Sam Brown, Sandy Johnson, Sarah Morgan, Shawn McIntosh, Starlett Henderson, Susan Patrice, Virginie Drujon-Kippelen, Yvonne Dalschen
ON DISPLAY: September 9, 2023
THROUGH: January 6, 2024
MEDIUM(S): Photography

The Bascom: A center for the Visual Arts is located at:
323 Franklin Road
Highlands, NC 28741

TheBascom.org

This free public reception will offer an opportunity to meet the photographers and artists who have made this journey. The reception will be held on October 5, 2023 at 5pm.

August 25, 2023 – Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala

Wayah Bald is the site of one of our favorite passages from Bartram’s Travels, where William stands upon its summit and describes “a sublimely awful scene of mountains piled upon mountains.”

If you’ve been up to Wayah Bald more than once or twice, you probably know your chances of seeing these views is a roll of the dice, unless you really, really checked the weather forecast before heading up! We go up fairly frequently as part of our trail maintenance outings and quite often are treated to dense fog and low clouds. Not on this day!

Don’t get me wrong, Wayah is a beautiful place, clouds or not. Based on his famous quote, William must have checked the weather forecast and set his eyes on something similar to what we saw as we began our Walking with Bartram section hike from Wayah Bald down to Lake Nantahala.

Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Chicken of the Woods mushrooom found during Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Trailhead at Lake Nantahala on Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala
Trailhead at Lake Nantahala on Walking With Bartram – Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala

We had a great group and great weather for this section hike. Thanks to everyone who came out, which included a hearty band of hikers who continue to step their way across the 110 miles of the Bartram Trail with us.

Hike Participants

  • Mark Barrett
  • Robert Olive
  • Sharon Mandel
  • Rosemary Safranek
  • Michelle Stephens
  • Starlett Henderson
  • Sandra Kruger
  • Stephen Beaudette
  • Noryce Burgey
  • Ruffin Bailey
  • Bill Hollingsworth
  • Jana Plemmons
  • Phillip Rogers
  • Brent Martin
  • Chris Tranchina

Be sure to check out our Events page to RSVP for the next Walking With Bartram section hike from Lake Nantahala to Appletree Campground.

Trail Maintenance Skills Workshop

We’re excited to partner with the Nantahala Hiking Club and Appalachian Trail Conservancy to offer a trail maintenance and leadership training workshop on October 14-15. This workshop will be held at Appletree Campground with camping available on Friday and Saturday nights. Limited spots are available free of charge to volunteers and members. We’d be happy to have new members along with us as well!

The workshop will take place all day on Saturday, you’re welcome to join without camping, and will focus on proper trail construction and maintenance. Sunday will offer a half-day training session on trail crew leadership and organization.

Greg Ritson is with the ATC and is our trainer for the weekend. Here’s a little more information about him and the workshop opportunity:

Greg has led and worked on crews performing conservation and trail work across the country in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, Alaska, Washington, and Pennsylvania. He is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, having served in Zambia with their Rural Aquaculture Program. Recently, Greg served as Roving Trail Crew Project Leader for the Student Conservation Association’s PA Outdoor Corps where he worked closely with Pennsylvania’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

A graduate of Penn State University, Greg studied Environmental Resource Management and holds minors in Environmental Soil Science, Watershed and Water Resource Management, and Sustainability Leadership.

Greg looks forward to working with volunteers up and down the A.T.!

If you’re interested in joining us for this workshop, please email us directly at info@blueridgebartram.org.

September 29th, Walking With Bartram – Lake Nantahala to Appletree Campground

We welcome all on another great Walking With Bartram hike, as we continue to weave our way across the Bartram Trail, section by section!

This hike picks up from last month’s Wayah Bald to Lake Nantahala hike. It’s .7 miles on Wayah Road before entering the forest for another 5 miles to Appletree. The trail follows old road beds and skirts the upper gorge for spectacular views of the lake and the river.

We’ll plan to meet at 9 AM at Appletree Campground to organize shuttles to the Lake Nantahala trailhead.

Newcomers are welcome to join us. Please plan to bring plenty of water, lunch, clothing appropriate for this season, and your sense of humor and wonder.

We have had great interest in these hikes and are working to create new hiking opportunities. If you are interested in leading a hike, let us know!

Please RSVP below to help with planning:

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