inspire Archives - Page 33 of 43 - Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy

Walking With Bartram – Section 2 from Sandy Ford to Warwoman Dell

November 28th, 2022

Trail Report:

We had another great group for this hike with a lot of folks joining us again as we section hike our way through the Georgia portion of the Bartram Trail. We couldn’t have asked for finer weather conditions with clear skies and highs in the 60’s.

The group met at Warwoman Dell to figure out shuttle logistics before driving to the Sandy Ford trailhead.

The trail overall was in good shape. In the previous couple of weeks, we had trail maintenance volunteers out on this section clearing some downed trees and cutting back overgrown brush. So, while the path was clear for hiking, there is still some tread work to be done and we’ll have more days set aside for this work.

The group did observe some bird activity including Hermit Thrush, Robins, and Flocking Hollies.

Thanks to everyone who joined on this section hike from Sandy Ford to Warwoman Dell.

Walking With Bartram – Section 2 from Sandy Ford to Warwoman Dell group:

Eddi Minche
Melanie and Keith Vickers
Star Henderson
Deena Bouknight
Dan Finnerty
Jana Plemmons
Jerry Novack
Janis Fitzgerald
Amy Nafe
Phyllis Davis
Michelle Stephens
Brent Martin

If you’re interested in joining us, we would love to have you along! Walking With Bartram section hikes are held on the last Friday of the month. Sometimes we have to reschedule due to weather or conflicting holidays or other events. You can find information about our hikes posted on our website here – https://blueridgebartram.org/events/

Our next Walking With Bartram section hike will be on December 30th. We will hike section 3 from Wilson Gap to Warwoman Dell (reverse direction). Please visit and RSVP here – https://blueridgebartram.org/event/december-30th-walking-with-bartram/

You can also find other events like Trail Maintenance Work Days or Bartram Trail related special events. Please sign up for our newsletter for all the latest announcements.

2022 Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award Winner – Brent Martin

We’re very proud to share that Brent Martin’s book, “George Masa’s Wild Vision,” which was published earlier this year, has been selected for the 2022 Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award. Continue reading the press release below:

George Masa's Wild Vision Book Cover — George Masa’s Wild Vision Book Cover

The Western North Carolina Historical Association selects Brent Martin’s “George Masa’s Wild Vision” as winner of 2022 Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award

The Western North Carolina Historical has selected author Brent Martin’s George Masa’s Wild Vision: A Japanese Immigrant Imagines Western North Carolina for the 2022 Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award. Originated by the Louis Lipinsky family, the Award has been presented annually by the Western North Carolina Historical Association since 1955 for printed works that focus special attention on Western North Carolina. In order to more broadly support the writers of Western North Carolina, a December 13, 2022 award ceremony will celebrate all five finalists.

Of the work, literary award committee chair Catherine Frank said, “In George Masa’s Wild Vision: A Japanese Immigrant Imagines Western North Carolina Brent Martin brings together Masa’s arresting images and his own reflections on walking in Masa’s footsteps to tell one of our region’s important stories in an innovative way. Masa played a pivotal role in the creation of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and the Appalachian Trail through photographs that allowed viewers to experience places they would never visit. Martin creates a portrait of a man and a region we now know a little better.”

A prize of $2,500.00 accompanies the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award and will be presented to Brent Martin on Tuesday, December 13 at 5:00pm during an in-person event at UNC-Asheville’s Reuter Center that will include readings by the finalists. The event will also be live-streamed via Zoom for those who cannot attend in person. Registration is available for this free event at: www.wnchistory.org. Light refreshments will be served.

The WNC Historical Association presented the first Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award to Wilma Dykeman in 1955 for The French Broad. Last year’s winner was Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle for her novel, Even As We Breathe. Other authors who have received the award include Charles Frazier, Robert Morgan, John Parris, Gail Godwin, John Ehle, Robert Brunk, Michael McFee, Lee Smith, Ron Rash, Wiley Cash, Wayne Caldwell, Fiona Ritchie, and Doug Orr.

The Award Panel this year consists of: Catherine Frank, Chair, Director, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UNC Asheville; James Bradley, Secretary of Education for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians; Wayne Caldwell, author and former Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award winner; Dee James, professor emeritus, UNC-Asheville; Leslee Johnson, English department, UNC-Asheville; Jasmin Morrell, writer and co-editor of The Porch magazine; Tom Muir, Historic Site Manager, Thomas Wolfe Memorial; Terry Roberts, Director, National Paideia Center and former Thomas Wolfe Literary Award winner; Jim Stokely, President, Wilma Dykeman Legacy.

This year’s finalists were chosen from an original group of over 50 nominations. The finalists, listed below in alphabetical order, encompass a broad range of genres and forms.

2022 Thomas Wolf Memorial Literary Award Finalists

Anne Chesky Smith, Murder at Asheville’s Battery Park Hotel: The Search for Helen Clevenger’s Killer

Lance Greene, Their Determination to Remain; A Cherokee Community’s Resistance to the Trail of Tears

Brent Martin, George Masa’s Wild Vision: A Japanese Immigrant Imagines Western North Carolina

Heather Newton, McMullen Circle

John Ross, Through the Mountains: The French Broad River and Time

The Western North Carolina Historical Association is a nonprofit with a mission of promoting and preserving regional history. For more information, please call WNCHA at 828.253.9231 or visit www.wnchistory.org.

George Masa's view of Charlies Bunion from Mt Kephart in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park — George Masa’s view of Charlies Bunion from Mt Kephart in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Folks are welcomed to purchase tickets for the finalist celebration event here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/thomas-wolfe-memorial-literary-award-celebration-tickets-469297329947

You can find the book “George Masa’s Wild Vision” in bookstores around Western North Carolina including Malaprops Bookstore in Asheville, City Light’s Bookstore in Sylva, Novel Escape in Franklin, and at the Alarka Expeditions/Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy office at the Cowee School. You can also purchase Brent’s book on the Alarka Expeditions website.

Brent Martin is the author of three chap- book collections of poetry and of The Changing Blue Ridge Mountains: Essays on Journeys Past and Present. His poetry and essays have been published in the North Carolina Literary Review, Pisgah Review, Tar River Poetry, Chattahoochee Review, Eno Journal, New Southerner, Kudzu Literary Journal, Smoky Mountain News and elsewhere. He lives in the Cowee community in Western North Carolina, where he and his wife, Angela Faye Martin, run Alarka Institute.

Trail Report for Week of November 7th, 2022

Highlight of this week was kicking off another PLC crew hitch at Warwoman Dell for some major rock work.

We didn’t post a full trail report last week, but follow the link for some gorgeous photos and read about our latest Walking With Bartram hike from October 28th. Last week was almost fully focused on getting our new Bartram Trail Hiking Maps rolled out!

Beginning to move stones up from the Bartram Trail trailhead to their new stair-tread

This week we welcomed our Public Lands Corps crew back on the Bartram Trail. The crew was welcomed with some wonderful weather to start this hitch at Warwoman Dell.

How we began this effort

Over the summer, a group of volunteers dismantled stones steps, that were set over a decade ago. Their previous location was the Hickory Knoll trailhead. The stones were removed from private property since the trail was rerouted onto the adjacent land. The trail leads more directly to and from the road and parking area.

Stair stones pulled from the old Bartram Trail route from Hickory Knoll

Brent and David taking a break from extracting stone steps at Hickory Knoll

The relocation effort took just a day with the help of our crew. Utilizing 2 large bed trailers, and a small front-loading machine, the team got it done. Folks from the US Forest Service were also on location at Warwoman Dell to help distribute the stones. Special thanks to them for supporting this project.

Continuing this work effort

Fast-forward to now, our Southeast Conservation Corps PLC crew got right to work planning, moving, and stacking the rock. Their goal is to create stairs leading up the Bartram Trail out of Warwoman Dell. These stairs are being stacked to reinforce the switchbacks that lead hikers up to Warwoman Road to Becky Branch.

Scattered stones soon to be well stacked stair tread at Warwoman Dell

Gravel delivered, tools staged, and with the help of a track barrow, large stones were staged at the work area. The crew began moving some select stones into their new resting places as the new path up the hill.

SECC PLC Crew setting a third stone step in place using rock bars

We’re super excited to see how this effort turns out and put the new stairs and tread to the test.

More photos below

Volunteer-submitted trail observations report

We also received a great trail report from a volunteer, Victor, for last weekend’s Sky to Summit trail run. The Run Bum Tours event was successful! Runners traversed a good number of miles over the Bartram Trail, connecting trails, and forest service roads.

Here is Victor’s report, that we’ll use to prioritize our next trail maintenance outing to address:

I hiked the section from Becky’s Branch Rd to Wilson Gap to flag the trail for Sean Blanton’s Sky to Summit trail race. I am an experienced trail maintainer and Sean asked me to submit a trail report. I carried a small hand saw during my hike and was able to remove several smaller trees. There are 5 trees between Courthouse Gap and Wilson Gap that will need a larger hand saw or chainsaw. Most are single step overs. There are two blowdowns with multiple branches but both are passable. The section between Wilson Gap and Courthouse Gap can use some brush clearing. And there is one section of 1/4 mile that can use side hilling where the trail bed is not flat. That section is located about .5 miles from the Wilson Gap Darnell Creek open area.

There are 4 trees down between Courthouse Gap and the Becky’s Branch Road crossing. Also one damage section due to a root ball taking out the trail bed.

Overall the trail is beautiful and I loved hiking it. I think it would be good to have a sign at the Pinnacle trail intersection. Currently this is only a small pile of rocks as a trail marker.

Great suggestion for the Pinnacle trail section, we’re going to look into it!

Send us your trail observations

As of writing this post, we’re looking at tropical storm weather possibly blowing through Thursday night and Friday. We’re bound to see some more blowdowns. If you happen to hike on the Bartram Trail following the remnants of Nicole, please post your observations. We’ll get folks out there to clear the way.

Join us for our next work day

Assuming the weather passes as predicted, we’ll have volunteers out at Warwoman Dell for our Second Saturday Workday, November 12th. If you’re available and looking to give back to the trail, please join us. No special experience necessary and we’ll provide what you need. This will be a great opportunity to work with our PLC crew in addition to the Bartram Trail volunteers. Please RSVP if you plan to join, which helps with planning the day.

More photos from the day

PLC Crew making a plan on The Bartram Trail in Warwoman Dell

Gravel delivery to the PLC crew worksite in Warwoman Dell

Root removal as part of site prep for new stone stairs at Warwoman Dell

January 27, 2023 Walking With Bartram – Section 4: Wilson Gap to Hale Ridge Road

1/11/2023 UPDATE: RSVP for this hike is closed. We are currently looking into offering an additional hike to accommodate interest in these.

Joins us for section 4 in North Georgia from Wilson Gap to Hale Ridge Road, right at the North Carolina border. This is the final section in North Georgia before heading into the Nantahala National Forest in North Carolina. This section is 9.2 miles in length and we’ll start climbing a little more to enjoy the views Rabun Bald.

We’ll meet at 9:00 am at the Hale Ridge Road trailhead to organize our shuttle cars to the start point. Both trailheads are a little tight with rougher roads leading to them. But, we did alright with shuttling cars to Wilson Gap in December, so we’ll be ok. If you do have a higher-clearance vehicle and can car-pool, that would be very helpful.

More details to follow closer to this date once we have all our RSVPs in.

Newcomers are welcome to join us. All you need to bring is 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 so we can plan appropriately for the hike. We’ll close the RSVPs at 20 hikers.

inspire