On October 10, against the stunning backdrop of the mountains at sunset, Blue Ridge Conservancy presented Michelle and R. Michael Leonard the second-ever Stanback Conservation Leadership Award at an intimate ceremony at Gideon Ridge Inn. This award is named for Fred and Alice Stanback, premiere conservationists in North Carolina and the Southeast. The inaugural honor was given to John and Faye Cooper in 2017 for their efforts to preserve the historic cultural landscape of Valle Crucis.

Read More

Today in Blowing Rock, the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation and Blue Ridge Conservancy unveiled a sign commemorating Camp Catawba and the work of Dr. Vera Lachmann. Installed near the trailhead of the Middle Fork Greenway in front of the Tanger Outlets, the sign outlines the history of the boys’ summer camp, which operated on a farm in Blowing Rock from 1944 to 1970. This one of a kind sign, funded by the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, was fabricated by local metalsmith Aaron Bishop of Snake Mountain Iron Works.

Read More

The Boone Area Chamber of Commerce held its 72nd Annual Membership Meeting Tuesday Night at Valle Crucis Community Park. Blue Ridge Conservancy was honored with the everGREEN Award for Sustainability, which is presented to a business, organization, project, or person who has furthered the inclusion and integration of sustainable development principles.

Read More

As we get settled into the new 47-acre BRC Conservation Campus, we’re working on an inventory of the various residents of the green spaces and on the trail. We went out into the woods with naturalist Paul Laurent one rainy evening to look for salamanders, and found dozens! The identified species include: white-spotted slimy, grey-cheeked, blue ridge two-lined, red, blue ridge dusky, red-backed, and black-bellied. We also found a wood frog, a pickerel frog, and a garter snake (who was no doubt looking for the same salamanders we were).

Read More