Blue Ridge Conservancy recently purchased 121 acres of land in Ashe and Wilkes counties, located near the popular Jumpinoff Rock Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Bear Den Branch creek, a headwater stream of the Yadkin River, originates on the property, and is designated High Quality Water, Trout Water, WSII by the NC Division of Water Resources. The ridgeline acreage, skirted along the boundary by the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, will be added to the Parkway in the future.
Read MoreRotary Club of Ashe County has awarded $2,000 for signage at Paddy Mountain Park, the West Jefferson Trailhead of the Northern Peaks State Trail. The park is currently under construction and is anticipated to be open in the fall of 2024. Ashe County Rotary Club and the Rotary Club Foundation are the latest in a long list of partners, which includes the NC Parks and Rec Trust Fund, the NC Recreational Trails Program, the NC General Assembly, Ashe County, and the Town of West Jefferson, among others.
Read MoreOn Friday, July 26, BRC and partners officially opened the Watauga River Access on 194 in Valle Crucis. BRC staff were joined by officials from the Tennessee Valley Authority and Watauga Tourism Development Authority, MaryAnn Mueller and Diana Travis, who gifted the majority of the land for the access point, and supporters of the project. This beautiful spot, including 1,300 feet of river frontage located in between the Valle Crucis Community Park and the Watauga Gorge Park, provides parking and recreational opportunities for canoeing, kayaking, tubing, and fishing.
Read MoreBlue Ridge Conservancy was recently awarded $80,000 by NCDOT for a Multimodal Feasibility Study grant, which will give BRC and its partners of Jefferson, West Jefferson, and Ashe County a plan to connect Paddy Mountain Park to Mount Jefferson State Natural Area via a pedestrian pathway. This pathway will ultimately connect Mt Jefferson to the Northern Peaks State Trail.
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