Great Dismal Swamp in North Carolina: Brief History: Part One
Great Dismal Swamp Our recent small series on the Dismal Swamp was so well received on our Facebook page and there were so many requests for reprints, that we’ve decided to repost the series here for...
View ArticleGreat Dismal Swamp: Part Two: The Name and the Water
Did you ever wonder how the Dismal Swamp got that name to begin with? There are two main bodies of thought on the title “Dismal Swamp”: back in 1728, when Colonel Byrd was surveying the NC/Va line,...
View ArticleGreat Dismal Swamp, Pt 3: Lady of the Lake, the Deer Tree, Slave Stories
Are you familiar with the “Lady of the Lake”, made famous by Thomas Moore in 1803 when he wrote the poem, “The Lake of the Dismal Swamp”? Moore was an Irish poet, and based his poem on the story of...
View ArticleTunnels of the Blue Ridge Parkway in NC: Rough Ridge and Twin Tunnels
ROUGH RIDGE TUNNEL ON THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY IN NORTH CAROLINA The Rough Ridge Tunnel can be found at milepost 349. It’s a fairly short tunnel at 150′, with heights reaching from 13’9 to 21’6″ There is...
View ArticleTunnels of the NC BRP: Little Switzerland and Wildacres
LITTLE SWITZERLAND TUNNEL ON THE BRP OF NC Our first tunnel on this post is the Little Switzerland tunnel. This particular one is 630 feet long, and located near Milepost 333.1. The height varies from...
View ArticleSnakes of North Carolina: Rough Earth Snake
Rough Earth Snake The rough earth snake is very benign..non-venomous, and usually around 9″ long, although some can be at a foot. These little fellas (and gals) can be found in our coastal and piedmont...
View ArticleTUNNELS OF THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY: FRYING PAN & DEVIL’S COURTHOUSE TUNNELS
FRYING PAN TUNNEL ON THE BRP IN NC Cold Mountain NC Source: commons Moving up to Milepost 410.1, you will find Frying Pan Tunnel. This one comes in at 577′ in length, and a low of 13’8″ and a high of...
View ArticleSnakes of North Carolina: Black Racers
Black Racers First I would like to thank Dave Allen for allowing me to use his photo for this post, and Dave Murdoch for his identification of the type of snake. Also thanks to Carolina Critters...
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