In this week’s show, we look at a national park site that celebrates distinctly American music -- the Blue Ridge Music Center along the Blue Ridge Parkway near Galax, Virginia. Traveler’s Lynn Riddick visits with Richard Emmett, director of the Blue Ridge Music Center, to find out what’s happening in the interpretation, presentation, and promotion of traditional American mountain music. We’ll kick it off with a clip from the Chatham Rabbits, who recently performed at the center.
By NPT Staff - September 27th, 2020
:02 National Parks Traveler introduction
:12 Episode introduction with Kurt Repanshek
1:44 Lynn Riddick explores the history and role of the Blue Ridge Music Center along the Blue Ridge Parkway with the center's director, Richard Emmett.
18:19 The Road Scholar - Bill Mize - The Spirit of South Dakota
18:20 National Parks Traveler promotion
18:32 Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation promotion
18:56 Washington’s National Park Fund promotion
19:32 Friends of Acadia promotion
19:58 North Cascades Institute promotion
20:17 Grand Teton National Park Foundation promotion
20:53 Exploring the Blue Ridge Music Center with Richard Emmett continues
40:27 Blue Mist - Randy Petersen - The Sounds of Shenandoah
40:30 Episode Closing
41:00 Orange Tree Productions promotion
41:36 Splitbeard Productions
41:48 National Parks Traveler footer
Add comment
Wolverines, the largest land-dwelling members of the weasel family, once roamed across the northern tier of the United States, and as far south as New Mexico in the Rockies and southern California in the Sierra Nevada range. But after more than a century of trapping and habitat loss, wolverines in the lower 48 today exist only as small, fragmented populations in Idaho, Montana, Washington, Wyoming, and northeast Oregon.
Spur a discussion about traveling to a national park for a vacation and odds are that it will revolve around getting out into nature, looking for wildlife, perhaps honing your photography skills, or marveling at incredible vistas.
Will the discussion include destinations that portray aspects of the country’s history, or cultural melting pot?
Tens of millions of people in the United States will be able to witness a Total Solar Eclipse on Monday as the rare astronomical event cuts a path from Texas to Maine, up to 122 miles wide in some spots. This is a great opportunity to see the exact moment when the moon fully blocks the sun, creating a blazing corona visible to those observing from the center line of totality.
With March madness down to the Sweet 16, and Opening Day of Major League Baseball having arrived, we’re going to take a break this week and dive into our podcast archives for this week’s show.
This is Kurt Repanshek, your host at the National Parks Traveler. My NCAA bracket was busted the very first day, and while the Yankees won their opening day game against the Houston Astros, I don’t think they’ll go undefeated this year.
One of the most popular public events in the National Park System was the release of sea turtle hatchlings, shuffling off into the Gulf of Mexico at Padre Island National Seashore. I say was, because the number of those public events has been drastically scaled back in recent years.
Support Journalism about National Parks!
National Parks Traveler is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
The Essential RVing Guide
The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.
This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.
You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.
So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.
Comments
In honor of NPS Blue Ridge and Grand Tetons Superintendent, and Director, Gary Everhardt:
the former NPS Superintendent and NPS Director died over Christmas. Only a few days after his wife. Both of this Coronavirus.
Gary was instrumental in helping establish this way to highlight Blue Ridge heritage and music. The significance of heritage partnerships and the political wiliness (and muscle) required evade all the bureaucratic obstructors is not properly appreciated by some traditionalist outlets or intrenched officials and congressional staff.
But Gary knew parks and preservation are more than resources, they are Places of meaning and memory.
Local/distinctive music, food, dance, celebration all are part of landscape and place.
As we have seen from non-NPS sites, such as Bears Ears National Monument where Native Americans emphasized the sacred meaning of place and the stories inextricable from landscape, natural areas (just as national heritage corridors) are more than biology and historic sites cannot be circumscribed by their red velvet ropes.
Some day park traditionalists will awake to the skill sets developed by their colleagues. Heritage areas will learn from and share staff with parks, and parks will learn from heritage corridors.
Gary Everhardt - the hero along with George Hartzog of the "Second World Conference on National Parks" held on the Yellowstone centennial at Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Parks in 1972 - knew all about parks and heritage. While he enticed the hyper-conservative congressional delegation, he called me several times to share ideas in launching heritage partnership.
It was an adventure, and Gary loved it.
Many former Directors withdraw into retirement, perhaps emerging to sign a letter or preside at an event.
Gary Everhardt is the Director who returned to the parks.
With his blocking and tackling, the way was opened and the music center was born.