This Land, Your Land

The Conservation Trust for North Carolina announced Monday that it has bought 12 acres along the Blue Ridge Parkway near Cumberland Knob that will be donated to the National Park Service.

The 12.7 acres near Milepost 220.6 is known as the Roaring Fork Headwaters II and contains headwater streams of Roaring Fork, a tributary of the Fisher River, and of the Yadkin River, which provides drinking water for a million people in the Piedmont, the CTNC said in a news release.

The newly acquired land abuts the 49-acre Roaring Fork Headwaters I, which was given to the NPS in 2010, and Saddle Mountain Vista, a 201-acre property donated to the NPS in 2007.

The three parcels are in Alleghany and Surry counties, north of the 3,400-acre Saddle Mountain wilderness area and south of the 2,000-acre Cumberland Knob recreation area.

"Each time we add to the Blue Ridge Parkway’s protected landscape, we assure that millions of visitors will continue to enjoy a spectacular, unspoiled landscape," Parkway Superintendent Phil Francis said in the news release. "This acquisition is essential to expanding wildlife habitat, protecting drinking water and maintaining the beautiful views so many people come here to see."

The Conservation Trust for North Carolina today announced the gift of 534 acres of land along the Blue Ridge Parkway to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.

The transfer of the Rose Creek property near Spruce Pine in Mitchell County will eventually allow public access to over a mile of frontage on the Blue Ridge Parkway between mileposts 326 and 328, and about 1.3 miles of the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail (pictured below), the CTNC says.

The Rose Creek property provides a forested backdrop from the Parkway's Loops Overlook next to The Orchard at Altapass. The land contains nearly six miles of streams, including Rose and Little Rose creeks and their tributaries. Rose and Little Rose creeks are major headwater tributaries of the North Toe River, which supplies drinking water to the town of Spruce Pine.

“This property was definitely worth protecting. It has beautiful views of the Parkway, miles of pristine headwater streams, a key segment of the Overmountain Victory Trail, and abundant habitat for wildlife,” said Reid Wilson, CTNC’s executive director.

Do you know the Blue Ridge Parkway? Do you know the Conservation Trust for North Carolina's contributions to the Parkway?

If so, you might try the CTNC's Blue Ridge Parkway trivia contest, which their running in part to mark the Parkway's 75th anniversary.

Answer all 10 questions correctly and you'll be entered in a drawing to win a weekend at a forest cabin in the mountains of Ashe County. Ten others will receive prizes from Great Outdoor Provision Co.

Here's a hint: you can look up the answers through our Carolina Outdoors Guide links above and by searching at the bottom of the home page.