Fairystone's Lake Shore Trail is for Everyone

When hiking Fairystone State Park's Lake Shore Trail, you’ll see children and adults, dogs and horses, hiking boots and sneakers.

Of the 13-plus miles of trails in Fairystone State Park, I’ll bet Lake Shore Trail is the most popular. I’ve hiked the trail about 25 times and regardless of the time of year, I think I’ve bumped into at least one person each time. It’s never packed but it’s rarely empty, either.

Great for Beginners

What makes Lake Shore attractive is its terrain. It’s relatively flat. When the trail heads up or down it dips…slightly. Nothing too steep here. So, if you have children or you haven’t hit the gym for a while, Lake Shore is a very do-able trail.

In addition to the friendly geography of Lake Shore, its distance is perfect for the hiking newcomer or for the individual with little time to squeeze in a walk. It’s just over a mile from the trailhead to the end of the trail.

The Scenery

If you like scenery, this is the trail for you. Trees on both sides. Families of deer are easily spotted. Squirrels running around in the leaves. At the halfway point you’re suddenly walking alongside Fairystone Lake. Next to the Lake, where the trail climbs up a bit, there’s an overlook. It’s great for taking photos of the Lake. (The photo above was shot there last weekend.) It’s the perfect spot for your camera and the view really changes with each season.

The Pay-Off

The trail ends at a dam where Fairystone Lake and Philpott Lake intersect. There’s a neat little spillway and a couple of small---but loud---waterfalls. I saw two people fishing by the waterfalls on Sunday. Besides me, that was it. Go there in the summer, though, and you’ll find adults and children spending hours there playing in water. It’s really a cool spot.

Give it a Shot

It’s impossible to lose your way on this trail. The trees are clearly marked (yellow blaze) and even I couldn’t get lost my first time thanks to the excellent signage. It’s a great, safe, little out and back trail that just about everyone can enjoy.

A Crooked Road to America's Music

When driving this 250-mile stretch of road across southern Virginia you’ll see some of the most beautiful country in America. But the Crooked Road offers more than breathtaking ridges, mountains, creeks, and rivers.

This stretch of one and two lane highway is historically significant. If you like music---especially bluegrass, country, and old time music----you’ll find this piece of road is extremely significant. The very beginning of American music is traced to the towns along the Crooked Road. It all started here.

From the Fairystone Cabin

There are eight major heritage music venues along the Crooked Road. I first learned about them in Joe Wilson’s book, A Guide to the Crooked Road:Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail. There is a wealth of information available regarding the Crooked Road. A good place to start is: http://www.thecrookedroad.org/

Of the eight venues, four of them are close to our cabin, located next to Fairystone State Park. They include:

1. Blue Ridge Institute and Museum
2. Floyd Country Store
3. Blue Ridge Music Center
4. Rex Theatre & Old Fiddlers Convention

Blue Ridge Institute & Museum

The “BRI” is located at Ferrum College in the small town of Ferrum. It’s open all year and it’s a terrific place to learn about the Crooked Road, its music, and people. The displays here are excellent and the Museum puts forth great effort to rotate the exhibits and keep things interesting. You can see and hear the music thanks to audio and video displays. The big annual event at the BRI is its Blue Ridge Folklife Festival held on the fourth Saturday in October. The website link is at the right of this page.

Floyd Country Store

There aren’t many places like the Floyd Country Store. You realize just how many people, from all walks of life, enjoy the music when you visit this unique place. On the far back wall, for instance, is a photo of then Virginia Gov. Mark Warner jamming on stage with then Lt. Gov. Tim Kaine. The live music here on weekends gets people get up and dancing. You haven’t lived until you’ve experience the Friday Night Jamboree there. See the website link on the right column of this page.

Blue Ridge Music Center

As if the Blue Ridge Parkway isn’t already incredible, add the Blue Ridge Music Center at mile 213 to the experience. Established by Congress, it’s open from May through October. This outdoor venue also hosts an exhibit hall that tells the story of the music. The music here is great and scenery is awesome. For a schedule, check out: http://www.blueridgemusiccenter.org/.

Rex Theatre & Old Fiddlers Convention

Live audience, live music, and live radio combine to make a great experience at Blue Ridge Backroads at the Rex. Since 1999, the concert has been broadcast live on Blue Ridge Country 98.1 FM. The Rex is home to many other events, too, throughout the year. It’s located in Galax.

The Old Fiddlers convention has been around for almost three-quarters of a century. In the second week of August each year, people flock to Galax to hear incredible music.

Try It You’ll Like It

If you haven’t experienced the Crooked Road, I highly recommend you do. Whether just visiting one of the major stops, or driving from one end of the Road to the other, you’ll see beautiful scenery, listen to great music, and learn how it all started in southern Virginia.

Every Hour is Earth Hour Here

Have you heard about Earth Hour? Are you going to participate? Earth Hour takes place tomorrow night: Saturday, March 28th from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. Organizers are asking people to turn off their lights for that one hour to show support for the environment and for the future of the planet.

Almost 3,000 cities across the globe are participating. Landmarks like the Las Vegas Strip, the Empire State Building, and the Eiffel Tower in Paris will turn off their lights for that 60-minute period. People, organizations, and governments in over 80 countries are taking part.

When reading and hearing about Earth Hour, I've noticed most of the attention has been focused on the big cities and major monuments that are on board. Many people are wondering what a city will look like at night without any lights turned on. In fact, a number of web sites are encouraging people to submit photos they take Saturday night.

I'm certain the experience tomorrow night in major cities will be fantastic. But when you're in the Fairystone area---in the woods, in a cabin---every nighttime hour is Earth Hour. All 12 months, all 52 weeks, all 365 nights. The area is beautiful during the day but there is no place like it at night. Out the cabin door, across the porch, down the stairs, a few steps forward, look up, and...Wow!

Many people will get a glimpse of that tomorrow night in various cities across the world. If they want to see it all night, any night of the year, they should visit the Fairystone area. Enjoy!

Blues Traveler, Floydfest and Rain

I was visiting the Floydfest 8 web site this evening and was surprised and excited to see that Blues Traveler will be performing at the event this July. That's a pretty big name for Floydfest, a four-day concert (in Floyd, of course) that often showcases lesser-known, but excellent, musicians and bands.

Here's the link to the Floydfest 8 web site: http://atwproductions.com/index.php?pr=ffhome.

If you are unfamiliar with Floyfest, I recommend checking out its site. After hearing about it for years, I finally attended the Woodstock-like concert for the first time last summer. My 14-year-old daughter and I went to the Friday night activities---it runs from Thursday through Sunday. It's so cool to see all those people, all ages, hanging out and going from stage to stage listening to live bluegrass, country, acoustic, and other music. With the mountains as the backdrop it makes for a terrific experience.

I'm so psyched! After work tomorrow, I'm heading to the cabin for the weekend. It looks like rain but there's a chance I can squeeze in an early morning hike Saturday. If not, there is nothing more relaxing than listening to the rain falling on the roof of a log cabin. Rain or shine, I figure I'll be happy.

One of my favorite activities at the cabin is listening to Blue Ridge Backroads live from the Rex Theatre on Blue Ridge Country 98.1 FM on Friday nights. http://www.blueridgecountry98.com/

A bluegrass concert broadcast live on a radio station. You don't find that in many places. One more thing that makes the Fairystone area so special.

Have a great weekend. Enjoy the music and the rain.

Mr. Muir & Dr. Peale

There are two quotes that come to my mind when I think of, or visit, our cabin. I thought you might enjoy them.

"Keep close to Nature's heart...and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean." John Muir, preservationist and founder of the Sierra Club

"Get away from dirty, noisy cities. Get with streams, meadows, and mountains, if at all possible. Nature siphons off boredom."
Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, author and minister

Beautiful Log Cabin for Rent!

After months of discussion, we've finally decided to rent our beautiful log cabin to people looking for an outstanding getaway in the woods. It's simply too nice to keep to ourselves. (And, to be honest, we can use the money for our kids' college funds!)

Our cabin is located right next door to Fairystone State Park, one of Virginia's many fantastic, award-winning parks. Fairystone is in Patrick County, ten miles from the small community of Bassett. It's also 14 miles from the town of Ferrum. Basically, it's close to many places but in the middle of nowhere at the same time.

Our cabin is three years old. It's located in a small, quiet "neighborhood" of about 20 log homes. The main floor includes a master bedroom with a queen size bed and a full master bathroom, a second full bathroom, fireplace, living room, dining room and complete kitchen. There's a deck in the back and a great covered porch in the front. Upstairs, two lofts have two single beds each.

Log "cabin" may be misleading. It's really a log "home." New and comfortable. No phone and cell service is spotty inside the cabin. No internet, either. Staying here means being unplugged. But, it's comfortable. A flat screen with over 100 DVDs, CD player and radio, air conditioning, microwave, dishes, silverware, cookware, etc. We provide everything except for food and toiletries.

We know the economy is making it tough for many people to take a break and get away. So, we decided to charge rates similar to those charged for the cabins in the state park next door. However, the experience in our cabin is different. The cabins in the park are smaller and rustic. Ours is bigger and modern.

Our rates are $625 for one week (Saturday to Saturday). Three-day weekends are $275. A two-night weekend stay is $190. We ask that your family or group consist of four or fewer people. No pets. No smoking. Please e-mail us at logcabin@embarqmail.com if you are interested or have any questions.

So, why a blog? When people like you aren't staying in the cabin, we probably will be there---at least on weekends. So, I thought I would tell you about the cabin and the area by blogging after each one of our visits. I'll write about the hiking, music, food, nearby towns, sites, and all the cabin and surrounding area have to offer. I hope you enjoy the blog and I hope you'll think about staying at our log home. There is no better way to relax and re-charge your batteries. Thanks.