Rally Information
Thank you for your interest in the annual Mount Rogers Naturalist Rally. Every year the Naturalist Rally Committee assembles a wide variety of excellent field trips with leaders who are experts in their field. Their goal is to make the Mount Rogers area ecology understandable and interesting for everyone, from inquisitive amateurs to accomplished naturalists.
The 2012 Rally will be May 11 & 12. This year's Friday night speaker will be Mike Hayslett.
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Directions:
From I-81, take exit 35 (Chilhowie), go south on Rt 762, passing Hardee's. Follow this for 3.6 miles to the flashing light at intersection. Keeping straight the road becomes Rt 600, crosses Iron Mountain (disregard "Old 600" signs)and in 7.6 miles turn left at intersection, staying on Rt 600. From here go 2/10 miles and the Konnarock community center is on the left.
Schedule of Events:
Friday, May 11
- 5:00 p.m.- Registration begins - Konnarock Community Center. Fee is $5 for each person 12 or older. PLEASE TRY TO BRING CORRECT CHANGE. This registers you for Friday evening and Saturday field trips (Advanced registration is preferred.)
- 5:30-6:30 p.m. - Chicken dinner prepared and served by the Konnarock Community Club at the center. PREPAID RESERVATIONS FOR DINNER ARE ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY. The cost is $11. This total fee goes to the community center.
- 6:45 p.m. - Welcome & introductions of field trip leaders
- 7:30 p.m. - Featured speaker, Mike Hayslett :: "Ancient Gardens--Wetlands of Virginia Mountains"
Saturday, May 12
- 7:00 a.m. - Continued registration if you missed us on Friday - $5
- 8:00 a.m. - Morning field trips depart the Konnarock community center. We try to carpool as much as possible. (Look for signs on the building for each field trip and meet at the one you are interested in.)
- 11:30 - Lunch break at the center - $2 hot dog lunch or bring your own
- 1:00 p.m. - Afternoon field trips depart the Konnarock community center.
Below are the scheduled field trips for the 2012 rally. Other trips may be added by rally time.
Friday Evening - Saturday (demonstration)
- Solar Energy - Jack and Dianne Mason will have their solar equipment on display Friday evening and all day Saturday. Solar cooking and solar electricity will be included but they will focus on demonstratin water heating with "state of the art" solar thermal equipment.
Saturday Morning (Starting at 8:00 a.m.):
- All-Day Hike to Top of Mount Rogers - Dr. Phil Shelton has led this trip for 25 years. Along the way, he will discuss the flora and fauna of Mount Rogers. Hikers should bring food, water and dress for high-altitude weather. This is a challenging 9 mile round trip hike.
- Visit a Wetland - Our speaker, Mike Hayslett, will lead this interesting trip for a close look at some wet areas and point out the flora, fauna, and functions of these ecologically important habitats in the National Recreation Area. Wear high boots suitable for getting wet and muddy.
- Birding - This outing with Allen Boynton, Gale Kuebler, Scott Jackson-Ricketts (both with the Blue Ridge Discovery Center [BRDC]) will include stops on Laurel Valley Road and Grindstone Campground. Expect to see a good selection, including flycatchers, grosbeak, vireos, and several warblers.
- Salamanders - Kevin Hamed, Bio professor at VHCC, will lead this hike to several study areas on Whitetop Mountain, where he is involved in a 10-year salamander research project. Many species of salamanders are only found at these high elevations.
- Medicinal and Edible Wild Plants - Join Carolyn (Widener) Ward, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation on a stroll to look at ways trees and plants have been and still are used by every culture that has inhabited these mountains. Carolyn led rally hikes from 1993 - 1997, so welcome back!
- Wildflowers along the Whispering Waters Trail - John Kell, Radford University, will lead this walk along the nature trail at Grindstone campground. This area has an abundance of blooms. Bring a hand lens and flower guides.
- Small Mammals of the NRA - Dr. Karen Francel, Radford University will check hundreds of pre-set live traps in the woods near the community center and Mount Rogers trail in hopes of examining a sample of the small mammal diversity of the Mount Rogers NRA.
- Fly-Tying Workshop - Virginia Master Naturalist, Ernie Barker, will show you how to make 3 flies (Prince Nymph, Hare's Ear Nymph, and Griffith's Gnat). All materials will be provided including an instructional CD with photos for each participant. This program will require a $5 fee in addition to the regular rally registration and must be paid by April 30. There is a 12 participant maximum.
- Fairwood Valley Cultural History - Join Virginia Master Naturalist Steve Lindenman of the Nature Conservancy as you drive and stop along the Fairwood Valley to consider the cultural history of this valley before formation of the National Recreation Area.
- Stream Habitat Exploration for Young People (9:00 am) - Mark Merz, Marion Primary school teacher, will lead young people to investigate stream habitat/ecology at nearby creeks. Wear long pants and shoes that can get wet. Children, be sure to bring a parent.
Saturday Afternoon (Starting at 1:00 p.m.):
- Butterflies - Allen Boynton and Gale Kuebler, members of the BRDC, will lead this walk looking for butterflies and showing you how to recognize various characteristic traits to make identification easier for you.
- Sketching - Artist and naturalist Rebecca Rader will offer a "Sketching in the Field" workshop. Parents bring your kids and kids, bring your parents. Art supplies will be provided.
- Whitetop Wildflowers - Join Eleanor Grasselli & Judith Foster, Mount Rogers Appalachian Trail Club on this wildflower stroll from Whitetop Mountain north to Elk Garden (2½ miles & mostly downhill). Expect to see carpets of wildflowers as well as hear and see birds of the forest. You will want to be sure to bring field guides and binoculars!
- Visit a Wetland - For this hike, Heather McDonald-Taylor, Virginia Division of Mines, Minerals & Energy, who teaches a "wetlands awareness" class for the Office of Surface Mining, will tell you about different types of wetlands and why conservation and habitat preservation are so important. Bring some high boots and expect to learn something new.
- Geology of the Virginia Highlands - Once upon a time, our Appalachian Mountains were taller and more rugged than the Rockies. On this hike with Bill Whitlock, geologist with the Virginia DMME, find out what happened to our mountains and why we have the green and gently rounded peaks here the Mount Rogers area.
- Appalachian Woodland Wildflowers - Claude Greever, who has attended more rallies than anyone and knows where all the flowers are, will lead this wildflower hike around the Grindstone nature trail and then drive to Elk Garden to find wildflowers galore in the higher elevation. Bring field guides and a hand lens.
- Aquatic Insects and Fly Fishing at Creek Junction - Justin Laughlin, VDGIF, invites you to join the Trout Unlimited group for fly fishing instruction and identification of the aquatic insects in Whitetop Laurel Creek. If you were in the morning fly-tying workshop, bring your finished items along! A Virginia fishing license, trout stamp and National Forest permit required if you plan to fish.
- Trees - Joel Keebler of VHCC Horticulture department will lead this easy hike in tree identification and appreciation. His focus will be on native trees and shrubs.
- Appalachian Trail Hike - Anna Sherrill, newly named "Trail Ambassador," will give you a chance to hike on the AT, learn some history, find out about local volunteers & maintenance of the AT in our area, and you will likely meet some "thru-hikers" on the trail this time of year.
- Forest Ecology Hike - David Richert, a forester with the Virginia Department of Forestry, will lead a moderate hike on National Forest land near Green Cove. Participants will explore how forest vegetation (herbs, shrubs, and trees) is the expression of complex interrelationships between various biotic and abiotic factors. As a group, there will be some discussion about how these basic principles of ecology apply across a variety of landscapes, including the "backyard."
- Think Outside! for Young People - Scott Jackson-Ricketts of Blue Ridge Discovery Center and Carrie Sparks will connect young people (and parent) with nature through a variety of outdoor exploration including a water bug survey and taking a closer look-feel-taste and smell of the great outdoors. Ages 5-12. Need to wear creek shoes.
***All of our field trip leaders volunteer their time for the Naturalist Rally, so let them know you appreciate their sharing their time and knowledge with us.***
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The Friends of Mount Rogers will be offering some items for sale that you would find in the visitor centers in the Mount Rogers NRA: T-shirts, sweatshirts, caps, maps, identification books, nature books. Be sure to bring extra money if you'd like to purchase any of these items.
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Dinner & Registration
Dinner is by pre-paid reservation ONLY. There will be no dinners sold at the door. Registration for the rally events and dinner is due by May 1, 2012. You can register/pay online here or download and print the registration form and send it to:
Carrie Sparks
301 Look Avenue
Marion, VA 24354
Please make all checks payable to:
Mount Rogers Naturalist Rally
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How to Take a Field Trip
All field trips leave from the parking lot of the Konnarock Community Center unless otherwise indicated or announced on Friday evening. All times listed are actual departure times. Please allow extra time if you still need to register and to sign up with the field trip leader. (Some leaders take sign-ups on Friday evening and some trips fill quickly.) All trips will go out regardless of weather conditions. Come prepared with good boots or shoes, a sweater or jacket, raincoat or poncho.
Lodging
Two Forest Service campgrounds - Grindstone (VA Route 603) and Beartree (US Route 58) are within 10 miles of Konnarock. To reserve a site, call 1-877-444-6777 or online at www.ReserveUSA.com. There are numerous bed and breakfast inns and rental cabins in the area. Try www.virginiablueridge.org for information. Motels are available in Abingdon, Chilhowie, Glade Spring, Marion, all with places to eat.