Tour de Cut –2009
Season
May 30, June 20, & Aug. 29
Download Tour de Cut - 2009 Season Brochure
Third Tour de Cut hike to highlight
Mountain Lake Wilderness area
The Tour de Cut is a hiking series designed to let people get to
know unique places on our national forests, and to take a
personal interest in protecting them. Please join us.
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John's Creek Mountain from White Rocks area in Mountain Lake Wilderness
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On Saturday August 29, we will head to Mountain Lake Wilderness
in southwestern Virginia for the third Tour de Cut hike of the
year. Mountain Lake Wilderness area is located in Giles County
and Monroe County, north of Blacksburg, and has recently been
expanded, thanks to the passage of the Virginia Ridge and Valley
Act earlier this year. The legislation protects 53,000 acres of
southwestern Virginia as national scenic areas, wilderness study
areas, and designated wilderness.
As part of the hike, we will walk along Potts Mountain Trail a
secluded ridgetop trail that passes by rich forests, a small
meadow, and two scenic outcrops at Wind Rock and White Rocks. The
trail passes through the newly added section of the wilderness
area, located between the prior wilderness area boundary and the
Mottesheard Roadless Area. We will approach the new segment,
which is hard to reach, and we may walk through a part of the
area, if time permits. We will also hike a section of the
Appalachian Trail and a series of trails around War Spur.
The hike is approximately 5 miles long, and is rated as an easy
hike. We will meet and depart at 9:30AM, Aug. 29 at the Forest
Service’s Eastern Divide Ranger District office, Blacksburg.
The office is located at 110 Southpark Drive, off of South Main Street, just
north of the intersection between Business 460 (South Main) and
Four-Lane 460. There is no Virginia Tech football game on this
weekend, so traffic levels on the day of the hike should be
average for the Blacksburg area.
Please contact Sherman Bamford if interested in the hike. Important: Due to Forest
Service wilderness area regulations, the size of the group will
be strictly limited to 10 people. If more that 10 people sign up, the co-leader of the
hike and I may arrange for an alternate group hike on the same
day and time at a different location in Mountain Lake Wilderness.
Contact: Sherman Bamford, Public Lands
Coordinator, Virginia Forest Watch
PO Box 3102, Roanoke, Va. 24015-1102
(540) 343-6359,
bamford2@verizon.net
Chestnut Oak Knob Hike - Sat. October 4, '08
On Oct. 4, we'll round out the season, by hiking part of the
Dowells Draft Trail in Augusta County, near Crawford Mountain and
Ramseys Draft Wilderness. The Forest Service approved a
clearcutting operation in this part of the national forest,
outside of the wilderness. We'll see some of the scenic beauty of
the area, and we see the impacts of the Forest Service logging
program "up close". More Details
CELEBRATE VIRGINIA FOREST
WATCH'S ANNIVERSARY
Virginia Forest Watch, a group dedicated
to maintaining and restoring the natural ecology and
biodiversity of woodlands across Virginia through
education and citizen participation, is celebrating its
10th anniversary this year. The event will include:
- Local favorite Blue Mule will perform in its own Blue
Grass style.
- Readings by nature writers Fred First and Chris
Bolgiano.
- Silent auction.
The event is free and open to the public!
Join us November 8, 6:30 pm, at Hollins University Chapel
in Roanoke. More Details: VAFW Tenth Anniversary | VAFW
Invite | Hollins University Campus Map
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October 6, 2007 Tour de Cut hike
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On October 6, we are planning a Tour de Cut hike in the
Alleghany Highlands, a beautiful area in mountainous Virginia’s
famed warm springs and resorts region. The Tour de Cut is a
hiking event highlighting the threats on our Virginia public
lands and the outstanding features on these lands. The theme of
the Tour de Cut this year is "The George Washington National
Forest: Protecting the Forest in Your Backyard." It is a
great opportunity to learn more about the George Washington
National Forest (GWNF) and to learn how you can personally make a
difference in protecting the GWNF. This is the last
of 3 special hiking events this year celebrating the GWNF so
don’t miss out on our fall hike!
Meeting Time: 9:30AM
Meeting Location: From I-64, take Exit 55
(Lexington, Va.). Go north on Rt. 11, North Lee Highway (away
from Lexington). We will meet at the parking lot in front of the
Dollar Tree store along US 11, located just beyond the turn-off
to US 39.
Let us know if you are interested or have questions. Contact
Sherman Bamford at (540) 343-6359, bamford2@verizon.net, and
watch the Sierra Club-Virginia Chapter website for updates.
People with a wide range of hiking skills can participate in
these events, but there will be some short steep or rough
sections. Most of the hike is classified as moderately strenuous,
with some short strenuous sections. As always, bring
sturdy boots, water, food for lunch, and rain gear.
More Details and Photos
Low-impact Sustainable Forestry Demonstration
On Saturday, March 24, 2007 please join Jason Rutledge, the Healing
Harvest Forest Foundation, and Virginia Forest Watch for a
demonstration of what it means to be a Biological Woodsman. Meet
at Apple Ridge Farm on Pine Forest Rd in Copper Hill at 1 PM.
More Details: Read March
15, 2007 The Floyd Press article | Directions to Apple
Ridge Farm
Sustainable Forestry
Seminar
Saturday - November 11, 2006
Ottari Boy Scout Camp, South of
Radford, Virginia
Sponsored by: Virginia Forest Watch
and Blue Ridge Forest Cooperative
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Jason Rutledge presents
at a previous field day.
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More Details (including
agenda, registration form, flyer, map)
Forever Wild—2006
The Roanoke Valley will have a rare opportunity to meet America's one-of-a-kind wilderness troubadour Walkin' Jim Stoltz when Forever Wild—2006 comes to the Hollins University Chapel at 7 pm on October 14th. The show also features local recording artist "Earth Mama" Rouse www.earthmama.org, storyteller, Kim Weitkamp www.justkissthefrog.com, and a tantalizing Virginia wild lands slide show promoting opportunities to protect the National Forests in Virginia. Admission is free for this community-sponsored event!
Walkin' Jim Stoltz has covered North America by boot. Hiking 26,000 miles has given him a great love and respect for America's natural beauty. He shares that appreciation in his celebratory show, Forever Wild—2006. Walkin' Jim sings in a deep bass voice, plays guitar, and tells stories about his travels while projecting spectacular images of the wilderness he has photographed on his travels.
Forever Wild—2006 is a major outreach program working for the protection of America's wild lands, lives, and waters, the three pillars of our wilderness heritage. Walkin' Jim encourages people who hear about his tour to learn more about his "Call for Wild" program and how they can help by visiting www.foreverwild.info.
View event poster
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Forests below
Signal Corps Knob
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2006 "Tour de
Cut"
July 15th & 16th
Tour de Cut – On July 15, 2006 Virginia Forest Watch joined with Sierra Club-Virginia Chapter, and Wild Virginia, to lead hikers on the third ”Tour de Cut”. The Tour de Cut is a once-a-year Saturday walking tour of some of the beauty spots of our national forests, contrasted with a hike through some areas where inappropriate logging and roadbuilding has harmed national forests. In the morning we visited the site of the Liptrap timber sale near Elliott Knob roadless area, where the Forest Service logged an extensive tract of forest close to scenic Montgomery Run. Then in the afternoon we led concerned citizens on an afternoon hike to Signal Corps Knob, an area that was saved from logging, thanks to diligent work by conservationists and thanks to our environmental laws.
Note: Photos to be added soon. View flyer for Tour de Cut 2006
John McCutcheon Earth Day
Benefit Concert
7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 22
Blackwell Auditorium
Randolph-Macon Center for the Performing Arts
205 Henry Street
Ashland, VA
Read Press Release | Concert Poster
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Nov. 19-20, 2005
- Sustainable Forestry Seminar - How to Have Your Trees and Cut Them Too. A two-day learning event about Sustainable Forestry Practices which was held at
Holiday Trails Camp, Charlottesville, Virginia
June 18, 2005
- June 2005 "Tour de Cut" Hikers to View Old Growth and Roadless Forests: Vanishing Landscapes on Virginia's National Forests | UPDATED with pictures (June 21, 2005)
May 19-22, 2005
- Model Forest Policy
Program's 4th Annual Forest Summit to be held at Hungry
Mother State Park, Marion, VA
April 22, 2005 - Earth Day Benefit
with John McCutcheon, Ashland, VA | UPDATED with pictures from concert (May 19, 2005)
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