An installment in our Blue Ridge Travel series. It’s a quiet morning in Fries, Virginia, and the New River is doing what it’s always done—slipping past the banks with ageless calm. The cotton mill that gave the town its name and purpose is long gone, but you’d swear you can still hear the echoes. Not…
An installment in our Blue Ridge Travel series. In the quiet town of Helvetia, West Virginia, the final days before Lent don’t pass unnoticed. They are celebrated with Helvetia Fasnacht, bringing a parade of masked revelers and the steady thumping of old-world music to the town’s streets and parks. Picture it: masked figures dancing through…
An installment in our Blue Ridge Travel series. The Roanoke Star, also known as the Mill Mountain Star, is an iconic symbol of Roanoke, VA. Its simple, star-shaped outline is formed by a steel framework and white neon tubing. It’s a striking figure against the backdrop of Mill Mountain. At 88.5 feet tall, it sits…
An installment in our Appalachian Foodways series I liked this article about the Smoke on the Mountain BBQ contest in Galax so much that I asked The Daily Yonder for permission to republish it. They generously agreed. It was written by Sara June Jo-Saebo and originally titled ‘Mouthwatering and Divine’: A Reunion over Barbecue in…
An installment in our Appalachian Foodways series In England, ramps are known as ramson; in France, they are ail sauvage. Native Americans in the Great Lakes area called the plants Chicagou, for which the city of Chicago is named. Elsewhere in the world, they are known as wild leeks, wild garlic, and spring onions. In…