Old Time Fiddlers Contest

I know I am way behind in my blogging. Too much to do and not enough time to write about it. This was several weeks ago back in Galax, VA. The Old Time Fiddlers Convention was Aug 3-8. We were supposed to be leaving on Aug 3 to head to our next destination, but decided to stay over one more day just to attend the opening day of the convention. I wish I could have stayed for the entire week. Just walking around the area you could find people jamming together. All ages, all bluegrass and old time music. In the evening were the competitions. Monday night was the youngsters, age 15 and younger. But more about that later.

 

One group jamming. The young girl was seen in several other areas at other times, jamming with different people.

This was one of the youngsters in the fiddle competition. I believe she was around 8 years old.

 The winner of the bluegrass fiddle, ages 15 and younger was a 14 year old, but the big story was the 2nd place winner. I only have him on video and have yet to figure out how to make the videos small enough to upload. He was 5 years old and well deserved the 2nd place finish. If he continues playing, by age 14 he should be the best in the world. That 5 year old put many adults I've heard to shame.

 

These 3 teens were seen jamming at several locations.

Hillsville, VA and the Blue Ridge

Our next stop was Hillsville, VA, where we parked for a week out behind the VFW. The town of Hillsville has a townwide flea market 2x a year, Labor Day and Memorial Day. It is said to be the largest flea market east of the Mississippi. The VFW owns a large area which it rents out for the flea market and usually sits vacant the rest of the year. We showed them they could have other uses for the area, such as renting it to RVers. But Hillsville is right in the middle of the Crooked Road area. It is near Galax where the Old Time Fiddlers Convention is held, it is close to the Blue Ridge Music Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway and also nearby is Floyd Country Store, Floyd, VA. This is only to name a few of the places to go in the area. We actually extended our stay here because of so much to do.

 

We saw this Cottonmouth on the New River Bike Trail. Bertie ran over him before she saw what was on the trail. Then he was mad and ready to strike as I came up. I swerved to avoid him and almost knocked Max down, but we all survived. Needless to say my heart was pumping after the incident. He eventually slithered off into the grass so hopefully no other bikers had the scare we did.

Mabry Mill is considered to be the most photographed mill in the U.S.

Mt. Airy is the home of Andy Griffith and the basis for Mayberry, RFD.

There is even Floyd's Barbershop, just like in the show.

We paid to see Ricky Skaggs perform at the outdoor amphitheater at the Blue Ridge Music Center. It was nice all day so they did not move it inside. But of course once the music started, it also started to rain. Not just rain, but it poured through most of the concert. But Ricky Skaggs said if we were brave enough to sit out there in the rain, he would play, so he did. (underneath a roof of course)

You can see some umbrellas as you look towards the stage.

At Floyd's Country Store we met this guy.

All these sketching on the wall are of real people. After the artist sketches them, they then write down their story.

This is the story of the man earlier. He lives in the hills, plants corn the old fashioned way, and comes to hear music at Floyd's on Friday nights.

Crooked Road Caravan-Abingdon, VA

First I want to say how much I love it when I get a high speed internet connection. Yeah! Second, I am so frustrated with ATT cell service. I think I am the only one of our group who has ATT (most have Verizon) and I am usually the only one who has no service. And no service means no internet with my air card. Very frustrating. Well, now that that is said.... I have been on the Crooked Road Caravan all summer, but only now have I arrived at the real Crooked Road. It is a trail designed to take you to 8 different music hot spots. These music hot spots are all about Appalachian music, history and culture. Although I will not be visiting all 8 spots, I will get the chance to visit about half of them.

 

You see this sign along the roads and in all the venues.

Downtown Abingdon has wolf statues all over town.

 

The 'Pickin' Porch" is one of the Crooked Road venues, located in Bristol, VA. Every Thursday night they offer free music. This is a family group.

I don't think either of these kids were over 16.

At the Carter Fold on a Friday evening

Another venue along the Crooked Road is the Carter Fold. Started by the Carter Family, one of the original old time music groups. It is still in operation today, still run by the family members. Each Friday night they have music and usually where you find Appalachian music, you find dancers. They call it 'flat footing', but it is really a style of clogging. You will see people all ages, both young and old out dancing. I even tried it.

 

This is the cabin where A.J. Carter was born. It is now a museum located at the Carter Fold.

While out sight seeing we stopped at a store in Shady Valley. This sign was out front. We didn't understand all that it meant until a few days later we drove this road. The claim is 3 mountains, 1 valley and 489 curves within 12 miles of the store. The bikers come here in droves to ride these roads.

Even our GPS had a hard time keeping up with the curves in the road. I have driven lots of curvy mountain roads before and never have I been on a road like this. For over 30 miles you couldn't go faster than 20mph due to the curves.

At Shady Valley we found this drink. I guess it is a local variety since I've not seen it except in this area. It is a cherry soda, more like a cherry coke.

Between Shady Valley and Damascus we encountered this tunnel. Noted as the shortest tunnel, it is probably not more than 10 feet through.

You can climb up and walk across the top too.

And looking down! The road below was once a railroad track which was made into a highway once the trains quit.

One of the huge tourist attractions is the Virginia Creeper Trail. From the top of Whitetop Mountain down to Abingdon, it follows the old Virginia Creeper Railway route. Note it is a rail to trail, 34 miles of mostly downhill.

It was a beautiful trail.

I loved the sign with the train.

We intended to do some hiking on the Appalachian Trail, but it rained on the day we planned to hike. So as we were out and about we did run into 4 young (college age) men who had started on a 2 week hike just 4 days earlier. But one had gotten sick and they were out on the highway looking for a ride to the hospital for their friend. We took them and all their gear into the hospital at Bristol. As we said goodbye we asked that they let us know the outcome. We got an email back letting us know the young man who was sick was ok, but flew home and did not finish the hike. The other 3 returned to the trail and finished their 2 weeks on the Appalachian Trail.

You just never know what adventures await when you walk out your door.

Hensley Settlement and the Gap Cave

My final blog about my time in Cumberland Gap National Park. Inside the park there is the Hensley Settlement. The Hensley's and Gibbons settled this area in 1903. At its peak, there were 10 families and about 100 people living in this settlement. It was a minimum 5 mile hike downhill and 5 miles back uphill to the nearest town. They lived here through the 1940s, but by the end of the 1950s there was only one family left. Mr. Hensley, the original founder was the last to leave in the 1960s. Most of the buildings have been destroyed due to deterioration and fire, but have been restored or recreated based on writings and interviews with the actual occupants or their heirs. They had no electricity or running water while living in the settlement, but were almost totally self sufficient, trading moonshine for those items they did not grow.

 

Even after being abandoned for almost 50 years, the apple trees are still producing.

They also had what our guide called high-top blueberries. Some of our group from the afternoon tour said their guide called them huckleberries. Whichever, they tasted good.

It was said you could tell who wore the pants in the family by which was bigger, the house or the barn. Here in the left of the picture was the house, on the right in the middle was the barn. I believe the missus' was the boss in this family.

A shot of one of the family farms. There was a woodsmith and blacksmith building, a spring house, the wood shed, the remains of the original home, the chicken coop and the barn at the back.

I believe the mister wore the pants in this family. The bottom log on the side of the barn is one beech log and is over 45 feet long. There was plenty of space for the animals during the cold winters.

I toured the settlement in the morning and in the afternoon took a tour of one of the caves in the park. This cave is virtually undeveloped compared to some I have visited this year.

Here you can see us with lanterns, the only light in the cave.

A column and standing in the middle of a pool of water.

Even these small, not-so-famous caves have some beautiful formations.

Another shot of that pool of water and all the formations in the area.

It was very moist in the cave. Those little points of light are drops of moisture on the ceiling.

Martins Station

Martin's Station was located just miles from Cumberland Gap. It became a stopping point, supply point and way station for those heading for the gap. It had to be abandoned on and off because of Indian raids, but for many years was the lone outpost before crossing the gap.

 

We had the opportunity to see a primitive blacksmith pour a brass mold. He first made the mold using sand. Then he heated the brass and poured it into the mold.

After letting it cool he took the mold apart.

 

And here is the brass piece. It will eventually be polished and beat into some plates for a handmade rifle.

Some of us biked over to the station which was about 8 miles each way from the campground. The first part of the path was through the woods.

The fort was not really very large. Most of the buildings were actually located outside the fort.

The bikers.

The bike trail was beautiful. We even biked underneath and old covered bridge.

Cumberland Gap, TN

Arriving a day before most of the other group, there was time to just drive around the area. 

On a winding road up to the coal mines I spotted this woodpecker. I believe this is called a pileated woodpecker.

In Middlesboro, KY, the Chamber of Commerce is an old house which has been sided with real coal. Do you think it might be a fire hazard?

In the small town of Cumberland Gap, TN, there is a restaurant which has local music on Friday and Saturday evenings. Friday night had some old time pickers and fiddlers.

This sign sums up the history of the area. Called a road by the sign, I imagine this was more like what the pioneers found when they crossed the Cumberland Gap.

This tunnel was hand carved by Italian immigrants in 1897. The railroad tunnel is still in use today and runs almost 1/4 mile long.

Blackberries were abound and we found lots of ripe ones.

About 10 miles down the road was this house. The town was founded in the late 1790s. I know nothing more about the house, except I thought it was unusual.

Also in Tazewell was this old service station.

In 2001 they removed all the asphalt from the old highway and recontoured the land as you see it above. It was hard to imagine only 15 years ago there was a 2 lane highway where I was standing

I did hike through Cumberland Gap, which was where over 300,000 pioneers followed Daniel Boone to the new west. Daniel Boone opened this trail in 1769, although Dr. Walker Thomas first found the trail in 1750. Until 1996 this was also the route of US Highway 25E, the only route across the Cumberland Mountains. In 1996 they opened the Cumberland Tunnel, a mile long tunnel through the mountains. 

Near the gap is this Tri-State Marker. I was standing in the corner of three states, KY, TN and VA.

The clouds over the gap.

A view of the gap from about 1 mile away.