The Buckeye Buzz

May 2016

Greetings!

Message from the Director:

Dust off the hiking boots, oil up the mountain bike, and make sure you have plenty of fresh line on those fishing poles. Summer on Beech Mountain is a bustling time for outdoor activities. We offer plenty of events for the whole family and can get you out on the water in a boat of your choosing. This Summer I am really excited to announce a new event called Naturally Beech. This weekend long event will cover all things nature on Beech Mountain. Mark your calendars for July 2nd-3rd for this great weekend

Upcoming Events

Annual Kiddo Fishing Derby

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Saturday, June 4th @ Lake Coffey

9AM - 12PM

The sun is shining and the fish are biting!

It's that time of year again kids - so get out your fishing gear and lets hit the lake together!

The Kiddo Fishing Derby is a fun fishing competition open to kids ages 12 and under. There will be awards given for biggest fish caught, most fish caught, the smallest fish caught, and more. Food and raffle tickets for prizes will be available for sale. Make sure to bring your favorite fishing gear for the event. Don't have any? No worries, Beech Mountain Parks and Recreation has limited tackle available for loan. See you at the lake!

For directions or more information, please contact 828.387.3003 or email recassistant@townofbeechmountain.com.

Buckeye Bonfire

"With a Lakeside Cookout"

Join us Friday, June 24th for an excellent kick-off to summer fun! We will be hosting a lakeside bonfire and cookout to ignite your summer vacation in style. This is a FREE event and will be a chance to meet new friends and locals for your enjoyment. Also, you're encouraged to stay till the end of the event for campfire stories tailored to Beech Mountain/Appalachian Lore! The event starts at 6:30PM and goes until 8:00PM. So get your marshmallow roasting sticks out and come on by for a great time!

Questions: email

dputnam@townofbeechmountain.com

A Cool 5 Weekend

Taste of Beech

Join us Friday June 10th from 5 PM to 7 PM at Buckeye Recreation Center for A Taste of Beech. We will be serving a Pasta Dinner that is sponsored by the restaurants on Beech Mountain. This is open to the community for a "COOL" $5.00. Racers of A Cool 5 Race will recieve FREE entry to the dinner. We will have our Kids' Popsicle Relay for all Kids 12 and under. Purchase your tickets ahead of time at Buckeye Recreation Center or buy them at the door. Any questions please call 828-387-3003.

A Cool 5 Race

Click for Registration

Register for A Cool 5 Race today! We have a race for everyone! Races begin Saturday June 11th at 8 am sharp. We will have Race Day Registration from 6:30 - 7:30 AM for last minute registrations. Register by June 20th to be guaranteed a shirt and goody bag.

Saturday, ALL races start at 8 am sharp, with an awards ceremony and food to follow. Sunday rounds out our weekend with a FREE pass to Buckeye if you were a racer in the Saturday events.

A Cool 5 Weekend offers fun for everyone. To learn more visit www.acool5race.com

Call: 828-387-3003.

Email: kprisco@townofbeechmountain.com

Event Recap

Town Birthday Party


Town Council Members: Renee Castiglione and Wendel Sauer.

Beech Mountain's 35th annual birthday party was a great time! Members from town council and the community visited Buckeye Recreation Center to display their appreciation and celebrate the Town of Beech Mountain. There was an assortment of dishes from attendees and to top it all off a wonderful cake!

Additionally, the community celebrated Arbor Day with specialists from the forestry service and arbor foundation showing up to donate baby trees for participants to plant. The food was amazing, the company was grand, and we hope to see you again next year!

Camp Buckeye

Click to Register and for Schedule

Are you ready for summer? Here at Camp Buckeye we are more than ready to accommodate your child's needs for outdoor activity and education. Camp Buckeye is an outdoor adventure camp that focuses on outdoor education, and utilizing all of the resources the high country has to offer in an exciting and fun way. Campers will participate in a variety of activities such as: sailing, fishing, climbing, camp fire cooking, biking, orienteering, and much more! Come see why Camp Buckeye on Beech Mountain is a great way to spend your summer.

"We're really excited to implement an assortment of new recreational activities and field trips for our campers!"

- David Putnam: Recreation Coordinator

Camp Buckeye offers two separate summer camp programs. Our standard camp is for ages 5-12 ($30 per day or $125/week). The second is our new and exciting Junior Counselor Leadership Program for ages 13-16 ($50/week). J.C.L.P. is designed to give our campers more opportunities that involve responsibility and community outreach. These campers also collect volunteer hours for required clubs and extracurricular organizations!

Both camps operate 9:00AM to 3:00PM Monday through Friday, starting June 20th and ending July 29th.

For more information and a weekly itinerary, please visit

http://beechrecreation.org/family-fun/summer-camp

If you would like more information about this topic, please contact David Putnam at 828-387-3003 or email at

dputnam@townofbeechmountain.com.

Outdoor Recreation

Outdoor Recreation Programs:

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Summer Tree Identification:

Friday, May 20th 11 am-@ Buckeye Rec Center. Did you know that the Southern Appalachian Mountains have more tree species than all of Europe combined? Tag along with us on the Wild Iris Trail as we trek through the forest and learn about our local tree diversity. Please bring water, dress for the weather, and wear hiking shoes.

Beech's Bears:

Friday, May 27th 11 am-@ Buckeye Rec Center. Yes, they're cute....but certainly not cuddly. Come learn about the largest mammals of Beech Mountain, how to stay safe in bear country, and how to protect them for generations to come.

Click for Schedule.

Birding on Beech w/ Grandfather State Park Recap:

If you've been out and about on Beech lately, you've hopefully noticed a bit more chatter in the trees and seen some new faces (or beaks!) at your bird feeders. Ranger Appling of Grandfather Mountain State Park led a birding hike for us on May 9th along the Wild Iris Trail. Hikers were treated to an impressive chorus of resident and non-resident migratory birds, and a few sightings as well.

Birds Sighted:

Eastern Towhee

Blue-headed Vireo

Tufted Titmouse

Blue Jay

Dark-eyed Junco

Northern Flicker

American Crow

American Robin

American Goldfinch

Birds Heard:

Winter Wren

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Scarlet Tanager

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Black-throated green Warbler

Red-eyed Vireo

Ruby Crowned Kinglet

Song Sparrow

Wood Thrush

Pileated Woodpecker

Black and White Warbler

Ask Away:

"We've been coming up to Beech to stay at my Mom's on Greenbriar Road for a couple summers now. There is a bush about 4 feet tall that the deer just love to nibble on. They eat the leaves and it really seems to make them energetic and spunky. I'll attach a pic that we took in the yard last summer. We've all been scratching our heads on this one. Hope you might know what it is :)" - KW

From my best determination based on your picture it appears to be a native shrub called spicebush (Lindera benzoin). A quick way to tell is if you crush the leaves, you will be treated to a pleasant spicy, lemon-y aroma. In the spring, clusters of yellowish-white flowers appear on the stems. It then produces a red drupe (fruit) that is enjoyed by many species of birds. The spicebush is significantly important to our local wildlife. The wood thrush, known as having one of the most melodic sounds of the forest - gorges on these berries before preparing for its fall migration. The shrub is also the larval host plant of one of our most beautiful local butterflies, the spicebush swallowtail. The spicebush swallowtail is a master of mimicry, from caterpillar to adult butterfly. Look for a green caterpillar with snake-like eyes on the shrub. As an adult the butterfly mimics the toxic pipevine swallowtail butterfly. The shrub has a long history of edible and medicinal uses in our country. Native American cultures used it as a spice for seasoning game, it has been used as an ingredient in fragrances, in colonial America as a substitute for allspice and cinnamon, and during the Civil War as a coffee substitute. A tonic was also derived to treat fevers, parasites, and other maladies. As for making the deer spunky, maybe they aren't used to spicy foods? Perhaps we'll find that answer for another addition!

Please contact recassistant@townofbeechmountain.com with questions or call 828.387.3003.

Fitness

Spring is here, join a class and get motivated to move!

May Schedule

Personal Training -

Refer a Friend -

Refer a friend to sign up for a PT package and you will receive a free session off your package deal. Our certified and experienced trainer is here to help you tone up, gain strength and muscle.

Yoga Pose -

Bharadvaja's Twist

This beginner pose helps with:

Stretches the spine, shoulders, and hips
Massages the abdominal organs
Relieves lower backache, neck pain, and sciatica
Helps relieve stress
Improves digestion
Especially good in the second trimester of pregnancy for strengthening the lower back
Therapeutic for carpal tunnel syndrome

How to perform:

Sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you. Shift over onto your right buttock, bend your knees, and swing your legs to the left. Lay your feet on the floor outside your left hip, with the left ankle resting in the right arch.

Inhale and lift through the top to lengthen the front torso. Then exhale and twist your torso to the right, keeping the left buttock on or very close to the floor. Lengthen your tailbone toward the floor to keep the lower back long.

Tuck your left hand under your right knee and bring your right hand to the floor just beside your right buttock. Pull your left shoulder back slightly, pressing your shoulder blades firmly against your back even as you continue to twist the chest to the right.

You can turn your head in one of two directions: continue the twist of the torso by turning it to the right; or counter the twist of the torso by turning it left and looking over the left shoulder at your feet.

With every inhalation lift a little more through the sternum, using the push of the fingers on the floor to help; with every exhalation twist a little more. Stay for 30 seconds to 1 minute, then release with an exhalation, return to the starting position, and repeat to the left for the same length of time.

Beginner's Tip

If you tilt onto the twisting-side buttock (which compresses the lower back), raise it up on a thickly folded blanket. Consciously sink both sitting bones toward the floor.

To practice more Yoga Join us for class every Tuesday and Thursday from 10 - 11 AM

Credit to Yoga Journal

Summer Guided Hikes


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Our summer is stacking up with several outdoor offerings.

A favorite on Beech Mountain is our FREE guided hikes. Be sure to check your calendar and make sure you join us on one of our hikes!

Any questions or concerns please call (828)387-3003

Trail of the Month

April


Click for more Info

This month we recommend hiking Lower Pond Creek. The trail head begins at Coffey Lake, and follows Pond Creek for a scenic one mile hike. For those wanting to make it a one - way hike or you can station a car at the bottom. While the trail is somewhat rugged and difficult in places it is worth it to see the water swell after a rain.

Word of the Month

Pulaski

The pulaski is a special hand tool used in wildland firefighting.

The tool combines an axe and an adze in one head, similar to that of the cutter mattock, with a rigid handle of wood, plastic, or fiberglass. The pulaski is a versatile tool for constructing

firebreaks, as it can be used to both dig soil and chop wood. It is also well adapted for trail

construction, gardening, and other outdoor work. As a gardening or excavation tool, it is effective for digging holes in root-bound or hard soil.

Buckeye uses this tool to construct our trails, and keep them clear.

(Courtesy of wikipedia.com)

May Issue Topics:

How well do you know Beech Mountain?

We want to see how well you know your Beech Mountain. Each month we will post a photo on the mountain and it is up to you to figure out where we are. This is an opportunity to get out and explore the mountain. You must grab a photo and submit them back for your chance to win. Winners will be announced each month in the Buzz.

We'll start you with an easy one. Where is Amanda in this photo?

kprisco@townofbeechmountain.com

System Update

We are in the process of updating our check in system. We ask that if you are a current member please stop by the front desk so that we may check your information. Thank you!

Stump the Jumper