Recent Articles from BRMC Newsletters

Trail Talk

Another year is coming to an end at the mountain house. Another year of lawn mowing, newsletter writing, bird watching, mulch hauling, fallen tree cutting, moth catching, tick removing, old home site touring, and three nights of Halloween Safari is officially finished.

As you know, this year we added a third night to the Halloween Safari. This was done in case we had poor weather one of the nights, however we were fortunate and had decent weather every night. We had another fine cast of native creatures this year; a luna moth, a bobcat, a ladybug, and a mocking bird. Although the animals are an important aspect of this event, it takes more than a few animals to make the Halloween Safari a successful event. The face painters, pumpkin seed roaster, trail leaders, musicians, and 50 plus volunteers make this event what it is every year. To all of our volunteers, thank you for dedicating part of your weekend to make Bull Run Mountains Conservancy’s Halloween Safari event truly the best to date. With all your help we were able to accomodate over 900 participants. From the inception of the Halloween Safari Committee in August, which organized and advertised the event, to the last hay bail packed up, over 450 volunteer hours were logged. We are already looking foward with great excitement to next year.

Speaking of volunteers, Nicholas Lockhart and the entire crew of Boy Scout Troop 1182 came to BRMC recently, providing their valuable time and resources to the improvement of our trail system. Over the course of two weekends, they installed two very well built bridges on the Fern Hollow Trail (see photo below). Hauling four steel beams and several loads of lumber is no small task, not to mention assembling all of this into useful structures. On behalf of BRMC, I'd like to thank Nicholas and all who contributed to providing this wonderful gift. Thank you.

Another volunteer I’d like to thank is Joe Gardner. Joe continues to be there for us throughout the year, helping in a myriad of capacities. From removing fallen trees after wind storms, hauling gear up the mountain, working every night of the Halloween Safari, and just good old fashioned grunt work, Joe is always there. Thanks, Joe.

I'd also like to thank our new visitors who have made the commitment to support BRMC by becoming members. We appreciate your support and enjoy seeing you on the trails. As a caretaker, nothing is more rewarding than to see people hiking the trails and enjoying nature, on this minioasis we know as Bull Run Mountains Conservancy.

One of the two new bridges on Fern Hollow Trail