IT'S EASY TO TELL from my house in Elliston if there's a wreck onInterstate 81. Our yard backs up to U.S. 460, and this typicallycalm, meandering stretch of highway becomes choked with tractor-trailers and the like as they try to skirt the interstate's snarls.
Of course, traffic accidents aren't the only dams divertingmotorists behind our house. In many an unbiased opinion, U.S. 460winds through some of the prettiest scenery this side of Paradise.
Unfortunately, through the windshield is about the only way mostfolks can appreciate it. Flanked by railroad tracks, streams andprivately held lands, the highway provides the only publicthoroughfare.
Except for Saturday, when all are invited to hike through thePedlar Hills Natural Area Preserve - a 522-acre ridgeline that risesup from the south fork of the Roanoke River in Elliston and is hometo lovely views of the valley as well as rare plants, flowers andtrees.
Sponsored by The Village of Elliston civic organization, the hikewill be led by Mike Leahy, regional steward for the state Departmentof Conservation and Recreation, Division of Natural Heritage.
Saturday's offerings will be abundant indeed; hikers will see atleast 20 types of trees, wildflowers in bloom such as larkspur andblazing star, and the rare Addison's leather flower, which is foundin only four counties (Montgomery, Roanoke, Botetourt and Rockbridge)in the world.
But the real promise of the hike, in my opinion, lies in thefuture.
Few trail systems exist in eastern Montgomery County, and nonealong the Elliston-Shawsville corridor of U.S. 460. Outdoor exerciseoptions are just as scarce. You want to take a walk in the woods outhere, you better be friends with a generous landowner.
Access to Pedlar Hills requires special permission, because thestate hasn't yet acquired land to allow visitors to safely cross theRoanoke River and the Norfolk Southern tracks cordoning off thepreserve. A strong showing Saturday may one day help persuade stateofficials to open their pockets to fund permanent access.
"It's definitely on our to-do list," says Leahy. "If folks inElliston and the area get interested, maybe that could help mejustify the land acquisition. It's a little premature for people tobe writing letters and all that, but it will help down the road toget support to purchase the land."
Raising the preserve's profile may also inspire locals to be onthe look-out for available land, Leahy added. He hopes to have adedicated parking lot with permanent access in two years.
While Saturday's hike will nourish our appreciation of theoutdoors, another effort is afoot to enhance our minds.
We may finally be getting a library.
The Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library system has started proposingplans to open a branch, most likely in Shawsville, this fall. Thelocation, still being determined, will be inside an existingbuilding.
This library won't be the gleaming $2.8 million edifice envisionedby library officials and local activists who have been nurturing theproject for years. The county decided to put a new facility on holduntil at least 2008 because of today's poor economic climate.
Thankfully, library officials realized we couldn't wait untilthen. Our area has a higher poverty rate than the rest of MontgomeryCounty. Our schools havemore children on free lunches and score loweron the Standards of Learning tests. Fewer families can afford books,computers, Internet access and other educational materials. A librarythat features all of this can help level the playing field.
Two weeks ago, the Community Foundation of the New River Valleyawarded a $500 grant for the purchase of newspaper and magazinesubscriptions for the library. This is an excellent start, but morewill be needed in the coming months. Presumably, the buildingselected for the library will need substantial renovations, not tomention furniture, computers, books and staffing. In short: money.
In this column, I try to find topics with eastern MontgomeryCounty roots that have appeal to all readers. This one is nodifferent. The success of both the trail system and library willdepend on people throughout the county and New River Valley.
Besides, everyone would benefit from Pedlar Hills, and I'd arguethe same for the library. Education has that effect.
Anyone interested in Saturday's hike should meet at the Ellistonpost office at 9:30 a.m. The two-hour hike begins with a half-mile ofeasy walking followed by two miles of strenuous hiking with about 400feet of elevation change. The rain date is June 21.
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MICHAEL HEMPHILL is a former Roanoke Times reporter who lives inElliston. His column appears biweekly. His e-mail address ishemphills4@yahoo.com.
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