The Crew on the New!

What a great expedition along the Upper New River! 10 kids joined BRDC guides Lisa, Joe and Aaron for a 4 day, 3-night adventure on the New River.

Loading their gear for the trip at the "forks" in North Carolina, the Crew pushed off the banks of the New and traveled downstream for four days covering roughly 20+ river miles ending at the Independence Boat Launch. The weather, the water, the camping, the food and the camaraderie were great. Couldn't have asked for a better crew of kids.

Kayaking was not all they did though. They snorkeled for hellbenders and treasures hidden on the bottom (a trip long companion accompanied us, rightly named "potty" - was a hefty stainless steel pot that they adopted as the trip mascot); they fly fished for the spunky smallmouth bass, and they swam and jumped and floated through plunges and pools. Their skills were tested and all persevered the challenges of the New.

A special thanks to all the people who made this such a great experience and helped create memories that will last a lifetime: Keith Andrews, Lisa Benish, and Jim and Andrea Bradshaw for the use of their kayaks, Paddleyax Kayaks for a generous donation of a tandem Vibe kayak, and several property owners that allowed us safe respite from the waters each night.

Galax Elementary Winter Enrichment Week

Galax Intercession Week:  Guides and program directors from BRDC committed the entire week of February 9th through the 13th to a variety of programs designed to fit both the remedial and enrichment categories built into intercession week requirements.  

After nearly a month of planning, BRDC along with other community organizations, teachers and the Galax City Public Schools’ administration office, came together to offer elementary and middle school students a wide array of educational options and opportunities.  BRDC’s role focused on four programs:  National Fishing in Schools, led by Aaron Floyd and Lisa Benish with assistance from Roald Kirby and Mike Floyd; Reading the Blue Ridge, led by Sarah Osborne and Brenda Bonk with assistance from Scott Jackson-Ricketts and teacher’s aid, Theresa Mawyer; Microscope Fun, co-led by Evan Worrell, Scott, Brenda and with assistance from Lauren Peery, William Roberts and Roald; and Blue Ridge Expeditions trip to Grandfather Mountain, led by William and Joyce Roberts.  All of BRDC’s programs were held in the elementary school.

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Field trip to Grandfather: On Tuesday, William and Joyce Roberts chaperoned a bus-load of middle school students on a BRDC sponsored field trip to Grandfather Mountain.  In spite of the wind and bone chilling cold, the trip was a success, and we are grateful to the staff at Grandfather and William and Joyce for pulling this off.  

National Fishing in the Schools Program: Aaron Floyd and Lisa Benish led five days of fly fishing lessons. The kids learned about equipment, casting technique, journaling, fly tying and fish species. A full description of this program is located here: Blog text for NFSP in Galax

Reading the Blue Ridge: Sarah Osborne explored the Blue Ridge through literature, reading with a group of kids about a wide variety of subjects .

Microscope Fun: Aside from the art component already discussed, each day had its own theme. We started out with leaf litter and soil critters, digging out specimens to be observed through the scopes.  After a break and further instructions on microscope use, the kids got to view stream macro-invertebrates netted from a tank provided by BRDC.  

Day two began with a discussion on trees:  leaves, twigs, and nuts, while describing the variety of ecosystems different trees help create, including animal associations such as food and shelter. BRDC shared boxes of leaves, seeds and twigs for the kids to examine and use for sketching models.  

Wednesday was devoted to birds and bird parts.  Along with feathers, feet, and skulls we offered several very different bird nests and talked about the materials birds use to build their amazing nests.  Feathers were views through the microscopes, and clay was used to model skulls and other bird bones.  William read a book, Roald played the role of an old mountain man whom William interviewed on avian facts, and for the last hour, owl pellets were brought out for the kids to dissect.  

On Thursday, we reviewed the week, worked on our art and prepared for the field trip to CCSA on Friday.  The kids were asked to pick artifacts through touch only, like a grab bag, and then sketched what they had in hand.   

Emphasis for both our reading and microscope programs revolved around the combination of hands on activities and art.  Only Wednesday proved warm enough for area based field trips, but both the fishing and reading programs were able to get their classes outdoors…barely and bravely.  BRDC partnered with Chestnut Creek School of the Arts for two Friday field  trips based on the art work we had the kids make.  CCSA rolled out the red carpet for our little guests (K-1), with a full tour of the facilities populated by some of the older kids who participated in intercession week at the various classrooms and workshops provided by CCSA.  

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BRDC wishes to thank the following for their commitment to making this week a success:

Brenda Bonk, Lisa Benish, William and Joyce Roberts, Lauren Peery, Roald Kirby, the school staff, and central office personnel.  

Galax Elementary Enrichment: Fly Fishing

During the week of February 9th, BRDC participated in the Galax Elementary Enrichment Week. This was a fantastic offering by the Galax Public School System where students got to take in-depth courses on particular subjects. One of the programs we offered was all about fly fishing. 32 enthusiastic second and fourth graders signed up for our five day, 15-hour fly fishing course.

We began the program by introducing them to the concept of journalling and diagramming while handing out their personal journals for the week. They split into groups to research the Blue Ridge Mountains and the essence of fly fishing in a Self Organized Learning Environment (S.O.L.E). After they finished their collaborative poster boards they presented their findings to the rest of the class. The students proved to be very resourceful in their research but shy in their presentations. Although some of the students knew each other, most had never met being that they were from different grades. By the end of the day a sense of camaraderie had developed with the students and new friendships were forming.

The second day of the course was dedicated to teaching them all about the equipment and techniques of fly fishing in preparation for a field trip to the creek the next day. The students braved the cold February wind as we taught them a basic fly cast through the National Fishing in the Schools method. They learned how to put their rods together, string them up, and execute the "11 steps to a basic fly cast".  At the end of the day, we finished in a circle, telling rounds of completely honest fish stories!

Wednesday was the only day of the week forecasted for sunshine, so we dedicated that day to the outdoors and went fishing! We were blessed with a wind-free, sunny and 50 degree day in early February! The kids had come prepared for arctic weather but where shedding layers as soon as they stepped off the bus at Dannely Park. They spent the day swapping waders and casting flies into Chestnut Creek with a Tenkara fly rod. The ones who weren't fly fishing were picking through aquatic insects and identifying them under the microscope. Although no fish were caught (we used hookless flies) Volunteer, Lisa Benish was able to spot two sizable rainbow trout in the cold clear water. Of all of the great activities we did this week the one that I reflect on most fondly was watching the kids cast on the creek. Kids this age are a ball of energy and their focus is often measured in seconds, but when they put the waders on, stepped into the creek and began casting, their attention became singular and they each cast for twenty minutes straight without saying much other than "this is awesome".

On the fourth day the subject was bugs. To start the day the young fly fishermen got some energy out in the gym during an "aquatic macro-invertebrate relay" as part of the NFSP curriculum. They learned about the three most important types of trout food: Mayflies, Stoneflies and Caddisflies. The rest of the class was dedicated to patiently tying imitative flies with equipment generously loaned from Ernie Barker of Trout Unlimited. We set up vises and hooks for each student and they used feathers, chenille and thread to tie a "Wolly Bugger" and a "Griffith's Gnat".  This was a major challenge for this age group, but they stepped up and each student completed their flies for take home at the end of the course.

Our final day together was dedicated to competition! We took over the gymnasium and put the fly rods together. In pairs, the students learned to cast with "rod" hand and "line" hand. As their skills increased they casted for "Real Fake Fish" while learning about different sport fish species. We concluded with a casting competition where the students competed in pairs to hit the bull's eye target on ten sequential casts. At the end of the day the kids went home with their journals, chock-full of of the things they learned during the week.

I am amazed at how much these kids soaked up in five days and I hope that it made an impression on them for a lifetime.

Many thanks to Lisa Benish for her dedicated efforts for the program. Her enthusiasm for the sport of fly fishing is surpassed by none! Thanks to Ernie Barker! His loan of the fly tying equipment took the program to another level. Also many thanks to "Mr. Rob" and Mrs. Webb for their tireless efforts to make sure each kid got the most out of the program. A special thanks to Mike Floyd and Roald Kirby for assisting at the creek.

National Fishing in the Schools Program

Blue Ridge Discovery Center President and Guide, Aaron Floyd, has been tapped by the National Fishing in the Schools Program to train ten United States Fish and Wildlife Service employees how to teach the NFSP "Cast a Fly, Catch a Student" curriculum. Training will take place during the week of July 14th at the National Conservation Training Center in Sherpherdston, WV. Aaron will be stepping in for program founder Katie Cole who has spred this wonderful program throughout the country. This intensive training session will surely help Aaron learn the ropes as we work to implement this program in Southwest Virginia.