2010 marks the 75th Anniversary of the Blue Ridge Parkway, one of the most beautiful areas to drive in the world. This year is filled with numerous events to celebrate this occasion and there are many ways to help preserve this beautiful roadway. Curtis Wright Outfitters offers daily fishing trips off of the Parkway and we are also offering a fly fishing destination trip for those who want to experience the great fishing diversity that Asheville and Western North Carolina has to offer.
The Blue Ridge Parkway is the longest road planned as a single unit in the United States. It is an elongated park, protecting significant mountain landscapes and providing access to high mountain passes, splendid natural “gardens” of flowering mountain plants, waterfalls and water gaps, deep forests and upland meadows. It is a continuous series of panoramic views. Because of all this natural beauty, the Blue Ridge Parkway is the most heavily visited unit of the National Park Service.
Construction of the Skyline Drive through Shenandoah National Park was the chief inspiration for the Blue Ridge Parkway. When President Franklin Roosevelt visited the project in 1933, Virginia Senator Harry Flood Byrd recommended the roadway be extended southwest to the new Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Roosevelt approved the proposal, and the governors of Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee appointed a planning team to bring the project to fruition.
On September 11, 1935, construction of the first 12.5-mile section began near Cumberland Knob in North Carolina. Work in Virginia began the following February. The Parkway was not constructed as one continuous project, but instead was divided into 45 separate construction units. This approach was necessary due to delays in acquiring land and the time surrounding World War II, but Parkway contractors were also able to hire more people to work at the same time.
By 1966, the Parkway was more than 95% complete, but it took another 20 years to complete the last 7.7-mile section at Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina. In the 1970s the Park Service finally determined a route that would cause minimal damage to Grandfather Mountain’s rugged terrain. A key feature of this route was the revolutionary Linn Cove Viaduct, which was completed in 1987and opened the entire route of the Parkway to the public – all 469 miles, from Shenandoah National Park to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Join host Richard Witt this spring for a once in a lifetime fly fishing adventure in the beautiful Southern Appalachian Mountains of Western North Carolina.
There is no need to travel west of the Mississippi for a quality fly fishing experience. With thousands of miles of trout streams within an hour radius and year-round fly fishing, the Asheville, North Carolina area is one of the countries best kept fly fishing secrets!
We are offering a fully-guided five day/six night fly fishing adventure along the Blue Ridge Parkway in the Pisgah National Forest from Monday, April 18th through Sunday, April 24th, 2011. All lodging and meals are included at two fabulous inns featuring the Pisgah Inn and the Sourwood Inn.
All rods, reels, boots, waders, flies and leaders are included as well.
Richard and our guides will take you to high elevation wild brook trout waters and beautiful backcountry streams for feisty rainbows and wily brown trout, and abundant wildlife. We will even offer you the chance to hook a trophy in one of the country’s top 100 trout streams.
With a two-guests-per-guide ratio you will receive patient, personal attention and learn some tricks of the trade from our experienced guides.
If you are interested in this package please call any of our three fly shops, fill out our destination fly fishing form, or email Richard Witt. To contact Richard with questions or to book this trip, please email him at RichardWittCWO@gmail.com, or call him at the Biltmore shop ~ 828.274.3471. Tight Lines!