in the beginning.....

Under enormous pressure they burst upon the scene in a succession of earth shattering rumbles. Climbing higher than any known surface under the ancient firmament, they towered above the horizon of the prehistoric world in a dramatic precession. Born of greatness and driven by internal forces, these wonders of His creation accumulated into a land mass higher than the mountains of the Himalayas.

As millenniums passed, turmoil shook the four corners of the earth, immense heat and molten rock poured from the bowels of the earth flowing forth and spreading outward with great upheavals of land mass as the continents collided and tore apart. As the Great Sculptor shaped His clay and cast His molten ore, He cooled his creation under torrential rains, forming a land base that would sustain life and be protected from the sun under a firmament shield that would last through the ages until the time of the great flood.

As a living force and presence they establish themselves as a cornerstone of the earth, shaping the destiny of the antediluvian world of the "blue planet." In time they would be decreed as the first vertical "Gods of the Earth". A playground paradise of natural wonders and mysterious life forms.

There were giants in the earth in those days......And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose........GENESIS:6

The sons of God were star rovers in those times, seeking self expression wherever they traveled.   Finding their way across the universe, they came upon a blue mountain paradise surrounded by the deep blue waters of the blue planet. It was there that many of these time travelers decide to remain and enjoy the bounty of the Great Sculptor's creation. The mountains towered high, reaching into the heavens. Upon these mountain peaks, the sons of God built their opulent palaces establishing themselves in "heaven on earth." There they lived in splendor.  Palaces were formed out of solid ice and stone with columns of polished blue marble throughout their great halls, the interiors were adorned in all manners of precious stones and treasures of gold.

Occasionally the sons of God, yearning for the sweet nectar of life, would descend from the steep mountain slopes into the wonders of a new world. Here they enjoyed unbounded beauty and mysteries in a world unlike any other and in their elation they began to influence the life they saw emerging around them, becoming themselves...."the guardians of the garden."  Life was good and all was pleasing in their sight. 

Out of their hearts and driven by a need for self expression, they began to inspire and guide the unique life forms that were emerging in a world that they could never possess. The sons of God could not dwell long in the gardens mist, for they had their places in heaven, and due to their greatness, their garden time was limited.  If they stayed too long in the garden, their lives would be imperiled and their powers depleted.  Many of the sons of God became addicted to the wonders and pleasures of the blue planet paradise and soon perished without a trace, or became consumed by madness seeking chaos over tranquility.

It was the obedient sons of God who followed the Great Sculptor's instructions, knowing that through time, patience, wisdom and understanding, that their descendants would one day be delivered through vehicles of flesh that would allow escape from their isolated palaces and into the abundant life of the garden.

Mountain legends tells us, that long before the Blue Ridge Mountains were embraced by the eyes of men, these vertical giants were ruled by the unknown Gods of the high ground. Each mountainous region had a guiding spirit all its own, often developing characteristics independent from its high range neighbor.

When the Native Americans first came in contact with these mountains, they still held their strength, wisdom and innocence. Legends passed down through tribal generations, tell tales of encounters with a race of "spirit people."  These spirit people often took on bodies of flesh to guide, protect and teach the individuals of the outer world, those referred to as the "red race." These spirit people were believed to be direct descendants of the original guardians of the mountains who instructed their successors in the concerns for respect, yield and being at one with nature. For the land is life, and life without harmony would destroy the natural order necessary for survival, for in the garden all things are provided.

Desiring to live closer to mankind, these descendants of the "sons" of the Great Spirit abandoned their Father's high places, seeking residence deep in the forest, in hidden coves and in underground chambers where they built townhouses. Their once opulent ice palaces disintegrate thru the ages and their precious treasures were washed down from the high places and became imprisoned in stone, soil and creek beds along the mountain slopes and valleys. These "spirits of the mountains" warned the red children of the forests to beware and respectful of these treasures for they possess great power.  Selected gems and stones, aided by mixtures of roots and herbs held the power to heal in the hands of a "chosen one,"  yet, beware of the elements of gold, they warned, for they contained captured particles of the sun and will seduce the mind with a false power, creating a fever of greed and destruction.

Since the coming of the white eyed Europeans, these overseeing "spirits of the mountains," have all but disappeared into the abyss of the deep forest. They were "Gods of old" who formed and shaped the great mountains, carved its turbulent rivers, planted and guided the beauty of its forest, all the while providing and sheltering the various animals and human life that dared to grace its wonders. Feeling unrecognized and unappreciated by the ways of the "new world," most of these "sons of the Great Spirit" have went on to integrate themselves into the four elements of nature...earth, wind, fire and rain.

The new rulers of the mountains are setting a new destiny for the blue paradise, an unsure one at best.

the blue wall...

These megaliths of earth and stone are referred to as the Blue Ridge Mountains of the Appalachia. The name "Blue Ridge" was appointed to them by early American pioneers due to the blue hue they reflected against the horizon, it was later discovered the blue coloring was caused by a chemical compound released naturally by pine trees that causes a hazy condition that makes the Blue Ridge Mountains appear blue from a distance. The Blue Ridge Mountains of the ancient world were the granddaddy of all mountains, making today’s great Rocky Mountains and Himalayas seem small by comparison.

The Blue Ridge Mountains began taking form as base rock between 1 billion to 500 million years ago. Approximately 450 to 200 million years ago, ancient marine sediments of sand and silt began metamorphosing into the rock-hard backbone of the mountains. The shifting of the continental plates forced molten rock from deep within the interior of the earth to the surface, contorting, folding, giving shape and form to their ever increasing stature. Remnants of these ancient mountains can be found in the flora of its rich soil, in the great heights of its old forest growths, in its worn mountain peaks, as well as the depth of its river gorges and the giant sandstone boulders called “gray backs,” that inch their way year after year down steep mountain slopes.

These mountains have been estimated to have been between 5 to 10 miles in height, before they began slowly disintegrating by erosion, washing their precious soil downhill over tens of millions of years. This constant erosion washed so much soil downhill that the original giants of yesteryear found themselves extending into the lowlands of eastern North America for hundreds of miles, pushing the great ocean back to form the land mass of the Southeastern United States.

The Blue Ridge Mountains eventually settled back into a state of a tranquil paradise and began to bring forth from its rich soil, a forest of flowering trees and plants, still present today. The dense forest of the highlands have provided a natural haven with the life sustaining substance for a diverse array of bears, cougars, wolves, bison, deer, elk, owls, hawks, eagles, wild turkeys and other small critters to numerous to mention. The Blue Ridge mountains have attracted a variety of birds species that have migrated far south beyond their northern limits, drawn to the cool climate of the high altitude. The mountains of the Blue Ridge also have an abundance of precious minerals such as gold, rubies, sapphires, mica, corundum, coal, iron, copper and crystals of various types.  Unfortunately old mining operations have taken a great toll on the erosion of the soil base. Man's intrusion in "the garden" has greatly threaten the natural order of life in the Blue Ridge Mountains, leaving scars on a land that is vulnerable as well as pristine.

The Blue Ridge Mountains are the roof tops of southeastern North America, and the delicate watershed of the Eastern Continental Divide. For as long as these majestic mountains have existed, they have held sacred, the mysteries of an ecosystem that is essential for the survival of all the living matter in southeastern North America. The hardwood forest of the Blue Ridge produces oxygen to fill the lungs of the earth's atmosphere while its western watersheds form an enormous system of waterways. These waterways reach as far north as the Ohio River before journeying to the southern tip of Illinois, merging with the great Mississippi River as it flows south into the Gulf of Mexico.

The watersheds of the Eastern Continental Divide are essential for mountain and low land survival.  The eastern watersheds of the Blue Ridge divide form rivers that flow eastward and south and into the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.  The soil, rocks and minerals of these mountains provide a natural system that purifies the waters of the yearly run-off of rain. The waterpower of this life giving force is also slowly tearing away at these mountains with each rainfall, forcing soil and stone into streams and rivers that have been cutting ever deeper into the gorges and valleys of the highlands since the beginning of time.

It is essential that the forested hardwood of these mountains be maintained in order to slow down this natural process of erosion, a serious responsibility and duty that's been bestowed to the embodiment of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U. S. Forestry Service. These sanctified guardians of the forest are the only line of defense between natural order and chaos. They are saddled with the responsibility and difficult task of maintaining and preserving this precious ecosystem for present and future generation. When Smokey the Bear says, "You too can prevent forest fires," he's not just speaking for fear of lost life and lumber, but out of concern for the precious soil that could be lost, the very fiber that gives life to the forest. The trees and foliage in these mountains grow in abundance, the thin layer of soil that roots their life, depends upon the plant life to restore the soil each year. Private owned mountain lands also require proper, conscientious care and respect for these ecosystems in order to maintain the delicate balance of this natural wonder due to mankind’s intrusions.

The conflict still exist today as it has in the past.  Two powers are at work here, those of wisdom who pursue the natural laws of creative preservation and those driven by their chaotic pursuit, compelled to exploit a beauty they were never meant to possess. The continual development of mountain lands is causing the mountain way of life to slowly disappear, highways and telecommunication has brought the once remote regions of the Blue Ridge into direct access with the outer world.  It's what we do now that determines the future of this mountain paradise.

The spirit of the "Gods of the old" summon us unto these high grounds, to partake in the beauty and mysteries created throughout the ages. The uniqueness of this vertical paradise protects and preserves its own innocence and solitude as a mountain escape for generations to come.  Since the beginning of time, man and woman kind, have sought a greater understanding of the world in which we live.  We often seek spiritual understanding to life's purpose, whether it be a quiet visit to a secluded waterfall or a long pilgrimage to a mountain top pursuing a closer relationship to the heavens. We are drawn back, time and time again to these mountain tops, not for their age old beauty alone, we are drawn to the utopian experience we encounter when we gaze across the mountainscape and contemplate the awe and grand scheme of life.  Only through the hand of a loving creator can you experience the elation of a "one mind, one heart, one mountain wonder".

These "Gods of old" have left behind a unique wonderland. A place of beauty and mystery, an adventure in discovery. A paradise of wonder so captivating and awe inspiring that it captures the imagination and refuses to let go. An experience unparalleled to any other throughout the world.

Time and erosion have gifted us with a treasure of natural wonders and beauty, a playground of sorts for children of all ages. From the rugged back country to where the whitewater runs, there is excitement and adventure for the young at heart. Yet it is the subtle beauty and the simplistic ways of mountain life that draw most visitors to the Blue Ridge, journeying to the high reaches just to take in the gentle persuasive view of a mountain sunset.

The Blue Ridge Highlander invites you to join us as we venture into the lands of the Blue Ridge Mountains, journey with us via the Highlander's virtual tours to National Forests, State Parks and other points of interest and mysteries. Come play with us within the ancient natural wonders we call “the Play Ground of the Gods.”

C.W. Pendragon ...

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