Grandfather Mountain being sold

Ok, I know that Grandfather Mountain is not in the Toe River Valley. However, since it is in Avery County, I am going to talk about it. I heard Saturday night, and then read Sunday afternoon, that Grandfather Mountain is being sold by the Morton family to the State of North Carolina. You can read the article in the Charlotte Observer here.

I talked to a couple of people this morning who have ties with the Mountain. Their emotions were mixed. One actually thought the selling to the state was wrong, that the Mountain would be poorly managed by the state who poorly manages other properties.

The property, some 3,000 acres, is being sold for a mere 12 million dollars. The idea is to set up a non-profit, headed by the Mortons, to manage the funds.

It is interesting to look at all of the attempted transactions involving Grandfather Mountain ever since it was owned by Capt. Walter W. Lenoir. On several different occasions, there were attempts (is that the right word) by the state and the Federal government to acquire the property as a part of the national park service. While the wrangling over Grandfather Mountain was occurring, the Smokey Mountains were acquired

For so many folks who live in Avery County, Grandfather Mountain was their first job. So many folks have ties to the Mountain, and so much income, with Singing on the Mountain and the Highland Games, is generated for the county, how do you feel and what are you concerns? Feel free to leave a post or drop me a line.

Today, after church (and after finding gas), we drove up past Grandfather to get on the Parkway. It was a beautiful day and I took this photograph.