©2012 www.nelsoncountylife.com : Photos BY NCL Mountain Photographer Paul Purpura : Paul captured this beautiful image after a freezing drizzle/fog event at Wintergreen on Sunday morning February 5th 2012.

Wintergreen Resort
Nelson County, Virginia
Those of us living here in Nelson County know what a beautiful place it is. But mother nature left a very unexpected treat Sunday morning when these unique ice crystals formed on some of the plants up in the mountains near Wintergreen Resort and the Blue Ridge Parkway. NCL Mountain Photographer Paul Purpura grabbed some truly wonderful shots of this winter palette.

Though only rain fell in the lower elevations of Nelson, temps hovered in the 20's for much of the day in the mountains.

Paul mentioned one of the unusual things about the patterns, the crystals all going in the same direction.

No real travel problems were encountered from the icing, though Paul did say some of the sidewalks and parking lots got a little slick.

Light winds blowing in one direction may have caused the ice formations to all go in one directions.

Sunny skies return on Monday!

©2011 www.nelsoncountylife.com : Photo By Yvette Stafford : Traveling 664 after crossing Reeds Gap, smoke from forest fires could be seen Sunday morning off in the distance on the northern horizon.

Blue Ridge Parkway
Nelson/Augusta County, VA
Many people east of the Blue Ridge Parkway in places like Afton reported seeing thick hazy smoke and a smoky smell Sunday morning. The cause of that was several fires on the west side of the BRP back in Augusta County. Crews from Rockfish Valley Volunteer FD and Wintergreen FD assisted in battling the blazes Sunday. As of roughly 10:45 AM Sunday a fire nearest to Nelson on the west side had been contained, but another fire was reported points west back into Augusta.

Wintergreen Fire & Rescue crews prepare to recover the body of a climber who has fallen to his death at the Ravens Roost Overlook. (©2011 NelsonCountyLife.com)

Wintergreen Fire and Rescue crews are preparing to repel 150 ft. down the Ravens Roost Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway after a 20-year-old climber from Alabama fell to his death. The cause of the fall is believed to have been equipment failure.

To view Charlottesville’s Newsplex story on the Raven’s Roost accident click here.

Photo Courtesy of CBS-19 Meteorologist, Travis Koshko : Snow covers the Blue Ridge Parkway near the Afton Overlook this past Sunday afternoon. 1.30.11

Blue Ridge Parkway
Nelson County, Virginia
It’s nothing like last year’s snow cover. Remember that? But it’s still a beautiful scene up there right now. Plenty of snow fell along the BRP last week. CBS-19, Meteorologist, Travis Koshko, took a few snapshots up there while on a Sunday hike. He said we could grab a couple. Thanks Travis!

Photo Courtesy of CBS-19 Meteorologist, Travis Koshko : Snow still covers the Blue Ridge Parkway at the Afton Overlook this past Sunday afternoon 1.30.11.

You can always get the latest conditions along the BRP in Virginia by clicking here for the BRP Hotline.

Nelson County, VA
There’s plenty of fall left, but a recent killing frost, high winds, and rain have the leaves flying off of the trees fast! Ann Strober grabbed these shots of fall here in Nelson just north of Nellysford. Lots of leaves remain in the valley, but along the BRP, they are going fast. We’re in the final days of any brilliant viewing in the highest of elevations. Enjoy while you can!

Leaves cover the ground near Nellysford, Virginia.

Storms clouds clear over a fall landscape near Nellysford, Virginia.

Photo By Tommy Stafford : ©2010 www.nelsoncountylife.com : Wintergreen Rescue crews help ready one of the victims Monday night to be airlifted from Reeds Gap. Click to enlarge any photo.

Blue Ridge Parkway
Nelson County, Virginia
Update 8:30 PM EDT
The search continues late this evening for a 50-60 year old white male with gray thinning hair. Police think suspect possibly driving a red Ford Taurus armed with a shotgun is their man. They say he shot an 18 year old female and her 27 year old friend along the Blue Ridge Parkway around sunset Monday evening. The female was able to hitch a ride to the north end of the parkway with a passing motorist to get help and medical attention. The male had to be rescued from roughly 150-200 feet below Rock Point Overlook in a rescue that took about 90 minutes. He was later airlifted from Reeds Gap to UVa.

The Augusta County Sheriff said Tuesday he believes the incident to be random, not domestic in nature.

Several federal, state and local law enforcement agencies are now involved in the investigation.

Previous story
As NCL first broke Monday evening, lawmen and rescue crews spent most of the nighttime hours along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Nelson and Augusta Counties. Sometime around dark a white male with grayish thinning hair 50-60 years old shot two people on the BRP near Rock Point Overlook. Police say a shotgun may have been used and the suspect may still be in possession of the gun. As of this update, confusion still exists over the exact details of what unfolded. Earlier reports put out by law enforcement and news agencies that 3 people were shot, appear to be from conflicting information on locating all of the victims in the initial hours of the investigation.

An Augusta County Deputy talks with a Nelson Officer at the intersection of Route 664 and the BRP at Reeds Gap Monday night.

As of Tuesday morning, lawmen continued their search for the white male with gray hair possibly driving a red Ford Taurus. “There were some reports that the car was located possibly in Bedford or Botetourt County Monday night, but as of midnight, we still don’t know that to be the case,” said Nelson County Sheriff David Brooks. Brooks says a total of three people were injured in the incident, but it appears as of this story only two were shot. A female 18 years old. A male approximately 27 to 28 years of age.

The male victim was rescued from roughly 200 feet below Rock Point Overlook and later airlifted. “Wintergreen Rescue and Waynesboro’s First Aid Crews carried the male about 1/2 mile by putting him in a stokes basket and carrying him out,” said Curtis Sheets, Chief of Wintergreen Fire & Rescue. Chief Sheets said it took almost 1.5 hrs to carry the injured man out. How he ended up over the cliff is not known at this time. A state trooper was injured as routine part of working the scene but was not assaulted or injured by the suspect.

The 18 year old female that was injured is reported to have been picked up near The Afton Inn on the north end of the parkway and transported to a hospital.

There continues to be great confusion as to exactly what happened, and whether the victim and the shooter know each other. Some authorities on the scene believe it may have been domestic violence, others random.

Virginia State Police had helicopters hovering over the parkway much of Monday night looking for the suspect, but as of midnight had not located him.

Wintergreen's Rescue Ambulance rushes to the landing zone set up at Reeds Gap to transport one of the victims.

We will continue to follow this and update as we have information.

More coverage here from CBS-19 in Charlottesville.

More coverage here from NBC-29 in Charlottesville.

More coverage here from ABC-13 in Lynchburg.

General area of shooting along BRP and search area Monday night. Click to enlarge.

Humpback Rocks
Blue Ridge Parkway
Nelson County, Virginia

10:37PM – Sheriff Brooks tells us the victim transported to UVA Medical Center in critical condition is a female. The gunman appears to be her ex-boyfriend. A male (victim #2) has been rescued from the side of the mountain and is on his way to the hospital. The gunman’s car may have possibly been located about 5 miles past Rt. 43 in Bedford or Botetourt County. More as we know it … –Y

9:35 PM – Sheriff Brooks now telling me he can confirm 2 victims on BRP gunman incident.

9:23 PM EDT – Choppers landing at Reeds Gap to coordinate search for BRP gunman.

9:08 PM EDT – Sheriff Brooks tells us his Captain on the scene can only confirm one person shot at this moment. Trying to confirm if original report of 3 shot is accurate.

8:55 PM EDT
Nelson County Sheriff David Brooks has confirmed to NCL at this hour that 3 people have been shot on the Blue Ridge Parkway. 2 victims were shot at the Humpback Rocks overlook, another was shot at Rock Point Overlook.

As of this post, Sheriff Brook says no one is reported dead, but the gunman is still at large.

The only description police have right now is the gunman may have been driving a red Ford Tarus. He is reported as a white male with gray hair.

More details shortly

-A FLOOD WATCH is in Effect for Nelson County late tonight into Wednesday morning.

-A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for the mountainous portions of Western Nelson County Tuesday night until 7 AM Wednesday morning.

Scroll for specific details on each weather event.

FLOOD WATCH
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON DC
106 PM EST TUE DEC 8 2009

FLOOD WATCH NOW IN EFFECT FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY
MORNING…

THE FLOOD WATCH IS NOW IN EFFECT FOR

PORTIONS OF MARYLAND…THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND VIRGINIA…
INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING AREAS…IN MARYLAND…ANNE ARUNDEL…
CALVERT…CARROLL…CHARLES…FREDERICK MD…HARFORD…
HOWARD…MONTGOMERY…NORTHERN BALTIMORE…PRINCE GEORGES…
SOUTHERN BALTIMORE AND ST. MARYS. THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. IN
VIRGINIA…ALBEMARLE…ARLINGTON/FALLS CHURCH/ALEXANDRIA…
CULPEPER…FAIRFAX…FAUQUIER…GREENE…KING GEORGE…
LOUDOUN…MADISON…NELSON…ORANGE…PRINCE
WILLIAM/MANASSAS/MANASSAS PARK…RAPPAHANNOCK…SPOTSYLVANIA AND
STAFFORD.

* A STRONG LOW PRESSURE WILL AFFECT THE AREA TONIGHT. ALTHOUGH
PRECIPITATION MAY BEGIN AS A WINTRY MIX THIS EVENING…WARMER
TEMPERATURES ALOFT WILL CHANGE THE PRECIPITATION TO RAIN
TONIGHT…WITH AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF MODERATE TO HEAVY RAIN
EXPECTED. WIDESPREAD RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES ARE
ANTICIPATED…WITH SOME TOTALS OF UP TO 3 INCHES POSSIBLE…
PARTICULARLY EAST OF INTERSTATE 95 THE RAIN WILL FURTHER MELT
THE EXISTING SNOW ON THE GROUND IN SOME AREAS… ADDING TO THE
RUNOFF. RAINFALL OF THIS AMOUNT WILL BE CAPABLE OF CAUSING
FLOODING OF URBAN AREAS…SMALL STREAMS…AND OTHER POOR
DRAINAGE AND LYING AREAS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A FLOOD WATCH MEANS THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR FLOODING BASED ON
CURRENT FORECASTS.

YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE ALERT FOR POSSIBLE
FLOOD WARNINGS. THOSE LIVING IN AREAS PRONE TO FLOODING SHOULD BE
PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION SHOULD FLOODING DEVELOP.

* * * * * * * * *
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY

URGENT – WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON DC
933 PM EST TUE DEC 8 2009

MDZ003-VAZ028-036-WVZ051-052-091045-
/O.CON.KLWX.WW.Y.0027.000000T0000Z-091209T1200Z/
WASHINGTON-FREDERICK VA-NELSON-MORGAN-BERKELEY-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF…HAGERSTOWN…WINCHESTER…MARTINSBURG
933 PM EST TUE DEC 8 2009

…WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 AM EST
WEDNESDAY…

SNOW AND SLEET WILL MOVE FROM SOUTH TO NORTH ACROSS PORTIONS OF
WESTERN MARYLAND…THE EASTERN WEST VIRGINIA PANHANDLE AND FREDERICK
COUNTY VIRGINIA THROUGH MIDNIGHT. SNOW AND SLEET ACCUMULATIONS OF
1 TO 2 INCHES CAN BE EXPECTED.

PRECIPITATION WILL CHANGEOVER TO SLEET AND FREEZING RAIN AFTER
MIDNIGHT…THEN SWITCH TO PLAIN RAIN BY SUNRISE. UP TO A TENTH OF
AN INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION FROM FREEZING RAIN MAY RESULT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY MEANS THAT PERIODS OF SNOW…SLEET AND
FREEZING RAIN WILL CAUSE TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR
SLIPPERY ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES…AND USE CAUTION WHILE
DRIVING.

Photo By Ann Strober : ©2009 www.nelsoncountylife.com : Viewing a late summer's sunset from the Blue Ridge Parkway in Nelson County, Virginia. : Click photo to enlarge.

Nelson County, Virginia
First, thanks to Ann Strober for the photo from the BRP of this fantastic sunset. The person in this photo had a great view of one of the final sunsets of Summer 2009. This is the final week folks. Fall officially starts one week from today. After a warm and mostly sunny day Tuesday, look for increasing clouds overnight with the chance for showers after midnight. Cooler temps are on the way for the remainder of the week and rainy skies will be the norm right through the first half of the weekend.

Listen to the weather for Nelson County and Wintergreen by heading on over to Tommy’s Audio Weather by clicking here, or simply hitting play from the homepage of www.nelsoncountylife.com just below the banner pic! Easy!

Event Date: Sunday 30th of August 2009 02:00 PM

Location/Address: Milepost 5.8, Blue Ridge Parkway

Contact Telephone Please call (540)943-4716 for more information

This post was submitted by Jackie Heath.

Event Date: Sunday 23rd of August 2009 02:00 PM

Location/Address: Milepost 5.8, Blue Ridge Parkway

Contact Telephone Please call (540)943-4716 for more information

This post was submitted by Jackie Heath.

Event Date: Sunday 2nd of August 2009 02:00 PM

Location/Address: Milepost 5.8, Blue Ridge Parkway

Contact Telephone Please call (540)943-4716 for more information

This post was submitted by Jackie Heath.

Event Date: Sunday 9th of August 2009 02:00 PM

Location/Address: Humpback Rocks Mountain Farm, Blue Ridge Parkway, Milepost 5.8

Contact Telephone Please call (540)943-4716 for more information

This post was submitted by Jackie Heath.

Event Date: Sunday 16th of August 2009 02:00 PM

Location/Address: Milepost 5.8, Blue Ridge Parkway

Contact Telephone Please call (540)943-4716 for more information

This post was submitted by Jackie Heath.

Click image for larger view.

Asheville, NC
Blue Ridge Parkway 75, Inc., the organization tasked with planning and producing the various projects related to the Parkway’s 75th Anniversary in 2010, has launched the official 75th Anniversary Web site – blueridgeparkway75.org. The Blue Ridge Parkway’s vision for the Anniversary is to engage local communities and the nation in efforts to sustain a healthy Parkway for future generations by celebrating 75 years of history, Appalachian culture, and spectacular scenic views. NewCity, a Blacksburg-based Web design firm, worked closely with staff and a team of Board members to identify the elements that would most effectively capture the Parkway’s brand. The end result is a site that successfully merges this shared vision with 21st century technology by offering easy-to-use navigation alongside a visually rich design that highlights scenic and historic Parkway photography, regional information, and current Parkway issues. The site’s top-tier pages – More Than a Road, Get Involved, and Events – align closely with the mission and goals of the Anniversary.

“We’re excited about unveiling the new Web site,” said Dan Brown, president of Blue Ridge Parkway 75, Inc. “We see this site as a strategic communication tool that can help promote the Blue Ridge Parkway region, spotlight the unique communities along its corridor, and provide visitors with ‘calls to action’ to address the health and well-being of the Parkway now and for the next 75 years.” One of the most prominent features of the new site is the ability to explore Parkway communities in a dynamic Google Maps platform. The feature presents the first-of-its-kind comprehensive approach to the Parkway and the region through which it passes. Users can also explore events during the Anniversary year in 2010, learn about challenging issues facing the Parkway, and identify ways they can support or be involved.
In addition, the Web site provides links to popular social media – Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr – where the Parkway’s 75th Anniversary has a strong and growing presence. Visitors to the site can subscribe to the 75th Anniversary’s e-Newsletter, donate funds for the project, visit a variety of Parkway partner organizations, and shop for commemorative 75th Anniversary merchandise.

The Parkway and its neighboring communities are inherently tied together by common boundaries, economics, and shared history as evidenced by the 16 million annual visitors and $2.3 billion economic impact in North Carolina and Virginia. Partnerships with adjacent communities are essential for long-term success and are an integral feature of the new Web site. “The symbiotic relationship between the Parkway and gateway communities is strong and will become stronger through the 75th Anniversary. Many people see local communities as a gateway to the Parkway,” Parkway Superintendent Phil Francis stated. “We often think of the Parkway as a gateway to unique local communities and authentic experiences.”