Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - 63

Once you notice them, you see how special they are."
In the fall, Galton offers half-day and
full-day guided tours ranging from Foxfire Night Walks, which allow guests to
see glow-in-the-dark mushrooms and
experience the forest under the light of
the moon, to customized Creek Adventures leading to hidden waterfalls and secret swimming holes. (The Ghost Firefly
tours are by far the most popular in summer.) Hikers, from 7-year-olds to senior
citizens, typically trek two to five miles
to different sites depending on fitness
level.
After all these years, Galton still feels
most at home outdoors, hiking alone or
with his family, running trails, gardening,
photographing unusual plants, and foraging for mushrooms. Because he so seldom
crosses paths with a snake on his regular
tours, he sometimes takes summer camp
groups to spots where he knows they'll
find a few orange-banded ringneck snakes.
"I've never met anybody who's really
been afraid of a ringneck snake," he says,
"because they're just so tiny and pretty
and totally harmless."

SARAH ANNE AMASON

ABOVE: Tal Galton's lifelong love of the
outdoors has rendered him the perfect naturefocused tour guide.
LEFT: Copperheads, like the one here, are
rarely encountered in the mountains; Galton
sometimes takes summer camp groups to areas
where they're likely to see totally harmless
ringneck snakes.

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Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019

Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - Intro
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - Cover1
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - Cover2
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - 3
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - 4
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - 5
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Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - Cover3
Blue Ridge Country - September/October 2019 - Cover4
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