Blue Ridge Country May/June 2021 - 18

COUNTRY ROADS

WILDLIFE

KENTUCKY
Bell County sets out to build a $56 million preserve.

onstruction is slated to begin this spring at Boones
Ridge, a $56 million nature observatory in Bell
County, Kentucky.
The Appalachian Wildlife Foundation is building this
12,000-acre attraction near Pineville at the southeastern
corner of Kentucky.
Part of the building construction stands atop an old
coal mine, where a construction foundation is slated to
take six weeks to complete, says Frank Allen, chairman of
the board of the non-profit Appalachian Wildlife Foundation, Inc.
Mostly, Allen says, the attraction aims to " highlight
the wildlife and wild lands " of Kentucky's
mountains.
Construction on
for the habitats of deer, black bear and elk.
" The mission in general is education, " Allen
the project is now
The under-construction visitor center will open in
says. " Bird watching and birding is going to be
ongoing, toward a
the fall of 2022 while the remainder of Boones Ridge is
a huge draw. We're going to have several bird
green preserve by '23.
set to open in the spring of 2023, Allen says.
observatories that are enclosed. "
Boones Ridge is expected to attract 980,000 visitors
In all, Boones Ridge is slated to feature two
a year, says Allen. " There are so many moving parts on
museums, several restaurants, a retail village,
this thing and different affiliations and different features. "
observation towers, petting zoo and a tram system for visitors,
boonesridge.com / 606-523-1323
Allen says.
-JOE TENNIS
Look also for an extensive trail system and viewing stations

Northern Horizon

Skywatch for May and June: Back to Childhood?

BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM

North Star

Overhead
(Zenith)

West

North
Celestial
Pole

East

id and late spring evenings often
bring back youthful memories of
gazing at the Big Dipper. Relive those
times by heading to a dark area on a clear
moonless night.
Lie on a blanket with your feet pointing
north and look nearly overhead. You will
easily spot the Big Dipper with its seven
major stars pouring its imaginary water
over the northern horizon. Trace a straight
line northward beginning at the two
stars at the end of the bowl, then striking
Polaris, the North Star. Since it lies almost
directly above Earth's north pole, it marks
the direction of true north at any time of
night, on any evening of the year.
Spin yourself around so you now face
south, with the Dipper and North Star

behind you. Direct your gaze down the
arc of the handle of the Dipper toward
the southeast until you bump into the
brightest star in the spring sky, Arcturus.
Continue following that arc until your
eyesight hits Spica, an easily seen star. To
their west shines another star, somewhat
dimmer than Spica. Denebola, Spica, and
Arcturus form the attractive equilateral
configuration known by stargazers as the
" Spring Triangle. "
These stars are the same stars seen in
your youth. These are the same twinkling
lights that will be seen by your grandchildren and your grandchildren's grandchildren. Make sharing the night sky an
intergenerational experience!
-JOHN GOSS

Arcturus
Spring
Triangle

Denebola
Regulus

Spica

Southern Horizon

Looking South along a swath
covering the central one-fourth of
the sky at 11 p.m. in May and
10:30 in June.

http://www.boonesridge.com http://www.BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM

Blue Ridge Country May/June 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country May/June 2021