Hello everyone, the birds are chirping, the bees are buzzing, the sun is shining, and everything is blooming. Time to get out and enjoy Mother Nature and all she has to offer. Get on your bike and ride or roll the windows down or open the sunroof. Whatever it is, just enjoy it and be safe. Here is a place you may want to visit. Bay Mountain State Park.
Bays Mountain Park is a 3,550 acres’ nature park and planetarium located on Bays Mountain in Kingsport, Tennessee is the largest city owned park in the state of Tennessee. From the early 1800’s through the early-to-mid 1900’s, Bays Mountain provided for those families who settled on the mountain. The mountain provided settlers with land to farm, wood for building houses, a church and even a school. Obviously, life was much different then, but relying on Bays Mountain to provide the resources, wildlife and harvest needed to survive and thrive was a given. It surely wasn’t easy, as there are challenges provided by any mountainous terrain, but those families who did make the mountain their home, proudly did so. The Park features a picturesque 44-acre lake, hiking trails, a Nature Center with a state-of-the-art Planetarium Theater, and Animal Habitats featuring wolves, bobcats, raptors and reptiles. Bays Mountain Park has daily events and programs including nature programs, planetarium programs and special events. High Ropes, Low Ropes & Zip Line. The Flying Squirrel is a 310-foot thrill ride zip line that races you through the wondrous and beautiful tree line. Bays Mountain Park has 26 miles of trails approved for mountain biking. Bays Mountain Park is home to two observatory structures housing a number of telescopic instruments. Observe water lilies, deer, raccoons, ducks, geese, turtles, great blue herons, beaver lodges, and sometimes beavers and black bears. Bays Mountain supports numerous plant communities in a relatively un-fragmented forest ecosystem. Pine and oak forest are distributed on ridges and drier upper slopes, whereas more moist forest conditions at lower elevations support a more mesic forest of sugar maple, tulip poplar, and white oak. Hemlock and white pine are found in more restricted locations. Species more commonly associated with the nearby Blue Ridge such as striped maple, yellow birch, rosebay and Catawba rhododendron are also found here. If you are looking for some fresh air, breathtaking views, and wildlife Bays Mountain is the place to go.
Useless Facts:
1. Apple seeds contain cyanide.
2. The cheesiest pizza ever was topped with 154 varieties of cheese.
3. There are giant technicolor squirrels in India.
4. A shark is the only animal that can blink both its eyes.
5. You would likely “mutate” in space without a spacesuit.
6. In most advertisements, including newspapers, the time displayed on a watch is 10:10.
7. There are around 16 million people alive today that are direct descendants of Genghis Khan.
8. An ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain.
9. There’s a city called “Rome” on every continent except Antarctica.
10. The opposite sides of a die will always add up to seven.
Local Events:
1. Music on the Hill with Car & Bike Show April 29th Happy Valley High School
2. 11th Annual Thirsty Orange Extravaganza April 29th
3. Jesus Fest April 29th 10am to 1pm Calvary Chapel
4. Biblical Citizenship May 1st 6:30pm Calvary Chapel
5. State Street Tattoo Fest 19th to 21st State Street Bristol
6. Chapel Hart & 8 Second Ride May 28th East TN Distillery
Bike Night:
1. Wednesday – 19E Pit Stop
2. Wednesday – Jonesboro VFW – Dog Tags
3. Thursday - Quaker Steak & Lube
4. Friday - Tulips
Rides:
1. WesMann’s Ride For The Ramp April 22nd Black Wolf Harley Davidson 11am KSU 12 noon
2. TN18-8 Poker Run May 6th Black Wolf 9:30am
3. Ride To Fight Suicide May 27th 9am Black Wolf
Rallies:
1. Tallahassee Bike Fest April 14th – 16th Tallahassee, FLA
2. Thunder on Tobacco Road April 20th – 23rd Seven Spring NC
3. Thunder Beach Bike Rally May 3rd – 7th
4. Thunder In The Smokies 5th to 7th
5. Boozy Creek Rally May 12th to 14th
6. Myrtle Beach Spring Rally May 12th to 21st