Jesus and the Fairy Tears

According to legend, when an elf told the fairies of Jesus' death, their tears became the cross shaped rocks of Fairy Stone, Virginia.

I had passed Fairy Stone State Park many times on my way up to Blacksburg where I was finishing my masters' research at Virginia Tech over a series of long weekends. And I had heard of the fairy stones, but I had never seen one.

Image from bestcystals.com

Geologists call this mineral staurolite. It occurs several places on earth, notably Patrick County, Virginia, North Georgia and Switzerland along with several other sites. These crystals formed as Earth's surface cooled and they took several shapes including the Roman cross, the St. Andrews cross and the Maltese cross. In Virginia they might also be embedded with tiny, pinpoint garnets. Regardless, they are fun to hunt though the best way to get a nice one is to buy one in the park gift shop after it has been tumbled and oiled.

Even without the draw of fairy stones, the state park is worth the trip. My friend Caroline, from the first Cheraw trip, joined me for a long weekend of paddling and rock hunting over Memorial Day weekend.

Caroline was a soil conservation agent and her first action upon our arrival was to sign us up for a rock hunting hike with the park ranger. She also had the foresight to identify the best places to launch our kayaks. In addition to having fairy stones, the park has a wonderful family beach on Fairy Stone Lake, a lovely impoundment restricted to paddlers and fishermen. And the incredibly beautiful Philpott Lake, a major flood control reservoir on the Smith River, is just around the corner.

So we started out on the smaller and closer Fairystone Lake which is fed by Goblintown Creek. According to local history, there never has been a Goblin Town per se but the area and the creek both bear this name. We paddled the creek as far up as we were able, through lovely deep woods and past the barred entrance to a former mine. There was a civil war iron furnace near here and I suspect it was a shaft for the iron ore. Fairystone Lake is not large by comparison to Philpott but it was big enough we did not have time or energy to explore it all. Kayaks and paddleboats were available for rent in the park at the swimming beach and we passed several fishing docks on park property around the lake's shore. As many recreation opportunities as were offered we were pleasantly surprised at how much of the lake we had to ourselves.

Philpott Lake, by comparison, is a monster, but a beautiful one. We were advised to put in at Bowen Creek Boat Ramp as it was on a quieter part of the lake. After devastating flooding of the Smith River in the 1930s, Philpott was constructed as a flood control project and completed in the early 1950s. As you can see, it fingers into many side valleys. These inlets offer quiet opportunities for fishermen while the main channel affords open space for skiers and jet boats. Bowen Creek is fed by a couple of creeks with waterfalls visible by boat. We paddled up to one and 30 yards before we even saw it, we were enveloped in a cloud of cool air from the evaporation of the tumbling water. There were a couple of ski boats and several fishermen with large motors but they were all very courteous, dropping speed when nearing us and sparing us their huge wakes. We saw young beavers swimming near shore and many kingfishers fighting overhead for territory and prospective mates. And everywhere, there was mountain laurel. If I remember anything about these trips this spring, it will be the profusion of laurel. It is as if we have gotten to repeat spring each weekend and rediscover the season's beauty.

The last event of the trip was an excursion into Floyd, Virginia, for supper. When I was a student at Virginia Tech, I came up on weekends to finish my research. I stayed outside Floyd in the Alum Ridge community with a girlfriend and fellow student. It was stunningly beautiful country, but the town of Floyd itself was barely hanging on. The primary employment for many was growing pot as the local economy was so depressed and the remote farmsteads offered privacy. In time, developers from Roanoke discovered the cheap land around Floyd and its incredible beauty and have turned it into a resort area for vacation homeowners and tourists. This picture is courtesy of the Floyd Country Store website. The town was pretty quiet the evening we were there but we had a great supper and heard a little local bluegrass along with it. A good end to our trip and an update to my memories.

There was a severe storm watch our last night. My phone woke me with a storm warning at 3a, but it was for Asheboro, not us. Out trip home was pleasantly uneventful. I am hoping the paddle club will agree to come here this fall for our annual campout. For those not wishing to camp, the park offers cabins, or you can rent a yurt...