Blue+Ridge+Parkway

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a national [|parkway] located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, a chain of mountains that is part of the larger Appalachian Mountain range. Before being settled by Europeans in the 1700s and 1800s, these mountains were home to various Native American tribes including the Cherokee. This parkway is the result of a project begun in the 1930s by President [|Franklin D. Roosevelt] as part of his [|“New Deal”] program. The New Deal program was designed to promote economic growth during the Great Depression. As part of the New Deal, many civilian organizations were created to help spark the [|economy]. Two such organizations were the [|Civilian Conservation Corps], or CCC, which was created to young men between the ages of 18-24 find manual labor jobs related to natural conservation and development, and the [|Works Project Administration] (WPA) which focused on constructing public roads and buildings. These two organizations were instrumental in starting the work for the parkway, which took over 52 years to fully complete.
 * North Carolina's Blue Ridge Parkway**
 * -** [[image:eastern-state-blue-ridge-parkway-09-ss.jpg width="331" height="254" align="right" caption="The Blue Ridge Parkway"]]
 * History**

The Blue Ridge Parkway today is noted for its beautiful scenery and stretches 469 miles (755 kilimoters) from the Great Smokey Mountains National Park to the Shennandoah National Park in Virginia. Fully completed in 1987, the Parkway offers many different places to camp, hike, and go site-seeing where tourists can gaze from many of the parkway's [|overlooks] or waterfall viewing areas. Some popular places among tourists include Linville Falls, Grandfather Mountain, Julian Price Memorial Park, and Blowing Rock.
 * The Parkway Today**

The German autobahn is Germany's nationally coordinated motorway system. Within in the autobahn system there are various divisions of autobahnen. The main autobahnen are those roadways which stretch across the entire country and are identified by a single digit number. Shorter autobahnen are of regional importance and connect various states/provinces within a particular region in Germany. These shorter autobahnen are identified by double-digit numbers. The Blue Ridge Parkway is a roadway which connects the Great Smoky Mountains region in North Carolina with the Shenandoah Valley Region in Virginia. In Germany, the Blue Ridge Parkway would be similar to one of the shorter autobahnen in the southeastern, Bavarian region which ranges from A 90 to A 99. Both are scenic motorways which run through mountain ranges. Both the Blue Ridge Parkway and the German autobahn began construction under similar circumstances and for the same reasons. The German autobahn began construction in 1933 after the Nazi takeover, and was enthusiastically promoted by Adolf Hitler as part of an economic development plan. During construction, the development of autobahnen provided jobs for over 100,000 people, and improved the nation's [|infrastructure]. Today, the German autobahnen network totals 12,174 km in length, which is the third largest in the world, behind only the United States (75,440 km) and China (40,997 km).
 * The Blue Ridge Parkway in Relation to the German Autobahn**

The Bavarian Alps is a portion of the Eastern Alps which runs through southeastern Germany and northwest Austria, also known as the Northern Limestone Alps. This mountain range peaks at 2,962 meters (Zugspitze). The Bavarian Alps reach much higher altitudes compared to the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains, which peaks at 1,845 meters (Richland Balsam Mountain). The Bavarian Alps reach much lower temperatures due to the higher altitude, and are better suited for skiing than the mountains located along the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is better known for its [|scenic] beauty and [|hiking] trails. Many believe fall (specifically mid-late October) is the best time of year visit the Blue Ridge Parkway, as the [|foliage] reaches its peak and provides an [|abundance] of [|picturesque] moments. While the Blue Ridge Parkway is known for its beauty as the leaves change, the snow-capped Bavarian Alps are known for their size and [|jagged] slopes.
 * The Bavarian Alps in Comparison to the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains**



media type="youtube" key="ws6Qq32o2vE?fs=1" height="267" width="423" align="left"

For more on the Blue Ridge Parkway, view the video to the left.

The picture to the right is a map of the Blue Ridge Parkway.


 * Vocabulary**
 * Parkway
 * New Deal
 * Franklin D. Roosevelt
 * Economy
 * Civilian Conservation Corps
 * Works Project Administration
 * Infrastructure
 * Overlook
 * Altitude
 * Scenic
 * Hiking
 * Foliage
 * Abundance
 * Picturesque
 * Jagged


 * Travel Brochure Activity**

Based on the information you read on the website, and that you saw on the video, create a travel brochure on the Blue Ridge Parkway for German Tourists. Include pictures, a brief history of the parkway, and some activities that tourists may enjoy while visiting the parkway. Your brochure must include a road map, and at least 5 different locations on the parkway should be included on the map.

Materials needed: -computer with internet access -a word processing program -color printer and paper; OR -construction paper, pencils, colored pencils, scissors, glue


 * Questions for Discussion**
 * 1.)** What are some of the notable differences between the Bavarian Alps and the Blue Ridge Mountains?
 * 2.)** What are some of the activities tourists can do when they visit the Blue Ridge Parkway?
 * 3.)** How was the construction of the Blue Ridge Parkway similar to the construction of the German autobahn system?


 * Click the Google Street View Link for a Virtual Tour of the Blue Ridge Parkway**

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