Blue Ridge Country July/August 2020 - 5

LETTERS

SNAKES!

A FAVORITE SHELTER
I enjoyed the piece on Sarah Decker Jones' book on Appalachian Trail shelters in the March/April issue. It brought to
mind one of my favorite shelters-Chestnut Knob, on the rim
of Burkes' Garden in Virginia. It was a dark and dirty stone
shelter until 1994, when the Piedmont Appalachian Trail Hikers (PATH), and the famous Konnarock Crew went to work on
creating the light-filled shelter that exists today. I'm sending
a few photos of that work, taken by the late Gordon Burgess.
-TOM DILLON (FOR PATH),
WINSTON-SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA

I was pleased to read the article "Snakes on a Trail" by Nancy
Henderson (May/June issue), about copperheads and timber
rattlesnakes, the only venomous snakes native to the Blue
Ridge Mountains.
Many people kill these snakes whenever and wherever
they see them. However, aside from being beautiful and fascinating to look at, it appears that copperheads and rattlers
have medical benefits to humans.
Scientists at the University of Southern California have
found that contortrostatin, a protein found in copperhead
venom, dramatically inhibits the growth and spread of cancerous tumors by 60%-90% in laboratory mice. It is possible
that contortrostatin may be beneficial to humans also.
Do timber rattlesnakes indirectly keep down the incidence
of Lyme disease? They are one of the top predators of small
rodents, which can be infected with Lyme disease. A study
at the University of Maryland showed that a single timber
rattlesnake eats 2,500-4,500 ticks a year, when it consumes
mice and rats.
In light of these possibilities, maybe we should take a different attitude towards the copperhead and the timber rattlesnake, and see just what good they may have to offer us.
-ANGELA WATKINS
NATURAL BRIDGE STATION, VIRGINIA

CONTRIBUTORS

Nancy Henderson

Joan Vannorsdall

(Creature Feature, Harris Profile) is an awardwinning journalist and author who enjoys
writing about interesting people and places. Her
work has appeared in Smithsonian, The New
York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Southern
Living and many other publications. An avid
flower gardener and nature enthusiast, she's
written the Creature Feature column for Blue
Ridge Country since 1998.

(Lake Moomaw) knew from age 12 she would
live in the Blue Ridge...and aside from a few years
in the Midwest, she's been true to her word. She
calls Clifton Forge, Virginia, home, spending her
time writing and teaching yoga. In addition to
stories for Blue Ridge Country, she's the author
of two novels, "Solitary Places" and "The Hearts
of Soldiers." Her third novel, "The Other Side of
the River," is in progress.

Joe Tennis
(Lakes, Col. Sanders) is a contributing editor
and also an award-winning features writer
for the Bristol Herald Courier. His latest book,
"Along Virginia's Route 58: True Tales from
Beach to Bluegrass," includes chapters on
Mabry Mill, The Crooked Road, Whitetop
Mountain, Virginia Creeper Trail, Barter
Theatre and Cumberland Gap. To order, visit
arcadiapublishing.com.

Angela Minor
(Rivers, Northeast Tennessee Quick Guide) is a
frequent contributor of travel and nature articles
to numerous regional and national publications
including Blue Ridge Country, Alabama Living,
Ft. Myers Magazine, Kentucky Monthly, Nevada
Magazine, Oklahoma Today, OKRA, American
Wild Magazine, 3rd Act, and others. She's the
"Park Watch" Beat Writer for 10,000 Birds; and
she created and authors the Bird Watcher's
Digest state park birding series

JULY/AUGUST 2020

Blue Ridge Country July/August 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country July/August 2020