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December 1 – January 20, 2024

December 16
Christmas Craft Spectacular! – 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. Meet at Conference Center. Price is $5 age 4 and under, $10 age 5 and over. Register for the event. ‘Tis the season!
Join Rangers O’Day, Hylen and Holland and our Interpretive Staff for an afternoon of festive Christmas crafts, treats and holiday cheer! We’ll be making traditional and nature-themed ornaments, decorating cookies, and enjoying Christmas refreshments and music!
Fee covers instruction, materials, and refreshments. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

December 17
Tomahawk Toss – 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. Price is $5 and you can register for the event. Learn to throw a tomahawk!. Join Ranger Holland as we have fun learning a popular frontier pastime. Tomahawks provided. No previous Tomahawk-throwing experience is required to enjoy this fun program. Meet at Shed #3.

December 19
Campfire Tales – 6 p.m. Price is $5/Ages 12 and under, $8/Person. Register for the event. Join Ranger Holland around the campfire for some roasted hotdogs, marshmallows (and whatever else we can find) while enjoying campfire tales. Have a favorite guitar, harmonica or didgeridoo? Bring it along and we’ll sing some carols!

January 1, 2024
First Day Hike – 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. Meet at the Visitor Center Porch. Price is $0/Attendee, $10/Attendee + Donation, $10/Donation (not attending), $20/Attendee + Donation, $20/Donation (not attending). Register for the event. Join Ranger O’Day for a winter afternoon hike along the Peg Leg Mine trail. Afterward, we’ll enjoy a cup of hot cocoa! The trail is moderate in difficulty and approximately 1.10 miles long. Dress in layers for the weather and wear sturdy shoes, bring a water bottle & snack if you like. Make sure to start hydrating a few days in advance!

January 6
Old Christmas Céilí at Roan Mountain State Park – 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. Meet at the Conference Center. Price is $2/Kids ages 17 and under, $5/Adults. Register for the event. An Irish céilí (or cèilidh if you’re Scottish!) is a traditional social gathering that often includes traditional dance, music, storytelling and all kinds of good fun. In honor of our region’s Scots-Irish heritage we’ll be hosting a holiday-themed dance céilí at the Roan Mountain State Park Conference Center.
Highlights include:
Ceili Dances: No previous dance experience is required! These dances are meant for regular people and anyone who can walk comfortably can enjoy learning them.
Traditional Music: The Roan Mountain Céilí Band will play a variety of dance tunes to accompany the dances, and a few other tunes in between (traditional Scottish and Irish musicians are welcome to join us, contact Ranger O’Day for details).
Light Refreshments: Coffee & hot cocoa will be provided, as well as an assortment of holiday treats.
Dress comfortably with good shoes and come well-hydrated!
This is a ticketed event! Adults 18 and older $5 each, kids 17 and younger $2.Volunteers attend free (contact Ranger O’Day for volunteer opportunities).

January 20
Fancywork for Beginners & Enthusiasts: Winter Birds – 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. Meet at the Conference Center. Price is $12/Attendee Only (Includes Refreshments), $16/Attendee + Stick & Stitch Sheet of Patterns, $25/Attendee + Project Kit (Pattern Sheet, Towel Blank, Floss), $45/Attendee + Project Kit + Full Embroidery Kit. Register for the event.
Decorative hand-stitched embroidery (fancy work) was all the rage in the early 20th century and continues to be an important traditional art across the world. Although beautiful embroidery work can be complex, every needleworker starts from the beginning.
Join our workshop and take your first steps, or continue a journey you’ve already started (bring a project to show off, if you like!). We’ll look at examples of embroidery and designs inspired by the winter birds that can be found here in Roan Mountain. We’ll then review 10-15 basic stitch techniques to help you build your confidence.
*Also*
Stash Swap: For this workshop, we’ll be hosting a table for stash swapping. If you have embroidery tools and supplies you no longer need, bring them along and pass them to someone who will use them.
Refreshments: Tea & Cookies
If you’d like to volunteer to assist with embroidery workshops, please visit this link.
Full Embroidery Kit Contents: If you are just getting started, this take-home kit provides every basic embroidery tool, and a few handy extras.
Zip Pouch
8″ plastic hoop
Scissors
Needle set
Needle threader
Thimble
Washable transfer pencil & transfer paper
Card-style thread organizer
Beginner Stitch Sampler (pre-printed cloth, to follow along while learning stitches in the workshop)