Tour: In Search of Blue Ghosts
49 Pisgah Hwy #4
Pisgah Forest, NC 28768
USA
Registration
- May 30 – June 3
- June 6 – June 10
- 8:30 – 10:30pm
- Capacity: 50
- Minimum: 12
You’re walking through the Appalachians on a humid summer night, when a strange sight catches your attention. An eerie blue glow appears from the woods and begins to hover around you like a neon blue wave from the sea. The Blue Ridge is home to a very unique creature that some say resembles a tribe of tiny fairies carrying small blue candles through the forest. The Blue Ghost Firefly (phausis reticulate) is a secretive, hard-to-find native insect that calls our area home, and for a very short amount of time in early summer, they inhabit our surrounding woodlands of Transylvania County. These incredible insects hover just above the ground on humid or drizzly nights seeking out a mate, giving them the appearance of an eerie blue mist moving stealthily through the forest. Unlike most fireflies, Blue Ghosts don’t blink or flash when they appear – another unique trait that Mother Nature bestowed upon this amazing creature. With our very special Blue Ghost Tours, our educators will conduct a 45-minute live animal program to introduce you to some of the local critters that call the night their home. Our tour will culminate with a peek into the areas of the Cradle of Forestry Heritage Site to see if the Blue Ghosts would like to make an appearance. We can’t guarantee that we’ll see them, but we’re certainly going to try! Bring the family, learn what makes our nighttime critters so special and enjoy the mountains! Pre-registration is required. Please be prepared to walk approximately one mile on paved trails. This is a rain or shine event!