63 Participants Enjoy February Outing

On an unseasonably warm day in February, over 60 members and visitors gathered in Critz, Virginia for the Dan River Basin Association's (DRBA) First Saturday Outing.

The February 7th outing was a 1.5-mile hike and tour of the 1843 house and grounds of the Reynold's Homestead in Patrick County.


The outing, coordinated by Wayne Kirkpatrick, began with a hike guided by Kyle Peer, Superintendent of the Forest Resources Research Center, who described forestry projects on the Commonwealth Campus of Virginia Tech.

Visitor's toured the slave cemetery of the homestead while on the hike and afterward, Reynolds Homestead Director, Kay Dunkley, summarized the findings of a recently completed archeological survey of the cemetery.

Tours of the historic house, outbuildings, and grounds were also offered while on the outing. The property holds a rich history as tobacco magnate R. J. Reynolds was born here in 1853, and Kitty Reynolds, one of the plantation’s slaves, earned renown for saving the life of R. J.’s father and for later becoming the “mother” of civil rights in Patrick County.

DRBA First Saturday outings are free and open to the public. Join us on March 7th for an outing in Eden, North Carolina.

Photos courtesy of Doss Photography