Sir Malcolm to visit Grandfather Mountain Highland Games

Sir Malcolm Colquhoun, Chief of the Colquhouns, will be a Distinguished Guest at the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games near Linville, NC the weekend of July 13^th, 2013.

The GMGH (www.gmhg.org) are held about ½ mile up the mountain in MacRae Meadow off US 221. The general public attending the games are required to park in various designated locations and be shuttled up to MacRae Meadow usually on a bus. The closest public parking is in Linville at US 221 and Hwy 105. Here is what the games published on their website for last year:

Shuttle Bus Information

Round-trip tickets on the shuttle bus from Boone are $10.00 per person. The Shuttle buses run from Caldwell Community College Parking lot in Boone to MacRae Meadows and back. Boone shuttle service is available on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the games during the day events only. Security is provided at the Parking lot. If you purchase a 4-day advance ticket the round-trip shuttle bus ride is free all 3 days from Caldwell Community College Parking lot in Boone and from the Avery County High School (Friday and Saturday) and the Linville Lot (Saturday and Sunday). No Shuttle bus services for the night events. Those riding the shuttle buses to the day events must shuttle off the mountain by 5:00 pm and drive back to the mountain. The night events are general public parking. Round-trip tickets on the shuttle bus from Linville lot are $5.00 roundtrip, $3.00 one-way. (Saturday and Sunday) Round-trip tickets on the shuttle bus from the paved parking lots at Avery County High School (Friday and Saturday) are $5.00.

There is no general handicap parking.

There is RV and primitive tent camping available at MacRae Meadow. If you were to use an RV you should count on getting there by Wednesday or Thursday and staying until at least Monday. The best (and flattest) tent spots go quickly and it is quite crowded by Friday and Saturday nights. There is also a fine state campground on the Parkway (Julian Price) in between Blowing Rock and the exit for Grandfather Mountain.

There are several small towns surrounding GMHG to stay at. The Sugar Mountain/Beech Mountain/Banner Elk area is a ski resort during the winter. Traffic can be heavy on Hwy 105 going to the games leaving from this area, so be sure to leave early. Boone is a larger town past this area. Last week there was a reasonable rate at the InnPlace in Boone on the Hotels.com website. It’s not far from the Caldwell Community College parking mentioned above. Blowing Rock is a smaller town south of Boone. It’s possible to reach GMHG using the Blue Ridge Parkway from Boone or Blowing Rock. You would actually pass the games entrance on Hwy 221, go down the mountain, park, and ride the shuttle back up. 

If you would like to go and have any questions beyond this description please contact me and I’ll do my best to answer them. We would love to see you there and we’re hoping for a large turnout for our chief!

Skeets Cahoon. Past president Hollis B. Skeets Cahoon is seriously ill. Skeets’ oldest daughter Fran is keeping everyone up to date on his condition through the website www.carepages.com Patients are listed with code names on this site; Skeets’ code name is “ScotlandForever”. You will have to register and sign in with a password to see the updates and post comments. From the website: “Skeets, a dyed-in-the-wool Hokie (literally), is suffering from a serious brain injury he sustained in a fall on September 22, 2012. He needs your prayers to lift him up and help him find his way. He is a Va. Tech graduate, electrical engineer, consultant and co-founder of Collegiate Tartan Apparel.” Skeets doesn’t always recognize even his family and his condition seems to be on a downward spiral with good days and bad days. We wish all the best to him and his family in this difficult time.

Grandfather Mountain Highland Games 2012

Saturday morning on the Blue Ridge Parkway in the fog. This is the part called the Linville Viaduct that hangs you out on the side of the mountain. It's a beautiful view when it's not so foggy.

One of the places the bus lets you out if you have to park at the bottom of the mountain on Hwy 221. This is the site of what we called "Fort Potter" where Danny Potter parked his old one person 50's style RV. I did what I told Danny I always wanted to do the GMHG's before he died: I pitched a one man tent in front of Fort Potter for about four days. 

The front entrance with GM in the background. I actually took this at the end of the day Saturday when the sun came out for a bit.

Mike Cowan, past city councilman of Whitfield County (Tunnel Hill), GA. Mike has since had a serious motorcycle wreck and has moved to Dalton.

Hey! Who's that next to us? Why it's our old buddies (and I do mean from way back) the MacFarlanes! If you don't know our history with the MacFarlanes...well, maybe I better tell you later or better yet Google it.

Neil MacFarlane Webb and Jim Kilpatrick wrangle a Heiland Coo.

A few tents down the outside Maxwell tent remained empty until all of a sudden it was filled with musicians! Just another part of the magic that happens at Grandfather Mountain.

On our other side was the Hendersons. The Loch Norman Pipe Band played a set, did the Henderson walk, then played another set for them just outside of our tent.

This beautiful tent was set up by Beth Calhoun and Stephen Batts below. You could literally see the top sign all the way across the field.

The parade of tartans Sunday morning!

Left to right: Jim Kilpatrick, me, Beth Calhoun, Archie Cowan with the American ensign, and Dave Cowan on the right.

With Chirstie Harrison, past president of COSCA. Christie started her Scottish American experience by joining our clan. Dave Cowan's wife Sandy is on the left.

Sherrill Greene whose g'grandmother was a Potter, Jim Kilpatrick, Beth Calhoun.

Scottish District Family Association. The first Scottish games I went to was in Savannah in 1981. They found my last name, Hodges, in Phillip Smith's Tartan For Me with "Glasgow District" across from it, but no one knew what that meant. About 12 years ago Judi Lloyd started the  SDFA and my last name found a home at the Highland Games. I never thought to tell them my middle name is Calhoun.

Didn't he go by a little while ago in a different kilt? City of Glasgow tartan.

Christie Harrison, Beth Calhoun, and the very happy lady is current president of COSCA Sue McIntosh. I believe she lives in Colorado.

Thanks to Dave Cowan for standing out on that field for so long and carry our banner around one more time.

It rained a couple of times but there was a large attendance overall.

The Hendersons sang in the rain next door!

This is Tom McLain who I've known for several years as the nice gentleman who keeps the back gate.

Grandfather Mountain 1999

After talking with some others, I'm pretty sure of the year. If you think it's wrong please let me know. Also, feel free to use the comment section of these posts at any time. If it weren't for Sitemeter I wouldn't have any idea if anyone was looking at this most of the time. Just so you know, we've had over 5,000 hits from all over the world since the blogs conception. A lot of people will spot an image on Google and take a gander. A lot of them don't even use the same alphabet we do! Welcome, everyone!
Best friend Richard Halliley (twice President of US Clan Davidson) and I are about dead center in the above photograph.


Some kind of weird weather pattern invaded us that Sunday morning at the Parade Of Tartans. It was chilly, too. Grandfather Mountain, NC in July doesn't usually get weather like this although we have had some cold rains before. It's the elevation that kind of lifts us up out of the "Deep South" for July. We're half a mile up in MacRae Meadow; the peak of the mountain is a mile up. Supposedly the area attracted immigrant Scots and Scot-Irish to settle there because it reminded them of home. My ancestors (also from NC) hugged the coast. Even my MacMillan "Texas Bells" ended up outside of Galveston on the Gulf Of Mexico.
I'm pretty sure this is Stephanie Fox and Danny Potter. Stephanie is a nurse and always works the MacMedic tent at the games. I appreciate that she wears her Colquhoun scarf and takes time when she can to jump in the Parades with us!

Danny, who passed away a few years ago, was a bit of a legend at all the Mid Atlantic games. The Johnson City, TN native had been coming to GMHG since he was a lad when his parents first brought him. Danny parked a well used, small RV right at the place where the shuttle bus lets visitors out. It was known as Fort Potter. I primitive camped at Fort Potter in front of his RV the season before he died, something I told him for years I wanted to do, and have always been thankful I made the effort that year.

Drum Major Jim Thompson.





Color guard of a Scottish American Civil War reenactment group. I think it's a NY regiment.





In the middle is the extended family of T. Randolph Kirkpatrick. They always get their own tent each year and participate in athletics. One of his grandchildren has run The Bear the last several years. On the left is probably Whitfield County (GA) county commissioner Mike Cowan. Mike wears his Air Force jacket and beret with his kilt which looks really sharp. I'm on the right.

Grandfather Mountain Highland Games 2009

Special thanks to Beth Calhoun of Raleigh, NC for hosting the tent this year. Once again it looked marvelous!























Drum Major for Atlanta Pipes and Drums and the massed bands, Jim Thompson drops in for a chat with Society President Jim Kilpatrick, FSA (Scot).





I know that's Keets Taylor on the right. Hey! Who's that sitting on Jim's lap?







This has got to be Staci Ingram on the left who announced "The Colquhouns are here!" at the Torchlight Ceremony on Thursday night.


Beth and John.
Becky and Jim.