Grandfather Mountain, the not-for-profit nature park run by the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation, has set up public photo stations in four locations, with one more on the way, and is inviting guests to participate in Chronolog, a citizen science project, during their next visit.
“The natural resources department is always looking for ways to involve guests in data collection,” said Will Bennett, research coordinator for the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation. “These photo stations will help us monitor changes in some of our critical habitats using a newer platform.”
Chronolog is a time-lapse program where visitors take photos of a particular area with their own devices and upload them to the Chronolog organization’s website. In addition, guests can go to the website to see a time-lapse slideshow of images from their location and observe how the view has changed over time.
The two main goals of the Chronolog project are to get people engaged with nature in an interactive new way and to record environmental changes in forests and landscapes, like those on Grandfather Mountain. According to the Chronolog website, the worldwide project has had over 100,000 contributors across 300 organizations.
Stations have recently been set up near the Mile High Swinging Bridge, Half Moon Overlook, Scheer Bluff and Woods Walk. There will also eventually be a station outside Yonni’s Clubhouse, the hands-on science and environmental education center set to open next to the Wilson Center for Nature Discovery in the fall of 2025. An additional station is set up in an area of the mountain not open to guests and will be maintained by staff and researchers.
As the project goes on, staff will be able to review the Chronolog database and monitor how each station’s landscape has grown and transformed over the years, observing the timing of fall color or the greening of trees in the spring. This data could hold key information for issues that may impact the surrounding environment, such as tree blights or development.
Grandfather Mountain is the first organization in western N.C. to set up Chronolog stations. Other N.C. organizations include the Eno River Association, N.C. Coastal Reserve & National Estuarine Research Reserve, Pettigrew State Park, Carolina Beach State Park, N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, N.C. State University, Cape Lookout National Seashore, The Museum of Life and Science and Bald Head Island Conservancy.
The mountain is able to participate in this project thanks to a grant from the Luke Garrison Foundation, a nonprofit corporation established in memory of Luther Snyder Garrison III. Its mission is to provide access and encouragement for others to pursue interests in learning, science, nature, sports and church — all subjects highly valued by Luke Garrison.
“Our natural resource management staff does a lot of behind-the-scenes work each day to monitor and protect the significant flora and fauna of Grandfather Mountain,” said John Caveny, director of conservation and education for the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation. “It’s exciting to kick off this Chronolog project and invite our guests to not only monitor the data with us, but to also take an active role in collecting the research.”
To learn more about research at Grandfather Mountain, visit www.grandfather.com/research.
The time-lapse views of the locations can be accessed without a visit to the mountain on the Chronolog website and will improve over time as guests add more and more photos.
Mile High Swinging Bridge station: www.chronolog.io/site/GFM101
Half Moon Overlook station: www.chronolog.io/site/GFM102
Woods Walk station: www.chronolog.io/site/GFM105