About
Welcome to Blue Ridge Online, here you will find the place to enjoy a day, a weekend, a dream vacation or a retirement home in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Somewhere among the hills and hollows of these gloriously picturesque old mountains, is a place where you’ll find memories to last a lifetime and your journey starts here. Settle back, take a deep breath and relax; its time to take a “desktop vacation” while exploring Blue Ridge Online; the Internet’s premier welcome center for the eastern mountains of the United States.
Blue Ridge Online started on July 11, 1996, but even before that we were welcoming visitors to the Blue Ridge Mountains via The Mountain Laurel, a small monthly magazine about mountain history and culture. The Mountain Laurel was started by my mom, Charlotte Heafner, my dad, Bob Heafner and their partner Susan Thigpen. I grew up with family evening drives on the Blue Ridge Parkway and playing with my sisters, Margaret and Angel, and Susan’s daughters, Laurie and Deedee, in the creeks and meadows in and around Meadows of Dan, Virginia. The beauty of the Blue Ridge was a part of my childhood and life that I will forever cherish and never tire of.
My dad was always active in trying to help local businesses get out the word about the mountains and what a great vacation getaway they are; he served on the board and co-founded several tourism organizations. Blue Ridge Online is a direct result of his love of the Blue Ridge; a love I share. When the Internet came along he realized the potential for introducing visitors to fun and relaxation in the Blue Ridge and at the same time providing an inexpensive venue for mountain businesses, large and small, to introduce themselves.
In the 1990s, I took over the company but still had a “day job” until January, 2004, when Blue Ridge Online became my fulltime job. We have grown to be the largest, most visited, website on the Internet, devoted to providing information about things to do, places to see and great places to stay throughout the Blue Ridge Mountains.
The pages of this website are more than my job; they are truly a labor of love for a place that can capture your heart and imagination with its charm and beauty and friendly people.
Blue Ridge Online is rolling out the welcome mat; come on up,
William A. (Billy) HeafnerBlueRidgeOnline.com
