By Brandy Calvert/Senior Staff Writer
PINEVILLE — The Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival kicks off in less than a week, yet the staff at Pine Mountain State Resort Park (PMSRP) have been gearing up for the annual festival for quite some time — and with quite a bit of energy!
First on PMSRP’s list is to take care of the Laurel Cove Natural Amphitheater. The Laurel Cove is the central location for the Queen’s Coronation on Saturday afternoon of the festival weekend. The Governor has the honor of crowning the Queen. So, in due preparation for this pageantry, Pine Mountain State Resort Park’s Maintenance Department is called into action to perform numerous preparatory tasks under the capable leadership of new maintenance supervisor, Steve Jackson.
First, the reflecting pool must be drained, the bottom cleaned, then refilled with colored water. The stage area has been reseeded, fertilized, and manicured in preparation for the pageant and coronation ceremony. The entire cove area must have all grass mowed and manicured from entrance to entrance. All benches and large natural rocks must be cleaned of winter debris and grass clippings and the 400 chair back folding seats must be hand washed.
The Herndon J. Evans Lodge sees a lot of traffic during festival time. This year, the lodge is sporting a new roof and a new coat of paint that reflects a subtle change of color. All accommodations are primarily reserved for festival guests who have been attending the festival for many years. The guests are mostly members of the festival Board of Directors. A special effort is made to have all facilities and the parking lot and lawn in superb condition as the festival begins.
Lodge accommodations are a special consideration for park employees during the festival season. All lodge rooms have been renovated within the last three years, but a special treat is in store for a few lucky guests, as some will be the first visitors to stay in the newly renovated log cabins. Five of the nine rustic log cabins have been totally renovated with new carpet, gas burning logs, new kitchen floors, new stoves, refrigerators, lighting, microwaves, and other appliances. Bedroom and living rooms have also been totally refurbished with flooring, lighting, bedding, and other new furniture.
As the arrival of the Mountain Laurel Festival coincides with warmer weather, preparations are also underway to open the lodge pool for park visitors. The work begins in the early spring with grounds maintenance chores in the vicinity of the pool. Organic debris is removed from area sidewalks, the mini-golf course is spruced up, and new mulch is added to the pool play area.
Next, the off-season pool cover is removed and the pool bottom is painted white. Mechanical room pool components are checked for proper operation and all electrical components that will be below water level are checked and verified operational. At last, the pool is filled with water and filtration begins.
Once the pool is filled with water and proper cycling of the filtration is verified, pH and chlorine levels are slowly raised to the proper readings and all deck chairs, tables, umbrellas and safety components are put in place. When the pool is deemed operational and ready for inspection, the health inspector is notified that that the pool is ready for formal inspection. Upon passing the health and safety inspection, authorization is secured to officially open the pool to park guests and visitors.
All roadways into and across the mountain are cleaned of leaves and other debris. The edges are mowed and the ditches are cleaned of the winter accumulation of leaves, sticks and other organic debris.
During the month of April, park officials traditionally meet with members of the festival committee to plan menus for the Friday Directors Dinner, Saturday Governor’s Luncheon, Saturday Directors’ Reception and Sunday Queen’s Breakfast. Once the menus are planned, park staff members plan the table decorations and set up arrangements for each function. Additional chefs are secured from other Kentucky State Parks to help with the food and decoration preparations for the entire weekend.
Once all preparations have been made for the Mountain Laurel Festival, the park’s maintenance staff remains on stand-by in the event that their services are needed during one of the special events taking place in the park.
Brandy Calvert is the Senior Staff Writer for the Middlesboro Daily News. Contact her via e-mail at bmurray@middlesborodailynews.com. Information for this article was provided by Pine Mountain State Resort Park Naturalist Dean Henson.
Photo: The reflecting pool at the park looks beautiful for the queen’s coronation, but that’s just part of the preparation that takes place prior to the festival. (Photo courtesy RAY WELCH/Ray Welch Photography)
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