Past Event

2026 Blue Ghost Firefly Tours

Alert
This event has sold out. Please stay tuned for the 2027 Blue Ghost Event!
Location

Cradle of Forestry in America
 11250 Pisgah Hwy
Pisgah Forest, NC 28768

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Cost

General Admission – $55 
Youth – $27 (Ages 4-12)

Dates

No events are scheduled at this time. 

The Blue Ghost Firefly (Phausis reticulata) is a secretive, hard-to-find native insect that calls our area home, and for a very short amount of time in late Spring, they inhabit our surrounding woodlands of Transylvania County.

Program Details

The Blue Ridge Mountains are home to a very unique creature that some say resembles a collection of fairies carrying blue candles through the forest. 

The Blue Ghost Firefly (Phausis reticulata) is a secretive, hard-to-find native insect that calls our area home, and for a very short amount of time in late Spring, they inhabit our surrounding woodlands of Transylvania County. 

You’ll experience an educational presentation at our outdoor amphitheater starting at 8:45 pm and then use the cover of darkness and special flashlights to go in search of the Blue Ghost fireflies while hiking on a paved trail through the forest. Team members will be stationed at key locations around the trail to provide further information about this amazing natural phenomenon. Please feel free to congregate near these areas with your fellow firefly enthusiasts, or go explore on your own! We require everyone to stay on the trail to prevent habitat damage, and team members will clear the trail and require everyone to depart by 10:30 pm.

Ticket Purchase/Pre-registration is required. The QR Code/ tickets you received via email following your purchase. We suggest saving or downloading these to be available offline in the case of internet malfunction/connectivity issues onsite.

This is a light rain or shine, family-friendly event!
In order to maximize our participant experience while minimizing our impact on the resource, we limit each night to 150 participants.

Due to the uniqueness of the insects in the natural habitat, it is very difficult to capture photos. Very specific camera equipment is needed and it is almost impossible to capture a photo with a phone camera. Flash from the cameras disturbs the natural habitat and because it is dark, other participants will not see your equipment and you run the risk of damage. Setting up a tripod in the cover of darkness and attempting to capture photos with 150 additional people on the nightly tour is very difficult and does not provide a positive experience for both you or other tour attendees. The best way to view this natural phenomenon is to capture the images in your mind’s eye.

WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE EVENT? CHECK OUT OUR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS INFORMATION SHEET 

PLEASE NOTE: If the date you wish to attend is not appearing as a selection for ticket purchase, that date is at capacity so you will need to select another date to attend.

Tickets will ONLY be available for purchase ONLINE. All ticket purchases are NON-REFUNDABLE AND CANNOT BE TRANSFERRED TO ANOTHER NIGHT. You CANNOT purchase tickets on site at the Cradle.

There is NO waitlist for this event.

Thank you to our sponsors

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Interested in taking part in another FIND program? Take a look at what else is happening!