when is the monarch butterfly migration coming around Asheville nc???

[rockhoppernc]

Well I am planning a 3 night trip for a few friends in the back woods and I am trying to find out info on the monarch butterfly migration?
I called the great smokey mountains park and the had no idea,,I have been seeing a few here and there around Asheville but can't wait to see them in a mass.
So any information would help,,,we will be out in the woods not this weekend but the next weekend. and are willing to hike in deep to find them
HELP

[rockhoppernc]

Throughout their journey south, the Monarchs stop frequently to feed on the nectar from a variety of wildflowers. These butterfly "feeding stations" are rewarded by having some of their pollen shaken loose onto the butterfly's body and carried to other flowers, where a few grains may be rubbed or shaken off of the insect's body to pollinate the flower.

The Monarch Butterflies passing through Asheville in mid-September probably began life as eggs laid in July in milkweed meadows of Pennsylvania, Ohio, upstate New York, and southern Canada. They have traveled about a quarter of the distance on their 2,000 mile journey to Mexico and are travelling at maximum speed.

The migrating Monarchs do not follow a specific pathway but travel individually along a broad front. During the peak of migration they may be seen anywhere, from downtown Asheville to the remote ridges of the Balsams and Craggies.

The butterflies fly at treetop level or lower, tending to cross east-west ridges at low gaps, and may be seen in greater concentration as they funnel through such natural crossing points. A good place to view Monarch Butterflies is at Wagon Road Gap at milepost 412.2 south of Mt. Pisgah on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

[Pedaling Fool]

Why you shouldn't spray herbicides and should take a second look at "weeds" in a different light. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/12/sc...rssnyt&emc=rss

[BigHodag]

I track and report on the northbound Monarch migration for school childrenas part of The Journey North program.

You can likely find all the info on monarchs at Monarch Watch. Monarchs are tagged in the fall as they return to Mexico. Try and find a tagging event in your area. You'll see the Monarchs and likely get to aid in tagging.