High schoolers conquer the Rockies

After biking more than 300 miles through the Rocky Mountains, the group of five high schoolers involved in Western Carolina…
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Fatalities prompt caution when visiting waterfalls

Two fatalities related to waterfalls occurred in the Pisgah National Forest last week.
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Conservation groups plead for red wolf program to stay
 

Conservation groups plead for red wolf program to stay

Petitions bearing nearly half a million signatures urging protection of the endangered red wolf made their way to the U.S.…
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LEGO masterpieces celebrate the natural world
 

LEGO masterpieces celebrate the natural world

Nature-inspired LEGO creations will add an extra incentive to hit up the N.C. Arboretum the next few months, with the…
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Winged wonder: Bird study gets up close with WNC’s avian residents

Cloud cover keeps the summer morning cool as Mark Hopey makes the rounds below Cowee Mound. By 8:30 a.m., he…
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Planning begins for logging project in Haywood
 

Planning begins for logging project in Haywood

Round tables and large, neon sticky notes characterized last week’s kickoff of a planning process to cut timber and create…
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Wading through nostalgia
 

Wading through nostalgia

Give a Loosiana boy a reason to don his hip boots and strap on a headlight and you’ve got a…
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Program turns high school students and teachers into park rangers
 

Program turns high school students and teachers into park rangers

Students and teachers from communities around the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are starting six weeks of hands-on learning and…
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WNC angling to take over television
 

WNC angling to take over television

Jackson County will be displayed on national television this week with the airing of Anglers & Appetites, a show that…
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Rule will allow tribal members to gather plants on park land
 

Rule will allow tribal members to gather plants on park land

Native Americans will soon be allowed to gather plants on national park land for traditional purposes following the National Park…
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Ginseng lottery open
 

Ginseng lottery open

The lottery is open for permits to harvest one of Western North Carolina’s most valuable plants. 
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Voting contest yields funds  for Smokies tower restoration
 

Voting contest yields funds for Smokies tower restoration

Clingmans Dome Observation Tower will get a makeover thanks to a $250,000 grant that supporters of the Great Smoky Mountains…
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Sylva teen to compete in national angling competition
 

Sylva teen to compete in national angling competition

A Sylva teen is preparing to prove himself on the national stage of fly-fishing after qualifying for the U.S. Youth…
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Tackling the Beast: Prepping for a 60-mile mountain bike challenge isn’t easy
 

Tackling the Beast: Prepping for a 60-mile mountain bike challenge isn’t easy

By Jamie Arnold • Contributing writer It’s a 95-degree Sunday afternoon. Most folks are at the lake, or lounging on the…
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Combination science lab and amusement park
 

Combination science lab and amusement park

Weightless for two seconds is not a moonwalk but at the top of the Space Shot at Huntsville, Alabama’s (Rocket…
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Comments sought on A.T. campsite construction
 

Comments sought on A.T. campsite construction

Fifteen new tent sites could go in along the Appalachian Trail on its route through the Standing Indian Basin in…
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Croquet group starts in Waynesville
 

Croquet group starts in Waynesville

A croquet group has formed in Waynesville, meeting 10 a.m. to noon Wednesdays at Vance Street Park.
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Insect affecting WNC white pines
 

Insect affecting WNC white pines

A tiny insect is being blamed for declining health in eastern white pine trees in six North Carolina counties including…
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Severe drought comes to WNC
 

Severe drought comes to WNC

For the first time since September, severe drought is affecting North Carolina — including portions of Haywood, Jackson, Macon and…
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Greenway bridge open in Jackson
 

Greenway bridge open in Jackson

A new bridge allowing access to the Jackson County greenway’s terminus at Locust Creek is now open to pedestrians, marking…
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Land conserved on Cold Mountain
 

Land conserved on Cold Mountain

The Cold Mountain Game Lands in Haywood County will likely get larger following a 162-acre purchase by the Southern Appalachian…
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Zahner lecture series kicks off
 

Zahner lecture series kicks off

The Zahner Conservation Lecture Series at the Highlands Nature Center kicks off its initial program on July 7
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Remembering the removal: Wayside markers trace the Trail of Tears in WNC
 

Remembering the removal: Wayside markers trace the Trail of Tears in WNC

A growing collection of roadside signs has been popping up along rural drives and main thoroughfares in Western North Carolina…
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Arboretum works on pollinator hospitality
 

Arboretum works on pollinator hospitality

The nation holds only seven Bee Campus USA gardens, and now the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville is one of them.
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New water slide is higher, faster
 

New water slide is higher, faster

A new slide has been installed at the water park at the Waynesville Recreation Center.
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Beyond the river: Fly fishing camp builds confident, conservation-minded kids
 

Beyond the river: Fly fishing camp builds confident, conservation-minded kids

Rods, reels, and wader-clad teenagers dotted Big East Fork’s meander to Lake Logan through the warm summer mornings last week,…
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Adopt a stream
 

Adopt a stream

Volunteers are wanted to help keep Haywood’s streams free of trash by adopting a section to clean once per year. 
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Man finishes lap of the Blue Ridge Parkway
 

Man finishes lap of the Blue Ridge Parkway

Ray Russell recently finished nearly a month of running with his arrival at the Blue Ridge Parkway’s end in Cherokee.…
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Go all-out with Lake Logan races
 

Go all-out with Lake Logan races

The Lake Logan Multisport Festival will bring in athletes galore for the 11th year running with its lineup of events…
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Nonprofit forms to teach survival skills during summer camp
 

Nonprofit forms to teach survival skills during summer camp

The wilderness is where one can find peace and clarity while also finding inner strength and determination.  That is the…
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Jackson declared Premier Trout Fishing Destination
 

Jackson declared Premier Trout Fishing Destination

Jackson County won’t officially become the North Carolina Trout Capital this year, but legislators expressed their support of the county’s…
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HCC qualifies for national championship
 

HCC qualifies for national championship

Haywood Community College’s Bass Fishing Team recently competed in the 2016 Carhartt College Eastern Regional Bassmaster Tournament where teammates Ryan…
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Sylva earns national recognition as a green town
 

Sylva earns national recognition as a green town

Sylva earned recognition for its efforts to be clean and sustainable when the travel site Expedia.com named it the fourth…
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Peregrines once again at Devil’s Courthouse
 

Peregrines once again at Devil’s Courthouse

A couple of Saturday’s ago Bob Olthoff and I made a quick trip up the Blue Ridge Parkway. We were…
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Pollinate, propagate, cultivate: 2016 garden tour to show off the best beds in Haywood
 

Pollinate, propagate, cultivate: 2016 garden tour to show off the best beds in Haywood

When Sarah Scott first started work at Haywood County Cooperative Extension in February 2015, planning for the 2016 Haywood County…
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Keep your salamander away from my newt
 

Keep your salamander away from my newt

I often remind everyone who reads “The Naturalist’s Corner” to remember to look up. But each spring while surveying birds…
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Stories, salad and wildflowers: Plants a passion for Bigelow
 

Stories, salad and wildflowers: Plants a passion for Bigelow

Adam Bigelow bears down on the gas pedal of his biodiesel-fueled Jetta, urging it up the steep contours of the…
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Get outside on National Trails Day
 

Get outside on National Trails Day

Every year, America’s hiking trails get their moment to shine with the American Hiking Society’s National Trails Day. This year’s…
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Cashiers gets second farmer market
 

Cashiers gets second farmer market

A new farmers market will launch in Cashiers this week, providing a weekly supply of local foods from 3 to…
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Trout waters open
 

Trout waters open

Delayed-harvest trout waters will open for the summer on Saturday, June 4, giving anglers the chance to catch a dinner…
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WCU tops ‘best-of’ list for outdoors colleges
 

WCU tops ‘best-of’ list for outdoors colleges

Western Carolina University came in on top in an online magazine poll looking for the region’s premiere outdoor adventure college.
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Get the cheat sheet to buy local
 

Get the cheat sheet to buy local

Growing season has arrived in Western North Carolina, and the new Local Food Guide from the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project…
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Glad to be alive: Bear bite victim tells his story
 

Glad to be alive: Bear bite victim tells his story

The sun had not quite set when Bradley Veeder fell asleep in his tent May 10, feeling “tired but happy”…
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Kids get creative with waterways
 

Kids get creative with waterways

Haywood County’s young artists got some recognition for the T-shirt designs they dreamed up to celebrate Kids in the Creek,…
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Local runners take top spots in half marathon
 

Local runners take top spots in half marathon

Runners from up and down the East Coast converged on Waynesville this month to try their stride at the Gateway…
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Park Service archives get new home
 

Park Service archives get new home

A new home for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s collection of artifacts and archives recently opened its doors in…
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See birds of prey up close
 

See birds of prey up close

An up-close glimpse of creatures such as the Eastern screech owl and Northern bald eagle will show birds of prey…
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Old-time remedies explained
 

Old-time remedies explained

See old-time remedies in action with a demonstration by Smokies naturalist Ila Hatter, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May…
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NOC paddler to appear in summer Olympics
 

NOC paddler to appear in summer Olympics

When Team U.S.A. marches into the Olympic stadium this summer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at the Opening Ceremonies of…
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Sculpture winds through WCU trails
 

Sculpture winds through WCU trails

A nature-based sculpture project launched by Western Carolina University’s Fine Art Museum aims to feature outdoors art while promoting discussion…
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