AT celebrates 75 years
As the legend goes, Earl Shaffer, the first man to hike the Appalachian Trail from end-to-end in 1948, used leather…
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Parking lot offers native plant lesson
The native garden located at the Bridge Park parking lot in the triangle surrounding the Jackson County Farmers Market sign…
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Arboretum hosting world renowned gardeners
The Speaking of Gardening symposium Aug. 24-25 at the N.C. Arboretum will bring some of the world’s finest gardeners to…
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Family tours of Tuckasegee tributary
The Watershed Association of the Tuckasegee River is offering guided adventure tours from 9 to 11 a.m. each Saturday morning…
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Group celebrating AT anniversary
The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the completion of the Appalachian Trail with a summer games…
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New law legalizes night hunting of coyotes, boar
New state hunting laws make it legal to hunt coyotes and feral swine at night on private lands. The laws…
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HCC to offer Hunter Safety courses
Haywood Community College’s Natural Resources Division and the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission will offer Hunter Safety courses from 6-9:30…
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Outdoor Sportsman’s Day Aug. 18
The WNC Sportsman’s Club and the Lake Logan Episcopal Center are sponsoring an Outdoor Sportsmans Day beginning at 9 a.m.…
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Dinner to benefit Elk Foundation
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation will hold a fundraising banquet and auction on Aug. 18 at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Hotel…
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Lecture to center on extinct cougar
Dr. Ron Sutherland will give a presentation on the eastern cougar at 7 p.m. on Aug. 16 as part of…
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Seminars focus on forest stewardship
North Carolina State University’s Forestry & Environmental Outreach Program is co-sponsoring a series of four workshops for private forest landowners…
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Onward and upward
Last week I wrote about the dark subterranean part of our little family adventure, which was a visit to Linville…
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Blue Ridge Breakaway breaks path for bike culture
By Paul Clark • Contributing writer Hundreds of bicyclists will soon be zipping along the scenic byways of Haywood County…
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Learn about seed saving and lending
A program on the local seed lending library in Jackson County will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Aug. 8…
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Learn to identify plants from the best
Dr. Dan Pittillo will lead a two-part workshop on plant identification beginning at 10 a.m. on Aug. 6 at the…
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Carnivorous plant tour in Highlands
The Highlands Botanical Garden will offer a free tour focusing on carnivorous plants of the Southern Appalachians at 10:30 a.m.…
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Teachers and students become park rangers
Local teachers and students will return to school with a wealth of knowledge and experience gained from a summer working…
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15K trail run at Camp Daniel Boone
The Daniel Boone Scramble 15k Trail Run will take place on Aug. 11 at Camp Daniel Boone in Haywood County.…
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Teddy Roosevelt helps J-MCA raise money
Joe Wiegand, regarded as the nation’s premiere Theodore Roosevelt impersonator, will bring the conservation-minded president to life during a fundraising…
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‘Why do you love AT’ video contest
The Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) — to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the completion of the AT — is hosting…
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GSMNP visitation trending upward
Visitation to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is on the rise, a good sign for Western North Carolina counties…
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Appalachian Trail turns 75
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the completion of the Appalachian Trail (A.T.), the longest hiking-only footpath in the…
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Classic hike series heads to Mt. Cammerer
The Friends of the Smokies next “Classic Hike of the Smokies” will be to the top of Mt. Cammerer, where…
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Main Street Mile in Waynesville is Aug. 10
The third annual Main Street Mile will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 10 in downtown Waynesville. The event…
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Biking the Trail of Tears
Seven members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee and 16 members of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma recently participated in…
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From the darkness to the light – literally
Legend has it that curious fishermen watching trout seemingly disappear into Humpback Mountain back in 1822 discovered an entrance into…
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Bicycle touring light Overnight trips take the pressure off planning, purchasing
By Jack Moore • Contributor J.R.R. Tolkien wrote, “Not all those who wander are lost,” and he may as well…
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Aerial assassins
Alaskan shooters are poised to take to the skies again this year to slaughter as many wolves as possible. This…
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Prehistoric plate tectonics gives rise to Smokies’ diversity
Dr. Dan Pittillo will explore the natural history of the southern Appalachians at 7 p.m. on Aug. 2 at the…
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Local produce to make its way to students’ trays
A Farm to School project will provide food awareness and better nutrition education for students and staff at five Haywood…
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Volunteers needed at Cataloochee Ranch
Volunteers are being sought for a workday at Cataloochee Ranch in Haywood County that will enhance the habitat for migratory…
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Reward for elk information upped
A $20,000 reward is being offered for information about the recent killing of three elk near the Great Smoky Mountains…
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Hear the creeks’ cry for help
While heavy rains have washed wayward trash into creeks in recent weeks, kids from Whitehouse, Tenn., helped scoured the banks…
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Get a taste of space science
Several all-day Space Science Labs for adults or kids will be held on various dates in late July and early…
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Clinic teaches horsemen to lighten their impact
Treading lightly on the land isn’t always easy if you’re sitting on top of 1,000 pounds and four stout hooves,…
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Volenteers needed to man Clingmans Dome
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is recruiting volunteers to help staff the visitor contact station at Clingmans Dome through Nov.…
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Revel in rail history at the Cradle of Forestry
Learn about the early locomotives and logging railroads that once wound their way through mountain hollers and hillsides during the…
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Trapper Rob and his wolves to greet children in Jackson
Kids can get up close and personal with wolves and their owner, Trapper Rob, at the Jackson County Public Library in…
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Try your hand at backyard chickens
A class for people who have an interest in the benefits of raising their own chickens and/or turkeys will be…
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Coping with gray treefrogs
The call of, “Come see! A frog!” is one oft repeated in the Hendershot household from spring through fall as…
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Marvelous moss: Mossin’ Annie worships the lush and lovely bryophytes
By Melanie Threlkeld McConnell • Correspondent A rolling stone gathers no moss, so says the proverb, but it would if…
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A tough farming year
By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer “Overall, it’s been a really tough year for farming,” said Jackson County farmer William…
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Go west yon hiker
A new hiking club has joined the ranks of an already burgeoning collection of trail trotters in WNC.
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Preserving tradition Non-profit grows plants for Cherokee artisans
By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer Not too long ago, the number of people who carried on the ancient Cherokee…
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Building a bridge of ideas and insight from the Smokies to Iceland
By George Ivey • Contributing writer What in the world would bring together the Great Smoky Mountains and the country…
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Homeward bound
After Jersey and the Big Apple (see last week’s Naturalist’s Corner — www.smokymountainnews.com/outdoors/item/7554-famous-nyc-offspring), it was time for a leisurely trip…
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The dam is gone, so how’s the Tuck doing?
Learn about biological changes afoot in the Tuckasegee River since the removal of the Dillsboro dam two years ago during…
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Canoe trip to explore the Little Tennessee
A guided canoe float trip down the Little Tennessee River will be held on July 19 as part of the…
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Open water swim added to the Lake Logan multi-sport line-up
The fast growing sport of Open Water Swimming has been added to the Lake Logan Multisport Festival held Aug. 4…
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Girls on the Run to increase presence in Macon County
Girls on the Run is reaching out to elementary and middle school girls in Franklin to get involved in a…
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