Seeking a new chill
By Michael Beadle Freezing temperatures may keep some people bundled up indoors, but not Adam Fox. When the temperatures dip…
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Trees up close and personal
Winter is a great time for studying tree identification. The mountains look steel-gray from a distance. The forest, up close,…
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Two-wheel motion: Long-time mechanic opens bikeshop
A new cycling shop opened in Waynesville just in the nick of time for Bob Gatis. The notion recently struck…
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Bird nerds unite
I learned, when I worked full-time for the Smoky Mountain News, that it helps if newspaper writers are thick-skinned. It…
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Cherokee reels in North Carolina Casting Championships
Top fly and bass fishermen will be coming to Cherokee to show off their skills at the North Carolina Casting…
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Smokies: Road to Nowhere won’t impair park
Controversy over proposed changes to the mission of the National Park Service has landed at the doorstep of the Great…
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Holiday Bird Nerd Diary: Yellow-headed blackbird highlights Balsam bird count
The Carolina Field birders, friends and volunteers conducted their fourth annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count on Thursday, Dec. 29.
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Striking at the heart of Parks
An attempt by the National Park Service to rewrite the guidelines governing protection of parks has prompted conservation groups to…
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Debate erupts over wording of new Park Service guidelines
The National Park Service says the management guidelines governing national parks need to be clarified in the face of a…
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Bear, skunk, coyote targeted in hunting regulations
Citing increased problems for humans, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has proposed new regulations that will step up hunting of…
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A wintry mix
Christmas Day brought showers interrupted by buckets full of sleet. Sometime late Christmas night or before dawn the next morning,…
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Ladies first: Cataloochee Ranch hosts skiing and snowboarding classes tailored to women
By Michael Beadle Once again Cataloochee Ski Area will be hosting a series of once-a-week skiing and snowboarding classes this…
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Outdoor rec
The world of outdoor recreation had several milestones this year, especially in the whitewater arena.
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Parks in 2005
Nature’s lessons A $105,000 grant from North Carolina’s GlaxoSmithKline Foundation to Friends of the Smokies will connect several hundred teachers…
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Environment in 2005
Outdoor recreation and the environment go hand in hand. Paddlers like clean rivers, hikers prefer old-growth forests over those that…
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It’s hornets vs. swans in OLF controversy
One would think swans would probably be a sure bet in such a scenario. After all, they are bigger and…
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Get your birding on a trail near you
A North Carolina Birding Trail is under way and could one day could link popular birding sites across the state…
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Tobacco settlement money to help farmers
The Land Trust for the Little Tennessee was recently awarded a portion of a $200,000 grant from the North Carolina…
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Tags raising money for Friends of the Smokies
Those sporting the trendy turquoise and pink Great Smoky Mountains National Park license plates on their bumpers raised $181,800 this…
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Park considers more elk
The North Carolina Wildlife Commission is still weighing whether to allow the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to bring more…
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One step at a time
When Lisa Ashe signed up for the newly formed Jeff Galloway running group in Jackson County last year, her dream…
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Bamboo by any other name
Bamboo is the common name applied to a wide and varied group of woody grasses from all around the world.…
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Fishermen struggle with loss of stream access
Editor’s note: This article was written by Mallory Martin and Carl Kittel of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Martin…
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Kudos for Cantrell’s new book on fish in Cherokee country
When I read the notice about a new book — The Fishes Gathered in Cherokee Country — in the Nov.…
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The Naturalist's Corner
The front that passed through the week before Thanksgiving brought the first waterfowl fallout of the season to Lake Junaluska.…
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Two parks, two leaders, one mission: Park assistant superintendent, Phil Francis takes over at Parkway
Phil Francis, the long-time assistant superintendent of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, has been appointed superintendent of the Blue…
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Ranger Rick rappels into cave to rescue dog
Rangers with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park rappelled into a 70-foot underground cave last week to rescue a hunting…
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NOC founder inducted into Hall of Fame
Payson Kennedy, co-founder of Nantahala Outdoor Center, was inducted into the inaugural class of the International Whitewater Hall of Fame…
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Chickadee code cracked
Chickadee #1: Chick-a-DEE!-DEE!-DEE!-DEE!-DEE!-DEE!-DEE! Translation: There’s a sharp-shinned hawk behind you!
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Brothers in arms
Jacob, Luke and Ben Sutton were once considered renegade snowboarders at Cataloochee Ski Area.
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Taking it outside: The Balsam Mountain Trust offers nature hikes, outdoor seminars, workshops and research studies in a richly diverse tract of 4,400 acres in Jackson County
By Michael Beadle At first it sounds like a contradiction — a land developer interested in protecting the environment. Is…
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New shelter near Max Patch ready for hikers
A new Appalachian Trail shelter that can sleep 18 backpackers has been built in the Max Patch area of Haywood…
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A season of our own
Here’s a riddle for you. If the leaves turn in the mountains and there are no tourists to see them,…
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Dealing with the struggles of keeping the Hemlock in WNC
The clock is ticking for hemlock trees in Western North Carolina.
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Park or promoter? Parkway looks for high ground in new role of peddling tourism
The Blue Ridge Parkway plans to build a visitor center outside Asheville in coming years that will provide information on…
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The Naturalist's Corner
Endangered Species Act Threatened A California cowboy is trying to hobble the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Congressman Richard Pombo (R-Calif.),…
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A view from above
Editor’s note: The Southern Appalachian Biodiversity Project, a regional environmental group, took the Smoky Mountain News on an aerial tour…
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To elk or not to elk
By the time this column hits the streets (11/2), the results from two public meetings regarding the Great Smoky Mountains…
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