A new purpose: Finding peace in teaching the art of survival

Will White can prepare you to survive just about any situation.
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Grants awarded for WNC park projects

Western North Carolina will see $1.5 million of the more than $17 million in grants approved Aug. 26 through the…
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‘Know what you don’t know’
: New book aims to stop backcountry emergencies before they start

During his 30 years living and teaching in Western North Carolina, Maurice Phipps has heard countless tales of tragedy and…
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SELC names new executive director

The Southern Environmental Law Center has named D.J. Gerken as its new president and executive director. This fall, he’ll take…
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Notes from a plant nerd: Joe Pye Weed, The Queen of the Meadow

The stories of plants are what led me in to falling in love with wildflowers, just as much as their…
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Ron Moser, first director for Haywood Waterways, passes away

Ron Moser, a founding member and former leader of Haywood Waterways Association, passed away Thursday, Aug. 18, at the age…
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Kids explore with Creation Care Camp

Two environmentally focused camps this summer offered students the chance to get outside while learning about how to care for…
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Disease outbreak kills N.C. deer
 

Disease outbreak kills N.C. deer

An outbreak of hemorrhagic disease has spurred reports of sick and dead deer in 39 North Carolina counties, with the…
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Culvert project to improve fish habitat

A portion of Connelly’s Creek Road in the Nantahala National Forest will close starting Sept. 6 to upgrade an existing…
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Trail program to prepare youth for outdoor careers

The U.S. Forest Service, Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy and Southeast Conservation Corps are expanding their partnership to offer a…
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Trail repairs done on Tennessee A.T.

New bog bridges and repaired steps are now in place on the Bradley Gap Section of the Appalachian Trail through…
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Second deer tests positive for chronic wasting disease
 

Second deer tests positive for chronic wasting disease

A second deer has tested positive for chronic wasting disease after North Carolina’s first CWD-positive deer was found in December…
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‘It can’t be like that all the time’: Farmers recover from Fred amid inflation, weather worries

When Gary Griffith woke up a rainy Tuesday on Aug. 17, 2021, he never imagined that by the next morning,…
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Southside story: Bid awarded in contentious timber project

Five years after it first proposed the controversial Southside Timber Project, the U.S. Forest Service has awarded a timber bid…
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Notes from a plant nerd: There’s goldenrod on them there hills

Goldenrods (Solidago spp.) are among the most widespread, beautiful and important wildflowers in all of Southern Appalachia. There is almost…
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Barn dance raises $85K for the Smokies

Friends of the Smokies raised $85,000 to support the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at its Smokies Stomp event held…
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N.C. declared free of bird flu

North Carolina is now officially free of High Path Avian Influenza, meaning that the state can resume export and international…
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Notes from a plant nerd: Aster Family Plants, the Stars of Summer!

Often, when I am giving my introductory talk on the guided wildflower walks I lead, I invite people to play…
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Recent waterfall deaths spur safety warning

Last weekend, one man died and another was seriously injured following incidents at waterfalls in the Pisgah-Nantahala National Forest, leading…
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Plant more trees

The N.C. Forest Service is now accepting tree seedling orders for its annual sale. 
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Sylva man graduates wildlife law enforcement training

Sylva resident Cole Burch is among the 15 new wildlife law enforcement officers sworn in during the 58th Basic School…
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Asheville man to be first N.C. chair for National Wildlife Federation

The first North Carolinian to ever be elected as leader of the National Wildlife Federation’s Board of Directors hails from…
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Conservation awards honor WNC achievements

The N.C. Wildlife Federation has announced the winners of its 58th annual Governor’s Conservation Achievement Awards, and Western North Carolina…
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Far western lakes pass E. coli tests
 

Far western lakes pass E. coli tests

All seven lake sites on the Hiwassee, Nottely and Chatuge rivers, as well as Fires Creek, have passed MountainTrue’s weekly…
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Missing person found dead in park

The body of a Knoxville man who went missing while traveling to Charlotte was found Friday, Aug. 5, in the…
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Fanning the flames: Cherokee plans Fire Mountain Trails expansion

Cherokee’s Fire Mountain family of outdoor experiences is set to add a new member after the tribe announced its intention…
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Notes from a plant nerd: Rhododendron, showman of the Southern Apps

Throughout Southern Appalachia, rhododendrons can be found growing and blooming. And what a show they put on. With flower colors…
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Economic development 
program launches in WNC

The  WNC: MADE X MTNS Partnership  is launching a new outdoor-driven community economic development initiative, Building Outdoor Communities, spanning 25 Western…
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Up Moses Creek: Thrashers make a home on Berry Island

The sight of a fox standing in the yard would not have made my eyes open any wider that morning…
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Young girl dies after tree falls on tent
 

Young girl dies after tree falls on tent

A 7-year-old Georgia girl is dead after a tree fell on the tent where she was sleeping at Elkmont Campground…
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Ocoee River warning system restored
 

Ocoee River warning system restored

The high-water warning system at the Ocoee Whitewater Center in Tennessee is working once more after incurring damage in the…
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Cherokee National Forest ends ginseng permits

Declining ginseng populations have prompted the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee to halt harvesting permits for the prized plant, following…
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Cooper appoints new clean energy director
 

Cooper appoints new clean energy director

Peter Holderness Ledford has been appointed as North Carolina’s new clean energy director, Gov. Roy Cooper announced July 27.
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Mayfield stepping down as MountainTrue director

Julie Mayfield is stepping down as co-director of MountainTrue after serving alongside co-director Bob Wagner since 2013. Prior to that,…
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Fish and Wildlife Service seeks evidence of ivory-billed woodpeckers

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is reopening the public comment period and extending the decision deadline on its proposal…
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Become a Master Gardener

The 2022 Master Gardener class is now forming in Haywood County, with applications accepted for a 13-week course starting Thursday,…
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Splash into reading at Bryson City library

It’s “Oceans of Possibilities” this summer at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City, with a marine-themed summer reading program…
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Updated Greenbrier temporary closures

Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials have closed the Greenbrier area to all use due to additional road damage caused…
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Duke carbon plan headed for public hearing

The North Carolina Utilities Commission is hosting a series of hearings this summer to take public input on the draft…
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The birders… they are a’changing: A new generation of birders rises up

I’ve been birding in Western North Carolina since I got here in the late 1980s, in my mid-thirties (yes, I’m…
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Notes from a plant nerd: A little beauty on an early spring day

One of my favorite things in the world to do is walk people into a field of wildflowers that they…
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Up the creek: Where the heck is Moses Creek? Up Caney Fork!

On Friday, May 27, the day after a big storm dumped inches of rain on Western North Carolina, the air…
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Occupational therapy students visit Full Spectrum Farms

In June, Southwestern Community College’s Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) program teamed up with Full Spectrum Farms to allow SCC students…
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Big Creek Trail reopens

Great Smoky Mountains National Park reopened Big Creek Trail following an eight-week closure for a trail rehabilitation project. The park…
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Learn about hellbenders

The series “Where We Live: History, Nature, and Culture” will present a program on the Hellbender, a giant salamander found…
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Plans for safe passage: Research yields 
recommendations to stem wildlife deaths on I-40

After more than three years of research and analysis, a group focused on ending wildlife-vehicle collisions in the Pigeon River…
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Spotted lanternfly arrives in N.C.

The first established presence of the invasive spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) has been confirmed in North Carolina. 
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Dry conditions expand in N.C.

The most recent drought map, released Thursday, June 30, showed dry conditions blanketing the state as North Carolina’s second-driest June…
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Notes from a Plant Nerd: How a love for plants took root

Hi, my name is Adam Bigelow, and I am a Plant Nerd. 
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New EV charging ports coming to WNC
 

New EV charging ports coming to WNC

The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality has awarded funds for 59 new Level 2 electric vehicle charging points across 23…
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