Looking
for a Christmas present? Western North Carolina is home to many outdoors
organizations, from conservation groups and environmental advocates
to recreation clubs that focus on outings.
We’ve compiled a comprehensive list of these groups, clubs and
nonprofits. A year’s membership to any of these would make a
great gift, as would making a donation to the group in a person’s
name.
All of these organizations rely on memberships and donations to operate.
The preservation and environmental protection work performed by these
groups is vital to the conservation of natural resources in the region.
In addition to their operating costs, these organizations rely on
membership numbers to give them clout with elected leaders and lawmakers.
The more members a group has, the more lawmakers pay attention.
Most organizations sell items emblazoned with their logos —
fleeces, long-sleeve t-shirts, hats, mugs, patches, tote bags —
which provide a great wrapable object to accompany a gift membership.
Phone numbers and websites are listed for each group. Most accept
orders and memberships online.
National park supporters
° Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park assists
the National Park Service in its mission to preserve and protect
the Great Smoky Mountains National Park by raising funds and public
awareness, and providing volunteers for needed projects. Gift donations
can be designated for specific projects. $25 basic membership. 800.845.5665.
www.friendsofthesmokies.org
° Friends of the Parkway is a nonprofit that works to preserve,
protect and promote the Blue Ridge Parkway and its surrounding scenic
landscape. $25 basic membership. 800.228.7275. www.blueridgefriends.org
° Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation is another major fund-raising
arm and resource for the Blue Ridge Parkway. 336.721.0260. www.brpfoundation.org
° National Parks Conservation Association has spent decades
fighting to safeguard the scenic beauty, wildlife, and historical
and cultural treasures of the national park system. The group is
a leader in national parks education, advocacy and research. Memberships
start at $25. 800.628.7275. www.npca.org
Water quality groups
° Little Tennessee Watershed Association is a conservation
organization based in Franklin that protects and restores water
quality and habitat in the Upper Little Tennessee River and its
tributaries upstream of Fontana Lake. Memberships start at $25.
828.369.6402. www.littletennesseewatershed.org
° Watershed Association of the Tuckasegee River (WATR)
is a group that works to protect the Tuckasegee River and the watershed
that feeds it. Based in Jackson County. 828.631.1500. www.watrnc.org
° Haywood Waterways Association is a nonprofit dedicated
to maintaining and improving the water quality of the Pigeon River
and Pigeon River Watershed. Memberships start at $15. 828.456.5195.
www.pagemanager.com/haywoodwaterways
Greenways
° Friends of the Greenway, known as FROGS, assists with
the management and development of the Little Tennessee River Greenway
in Macon County. Membership starts at $25. 828.369.7331. www.littletennessee.org
Land Trusts
° Southern Appalachian Land Conservancy works with private
landowners to protect natural, scenic, recreational, agricultural,
historic and cultural property. Membership starts at $35. 828.253.0095.
www.appalachian.org
° Land Trust for the Little Tennessee is a nonprofit organization
dedicated to conserving rural lands, forests, and waters in the
upper Little Tennessee valley in Macon and Swain counties. 828.524.2711.
www.ltlt.org
° Highlands Land Trust is dedicated to preserving areas
of natural heritage in the Highlands area through conservation,
education and land protection. 828.526.9938 ext. 25.
Environmental Advocacy
° WNC Alliance is an extensive environmental action group
operating throughout Western North Carolina with offices in Asheville
and Franklin. The group has regular meetings, conferences and socials.
Memberships starting at $25. 828.524.3899. www.wnca.org
° Clean Water for North Carolina (CWFNC, formerly the Clean
Water Fund of North Carolina) is a private non-profit membership
organization serving residents across the state of North Carolina.
Memberships start at $25. 828.251.1291. www.cwfnc.org.
° Western North Carolina Sierra Club, known as the WENOCA
group, is a local arm of the National Sierra Club. The group is
primarily an environmental advocacy group that works to educate
the public and lobby political leaders to preserve and protect the
environment, outdoor recreation and natural resources. Memberships
start at $25. Memberships are obtained through the national outlet,
but include automatic membership in the local group. 415.977.5500.
www.sierraclub.org.
° Sierra Club, Pisgah, is another local chapter of the
National Sierra Club that focuses on environmental issues related
to the greater Pisgah National Forest area. Memberships start at
$25. Memberships are obtained through the national outlet, but include
automatic membership in the local group. 415.977.5500. www.sierraclub.org.
° Audubon Society has a regional chapter that advocates
the protection of habitat and natural resources relied on by bird
populations. Membership is $20 and includes a one-year subscription
of the chapter newsletter The Mountain Warbler and a subscription
to Audubon, a publication of the National Audubon Society. 828.787.1387.
www.audubon.org
° Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is a national organization
that now has several local chapters that formed in conjunction with
the experimental reintroduction of elk in the Smokies. Memberships
start at $30 and include a subscription to Bugle magazine. 888.389.9100.
www.rmef.org.
° The American Hiking Society is a national organization
that lobbies to protect trails and hiking routes. The club also
organizes national trail building efforts and keeps hikers connected
with news and events. Memberships to the American Hiking Society
start at $25. 301.565.6704. www.americanhiking.org
Outdoor Recreation groups
° Carolina Mountain Club is a hiking group that fosters
the enjoyment of the mountains of Western North Carolina and adjoining
regions and encourages the conservation of natural resources. The
group also builds and maintains trails. Hikes are held every Wednesday,
Saturday and Sunday. Anyone can hike with the group, but with a
$12 membership comes a subscription to the groups newsletter Let’s
Go. 828.298.5084. www.carolinamtnclub.com
° Trout Unlimited is a national organization with several
local chapters that works toward the same mission, which is “to
conserve, protect and restore North America’s trout and salmon
fisheries and their watersheds.” Membership starts at $35.
Currently, an introductory membership is $15 and comes with a free
book titled Trout Stream Insects. There are two local chapters in
the region — one based in Sylva and one in Bryson City. There
are also chapters based in Asheville and Hendersonville. www.tu.org.
800.834.2419.
° American Whitewater is a national group that works to
conserve and restore America’s whitewater resources for recreation
and advocates for public access. Membership starts at $35 and includes
a subscription to American Whitewater journal. The organization
also organizes sporting events, contests and festivals. 828.252.0728.
www.americanwhitewater.org.
Others
° Pisgah Climbers Association is a community of commercial
and non-commercial climbers who use the Pisgah Ranger District of
Pisgah National Forest. www.pisgahclimbers.com
° Asheville Track Club keeps members informed of running
events and news and brings together runners for group runs and social
events. Memberships start at $15 and include a subscription to the
club newsletter Runnin’ On. Members get discounts on race fees
for competitions sponsored by the club. 828.253.8781. www.main.nc.us/ATC.
° Blue Ridge Bike Club brings together a community of
mountain and road cyclists who advocate for biking recreation and
access, as well as hold group rides and social gatherings. Memberships
start at $25. Membership includes a newsletter and $5 discount to
the International Mountain Bike Association. www.blueridgebicycleclub.org.
° Friends of the North Carolina Mountains to Sea Trail
is a nonprofit organization that supports the Mountains to Sea Trail,
a trail that runs the length of North Carolina. Memberships start
at $10. 919.496.4771. www.ncmst.org
License plates
The license plates look cool, automatically identify you as an outdoorsy
person and make you a member of an unspoken club of folks driving
around town with the park or trail specialty plates. The plates
cost $55 a year. Of that, $25 covers standard annual fee required
for auto registration, $20 goes to the project of choice and $10
goes to the state highway beautification fund.
° Great Smokies National Park plate is already displayed
on some 8,000 vehicles since it started in 1999. The funds from
the plate programs have raised more than $350,000 for the park,
funding projects from the experimental reintroduction of elk to
saving hemlocks from the wooly adelgid. Call Friends of the Smokies
at 800.845.5665.
° Blue Ridge Parkway plate is a brand-new specialty license
plate. Sales were launched in October and the plates will begin
to be issued and show up on bumpers in January. Call the Blue Ridge
Parkway Foundation 336.721.0260 or apply for the plate on-line at
www.brpfoundation.org/finalplate.pdf.
° Appalachian Trail plate is still in the design process,
but this seems to be the leading design for now. The Appalachian
Trail Conference needs at least 300 people to sign-up for the plates
between now and Jan.15 to show the state there is enough interest
in this specialty plate to get it approved. 828.254.3708, or fill
out an on-line application at
www.appalachiantrail.org/trailnews/nc_plate.html#sub1.
