Law changes appointment structure for Clean Water board
Gov. Roy Cooper has signed into law a bill that reconstitutes several boards and commissions that the court previously held…
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Science program goes statewide: ecoEXPLORE program for kids now available in N.C. State Parks
A program that’s been getting Western North Carolina kids outside since 2016 is now a statewide offering, with a whirlwind…
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Baseball for autistic youth planned in WNC
The fresh cut grass, the din of the crowd, the white chalk lines on the dusty dirt infield — every…
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Waynesville Judo Club brings home awards
The Waynesville Judo Club recently competed in the South Carolina State Championship, coming away with 11 medals.
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Tennis courts get makeover at Lake Junaluska
Renovated tennis courts will greet Lake Junaluska visitors this summer season.
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Find local food
The 2019 edition of the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project’s Local Food Guide is now available, an essential source for finding…
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Help hellbenders
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission wants to hear about hellbender sightings, part of agency biologists’ ongoing effort to learn more…
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Bears active in Panthertown
Recent reports of increased bear encounters in Panthertown Valley have prompted a call for caution among visitors.
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The Naturalist's Corner: Birding daze
The six weeks from May 1 to June 15 are always a busy time for me. That is the window…
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Road work underway in the Smokies
A pavement preservation project is underway on Little River Road in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, expected to result…
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New mapping program available for farmers
A new program will allow growers to map crops by herbicide-resistant traits.
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The Naturalist's Corner: 20 years are in the can; as they say in the biz
I can’t, thinking back now, remember what the two floors below us were at 9 Main Street, in 1999 when…
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Mainspring expands to Sylva
Mainspring Conservation Trust now has an office in downtown Sylva.
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Lime treatment reverses acid rain effects
You can’t always believe what you see. The water in our mountain streams is sometimes polluted even though it appears…
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Kids in Parks logs one million TRACK Trails adventures
In its mission to engage children with the outdoors, the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation’s Kids in Parks program is marking…
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A vision for the Tuck: New WATR director looks to make strides in water quality improvement
The Watershed Association of the Tuckasegee River has a new leader. Two years after former executive director Roger Clapp retired…
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The story behind the man: First-ever Horace Kephart biography explores a complex man and momentous life
Horace Kephart has been dead for 88 years, but his name and his story still pull an undercurrent through Western…
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Life at two miles an hour: A.T. hikers share their stories
From flip-flops to overnights to the quintessential northbound thru-hike, there are many different ways to experience the Appalachian Trail on…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Eastern box turtle, our state reptile
Editor’s note: This article first appeared in a June 2001 issue of The Smoky Mountain News Taksi was a legendary…
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Smokies plates celebrate milestone
Twenty years after the program launched, drivers in Tennessee and North Carolina have passed the $15 million mark in support…
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N.C. deer harvest declines in 2018-19
Deer harvest in North Carolina declined 9 percent from the previous three-year average in the 2018-19 season, despite the fact…
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Believing Bigfoot: Locals log Sasquatch evidence in North Carolina’s mountains
Jeff Carpenter knows the woods. A native of Otto who’s spent most of his adult life the next county over…
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Boating fatalities abnormally high in 2018
On the heels of a year when more people died from boating accidents in North Carolina than in any other…
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Trillium Gap Trail rehab has begun
A two-year trail rehabilitation project is now underway at the Trillium Gap Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park,…
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Bethel student wins art contest
Eighth grader Gracie Burgess, of Bethel Middle School, will see her artwork worn by eighth-graders across Haywood County during Kids…
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Hiking club achieves nonprofit status
As of March 18, the Nantahala Hiking Club is officially a 501c3 nonprofit.
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Cost-share available for organic certification
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is now accepting applications from producers looking for help to cover the cost of organic…
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Landslide closes Jackson trail system
A landslide on Forest Service Road 4650 in Jackson County has resulted in closure of the Wayehutta OHV Trail System.
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Plans complete for Macon/Jackson timber project
An environmental analysis is now complete for the Southside Project, expected to improve forest health, diversity and wildlife habitat in…
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Magnolia trifecta
It’s May! That means my 2019 Forest Service bird survey has begun — another six weeks of roaming the wilds…
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Professor receives honor from New York Botanical Garden
Jim Costa, executive director of the Western Carolina University Highlands Biological Station and a professor of biology at WCU, has…
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Make way for elk (and trout): Haywood, Jackson counties seek designation as state’s elk and trout capitals
If you want to see an elk, the Elk Capital of North Carolina would probably be a good place to…
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Year of the bird: Killdeer nest prompts planning shuffle for Greening Up The Mountains
Every year, Sylva’s population quadruples on the last Saturday in April as more than 10,000 people flock to the tiny…
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Crews conquer fire in Linville
The Brushy Ridge Trail near Linville Gorge reopened last week following successful containment of a 3-acre fire there April 30.
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Farm Bill causes changes for loan limits
The 2018 Farm Bill resulted in higher farm loan limits from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, among other changes.
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The Naturalist's Corner: Bald eagles, gators and manatees, oh my
It was another great Spring Break along the Gulf Coast of Central Florida. We stayed in Homosassa Springs on the…
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Facilities reopen in the Smokies
This year’s opening schedule for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is now final, with most facilities having opened in…
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Flowers with stories: Nodding Trillium Garden opens in Cullowhee
No matter what scale of time you’re using, the newly opened Jean Pittillo Nodding Trillium Garden in Cullowhee has deep…
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Blue Ridge grant awards to stimulate heritage projects in WNC
The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership (BRNHA) has awarded 19 grants totaling $190,171 to support projects across the North…
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Bill aims to restore permanent funding for conservation
The U.S. Senate is considering a bill that would provide permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
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I-26 project will prompt Parkway realignment
An upcoming widening project on Interstate 26 in Buncombe and Henderson counties will impact the Blue Ridge Parkway.
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Prescribed burn proposed for Panthertown
Comments are wanted on a U.S. Forest Service proposal to burn 814 acres in Panthertown Valley, located in the Nantahala…
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Hiking through history: Little Cataloochee offers a window to the past
One hundred years ago, the parking area and campground just past the fields in Cataloochee Valley where elk often hang…
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Longtime Lake Junaluska landscaper retires
After 27 years of service, legendary Lake Junaluska landscaper Roddy Ray has retired.
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WCU takes adventure college title
For the fifth time, Western Carolina University has been voted the top adventure college in Blue Ridge Outdoors’ online readers’…
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Roadside wildflower displays win awards
Wildflower displays along Western North Carolina highways have earned local N.C. Department of Transportation offices statewide recognition.
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The Naturalist's Corner: The PR of Pittman-Robertson
Ran across this little gem of a blurb on U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) Facebook page: “Sports men and…
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Overlook clearing completed on the Blue Ridge Parkway
The view from the Pink Beds Overlook at milepost 410 on the Blue Ridge Parkway is looking a lot better…
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SCC’s outdoor leader gets recognized
Paul Wolf, who heads up Southwestern Community College’s outdoor leadership program, received recognition at the 2019 Southeast Regional Conference of…
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New wildflower trail to open
Nodding Trillium Garden, the Pittillo Family Nature Preserve, will hold a grand opening of its wildflower garden trail on Wednesday,…
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