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Ghost Town opening delayed again: Park hammering out ride inspection glitches
 

Ghost Town opening delayed again: Park hammering out ride inspection glitches

After two false starts, Ghost Town in the Sky theme park in Maggie Valley remains closed this week.
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Site chosen for Cashiers liquor store
 

Site chosen for Cashiers liquor store

A new Jackson County liquor store will soon be under construction in Cashiers, with plans to open for business by…
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Jackson library supporters make last-ditch budget pitch
 

Jackson library supporters make last-ditch budget pitch

Jackson County commissioners were implored by library advocates this week to give the Sylva and Cashiers libraries a sizeable bump…
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State teaching center in Cullowhee could be shuttered by budget cuts
 

State teaching center in Cullowhee could be shuttered by budget cuts

The North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching in Jackson County had its funding slashed in half in 2011,…
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Cullowhee hitches its college-town dreams to the Tuckasegee River
 

Cullowhee hitches its college-town dreams to the Tuckasegee River

Lackluster at best and run-down at worst, it’s no question the has-been commercial district on Western Carolina University’s doorstep needs…
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State grant bridges the gap for Jackson greenway
 

State grant bridges the gap for Jackson greenway

Jackson County will begin building the first leg of a long-awaited greenway along the Tuckasegee River this summer.
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Finding your element
 

Finding your element

David Burress wants to live forever. Not necessarily in the immortal sense though. Burress is an accomplished blacksmith. And for…
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Downtown Waynesville celebrates Appalachian heritage
 

Downtown Waynesville celebrates Appalachian heritage

An Appalachian Lifestyle Celebration will showcase mountain culture, heritage, music, dance, storytelling, arts and crafts and demonstrations from 10 a.m.…
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Novice Jackson tourism board flounders over budget
 

Novice Jackson tourism board flounders over budget

The Cashiers Chamber of Commerce leaders claim they have been slighted their fair share of visitor center funding from the…
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Jackson planning board further refines steep slope rewrites
 

Jackson planning board further refines steep slope rewrites

Jackson County Planning Board members discussed axing part of the steep slope rules aimed at protecting mountain viewsheds. The viewshed…
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Meadows keeps pledge to make time for constituents
 

Meadows keeps pledge to make time for constituents

In his brief five months in Congress, U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows, R-Cashiers, has kept busy — voting on several pieces of…
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Feds to foot more of bill in Cherokee storm clean-up
 

Feds to foot more of bill in Cherokee storm clean-up

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will receive more federal aid than originally promised after January’s rainstorms, flooding and mudslides.…
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Tribe settles suit over sewage spills
 

Tribe settles suit over sewage spills

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians has settled a civil lawsuit claiming overflows from the tribe’s sewage treatment plant were…
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Battle over degrees at WCU could heat up
 

Battle over degrees at WCU could heat up

Western Carolina University is grappling with whether to cut unpopular or obsolete majors, posing a conundrum as it and other…
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Haywood settles into budget norm of making ends meet
 

Haywood settles into budget norm of making ends meet

Haywood County’s budget will increase by more than $2 million next fiscal year, but it will still be nearly that…
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Did that used to be a tree? The tragic legend of the ‘Hazelwood haircut’
 

Did that used to be a tree? The tragic legend of the ‘Hazelwood haircut’

It’s got more names than the Bible. The “round-over,” the “lollipop,” and the “bob” to name a few. No matter…
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Jackson did not spend $50,000 wisely
 

Jackson did not spend $50,000 wisely

To the Editor: My first reaction to the county brand “Play On” was that it must be April 1. Quickly…
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Spend fund balance and cut property tax rate
 

Spend fund balance and cut property tax rate

To the Editor: Macon County commissioners can re-sponsibly reduce the property tax. The county manager’s proposed 2014 general fund budget…
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Legislative moves will harm rural N.C.
 

Legislative moves will harm rural N.C.

To the Editor: We are well into this Legislature’s session. The governor has put forward his budget. The Senate has proposed…
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The boys of summer are, after all, just that – boys
 

The boys of summer are, after all, just that – boys

It was a great day for a picnic … or a baseball game. The sun hung there above the horizon…
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Sculptures installed in Cashiers
 

Sculptures installed in Cashiers

Nine sculptures were installed in The Village Green in Cashiers this past week in preparation for the opening of the…
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Festival celebrates Cherokee life, culture
 

Festival celebrates Cherokee life, culture

The Cherokee Voices Festival runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 8, at the Museum of the Cherokee…
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Tickets on sale for Miranda Lambert
 

Tickets on sale for Miranda Lambert

Mega-country star Miranda Lambert hits the stage at 9 p.m. Friday, July 19, at Harrah’s Cherokee Event Center. Lambert is…
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Buddy Holly musical comes to Highlands
 

Buddy Holly musical comes to Highlands

“Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story” will be showcased from June 13-30 at the Highlands Playhouse. Holly’s brief life became the…
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Trail release party at Nantahala Brewing
 

Trail release party at Nantahala Brewing

The 5th Trail Magic Ale release party is set for June 7-8 at Nantahala Brewing Company in Bryson City. 
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WNC film shown in honor of library anniversary
 

WNC film shown in honor of library anniversary

A showing of the film “Paradise Falls” will coincide with the Jackson County Public Library’s second anniversary, at 7 p.m.…
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Harpist plays artist reception
 

Harpist plays artist reception

Harpist Betina Morgan will play the artist reception for the exhibition “Appalachia,” from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, June 7,…
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Dwight Yoakam hits the stage at Harrah’s
 

Dwight Yoakam hits the stage at Harrah’s

Multi-platinum Grammy winning singer-songwriter, actor, director and country music pioneer Dwight Yoakam will perform at 9 p.m. Friday, June 14,…
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This Must Be the Place
 

This Must Be the Place

Well, hello there Western North Carolina. As the arts and entertainment writer at The Smoky Mountain News, I spend my…
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Making the connection, one melody at a time
 

Making the connection, one melody at a time

You’ve sung it in the shower, in the car with the windows rolled down, at weddings, in karaoke bars, and…
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Smoky Mountain anglers gain toehold in competitive fly fishing scene
 

Smoky Mountain anglers gain toehold in competitive fly fishing scene

Like New York is known for its basketball legends, and Texas is known for its football stars, Western North Carolina…
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Swingin’ for the Smokies
 

Swingin’ for the Smokies

Craig Hartle just might have the best job in Western North Carolina. The head golf professional for High Hampton Inn…
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Head for the hills
 

Head for the hills

When he was a young boy, Jason Hardin fell in love. It was a 1973 Harley-Davidson Sportster. Owned by his…
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Getting your fill in Appalachia
 

Getting your fill in Appalachia

Strolling through downtown Bryson City, one tends to cross paths with the scent of delicious food wafting from a nearby…
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Heinzelmannchen Brewery taps into the Smokies
 

Heinzelmannchen Brewery taps into the Smokies

Dieter Kuhn was 4,500 miles from his hometown in Germany when he came across Sylva, a small community tucked away…
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Getting away from it all
 

Getting away from it all

David Lippy was sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic in Orlando when it hit him. “The city was so congested with vehicles,”…
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Opening up Appalachia for all
 

Opening up Appalachia for all

Amid the cherished traditions of Western North Carolina is the deep foundation of family and friends getting together to celebrate…
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A story of violence and race in small-town N.C.
 

A story of violence and race in small-town N.C.

My decision to read this “docudrama” (part memoir, part history and part detective story) was prompted by my genuine wish…
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“Tunnel-phobia” has gotten worse as years go by
 

“Tunnel-phobia” has gotten worse as years go by

Leading a field trip isn’t complicated. But there may be more to it than you suppose. It helps if you…
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Sylva farmers market gives veggies, takes plastic
 

Sylva farmers market gives veggies, takes plastic

You don’t have to barter with chickens at the Jackson County Farmers Market, or even pay with cash for that…
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Outdoor writer explores Mountain-To-Sea Trail
 

Outdoor writer explores Mountain-To-Sea Trail

Danny Bernstein will discuss her third hiking book, Mountains-To-Sea: Trail Across North Carolina, at 3 p.m. Saturday, June 1, at…
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Trout waters set to open; youth go first
 

Trout waters set to open; youth go first

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission will open approximately 64 miles of trout streams and two lakes known as delayed-harvest trout…
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Great Smokies celebrates National Trails Day
 

Great Smokies celebrates National Trails Day

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park will celebrate National Trails Day on Saturday, June 1, with a volunteer workday on…
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Author climbs Clingmans Dome in new book
 

Author climbs Clingmans Dome in new book

Clingmans Dome towers over the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains as the highest point in both the national park…
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Upcoming summer camps
 

Upcoming summer camps

Smokies summer camp near Cherokee Great Smoky Mountains National Park is hosting a three-day camp, “Smokies Summer Science Investigations,” for…
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Bringing the classroom outside
 

Bringing the classroom outside

Highlands Middle School became home to a new outdoor classroom earlier this month.
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A hangover of hoverers
 

A hangover of hoverers

As we turn to bask in the full glow of the summer sun, mornings begin to heat up quickly. As…
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Triathlons aim to make  treachorous lake swims safer
 

Triathlons aim to make treachorous lake swims safer

The swim leg of a triathlon is notoriously daunting. Of the sport’s three heats — swimming, biking and running —…
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Balsam Range hitting for the home team in Haywood tourism messaging
 

Balsam Range hitting for the home team in Haywood tourism messaging

Members of the nationally acclaimed bluegrass band Balsam Range are now the bona fide ambassadors of Haywood County.
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Gettin’ together and feelin’ alright
 

Gettin’ together and feelin’ alright

This summer, there will be a new scent wafting through Lake Junaluska.
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