Talk about mission creep. What was supposed to be a simple, final project for his Blue Ridge Naturalist certificate of merit turned into a full blown illustrated hiking guide for Haywood County. And so much the better, says Ken Czarnomski, who combined his three greatest passions: hiking, cataloging and sketching into the illustrated Purchase Knob Hiking Guide.
“It wasn’t clear to me how I would combine these passions, but my goal was to create something useful to the community that would further the connection that people could develop by exploring our wonderful mountains,” said Czarnomski, who moved to Waynesville to be closer to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Discovering Purchase Knob planted the seed, but a hiking trip in Ireland sealed the deal when was given a complimentary illustrated hiking map.
“These types of illustrated walks currently do not exist in our Southern Appalachian counties and I believe they need to in order to preserve our local ecological history and promote hiking with ease and joy,” Czarnomski said.
Along with his beautifully hand drawn illustrations of Purchase Knob and the surrounding area, Czarnomski promotes its history and heritage while including family-friendly components of the hike. He has partnered with the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority to promote and distribute the guide.
www.visitncsmokies.com or 800.334.9036.