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Movie touts benefits of local food
 

Movie touts benefits of local food

A movie showing in Waynesville is asking folks to think hard about their food choices. The documentary-style movie “Fresh: New…
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Lend your voice to trail plan vision
 

Lend your voice to trail plan vision

Time is running out for trail users to offer input on a regional trail plan for the seven western counties…
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Grants to help imperiled wildlife
 

Grants to help imperiled wildlife

Nearly $800,000 in grants will fund research in North Carolina that investigates threats to various aquatic species and habitats in…
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Unlocking the mystery of Graveyard Fields: Why there are so few trees and so many people
 

Unlocking the mystery of Graveyard Fields: Why there are so few trees and so many people

While lines of cars zip down the Blue Ridge Parkway and hikers scurry along its zigzagging trails, Graveyard Fields moves…
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Telethon draws support for national park
 

Telethon draws support for national park

Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park raised more than $200,000 through its “Friends Across the Mountains” telethon this year,…
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NC native chosen for Smokies top spot
 

NC native chosen for Smokies top spot

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park has found its next deputy superintendent in Patricia M. Wissinger. She replaces Kevin Fitzgerald,…
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Cherokee exhibit puts culture center stage
 

Cherokee exhibit puts culture center stage

“Understanding our Past, Shaping our Future” is an exhibition that displays Cherokee language, culture and history through images, text and…
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Wind birds up
 

Wind birds up

Like the breathing in and out of newborns; like the ebb and flow of the tide, and like the cycle…
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County fair gets bigger zoo for 2013
 

County fair gets bigger zoo for 2013

The Haywood County Fair will feature a newly expanded zoo this year.
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Haywood student best in state on conservation exam
 

Haywood student best in state on conservation exam

Tuscola senior Allie Dinwiddie won a $500 scholarship and $100 cash for making the top score on an exam during…
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Old fire towers at risk of being forgotten
 

Old fire towers at risk of being forgotten

North Carolina’s lookout towers once stood watch over our mountain forests. Now, they run the risk of becoming forgotten monuments…
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Fall color forecast affected by the rain
 

Fall color forecast affected by the rain

One of the wettest summers in Western North Carolina may mean less colorful fall foliage this year, unless autumn brings…
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Talk of the medicinal benefits of Southern Appalachian plants
 

Talk of the medicinal benefits of Southern Appalachian plants

Plants are most commonly harvested for their food or appreciated for their beauty, however many plants in the Southern Appalachians…
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Grant provides internships and science education
 

Grant provides internships and science education

Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park is expanding the park’s high school science internship program with the help of…
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Smokies association throws a big party
 

Smokies association throws a big party

Moonshine tasting, auctions, hikes, talks, hunts, barbecue, dancing and star gazing are just a few of the activities planned for…
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Panthertown party thanks volunteers
 

Panthertown party thanks volunteers

Friends of Panthertown is hosting their annual picnic and concert this year Tuesday, Aug. 20, on Lake Fairfield at Camp…
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Friends of the Smokies telethon seeks donations
 

Friends of the Smokies telethon seeks donations

Friends of the Smokies will host a telethon to benefit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. 
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Support the Highlands Botanical Garden
 

Support the Highlands Botanical Garden

Residents of Highlands established the Highlands Botanical Garden in 1962, to display the diverse array of Southern Appalachian plants. But…
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Dillsboro to host ‘River Rescue Rodeo’
 

Dillsboro to host ‘River Rescue Rodeo’

In September, Dillsboro will host the Western North Carolina River Rescue Rodeo, a whitewater rescue competition.
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A pistol of a shrimp
 

A pistol of a shrimp

Once again, through the gracious hospitality of a dear friend the Hendershot family found itself on the Isle of Palms…
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Olympian to lead riders in fourth Blue Ridge Breakaway
 

Olympian to lead riders in fourth Blue Ridge Breakaway

This year’s Aug. 17 Blue Ridge Breakaway is hoping to attract nearly 600 cyclists to Haywood County, and leading those…
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Registration is open for Haywood County kickball co-ed league
 

Registration is open for Haywood County kickball co-ed league

Haywood County is kicking off its first-ever adult kickball league. The co-ed league games will be played at 2 and…
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Forest-goers get new recreation map
 

Forest-goers get new recreation map

An updated recreation map of the Nantahala and Pisgah national forests is now available online. The U.S. Forest Service map…
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Forest Service warns of deadly high waters
 

Forest Service warns of deadly high waters

The U.S. Forest Service is urging visitors to the Nantahala and Pisgah national forests to avoid swimming in the creeks,…
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Catamounts gather for Volunteer Day
 

Catamounts gather for Volunteer Day

Western Carolina University students, as part of a July 20 volunteer day, hauled loads of trash from the banks of…
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Swain Soccer teams looking for players; Haywood adult soccer league ramping up
 

Swain Soccer teams looking for players; Haywood adult soccer league ramping up

Fall soccer season is approaching and Swain Youth Soccer Association is offering soccer for all skill types.
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Researcher explores changing climate and salamanders
 

Researcher explores changing climate and salamanders

The potential effects of climate change on the animals — salamanders in particular — of the Appalachian Mountains will be…
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Wildlife commissioner seeks public reports of armadillos
 

Wildlife commissioner seeks public reports of armadillos

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is asking the public to help document observations of nine-banded armadillos, as the bony-plated mammals…
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No this ain’t Dallas
 

No this ain’t Dallas

Now don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against Dallas. And I’m sure that if you like big, hot, crowded…
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NOC nears finish line in preparing for kayaking worlds
 

NOC nears finish line in preparing for kayaking worlds

Sitting at a picnic table alongside the Nantahala River, Charles Conner watches the fast moving water. It’s may be a…
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Wooden bats only in Waynesville softball league
 

Wooden bats only in Waynesville softball league

The Waynesville Parks and Recreation Department will offer an old school, “wooden bat” softball league this summer. The organizational meeting…
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Sylva man given state conservation award
 

Sylva man given state conservation award

A retired Western Carolina University professor and Jackson County environmentalist has been given top honors for his work in education…
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Students and teachers make the Smokies their classroom
 

Students and teachers make the Smokies their classroom

This summer was no waste for teachers and students who enrolled in a Great Smoky Mountains Park program that put…
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Conservationist recognized for Dillsboro Dam work
 

Conservationist recognized for Dillsboro Dam work

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials have honored a Duke Energy scientist for his work in helping to restore aquatic…
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Folkmoot center gardens get TLC
 

Folkmoot center gardens get TLC

Main Street Waynesville wasn’t the only place to get a spit and polish before visitors and performers from around the…
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Take a journey into space and back in time
 

Take a journey into space and back in time

The Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute will host a program about the role of the astronomical site in the Pisgah National…
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Taking the smart out of growth
 

Taking the smart out of growth

North Carolina House Bill 94 (Amend Environmental Laws) has passed the House and Senate and awaits the governor’s signature. HB…
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Breaking the mold: Triathlons now starring the aquabike
 

Breaking the mold: Triathlons now starring the aquabike

No, it’s not Aquaman’s preferred mode of commuting; nor the latest urban workout trend or new-fangled underwater gym equipment. The…
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Trout derby weekend in Cherokee
 

Trout derby weekend in Cherokee

Talking Trees Children’s Trout Derby is set for Saturday, Aug. 3, at the Oconaluftee River Islands Park in Cherokee. The…
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Triathlon at Tsali
 

Triathlon at Tsali

The Tsali Challenge Triathlon will take place Saturday, July 27, and Sunday, July 28, at the Tsali Recreation Area outside…
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AT video contest solicits submissions
 

AT video contest solicits submissions

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is accepting submissions for the “I am the Appalachian Trail” video contest, a nationwide search for…
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Get your Breakaway jersey and pedal
 

Get your Breakaway jersey and pedal

The Haywood Chamber of Commerce has released the 2013 Blue Ridge Breakaway jersey design. The Aug. 17 ride will feature…
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Trail conservancy chooses new leader
 

Trail conservancy chooses new leader

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy has a new executive director and CEO.
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Smokies looks to include kids in hands-on science
 

Smokies looks to include kids in hands-on science

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is offering a citizen scientist program for a chance to be part of ongoing research…
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Section of parkway closed to vehicles
 

Section of parkway closed to vehicles

A 21-mile section of the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina is closed — from Ox Creek Road to Mount…
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REI gives a boost to trail crews
 

REI gives a boost to trail crews

Recreational Equipment Inc. has donated $5,000 to support trail work in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
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Expert to talk about the red wolf in the Appalachians
 

Expert to talk about the red wolf in the Appalachians

The red wolf is one of the most endangered animals in the world and a native of North Carolina. Wildlife…
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Where martins hang
 

Where martins hang

Purple martin “scouts” are some of the earliest harbingers of spring. I recorded one in February at Black Bayou Lake…
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Global warming imperils Golden-winged warbler
 

Global warming imperils Golden-winged warbler

The steady decline of the Golden-winged Warbler on the Southern Appalachian landscape is a trend that not only threatens the…
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Tennis stars to face off in Cashiers
 

Tennis stars to face off in Cashiers

Retired tennis stars Andy Roddick and Jim Courier will play a charity exhibition match, the UCB Mountain Challenge, on Saturday,…
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