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See winged hunters up close and personal
 

See winged hunters up close and personal

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park will be the site of an upcoming birds of prey program, featuring live raptors…
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Planetarium and stargazing on the agenda at PARI
 

Planetarium and stargazing on the agenda at PARI

A summer night sky viewing event and open house will be held at 7 p.m. Friday, June 14, at the…
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Time to SWEAT on the Appalachian Trail
 

Time to SWEAT on the Appalachian Trail

Volunteers are being sought to work in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on its Wilderness Elite Appalachian Trail Crew…
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Site near Cowee mound saved from development, turned over to tribe
 

Site near Cowee mound saved from development, turned over to tribe

A mountainside in Macon County once destined for a housing development is now destined to be a community forest area…
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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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Bringing back the brookie: Successful restoration paints bright future for native trout
 

Bringing back the brookie: Successful restoration paints bright future for native trout

In the early 1900s, Florence Cope Bush, author of Dorie: Woman of the Mountains, described native brook trout as being…
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A record-breaking weekend of birding
 

A record-breaking weekend of birding

Last week, we set the stage for the 29th annual Great Smoky Mountains Birding Expedition (GSMBE). The group starts at 9…
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Going toe to toe with Mother Nature
 

Going toe to toe with Mother Nature

It is said that humans are fickle creatures, and if that is true, then the weather must be at least…
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Hit Mast General to help conservation
 

Hit Mast General to help conservation

The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy will get a boost on Saturday, June 1, when Mast General Store locations in Waynesville…
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More recycling bins for WCU
 

More recycling bins for WCU

Western Carolina University received 75 new recycling bins through the Alcoa Foundation Recycling Bin Grant Program and have begun placing…
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Max Patch restored, off-roaders pay
 

Max Patch restored, off-roaders pay

The off-roaders responsible for causing damage to the popular Pisgah National Forest hiking spot Max Patch have reached a plea…
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Calling on volunteers for bird monitoring
 

Calling on volunteers for bird monitoring

Volunteers are needed to assist in a breeding bird monitoring and education program throughout the spring and early summer at…
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Plant a row for the needy
 

Plant a row for the needy

United Christian Ministries of Jackson County is asking gardeners to plant an extra row in their plots this year to…
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Environmental forums start up
 

Environmental forums start up

A forum on community and environmental change will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, May 25, at…
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Visitors need to plan ahead to see fireflies
 

Visitors need to plan ahead to see fireflies

The Elkmont synchronous firefly viewing will take place June 6-13 in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  Every year, thousands…
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Waterfall trail looking for sweat donations
 

Waterfall trail looking for sweat donations

Volunteers are needed in Panthertown Valley during Memorial Day weekend on Saturday, May 25, to help complete a new section…
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Youth soccer camps
 

Youth soccer camps

The Waynesville Parks and Recreation Department is offering British and Brazilian soccer camps for youth this summer. The Brazilian soccer…
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Book turns hikes into scavenger hunts
 

Book turns hikes into scavenger hunts

A book that aims to make hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park fun and educational for kids, Scavenger…
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Win a gem at the Ruby Run
 

Win a gem at the Ruby Run

The Ruby Run 5K and 10K will be held at 8 a.m. Saturday, June 1, in Franklin. The annual race…
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Star gazing event at Purchase Knob
 

Star gazing event at Purchase Knob

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is hosting a star gazing event at 8:30 p.m. Friday, May 31, at the…
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A biological journey through history down the Little Tennessee
 

A biological journey through history down the Little Tennessee

A guided trip down the Little Tennessee River aims to teach paddlers about the area’s cultural and biological history and…
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A record-breaking weekend (part one)
 

A record-breaking weekend (part one)

What could be more fun than a weekend of fellowship and great birding? Maybe setting a new record for total…
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Segway tours make debut in Waynesville
 

Segway tours make debut in Waynesville

The train was the first to arrive in Waynesville back in 1886; then, the rise of the automobile; but, this…
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Advocates want to save little-known old growth pockets
 

Advocates want to save little-known old growth pockets

Hidden among the expanse of forestland in Western North Carolina are little-known pockets of trees that are several centuries old.…
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Park releases new species of predator beetles
 

Park releases new species of predator beetles

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is planning to release two new predatory beetles to stop the spread of the…
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Haywood soccer season kicks off
 

Haywood soccer season kicks off

Haywood County is now signing up players for its adult summer soccer leagues. 
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Volunteers needed at Pisgah wildlife center
 

Volunteers needed at Pisgah wildlife center

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is seeking volunteers to help at its Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education to accommodate a…
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Azaleas in full bloom in Stecoah
 

Azaleas in full bloom in Stecoah

The azalea garden at Stecoah Valley Center is in full bloom, but will only be for the next few weeks.…
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Water cents
 

Water cents

What falls freely from the sky, rumbles, swooshes, rolls, trickles across the planet; seeps into the earth beneath our feet…
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Fishing class conjures images of Brad Pitt and leaping carp
 

Fishing class conjures images of Brad Pitt and leaping carp

Ever since I first watched Brad Pitt fly fishing in the film “The River Runs Through It,” I knew I…
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Get ready for 12 hours of Tsali
 

Get ready for 12 hours of Tsali

A grueling, 12-hour mountain bike race will be held from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m. Saturday, May 11, at the…
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French Broad trail map comes online
 

French Broad trail map comes online

For paddlers looking to master the French Broad River, a new map is available online detailing the river’s paddle trail.…
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Market vendors get shelter form the storm
 

Market vendors get shelter form the storm

The Haywood County Health Department pitched in and gave away tents, tables, coolers and other equipment to vendors at area…
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Park reopens trails damaged by tornado
 

Park reopens trails damaged by tornado

Two trails that have been closed since 2011 after receiving extensive damage from a tornado in the western end of…
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When it rains – the tough go hiking
 

When it rains – the tough go hiking

We’ve had a good run in the watershed. The Town of Waynesville has sponsored spring and fall guided hikes in…
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Smokies offers Mountains-to-Sea Trail hike and presentation
 

Smokies offers Mountains-to-Sea Trail hike and presentation

Folks interested in hiking a section of the Mountains to Sea Trail and learning a bit more about the storied…
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Land trust earns top honors
 

Land trust earns top honors

The Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust has received national accreditation for its work in protecting treasured lands.
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EcoFest to put ‘green’ living at your finger tips
 

EcoFest to put ‘green’ living at your finger tips

Haywood County is about to experience its newest festival: EcoFest, an ode to sustainability, agriculture and the environment. This year…
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Macon enviro group applauds local recyclers
 

Macon enviro group applauds local recyclers

Macon Pride, a county-based environmental organization, has recognized Caterpillar Precision Seals in Franklin for what it deems an exemplary recycling…
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Calling recruits to the bugle corps
 

Calling recruits to the bugle corps

Can you make it in the corps? The Great Smoky Mountains National Park needs volunteers to join the Elk Bugle…
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WCU one of the greenest colleges in country
 

WCU one of the greenest colleges in country

For the third consecutive year, Western Carolina University has been listed by The Princeton Review as one of the most…
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Backpackers cautioned to keep food away from bears
 

Backpackers cautioned to keep food away from bears

As spring and backpacking season returns to the mountains, so does bear danger in the woods. A recent bear encounter,…
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