GSMNP seeking volunteers for trail work
 

GSMNP seeking volunteers for trail work

Great Smoky Mountains National Park will host two volunteer trail projects on Saturday, Sept. 25, in recognition of National Public…
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Apples are in, let the pressing begin
 

Apples are in, let the pressing begin

A field trip to the Wykle family apple orchard in Macon County will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday,…
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Bike ride to benefit injured cyclist
 

Bike ride to benefit injured cyclist

A cyclist who was seriously injured during the Blue Ridge Breakaway race last month in Haywood County is showing some…
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Cullowhee puts on just-for-fun Tuck paddling race
 

Cullowhee puts on just-for-fun Tuck paddling race

A race for amateur paddlers will be held on the Tuckasegee River in Cullowhee on Saturday, Sept. 11. Paddlers in…
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Educate yourself on waterfall safety
 

Educate yourself on waterfall safety

A new video podcast emphasizing water safety for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is now available for viewing.  …
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Growing demand prompts organic research at research station
 

Growing demand prompts organic research at research station

This year, Mountain Research Station in Waynesville is investigating organic farming on the Western North Carolina landscape on a greater…
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Cherokee outfitter store to offer premium guide service
 

Cherokee outfitter store to offer premium guide service

Cherokee’s trout streams have earned their reputation as the crown jewel of North Carolina’s trophy waters, and now the area…
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Trout Festival comes to Maggie Valley
 

Trout Festival comes to Maggie Valley

From buttered trout fillets to a trout race, all things trout will be celebrated during the 21st annual Great Smoky…
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Stand up paddling takes off
 

Stand up paddling takes off

Okay, so we didn’t cross the Kauai Channel, but last Friday Mark Singleton, executive director of Sylva-based American Whitewater, took…
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The allure of falling water
 

The allure of falling water

Although most people are drawn to waterfalls, many pause before they can articulate why. For some, it’s the sound of…
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5K set among the fairways of Highlands course
 

5K set among the fairways of Highlands course

A 5K race will traverse the front nine holes of the Old Edwards Club in Highlands on Saturday, Sept. 11,…
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Cataloochee Elk deemed a success
 

Cataloochee Elk deemed a success

Fans of the elk herd in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park would be surprised to learn that until now,…
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Screening to feature extreme outdoor footage
 

Screening to feature extreme outdoor footage

Catch the steepest and deepest in high-adrenaline outdoor sport films when Radical Reels Tour comes to Asheville on Monday, Sept.…
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Plant conference brings out all things botanical
 

Plant conference brings out all things botanical

Landscape design, botany, horticulture and gardening will be the highlight of “Landscaping and Gardening With Native Plants” conference held in…
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Rules for guns and game on the Blue Ridge Parkway
 

Rules for guns and game on the Blue Ridge Parkway

With guns now allowed in national parks, red tape faced by hunters crossing the Blue Ridge Parkway en route to…
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Fox sightings up
 

Fox sightings up

Fox sightings in town are on the rise, including residential suburban neighborhoods and they have even been reported on busy…
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WNC birders jolted from summer doldrums
 

WNC birders jolted from summer doldrums

Birders are a restless, impatient lot. From the end of June till the end of August they walk around in…
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A busy summer on the Nantahala River
 

A busy summer on the Nantahala River

Nantahala Outdoor Center raft guides can finally relax after working the busiest season the outfitter has seen in the last…
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Chestnut festival to be held at Cataloochee Ranch
 

Chestnut festival to be held at Cataloochee Ranch

Cataloochee Ranch in Maggie Valley is hosting a chestnut celebration from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 11. The…
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The butternut in the creek bend
 

The butternut in the creek bend

Like dimly-lit rhododendron tunnels or ancient sphagnum-layered bogs, creek bends are special places that invariably precipitate beauty. Sitting in the…
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Smokies’ ash trees at risk from deadly insect
 

Smokies’ ash trees at risk from deadly insect

Researchers in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park need volunteers to help map stands of ash trees and look for…
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Tsali targeted for trail work
 

Tsali targeted for trail work

The famed mountain bike trails of Tsali will get a workover this fall thanks to federal stimulus funding. Vegetation will…
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Triathlon combines best of mountain sports
 

Triathlon combines best of mountain sports

The ultimate triathlon for outdoors adventure lovers — with the triple combo of paddling, trail running and mountain biking —…
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Franklin 5k for Clean Water in Africa
 

Franklin 5k for Clean Water in Africa

The Franklin Blue Planet 5K for Clean Water will be held Saturday, Sept. 4, along the Little Tennessee Greenway. The…
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Blue Ridge Parkway tract preserved near Waynesville
 

Blue Ridge Parkway tract preserved near Waynesville

A 110-acre tract along the Blue Ridge Parkway near Waynesville has been protected thanks to the longtime landowner selling the…
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Jackson lakes lowered
 

Jackson lakes lowered

Boating at Tanasee Creek and Wolf Creek lakes will be reduced while Duke Energy repairs a hydroelectric generator below the…
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Fireman’s 5K blazes into Bryson City
 

Fireman’s 5K blazes into Bryson City

The Fireman’s Day 5K will be held in Bryson City Saturday, Sept. 4, in conjunction with the 29th annual Fireman’s…
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Greenhouses warmed by “green” heat up for rent
 

Greenhouses warmed by “green” heat up for rent

Growers looking for greenhouse space may find what they need at the Jackson County Green Energy Park in Dillsboro, where…
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Won one for the piper
 

Won one for the piper

On Aug. 17, federal judge Royce C. Lambeth ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s designation of critical habitat…
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A forest guide for the novice
 

A forest guide for the novice

A new book titled The Forests of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park serves as a guide to understanding and…
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Overlooks in southern Appalachia
 

Overlooks in southern Appalachia

High-elevation overlooks are one of our finest natural resources. These vantage points allow us to rise above our everyday humdrum…
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Builders can get an edge with HCC green building crash course
 

Builders can get an edge with HCC green building crash course

An eight-week course on the Fundamentals of Green Building will be held at Haywood Community College starting Aug. 30. The…
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Energy expo to feature sustainable lifestyles
 

Energy expo to feature sustainable lifestyles

The tenth annual Southern Energy and Environment Expo this weekend in Asheville will features dozens of programs and exhibits on…
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Photographers sought to document trees of the Parkway
 

Photographers sought to document trees of the Parkway

Photographers should get to work now to come up with their best mountain images for the eighth annual Appalachian Mountain…
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Foot Rx brings 5K race to Jackson County
 

Foot Rx brings 5K race to Jackson County

A cross-country style 5K race in Cullowhee sponsored by Foot Rx of Asheville, a running shoe store, will be held…
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The oil is gone! Long live the oil!
 

The oil is gone! Long live the oil!

A week or so ago White House energy adviser Carol Browner was hitting the morning TV circuit, telling anyone who…
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A few wrong turns on the way to paradise
 

A few wrong turns on the way to paradise

I grabbed my guidebook and pen and wrapped my camera in a plastic grocery bag as it started to rain.…
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Fishing out of water
 

Fishing out of water

Gary Mann was working as a mortgage banker in Philadelphia when he read Cold Mountain during a trip to the…
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Summertime blues
 

Summertime blues

Sometimes I wonder what I’m a gonna do cause there ain’t enough time for all the summertime blues. And by…
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Early registration for Haywood bike race
 

Early registration for Haywood bike race

Take your passion for cycling to a new level during the Greater Haywood County Chamber of Commerce Blue Ridge Breakaway.…
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Wilderness Therapy program starts at SCC
 

Wilderness Therapy program starts at SCC

A new program in Wilderness Therapy at Southwestern Community College caters to a rapidly-expanding sector in the outdoors job field.…
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Mount Lyn Lowry tract on Parkway preserved
 

Mount Lyn Lowry tract on Parkway preserved

A 35-acre tract of forested land next to the Blue Ridge Parkway on the Haywood-Jackson countyline in Balsam has been…
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Canoe Club Cup this weekend
 

Canoe Club Cup this weekend

Whitewater clubs from across the Southeast will have their final showdown for the Canoe Club Cup at the Nantahala Outdoor…
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Learn about the Smokies’ elk with “Bugle Corps” Volunteers
 

Learn about the Smokies’ elk with “Bugle Corps” Volunteers

A special children’s storytime (adults are welcome) devoted to the elk of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will take…
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On the beauty of hibiscus flowers
 

On the beauty of hibiscus flowers

I had my first introduction to plants in the Hibiscus genus when I was a boy. Rose-of-Sharon was a common…
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Take your biking indoors
 

Take your biking indoors

Too hot to road bike? Why not try a spinning class. While pedaling a stationary bike might not sound like…
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New Smokies Audubon chapter forms
 

New Smokies Audubon chapter forms

A new Great Smoky Mountains chapter of the National Audubon Society formed just a few months ago but can already…
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Parkway to celebrate 75th at Waterrock Knob
 

Parkway to celebrate 75th at Waterrock Knob

A celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Blue Ridge Parkway will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.…
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Snorkeling in mountain rivers offers window to the underwater world
 

Snorkeling in mountain rivers offers window to the underwater world

Cool off with a snorkeling trip on the Little Tennessee River on Saturday, Aug. 14, while gaining a new perspective…
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The un-hummingbird
 

The un-hummingbird

Toni Mullany of Waynesville sent me an email the other day noting a guest scoping out her phlox. She described…
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