Clingmans Dome Road will be closed the mornings of Sept. 10, 12 and 16 to facilitate special educational programs for students at schools in Cherokee.

The road will be closed at midnight the night before each event and will re-open at 1 p.m. 

Shadows and seasons are the main markers of time in Cataloochee Valley, a remote corner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park located more than 20 miles from the closest town and reachable only by a windy, narrow gravel road. 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park managers are recruiting volunteers for a variety of positions across the park. Opportunities include helping the trail crew rehabilitate two trails, serving as a campground host and providing information to visitors at Clingman’s Dome. 

Smokies Life, a nonprofit partner to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, announces Jacqueline Harp as its new chief executive officer. After a national search, Harp was selected and approved by the board of directors and will begin as CEO on Sept. 11, 2024.

Laurel Rematore, CEO of Smokies Life, will be recognized with the Excellence in Cooperating Association Partnership Award at the National Park Service’s Excellence in Service Awards to be held Aug. 21 in Washington, D.C.

A hearing before the House Subcommittee on Federal Lands was held July 24 for H.R. 8403 — a bipartisan bill in the House of Representatives calling for a feasibility study of the Benton MacKaye Trail (BMT) with the goal of designating the BMT a National Scenic Trail. 

The National Park Service (NPS) issued a prospectus for a concessions contract to provide lodging, food, beverage and retail services at LeConte Lodge within Great Smoky Mountains National Park. 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is home to an estimated 1,900 black bears — about two per square mile — with more than 14,500 of these iconic mammals roaming the four-state mountain region.

United States Poet Laureate Ada Limón is coming to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for a special event at Oconaluftee Visitor Center on Saturday, July 20. 

Thursday, July 4, marks the 34th running of the Firecracker 5K in Bryson City. Created in 1989 to celebrate the town’s centennial, this annual tradition has grown from 30 to 300 runners.