Growing up, Blount County native Carly Pearson considered time outdoors a way of life. When she wasn’t exploring the stunningly diverse landscape of nearby Great Smoky Mountains National Park, she was giving it her all on the soccer field.

It’s not lost on Colin McBeath how unique and cherished the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) is to locals and visitors alike. 

Come out to the Ralph J. Andrews Campground on Lake Glenville for a family camping event. 

The U.S. Forest Service is proposing to change fees at several recreation areas on the Nantahala and Uwharrie National Forests and the public is invited to provide input to proposed fee changes for 60 days beginning on May 3 through July 2, 2024. 

To hear local skateboarding impresario Jared Lee tell it, there wasn’t much to do in Haywood County for young skaters growing up during the sport’s early boom in the 1980s. 

The National Park Service (NPS), in partnership with Catalyst Sports, Knox County, Kampgrounds of America Foundation and Friends of the Smokies, announced the expansion of adaptive ranger-led programs in 2024. 

Western North Carolina is a hiker’s paradise.

With so much land protected by national and state forests and parks, those who live in the Western North Carolina area have endless hiking opportunities.

Haywood County Recreation will host a series of spring hikes throughout April. Here’s a look at what’s coming up. 

The MADE X MTNS Partnership released the results of the Western North Carolina Outdoor Recreation Participation Survey, conducted in partnership with the Center for Economic Research & Policy Analysis at Appalachian State University and the Institute of Tourism and Recreation Research at the University of Montana, to establish a foundational dataset supporting the economic impact of outdoor recreation participation in the region. 

After completing its maintenance cycle, Jackson County’s Green Energy Park in Dillsboro will resume normal operations and will be open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.