The Walker Sisters occupied the 1800s cabin until 1964. NPS photo
 

Walker Sisters Cabin closed due to safety concerns

The Walker Sisters Cabin in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will be closed over the coming months due to…
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Pictured in front of the Retro Rest camper are Nancy Reeder, “Mingo,” Dani Hansen, Kristina Moe, Rachel Newcomb, Tim Litchford, Tasha Sebring and Colin Gooder. Donated photo
 

Franklin A.T. Council gets new member

A new hiker hostel has joined the Franklin Appalachian Trail Community Council as an A.T. Supporter.
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Reading our way into the New Year
 

Reading our way into the New Year

Let’s kick off 2022 with a bunch of books.
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Pigeons Playing Ping Pong.
 

Dawn a new day: Greg Ormont of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong

In the long, storied history of jam bands and the rollicking aura of time and space surrounding each unique musical…
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The summit of Poke-O-Moonshine. (photo: Garret K. Woodward)
 

This must be the place: When the winter comes, keep the fires lit, and I will be right next to you

All bundled up and sitting on the frozen, snowy summit of Poke-O-Moonshine Mountain in the heart of the Adirondacks of…
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Want to paint, sip craft beer?
 

Want to paint, sip craft beer?

Robin Arramae of WNC Paint Events will be continuing her fun paint nights to bring you not only a “night…
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How valuable is the survival of local news?
 

How valuable is the survival of local news?

“A democracy ceases to be a democracy if its citizens do not participate in its governance. To participate intelligently, they…
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Universal intelligence and hope for the New Year
 

Universal intelligence and hope for the New Year

I read a quote recently by Charlie “Tremendous” Jones that said, “You will be the same person in five years…
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Is it 2022, or 2020 part 2?
 

Is it 2022, or 2020 part 2?

Looking back to early 2021, we all thought this was going to be our year. I mean, how could it…
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FAKE NEWS FREAKOUT! SEASON 6!!
 

FAKE NEWS FREAKOUT! SEASON 6!!

Well, here we are. It’s the 394th of December 2020, and not much has changed in the way of misinformation…
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Spoof Awards 2021: The Mr. Miyagi Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Mr. Miyagi Award

We’ve been told that participation trophies are the devil, but we’re also certain that everybody who has lived through 2021…
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This fall, the century-old Confederate soldier statue (left) and newly created sculpture depicting Harriet Tubman (right) painted a clear contrast in downtown Sylva. Holly Kays photos
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Tale of Two Statues Award

The Town of Sylva and Jackson County share this award for the two opposing statues that occupied downtown Sylva this…
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The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is home to 1,909 black bears, according to a recent study. Warren Bielenberg photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The ‘Cool Mom’ Award

Amy Poehler’s character in “Mean Girls” memorably conferred this title on herself back in 2004, and like that character, the…
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Yellowhill community member Mary Crowe speaks with LGBTQ advocates outside the Cherokee Council House July 8, following Tribal Council’s second refusal to consider an ordinance legalizing same-sex marriage. Holly Kays photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Improv Award

The Cherokee Tribal Council displayed profound mastery of improv’s cornerstone rule of thumb, “Yes, and,” as it spent much of…
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Spoof Awards 2021: The Happy Hour Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Happy Hour Award

Residents of the Qualla Boundary and Robbinsville can now join the rest of the state in a collective 5 p.m.…
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The newly opened expansion at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort includes 83,000 square feet of convention space and 725 hotel rooms. Holly Kays photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Nicolas Cage Award

This one goes to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, which, like the much-memed Hollywood actor, just seems to be…
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Spoof Awards 2021: The Gambler Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Gambler Award

As Kenny Rogers famously sang, “You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when…
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Spoof Awards 2021: The Monkeywrench Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Monkeywrench Award

This award goes to the members of the Waynesville Task Force on Homelessness who were hell bent on not doing…
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Barbara McRae
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Rumble Award

Rumble is a women’s newsletter started by the female staff members at The Smoky Mountain News. The tagline for Rumble…
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Mr. Grinch—not such a mean one, after all. Donated photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Grinch Award

The Grinch Award goes to Swain County Sheriff Curtis Cochran, but not for the reasons you may think. We know…
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Spoof Awards 2021: Being A Woman Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Being A Woman Award

Maggie Valley Town Planner Kaitland Finkle has experience in her field, multiple master’s degrees and a clear, coherent way of…
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This image, taken in August in Canton, pretty much sums up 2021. Cory Vaillancourt photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Better Late Than Never Award

As the late, great rocker Tom Petty once opined, “The waiting is the hardest part,” and it sure seemed that…
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Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers (left) guides U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis on his second tour of flood-ravaged Canton in September. Cory Vaillancourt photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Mr. Congeniality Award

And what a year it was for Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers. 
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Spoof Awards 2021: The Winter of Our Discontent Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Winter of Our Discontent Award

After 27 years of loyal service to the Main Street merchant community in Waynesville, Wall Street Books got booted. The…
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Spoof Awards 2021: Sashay My Way Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Sashay My Way Award

When legendary Drag Queen RuPaul kicks a queen off his reality tv show for up and coming drag queens, he…
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Spoof Awards 2021: Most Likely to Get My Vote Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Most Likely to Get My Vote Award

The winner of this year’s “most likely to get my vote award,” goes to John Hinton. While other politicians seem…
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Spoof Awards 2021: The WTF Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The WTF Award

The first-ever award for mismanaging and destroying a longstanding community institution goes to … that longstanding community institution itself. 
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Pianos piled outside of the Ward Piano Company in Canton are a testament to the devastating floods in Haywood County last summer. Cory Vaillancourt photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Person of the Year Award

This year was a challenging year in so many ways, but that was especially true in Western North Carolina. 
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Jeffrey Dellanoy photo
 

Spoof Awards 2021: The Carpetbagger Award

As if Henderson County native David Madison Cawthorn’s meteoric rise to fame wasn’t surprising enough, Cawthorn’s Nov. 11 announcement that…
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Spoof Awards 2021: Good Sport Award (a.k.a. Bullsh*t Award)
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Good Sport Award (a.k.a. Bullsh*t Award)

All teachers everywhere are recipients of the Bullsh*t Award every year for what they have to put up with, whether…
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Spoof Awards 2021: Woke Citizens Award
 

Spoof Awards 2021: Woke Citizens Award

Cullowhee Valley School stole the running for the Woke Citizens Award when it voted to retire its outdated Rebel mascot,…
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Merle, one of Grandfather Mountain’s resident elk, munches on a donated Fraser fir — a special holiday enrichment provided to the park’s habitat animals. Photo by Luke Barber | Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation
 

Grandfather Mountain animal habitats prepare for winter

Trimming a tree for the holidays? So are Grandfather Mountain’s resident elk. Each year, the resident animals at Grandfather Mountain receive…
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The Great Eastern Trail offers sweeping autumn views of Trout Run Valley in West Virginia. GETA photo
 

An A.T. alternative: Long-distance trail under construction for the western Appalachians

As the Appalachian wilderness trail Benton MacKaye dreamed up in 1921 becomes busier and busier, a geographically scattered group of…
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Youth racing starts soon at Cataloochee
 

Youth racing starts soon at Cataloochee

Alley Cat Youth Racing will return to Cataloochee Ski Area in Maggie Valley this winter, with the first races scheduled…
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Music video advocates for wildlife crossings
 

Music video advocates for wildlife crossings

A new music video featuring Asheville-based band The Fates aims to raise awareness for an ongoing effort to make wildlife…
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The N.C. Drought Monitor map is updated every Thursday at ncdrought.org. N.C. Drought Monitor map
 

Drought persists in N.C.

Despite widespread rains last week, the drought situation in North Carolina hasn’t changed much, according to a map published Dec.…
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The Great Smoky National Park is planning construction and expansion of its aging headquarters facilities. GSMNP map
 

Smokies project will require filling in small wetland

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park plans to build an annex to its existing headquarters building, and a comment period…
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Moses and Bertha Cone built Flat Top Manor around 1901 as the centerpiece of their idyllic mountain retreat. Donated photo
 

Flat Top Manor renovation complete

A $2.4 million rehabilitation is complete at the iconic Flat Top Manor, located at Moses H. Cone Memorial Park on…
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Erosion is undercutting the Townsend Entrance Road. NPS photo
 

Streambank project will cause GSMNP lane closure

A streambank stabilization project in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will cause a three-month lane closure along the Townsend…
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More than just a ride on the rails
 

More than just a ride on the rails

In the years after the Civil War, train travel in America exploded. Rail lines soon crisscrossed the country, bringing travelers…
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We all have something to give
 

We all have something to give

It was a tight space, but that’s often the deal with parallel parking. There were three bicycles in the bed…
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The problem with Sylva Sam
 

The problem with Sylva Sam

To the Editor: Recently I decided to take a closer look at the new plaques added to “Sylva Sam,” Jackson…
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Is this how democracy dies?
 

Is this how democracy dies?

To the Editor: Mark Meadows (former congressman from North Carolina and President Trump’s White House chief of staff) may very…
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Jim Stevens was a true mountain man
 

Jim Stevens was a true mountain man

To the Editor: Recently, we lost a true mountain man. You may have known him as Jim Stevens or maybe…
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Haywood Eye Care celebrates 70 years
 

Haywood Eye Care celebrates 70 years

Haywood Family Eye Care has been a fixture of eye care in Western North Carolina for nearly 70 years. 
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Omicron spreading fast
 

Omicron spreading fast

Haywood County Public Health has received notice of 120 new cases of COVID-19 in the last week compared to 156…
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Haywood Rotary Clubs deliver Christmas boxes
 

Haywood Rotary Clubs deliver Christmas boxes

Members from three Rotary Clubs in Haywood County delivered 651 Christmas dinner boxes Dec. 21 to local families. The Christmas…
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A mother is reunited with her children for the first time in over a year. Donated photo
 

Incarcerated at Christmas: Swain inmates thankful for family visitations

Swain County Detention Center became a place of reunions and redemption during the last few weeks as inmates had their…
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A temporary, modular casino facility opened in Kings Mountain in July, with a recent expansion doubling the number of games. Donated image
 

Congress ends EBCI challenge to Catawba casino

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ last hope for stopping the Catawba Indian Nation from building a casino in North…
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