The 27th annual Taste of Scotland Festival will be held June 19-21 at a variety of locations around Franklin.

The festival is a celebration of the heritage brought to these mountains, that of the Scots and Scots-Irish, along with celebrating the historic relationships with the Cherokee.

Matt Canter made the choice to attend Western Carolina University in Cullowhee while ankle-deep in the Tuckaseegee River, fighting a hungry rainbow trout at the other end of his fly rod. 

He hadn’t seen campus or met his peers, but Canter didn’t need more convincing. For the future fly-fishing guide and owner of Brookings Fly Shop in Cashiers, the pristine waters surrounding Cullowhee had done the job well enough. 

Friends of Panthertown invites beginner, intermediate and advanced bikers to join them for a free mountain biking program in Panthertown.

The Panthertown Northern Loop Bike Program is happening from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 13, at the Flat Creek Trailhead.

Friends of Panthertown invites the public to come out from 5-7 p.m. Friday, June 5, for a fireside chat at the organization’s office in downtown Sylva at 116 Central St.

Participants are welcome to bring their own tools to sharpen or to help Friends of Panthertown sharpen theirs. Meet with other like-minded people in the community, roast marshmallows over a blazing fire. 

A new, highly anticipated storefront has recently popped up on Main Street in Waynesville. Tuckaseegee Fly Shop, a popular fly fishing outfitter and guiding service in Western North Carolina, relocated the Waynesville store from Depot to Main in an effort to expand the company and grow its clientele. 

“As a Haywood County local with a deep appreciation for the area’s fly fishing history, I felt that Waynesville truly needed a dedicated fly shop — one that could serve both the local community and visiting anglers,” said Waynesville TFS manager Justin Pilat. 

At some points, engulfed in the rush of the ride, “your head feels like it’s going to pop off your shoulders,” said 2026 Remember the Removal mentor Freida Saylor. 

Saylor participated in RTR in 2025, a three-week, approximately 950-mile bike ride that traces the northern route of the Trail of Tears — one path of forced removal of the Cherokee people to Oklahoma from their Southern Appalachian homelands — following the 1830 Indian Removal Act signed by President Andrew Jackson.  

From bears and bobcats to eagles and elk, 22,893 species have been documented so far in Great Smoky Mountains National Park — and nearly half of them are insects. Becky Nichols, the park’s long-time entomologist, has dedicated her career to learning about and protecting lifeforms like bees, wasps, moths and butterflies. 

As a child in rural Washington state, Nichols gravitated toward nature and animals of all sorts. She knew from a young age that she wanted a career related to the environment. 

Join the fun and the community at Lake Junaluska Cleanup Day held from 9-11 a.m. Saturday, March 7, at Lake Junaluska.

The cleanup will focus on clearing debris that has collected along the shorelines of and entrance roadways to Lake Junaluska. Volunteers should dress accordingly for the weather and potentially muddy conditions. All work will be done outside, rain or shine. 

Western Carolina University students are gearing up for their next adventures with fresh equipment, all thanks to a partnership that brings a new fleet of Liquidlogic kayaks to campus.

The Nantahala, the Tuckasegee and the French Broad rivers are world-renowned destinations for white-water sports. Beginners can enjoy slow stretches in relatively still waters, and seasoned paddlers can take on roaring rapids of every class. 

What do rangers eat for lunch? How did the Great Smoky Mountains get their name? Do rangers have to feed the bears? Are there alligators in the park? What about moose? Dolphins? 

“The kids really want to know,” said Scott Young, a volunteer at Great Smoky Mountains National Park who, together with his wife Jayne, has answered every letter kids from across the country send to the national park since they first took on the task in 2021.