Up Moses Creek: Surf’s up!
Every fall, Becky and I leave Moses Creek for a week to go to Isle of Palms in South Carolina, and we stay on the beach there in a complex called the Sea Cabins. I make sure that two canoes go with us, a tandem we use to explore the quiet inland waterways together, and, for ocean surfing, a small solo canoe that I paddle here on our mountain rivers. We also rent bikes, and we walk the beach.
This must be the place: ‘Electric lizard, catching the flies, off the walls of this honky-tonk, my disguise’
The title of this week’s column is a lyric from a song by rising singer-songwriter Angela Autumn. The melody, “Electric Lizard,” is an incredibly haunting number, especially the solo rendition (just her and guitar) on the EP under the verbiage “Live from NYC.”
It’s beginning to feel like fall in the Smokies: Plan ahead to ensure you have a great visit this season
Autumn is a beautiful — but busy — time in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Visitors should plan ahead and be prepared for incredible fall colors, but also crowds, traffic congestion and limited parking throughout the park.
This must be the place: 'Honey, we could be in Kansas, by time the snow begins to thaw'
Hello from Cabin 152 at the Tryon International equestrian center on the North Carolina/South Carolina border. It’s Monday. Labor Day. And I’ve just spent the last few days attending and covering the annual Earl Scruggs Music Festival. I’m exhausted, but the gratitude remains.
DOT outlines I-40 rebuild: With environmental permitting process over, real work begins
The signs are still there lining the fragile bank separating Interstate 40 from the Pigeon River — chunks of jagged asphalt, wayward pipes, rusty cables bent into submission by nature.
Just 11 months ago, as Hurricane Helene mercilessly swamped the whole region, the river, now low and calm, was force-fed by its tributaries and swelled to the point it carried away 10 sections of I-40’s eastbound lanes over about a five-mile stretch near the Tennessee border.
This must be the place: 'Maybe the clouds will, at least, have silvery lines'
Hello from the Cantina Laredo in Terminal T of the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. It’s Sunday, 8:29 p.m. I’ve just consumed two overpriced Michelob Ultra drafts and one giant chicken quesadilla (hadn’t eaten all day). In this moment, I decided to use my layover time to write this here column for you readers (yes, you).
This must be the place: 'And I got lost where the river bends, maybe that's where I got found'
Hello from 30,054 feet somewhere above rural Missouri. The Delta flight is currently holding steady at 517 miles per hour. And here I sit once again. In motion, in real time. Onward to the next adventure.
This must be the place: ‘After all, it was a great big world, with lots of places to run to’
It just dawned on me, at this exact moment, that my Western journey is over (at least until next time). Currently, I’m sitting in a coffee shop in Nashville, Tennessee, doing some writing and pondering, as per usual. And I’ll be finally headed back to my humble abode in Western North Carolina tomorrow. To note, I’ve been on the road since July 8.
NCDOT receives permits to begin rock removal for I-40
A critical process has been completed, permitting the N.C. Department of Transportation and its project team to extract rock necessary for reconstruction of Interstate 40 in the Pigeon River Gorge.
This must be the place: 'You belong among the wildflowers, you belong somewhere close to me'
Goosebumps. A slight tear in my eyes.
Pictured in this week’s column is my most favorite place in the entire universe. The Grand Teton Mountains straddling the Wyoming/Idaho border. I’ve been coming to these ancient peaks since 1992, when I was seven years old and made my first trip West with my family from our native Upstate New York.
