By Hayley Benton

Contributing Writer

As the lush green hues of summer fade, yielding to the crisp crimson colors of autumn, the Great Smoky Mountains undergo a breathtaking transformation. Under the canopy, golden sunlight filters through a kaleidoscope of leaves, casting a warm, ethereal glow on the landscape. Small animals ‘shuffle-crunch-snap’ through the leaf litter, gathering fallen nuts and overripe berries in preparation for the long winter ahead.

By Frances Figart • Contributing writer | Although the word “spider” may elicit a “yuck” or an “ew” from many readers, the true nature of these oft-feared critters is not as icky as one might suppose. Arachnids provide essential services for humans and play key roles in balancing our ecosystems by keeping herbivorous insects in check.

On a mid-September morning, 14 men and women gather at an abandoned quarry off U.S. 441 a mile or so south of Sugarlands and confront a vertical stone wall that looms 15 feet above them. The sheer rock face culminates in a gently sloping bench that extends 30 feet before reaching another nearly vertical 15-foot cliff.

Doug Tallamy had been teaching at the University of Delaware for a quarter of a century when he had an epiphany: People who want to do something good for the planet have the ability to effect change immediately by choosing plants that share their energy with other beings, as opposed to those that don’t. And they get to see positive results in real time in their own yards.

Who were they? How did they get here? What were their lives like? These are questions that constantly resonate with me when I gaze upon clouds and mountains and dare to consider the 9,000 years of human history that lie untold within this region that we call home.

If you’ve been to the Elkmont Historic District of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, you’ve probably come across a gathering of vacant buildings — many with wide porches, stone chimneys and wooden shutters.

Many people of a certain age have a special affection for Smokey Bear, or “Smokey the Bear,” as he has also been called.

Have you ever tried to count the number of branches on a tree? One limb leads to many appendages from which grow several more, each with its own shape, size and direction. The prospect of keeping them sorted long enough to perform an accurate count presents a nigh-impossible task. 

Courtney Lix grew up entwined in the natural and cultural history of Great Smoky Mountains National Park like a vine climbing up an ancient tree. Her grandfather, Henry Lix, was a park service employee who came to the Smokies to work as a naturalist in 1951. By 1953, he had founded the Great Smoky Mountains Natural History Association (today Great Smoky Mountains Association) in order to enhance visitor understanding of the many remarkable attributes of the Smokies.