Flowing over nutrient-rich limestone rock that fueled a diverse assemblage of species, Abrams Creek was once one of the most productive streams in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. That changed in 1957, when wildlife managers intent on expanding opportunities for anglers stocked it with non-native rainbow trout — after applying the fish pesticide rotenone to the entire lower portion of the creek, hoping to protect the trout from competition. Chilhowee Dam was completed later that year, cutting the creek off from downstream fish populations. 

On a piece of rocky ground at the base of a steep bank along the mist-shrouded Little River, oil painter Olena Babak sets up her easel. It’s late in the day to be starting a new piece — less than three hours of sunlight remain — and Babak is fresh from an hours-long painting session in the Elkmont area of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. But something about the scene compels her.

“Sometimes it’s like an impulse,” she said. “Sometimes it’s contemplated. Sometimes, a scene sort of drags you in, and you need to figure out why.”

What initially draws my eyes to the tall, stalky plant growing near the Oconaluftee Visitor Center in Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the round, green bulge in a stem near its crown. Called galls, such growths are often caused by insects like wasps and flies, whose larvae use them as safe places to feed and grow. I’m excited to show it to 2025 Steve Kemp writer and illustrator in residence Jim and Leslie Costa, who are leading a Smokies Life Branch Out event exploring the diversity of insects found in the area.

Born from the high, cold springs of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and destined for the Gulf of Mexico, the clear waters of the Oconaluftee River have a long journey ahead. The river flows through the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ homeland in Cherokee and joins increasingly voluminous waterways as it travels toward the sea. The Cherokee know this southbound path as the Long Person, yvwi ganvhida — a living being with its head in the mountains and its feet in the sea.

Before they retired, Bob and Nancy Furlow owned and managed apartment buildings for a living. Now, they don’t even own a home — at least, not one without wheels. Since selling their house seven years ago, the couple, both in their late 60s, has resided in a 160-square-foot Boles Aero trailer, which Bob painstakingly rebuilt to feature cedar-paneled walls, a king-sized bed, and a full bathroom and kitchen. Four years into their new life as full-time RVers, they joined the ranks of the five dozen people who serve as campground hosts every year in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

“This is the way to go when you retire,” said Nancy. “It’s fantastic.”

Avid botanist, dedicated environmentalist, and lifelong educator Dr. J. Dan Pittillo passed away peacefully on Sunday, Aug. 10, surrounded by family and friends, at the age of 86. This story, originally published in June 2021, celebrates his decades of contributions to natural science and environmental education in the Great Smoky Mountains region.

In 1927, a $5 million donation from the richest man in America — the equivalent of $92 million today — secured the Great Smoky Mountains’ then-tenuous future for protection as a national park. But when John D. Rockefeller Jr. agreed to write the check, he had never so much as glimpsed these ancient peaks. Smokies Life’s former publication director Steve Kemp spent years wondering: why?

With their tough, leathery shells, unique digging habits and pattern of giving birth to identical quadruplets, nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) are full of quirks. These solitary creatures are skilled burrowers and surprisingly adaptable — so much so that they’ve expanded their range to include some of the highest elevations in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. 

When visitors come to explore Great Smoky Mountains National Park, they have access to a wealth of knowledge highlighting the diversity of plants, animals, and ecosystems found in this special place. Among them are lichens — a lesser-known group of species whose members were largely undiscovered as recently as two decades ago. Since then, the Smokies have grown into a hub of lichen discovery and documentation, with the number of species in the park nearly tripling from 340 to 965.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the most biodiverse places in the world, so it’s no surprise that many of the plants and animals chosen as symbols of the two states it straddles — North Carolina and Tennessee — are found within its boundary.