The N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles routinely receives complaints from customers who have been targeted by scammers claiming to be representatives of either the DMV or the N.C. Department of Transportation.

Joshua Johnson has been hired as the new lands specialist for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

It’s not too early to start training for a big race in 2023, with race organizer Glory Hound Events already announcing several dates on its calendar this year. 

To the Editor: “Nothing can work damage to me except myself; the harm that I sustain I carry about with me and never am a real sufferer except by my own fault.” Those are words from Ralph Waldo Emerson that are in my book of meditations called “One Day at a Time” in Al-Anon.

Enrollment for 2023 health insurance through the ACA Marketplace ends Jan. 15. Folks who sign up now can have quality, affordable health insurance starting Feb. 1. 

Highlands Cashiers Health Foundation (HCHF) has awarded a grant to Boys and Girls Club of the Plateau to fund a recreational therapist position at their Cashiers facility. 

The Haywood County Arts Council’s (HCAC) mission is to promote art, art education, and innovation in art. Located on Main Street in Waynesville, the HCAC Haywood Handmade Gallery is currently seeking volunteers to help keep the gallery open this winter. 

The holidays have come and gone, and we are in that New Year period where the kids are still out of school and all the days blend together. This is a great time of year to begin thinking about spending for Christmas 2023.

Barbara Hatcher, previously a supervisory project manager and engineer for the park, is its new chief of facility management, replacing Alan Sumeriski, who is now the park’s deputy superintendent.

Tunnel repairs have begun on the northbound Spur between Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, with ongoing lane closures expected through April 7. 

A six-week winter sports program aimed at women who learn better with female instructors starts on Wednesday, Jan. 11, at Cataloochee Ski Area in Maggie Valley.

A Finding of No Significant Impact from the National Park Service clears the way for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to start planning a 14-mile trail system in the Wears Valley area that would bring the park its first purpose-built mountain biking trails. 

The Rock Gap Shelter on the Appalachian Trail in Macon County is no more, as the Nantahala Hiking Club works to replace the aged structure. 

To the Editor: The headlines read — “Texas governor & others bus immigrants to VP house, and drop them in freezing weather.”

To the Editor: A recent letter in the Waynesville Mountaineer claimed that climate change is a myth.

A recent round of grants from Duke Energy will include $75,000 in funding to support emergency management services in Haywood, Jackson and Swain counties. 

The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation marked its 25th anniversary with a celebration on Thursday, Nov. 17, at Highland Brewing Company in Asheville. More than 100 guests attended to mark the nonprofit’s years of support for projects and programs that enhance the country’s most visited national park. 

When the clock strikes midnight on New Year’s Eve, the Year of the Trail will begin in North Carolina. 

To the Editor: I’ve thought of writing for some time but outdoor sports were more important to me. As a long-time attorney, one would think that writing is one pastime that I could ignore. But, the U.S. Congress never lets us forget how lame and inept that they are. 

The year 2022 was no 2020. But hey, that’s a good thing. In some ways the year seems less exciting than the pandemic years that preceded it, but when you take a step back and look at all that happened, it’s striking how consequential this trip around the sun may have been.

With holiday parties, gift buying and cookie making in full swing, it may be hard to think about your finances for the New Year, but now is the time to begin nurturing your financial health for 2023. 

North Carolina growers should expect routine nematode samples to take 15 weeks or longer to turn around this year, a delay caused by increased demand for testing and staffing shortages. 

For the first time in two months, drought is gone from the mountains after an exceptionally rainy week soaked soils across the region. 

Efforts to renovate the Waynesville dog park are taking longer than expected due to complications from the weather and issues with mulch quality. 

Haywood Waterways Association recently recognized three water champions for their work to protect and improve Haywood County’s rivers, streams and reservoirs in 2022. 

The last private property that Lands Creek crosses before entering the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Tuckasegee River is now conserved, thanks to Swain County residents George and Elizabeth Ellison.

Graduates of Southwestern Community College who want to take the next step in their education by earning a bachelor’s degree now have a direct pathway to do so at Mars Hill University.

Two more deer have tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease, an always-fatal illness affecting cervids like deer and elk. 

The Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont received more than $72,000 in donations during Giving Tuesday, Nov. 29, surpassing the organization’s previous Giving Tuesday record by nearly $20,000. 

An earthquake just south of Hendersonville gave residents a shake at 10:23 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7.

Through March, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will work to install boulders, split-rail fences and wooden posts to prevent roadside parking in busy areas. This will result in a series of single-lane weekday road closures. 

A new air tour management plan is now in place for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and though it includes an annual cap on air tours, that cap won’t cause much change from the status quo. 

Brent Martin has been named the winner of the 2022 Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award for his book “George Masa’s Wild Vision: A Japanese Immigrant Imagines Western North Carolina.”

A project to rehabilitate the Great Smoky Mountains National Park Headquarters near Gatlinburg will open for bid submission on Thursday, Dec. 15. 

The Cashiers Area Chamber of Commerce recently awarded its 2022 Spirit of Our Community Awards recognizing well-deserving individuals who dedicate their lives and talents to positively influence the Cashiers, Glenville, Lake Toxaway and Sapphire communities.

Anyone needing a quality, affordable health insurance plan, now is the time to enroll for 2023. Open Enrollment is underway and ends Janu. 15, 2023. Anyone needing coverage starting Jan. 1 must enroll by Dec. 15.

Western Carolina University’s Homecoming 2022 celebration featured the recognition of three alumni for professional accomplishments in college football coaching, sports performance nutrition and academic excellence, and the contributions of a husband-and-wife team with an extensive record of public service and the man who oversaw WCU’s alumni activities for nearly 20 years.

A horse in Henderson County has been tested for suspected equine infectious anemia shortly after a horse in Surry County was found positive for the disease. 

The National Park Service has found that allowing an underground natural gas pipeline within the Blue Ridge Parkway will have no significant impact on Park Service resources. 

Progress continues on the Hurricane Ridge Fire, which in a final update from the U.S. Forest Service Friday, Dec. 2, was 796 acres with 55% containment.

Mountain Projects and Waynesville Rotary Club paired for many years to coordinate a popular Christmas holiday blanket drive.

The Western North Carolina Historical has selected author Brent Martin’s “George Masa’s Wild Vision: A Japanese Immigrant Imagines Western North Carolina” for the 2022 Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award.

Students from Western Carolina University’s Kimmel School of Construction recently had the opportunity to participate in real-world construction scenarios at the Associated Schools of Construction Region II competition in Atlanta.

With Thanksgiving in the rearview mirror, the holidays are in full swing.

The North Carolina Parks and Recreation Authority, which oversees the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund, recently approved $17.4 million to fund nine capital improvement projects and six land acquisitions for North Carolina state parks.

Winners of EcoForesters’ Annual Awards were announced this month, celebrating achievement in ecological forestry and highlighting important issues that the region’s forest face — and the people making a difference.