A special guided hike to the Ridges of Cedar Knob in the Highlands area will explore a high-elevation granite dome on Friday, July 20.

The hike is part of the Eco Tour series hosted by the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust, designed to share special places that have been conserved but are usually off-limits to the public. The Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust has worked with land owners to protect more than 2,000 acres through conservation easements.

The 117-acre Ridges of Cedar Knob tract is home to a Montana Red Cedar-Hardwood forest as well as several rare and watch-list plant species. The hike will be led by botanist Dr. Gary Wien and herpetologist Kyle Pursel.

Cost is $35 and includes a membership to the land trust, or $10 for existing members. Includes lunch.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.526.1111.

Join a renowned mushroom forager for a guided mushroom hunt from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Sunday July 29.

“Stalking the Wild Mushroom” will be led by Alan Muskat, known as the “Mushroom Man.” Muskat demystifies the art of mushroom hunting in Western North Carolina. Learn how to safely find, identify, appreciate, and savor these forest treats on a short, easy walk through a forest in Buncombe County. The group will cook up any edibles found along the way. The outing is sponsored by WNC Alliance, a regional environmental group.

Muskat supplies nearly 400 pounds of mushrooms a year to more than 30 local clients including Biltmore, The Grove Park Inn and The Richmond Hill Inn. Cost is $45 and includes Muskat’s e-book, Wild Mushrooms: A Taste of Enchantment. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.258.8737.

A scientist fighting to save the dying hemlock forests of the Southern Appalachians will give a talk on ongoing efforts and challenges at 7 p.m. on July 26 at the Highlands Nature Center.

An all-day workshop on July 31 will explore the ethics and ethos behind ecology and conservation in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The workshop is part of the Leopold Education Project, which promotes thoughtful land stewardship by forging a connection with the environment.

“Anyone who wants to educate the next generation about conservation stewardship and land ethics is encouraged to attend this workshop,” said Rob Hawk, director of the Jackson and Swain County Cooperative Extension. “The goal of the program is to create an ecologically literate citizenry by bringing people in direct contact with the land and learning how to read the landscape.”

Held at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center at the N.C. entrance to the Smokies on U.S. 441 outside Cherokee. Cost is $30.

828.488.3848 or 828.586.4009 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The historic cabins, churches, school houses and farmhouses that date back to the times of early Appalachian settlers in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are in need of a little TLC from volunteers.

The Friends of the Haywood Library annual book sale begins at 9 a.m. on July 26 and runs through Saturday, July 28.

This year’s event has the largest collection of nonfiction books ever assembled for this sale. The books are categorized by subject for easy browsing. Biographies are grouped by subject. In the children’s section there is an especially large number of small books for new readers. As always there are hundreds of cookbooks, westerns, light romance. For those with eyesight problems, there are large print books. In the religion section there is a large collection of books for devotionals.

The sale is not limited to books only. There are all forms of music from cd’s, cassettes, LP’s to sheet music and hymnals. In addition there are puzzles, audio books, movies- VHS and DVD’s. There are framed prints, diaries, games, Our State magazines and various odds and ends.  

Hours are: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on July 26; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on July 27; and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on July 28.

Volunteers are needed for this event. 828.627.2370 or 828.452.5169.

Frank Foster will sign copies of his recently published thriller, Catch a Falling Knife, at Shakespeare & Co. Books from 5-7 p.m. on Saturday, July 21.

Foster, a summer resident of Highlands, will speak about his novel and his writing, and refreshments will be served. If you’re a fan of Stuart Kaminsky, Carl Hiaasen or Randy Wayne Wright, then Catch a Falling Knife is for you. It combines Hiaasen’s dark humor and White’s evocative appreciation of Florida’s lush setting and colorful personalities. In fact, White has praised Foster’s “quirky instinct for character that will leave readers looking forward to his next novel.”

828.526.3777.

To the Editor:

OccupyWNC, an affiliate of MovetoAmend.com, along with groups all across the United States, has worked diligently to bring resolutions to the attention of local governments. The resolutions propose, in part, that an amendment should be brought before Congress to negate the Supreme Courts “Citizen United” case which is interpreted to declare that corporations are people.

The towns of Franklin, Bryson City, Webster and Highlands have passed resolutions and other towns are pending. Macon County has yet to put us on their agenda (soon we hope).

We have been turned down by one. We will not be deterred. Resolutions have been presented to both the N.C. House and Senate by some forward-thinking representatives, but they did not get to a vote this session.

These justices gave the wealthiest Americans the power to further control our government. The 0.01 percent are using their financial power to make sure their core agenda in government would be theirs alone. Their number one priority is to protect the wealth and power of the privileged class and in the process, this election cycle, to make sure our President does not serve a second term.

We can fight back. Be involved! Work locally to make sure everyone is aware of the Movement to Amend.

 Joan Palmroos

Otto

To the Editor:

Election time is approaching and we are facing a promise gap.

In 2008 when vice presidential candidate Joe Biden visited Maumee, Ohio, he berated and ridiculed the previous administration for the size of the national debt, and he promised that under an Obama administration the debt would be cut. Now in his re-election year, President Obama spoke to this same town with no shame and said that his administration has produced three consecutive trillion-dollar deficits and added over $5 trillion to the national debt. This is a 70 percent increase in debt over the past 3.5 years so that we now owe more than the entire gross national product.

In defense, the administration will say the economy was worse than we thought. This administration has been in over its head since day one. They made big promises and even with total control of both houses of Congress for two whole years, the only thing they delivered was more debt and a healthcare plan that will increase the debt even more. We have been led by an administration that bases its promises on the expertise of college professors who use theory rather than real-life experience. It’s time to end the on-the-job training and elect people who have experience in the real world.

A. Young

Otto

To the Editor:

Have you heard the latest about our local sportsmen?

Well, it’s been reported that three elk were found shot to death and left to rot in the Cataloochee area. And let’s not forget (or “dis-remember”) those other incidents that have occurred in our county over the last few years: a bear was cornered and slaughtered on the Blue Ridge Parkway; a deer that was feeding routinely with a herd of cattle in the Hyatt Creek vicinity was shot out of season; and in Maggie Valley a wild eagle was killed.

These are the crimes committed that were covered by the local media. Who knows how many other incidents have occurred that we will never know about.

Is it any wonder why so many want a ban on hunting?

In the future, after all the game animals, foxes, coyotes, bobcats and others have been harvested, what will our camo-clad lowlife brethren go after — trophy-sized llamas or domestic goats with nice little racks? Or perhaps they’ll have another option — how about an NRA-approved version of the Hunger Games where all the outdoorsmen are let loose each fall with their noisy ATVs and dogs and can empty their quivers and 30-round magazines at each other.

Now that is something to look forward to.

Tom Barry

Waynesville

By Peggy Manning • Correspondent

Waldo fans take heed. The gauntlet has been thrown down. Are you up to the challenge?

Tiny Where’s Waldo figures have been cleverly hidden on the shelves and racks of stores throughout downtown Sylva, and for the month of July, children are invited to rack up Waldo sightings for a chance at prizes.

More than 40 historic photographs of Canton will be on display at Canton library from July 9 through Aug. 31, and reception of the exhibit will be held at the library from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 9.

The “Images of Historic Canton” exhibition, which features black and white photographs from the 1890s through the 1950s, celebrates schools, churches, industry, culture and the people of Canton. From early images of the Champion paper mill to group photos of state and national champion sports teams to landmark buildings associated with Canton, this exhibit represents months of research and sorting through thousands of old photographs at the Canton Historical Museum.

This exhibit is part of an on-going program known as the Haywood Snapshot Project, an outreach effort of the Haywood County Historical and Genealogical Society.

828.648.2924.

A clothes swap to benefit children of Haywood County will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 21 at Keller Williams Realty’s Waynesville office.

The event, which is sponsored by the real estate company, will allow parents and the general public to drop-off gently used and laundered clothes and new school supplies at the Keller Williams office at 2562 Dellwood Road in Waynesville prior to July 20. Then on July 21, parents come by the office and chose clothing for their children for the upcoming school year.

There is no charge for the clothes swap, and there is also no requirement that garments must be donated to get clothes.

More than 100 Haywood County school children benefited from the last clothing swap, school supplies and backpacks.

828.926.5155 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Haywood Community College has named five finalists for president of the college, and candidate interviews will begin July 23.

A 17-member search committee consisting of people from the community selected the finalists, which include Douglas W. Allen, Barbara Beebe, John D. Gossett, Keith Mackie and Teresa E. Smith.

The public is invited to come meet the different candidates. The community meet-and-greet sessions will take place from 11:20 a.m.-12:15 p.m. and from 12:35-1:30 p.m. on July 23 and July 26 and at 12:35-1:30 p.m. on July 25. These sessions will take place in the HCC Auditorium Lobby.

Allen, current president of Ridgewater College in Minnesota, will visit July 23, as will Smith, vice president for Administration/CFO at Tallahassee Community College. On July 25, community members will have the opportunity to meet Beebe, vice president of Continuing Education and Workforce Development at Allegany College of Maryland.

The final day, July 26, will feature sessions with Gossett, vice president of Student Development Services at Mayland Community College in North Carolina, and Mackie, vice president of Instruction at Catawba Valley Community College, also in North Carolina.

There will be an open house at Full Spectrum Farms, a Jackson County-based farm serving people with autism, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 19.

Full Spectrum Farms features a renovated farmhouse, barn, chicken house and garden. It is located on 34 acres in the Wayehutta community. There will be refreshments, small group tours and a question-and-answer session for families of individuals with autism.

The farm is on Wayahutta Road off of Old Cullowhee Road. Bear left at the fork and Full Spectrum Farms is on the left.

The Public Policy Institute at Western Carolina University will host a meeting to determine community needs and support for a Far West North Carolina Local Food Policy Council at 7 p.m. July 30 in the Cardinal Room of the Western Carolina University Center.

The council would focus on planning and advocating for greater food security and stronger food economies in the seven western counties. Regional economic development agencies, planning personnel, tourism staff, farmers, processors, market directors, community nonprofit representatives, and food security agency representatives are especially encouraged to attend.

The project aims to bring together food providers, distribution networks, policy leaders, food security agencies, and economic advocates to provide vision and structure for food projects in the target region.

Email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 828.227.3898.

By Peggy Manning • Correspondent

Tim Hall relishes in the history and folklore of the mountains but also knows when a little embellishing is in order — especially when it comes to ghost stories.

Jackson County commissioners may have taken a leap of faith to help WRGC radio get back on the air, but it seems to be paying off so far.

Not only has station owner Roy Burnette restored a local AM presence to the cars and homes of thousands of listeners in Jackson and surrounding counties, but he’s also created the equivalent of eight full-time jobs practically overnight.

R.E.A.C.H. of Macon County will host a fundraiser starting at 6 p.m. July 29 at the home of prominent Highlands and Houston interior designer Tony Raffa and his partner Scott Allbee.

R.E.A.C.H. provides counseling, shelter, and life-skills training for victims of domestic and sexual abuse. They have presented programs in Macon County’s schools on anti-bullying and rape prevention.

The gala event will feature cocktails and a live auction (courtesy of Steve Day of radio station WHLC) and silent auction.

The festivities begin at 6 p.m. with an open bar and heavy hors d’ oeuvres. The silent auction items will be displayed on a large dining porch overlooking a waterfall that cascades into a koi pond. The live auction will be downstairs in the multi-level theater.

A few of the auction items are a fresco by Kathleen Macone; design consultation services by Raffa; a raised veggie garden by Tom Tracy and Brian Stiehler; a painting by Atlanta artist Mary Lou Carpenter-Bilbro; private wine tours and tastings in Napa and Sonoma; gift certificates for massages by Aery Chiropractic; a cocktail buffet for 18 in your home; necklaces from Drake’s Diamond Gallery; tickets for Highlands Playhouse; Landscape design services by Deborah Berlin; a painting of a Buck Creek farmhouse by Sarah Sneeden; a gourmet five-course dinner by Barbara Werder and Virginia Parrott; and dinner for six at Wolfgang’s Restaurant & Wine Bistro, among many other items.

Cost is $75 per person, and space is limited to 140 people.

828.369.5544 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The award-winning instructors from Western Carolina University’s summer dulcimer conference will be featured in a concert, “Dulcimers in the Round,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 19, in the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center.

The group of 10 instructors who are scheduled to perform includes some who are national champion players, some who are well-known for playing the instruments they build, and others who bring a historical perspective to their performances, said Bobby Hensley, associate director of continuing education at WCU.

The dulcimer conference at WCU, Dulcimer U, is designed for both new and experienced players of the mountain dulcimer. The conference runs Sunday, July 15, through Friday, July 20.

Tickets for the July 19 concert are available at the Bardo Center box office. Ticket prices are $12 for adults and $7 for students and children. Call the box office at 828.227.2479 for tickets or more information.

For more general information about the concert and Dulcimer U, go to dulcimeru.wcu.edu or call WCU’s Office of Continuing Education at 828.227.7397.

MusicWorks! Studio of Performing Arts in Waynesville will offer a new jazz music program on July 26.

The “School of Jazz” will be under the direction of Bonnie Rossa, who has been performing and teaching in South Florida for 20 years. She received her bachelor’s degree in classical flute performance from Florida State University and her master’s degree in teaching from Florida Atlantic University.

The School of Jazz will kick off with two workshops for children and youth. Jazz Kittens (rising second-fifth graders) will meet from 4-5:30 p.m. and Jazz Cats (rising sixth-twelfth graders) will meet from 6:30-8 p.m. on July 26.

The cost of the workshop is $10, which includes the instruction time, all printed materials, and an informal concert by instructors to be held at 5:45 p.m. on July 26. 828.456.2283 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Singer-songwriter Randy Flack will perform from 8-11 p.m. on Thursday, July 19, and Saturday, July 21, at Fontana Village as part of the resort’s Sumer Concert Series.  

Flack covers everything from country, classic rock, Motown, gospel, blue grass, and his own original songs.

Logan Murrell will play from 8-11 p.m. on July 20 at the Wildwood Grill. Murrell is a popular performer at the Summer Concert Series. Upcoming performers for the Summer Concert Series at Fontana Village Resort include My Highway, Rye Holler Bluegrass Band, The Elderly Brothers, and the Caribbean Cowboys Trio.  

fontanavillage.com or 828.498.2211.

Laura Boosinger will perform at 4 p.m. on July 22 at the Cradle of Forestry amphitheater as part of the 2012 Songcatchers Music Series.

Boosinger’s primary focus is the interpretation of traditional music from the southern mountains. She plays old-time banjo, guitar, dulcimer and finger-style autoharp. Local old-time music quartet, the East Fork Gals, will welcome attendees to the July 22 concert with a performance of fiddle tunes and songs.

The series, now in its ninth year, features performances of traditional mountain music every Sunday in July beginning at 4 p.m. Attendees are invited to bring picnics, chairs and blankets.

$6 for ages 16 and older, $3 for youth 15 and under. 828.877.3130 or www.cradleofforestry.org.

The next session of the Inspired Art Ministry (Iam) classes begins the week of July 23 with drawing classes on Mondays from 1-4 p.m. and painting classes on Tuesdays from 1-4 p.m. at the Waynesville First Baptist Church.

Sessions run for six weeks but attendees may come to one class at a time. Beginners through advanced and artists looking for open studio space in which to work are welcome. Classes are taught by Char Avrunin, who also offers private lessons.

Iam includes an art library of how-to books to check out; makes field trips to museums and art shows of note; has an annual art shows; participates in local shows and offers discounts at local art stores and frame shops. Iam is a non-profit corporation that tithes on all income to the First Baptist Church for the privilege of using the spaces.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.456.9197.

“Mentalist” Erik Dobel, who uses psychology and trickery to create the illusion of psychic ability, will be the featured guest at a special program for teens ages 12 and up at 6:30 p.m. on July 25 in the Community Room of The Jackson County Public Library in Sylva.

He can’t really read minds, but it sure seems like he can.

 This event is part of the Summer Reading Program for teens, called Own the Night. Dobell’s performance is aimed at children over the age of 12.

Attendees are advised that the library itself closes at 6 p.m. on Wednesdays and will not be open during the program.

The Friends of the Jackson County Public Library is co-sponsor of this program. For more information or questions call the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva at 828.586.2016.

The Waynesville Lions Club will hold its 60th annual horse show at 3 p.m. on July 21 at the Haywood County Fairgrounds.  

The Smoky Mountain Community Theatre will present its summer production, “Greater Tuna,” with special arrangements with Samuel French.

Susan Morgan Leveille, a professional weaver and teacher in Dillsboro for more than 35 years, has day and evening classes for beginners, intermediate and advanced students at her studio.

The studio has ongoing classes for adults and is offering “stand-alone” classes for adults and children July 24 through Aug. 19. Stand-alone classes feature instruction for making pot holders, mug rugs, introduction to tapestry weaving, amulet purses and backstrap weaving.

The studio is planning an open house from 1-4 p.m. on Saturday, July 21, for prospective students to learn more about the classes.

828.586.6542 for details.

Western Carolina University’s Department of Intercultural Affairs will offer a free belly dancing workshop from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 17, on the lawn of A.K. Hinds University Center.

The workshop will be led by performer, choreographer and instructor Lisa Zahiya, who earned the title “2008 Tribal Fusion Belly Dancer of the Universe.”

The event is open to the WCU community and the general public. For more information contact Sarah Carter at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

A Waynesville Contra Dance will be held from 2-4:30 p.m. on July 22 at the Gateway Club ballroom at 37 Church St.

AnneMarie Walter will call the dance and the band is Out of the Woodwork. All dances done to live music, no previous experience with contra dancing necessary, all dances taught and walked through, no partner required.

$5.

The Liars Bench, a troupe of award-winning storytellers and musicians, bring “Tall Tales, Mountain Myths, & Flat-Out Lies” to the Franklin Folk Festival from 10 a.m. to noon and from 1-2:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 21.

The Liars Bench is a traditional Southern Appalachian storytelling, music, poetry, dramatic, and folk arts variety show.

The July 21 performers include storyteller and author Gary Carden, Cherokee storyteller and historian Lloyd Arneach, mountain musicians Paul Agrussi and William Ritter, and storyteller Bob Plott.

The Liars Bench artists will perform in the spacious second floor hall of Peoples on the Square, Main Street at Iotla Street in downtown Franklin.

www.artscouncilofmacon.org or 828.524.7683.

More than 40 historic photographs of Canton are on display at the Canton library from now through Aug. 31, and a public reception of the exhibit will be held at the library from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 9.

The “Images of Historic Canton” exhibition, which features black and white photographs from the 1890s through the 1950s, celebrates schools, churches, industry, culture and the people of Canton. From early images of the Champion paper mill to group photos of state and national champion sports teams to landmark buildings associated with Canton, this exhibit represents months of research and sorting through thousands of old photographs at the Canton Historical Museum.

Each photograph selected for the exhibit was digitally scanned and edited, enlarged, and printed by Roland Osborne. Nineteen of the photos were framed at Earthworks Gallery in Waynesville. Each photo represents a unique facet of Canton’s history and is accompanied by a brief caption.

The exhibit is part of an on-going program known as the Haywood Snapshot Project, an outreach effort of the Haywood County Historical and Genealogical Society. 828.648.2924.

The Glenville Historical Society’s second annual Historical Tour featuring sites in the Norton Community will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 28.

The tour begins at the Norton Community Center where tour-goers will be given an overview of the community’s historic sites. From there the tour is self-guided, and participants will be provided brochures and maps.

Tour sites include historic homes, farms, points of interest and a toy museum. The Mountain Top property is at the end of the tour. Esther King Martin Metz, an Ashville native, designed the two-story cottage as a summer retreat just northwest of Cashiers in Jackson County circa 1923. This architectural pioneer is believed to be the first female to receive an architectural degree in North Carolina. She shared this place with her husband Charles, who designed the dam and lake on the property.

The Raggedy Anne and Andy Museum, now under the guidance of Kim Gruelle — a descendant of the beloved doll’s creator — is a relatively unknown attraction. Gruelle will host the museum visit and has donated a Raggedy Ann and Andy doll for a fundraising raffle. Raffle tickets, $5 each or 5 for $20, are available now from any GHS member and of course will be sold during the tour.

The proceeds from the tour and raffle fundraiser will be used as seed money needed to publish the Glenville Area Historical Record, the book of families, sites, life and culture from the past to the present.

The cost for the tour is $10. Tour and raffle tickets can be purchased by calling Marietta and Don Domkowki at 828.743.3004 or any GHS Board member. For additional information about the Glenville Historical Society and the 2012 Historical Tour call Carol Adams at 828.743.1658 or Pearl Krepps at 828.743.6744 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The second quilt square hanging — part of the Quilt Trail Project — will be held at Island Park in Bryson City at 2 p.m. on Friday, July 20. 

The double wedding ring design chosen by Tee Angel of Angel Cabins for her quilt square is one well known throughout the mountains of Western North Carolina. Tee chose not to place it at her place of business, but rather at Island Park where everyone can enjoy its charm while taking in the beauty and solitude of Island Park.

“ I just love Island Park — what a treasure to have in downtown Bryson City — and I wanted my quilt square to bring another element of beauty to the Island for all to enjoy,” said Angel.

The brightly-colored, wooden quilt block will join its sister square, “Appalachian Dream,” located at the Bryson City/Swain County Chamber of Commerce.

The next block is slated for the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad Depot and the Bryson Pride committee is putting together a quilt trail map and brochure that will be distributed at the Swain County Visitor Center and available online at www.greatsmokies.com. Individuals interested in purchasing a quilt block for their property should contact Rota Krape at 828.421.0948.

The Haywood County Arts Council will dedicated “Four Little Birds,” the first quilt block at a Haywood County bed and breakfast, at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 25, at The Windover Inn.

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is searching for volunteers to help maintain sections along the fabled footpath. No previous trail experience is necessary — just a desire to work hard, live in the backcountry and have a great time among new friends. Food is provided during the volunteer trail work week.

Four workshops for private forest landowners in Western North Carolina will be held on Wednesdays and Thursdays between mid-July and mid-August.

The workshops, titled “Woodland Steward Series: Mountains Program,” are held at various locations including the N.C. Arboretum, Cradle of Forestry and Bent Creek Experimental Forest. Landowners can pick one or all of the workshop to attend. Topics include:

• Discovering Your Land: Basic Land Management Skills

• Native Landscaping & Water Management

• Woodscaping Your Woodlands & Firewise Management

• Stewardship, Recreation & Liability

The workshops give landowners the knowledge and resources necessary to enrich their experience as woodland owners and managers. Each workshop consists of a one-and-a-half day meeting led by natural resource and land management specialists, including both hands-on activities in the field and instruction in the classroom.

The event is sponsored by the North Carolina State University’s Forestry & Environmental Outreach Program, Cradle of Forestry Interpretive Association, North Carolina Forest Service, N.C. Cooperative Extension Service, U.S. Forest Service, the Cradle of Forestry in America, The N.C. Arboretum and Bent Creek Experimental Forest.

www.ncsu-feop.org/woodlandstewards or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 919.515.9563.

Foxes sighted in daylight, or in urban and suburban settings are not necessarily rabid or dangerous, according to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission

Residents should still take action to avoid conflict with these common animals. Simply seeing a fox is not typically a cause for alarm. In most cases, people who merely see a fox do not need to take action.

However, nobody should approach a fox or fox den, even if they see harmless. Do not approach, touch or feed the fox or its pups. Feeding them will habituate them to people and may lead to aggression.

Action might be necessary in situations where foxes have become habituated to people. In those cases, people can and should take steps, such as yelling, banging pots and pans and setting off legal fireworks, to chase foxes from yards and neighborhoods. Be aggressive and repeat these actions if the foxes do not leave.

To prevent problems with any type of wildlife:

• Don’t feed wild animals — they can lose their fear of people.  

• Make sure you are not indirectly feeding wildlife by cleaning up pet food, securing trash in an animal-proof container, keeping barbecue grills clean and removing bird feeders.

• Establish protective barriers to keep wildlife from entering basements, crawl spaces, attics and beneath decks, where they might build nests or dens.

• Secure pets or keep them indoors. Dogs can disturb dens, prompting aggressive behavior from the foxes.

• Clear overhanging tree limbs or other means of access that wildlife can use to enter a structure.

• Clear fallen fruit from around trees.

• Annually inspect property to identify food problems and other areas that need to be fixed before an issue begins.

• Encourage neighbors to use these same methods.

www.ncwildlife.org

The N.C. Wildlife Federation is offering $5,000 for information about the recent elk killings that directly leads to an arrest or other official action.

The three elk were killed around May 18 in the Mount Sterling area of Haywood County just outside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

“A $5,000 reward will hopefully entice anyone with information to come forth,” said Tim Gestwicki, executive director of the North Carolina Wildlife Federation. “We are providing these resources to underscore the seriousness we place on the poaching of this iconic species.”

The poached elk were part of a reintroduction program by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park that began in 2002. Anyone with information is encouraged to call the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission wildlife violations number at 800.662.7137.

Hikers who want to travel smarter on trails in the Southern mountains now have access to a mobile app called “Great Hikes of the Southern Appalachians.” The app allows adventurers to carry all the maps, directions and other hiking information they need with them on their iPhone.

Friends of the Smokies and The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation are among a select group of organizations featured as part of the National Parks Traveler’s special edition magazine — Essential Friends, Celebrating Friends Groups In The National Parks.

Essential Friends tells the stories of the national park partner organizations that play an important supporting role in the health and welfare of national parks.

The magazine features eight national parks and the people who passionately step up to help “their parks” on the public’s behalf, plus provides insider tips for enjoying the parks themselves.

“Friends of the Smokies is thrilled that National Park’s Traveler chose to raise awareness that park partners like us really are essential,” said Holly Demuth of Friends of the Smokies. “We hope that many people and businesses will be inspired to give to their parks.”

Essential Friends is available for free download at the National Park Traveler’s website www.nationalparkstraveler.com.

Seven projects received $116,300 in grants from the Pigeon River Fund of The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina.

Grant recipients include:

• The Haywood County Schools Foundation, where a curriculum-based program provides classroom and field activities for students in the fifth, eighth and ninth grades.

• The Land of the Sky Regional Council, which developed a land conservation action plan for Haywood County.

• The Southwestern N.C. Resource Conservation and Development Council, which uses technical field support in the use of GIS mapping information for water quality projects in the Pigeon River Watershed.

• The Western North Carolina Alliance, which supports the WNC Stream monitoring Information Exchange led by the Environmental Quality Institute. Volunteers are educated about their role in protecting water resources and providing high quality stream data to partner organizations to improve water quality in Buncombe, Madison and Haywood counties.

The fund was created in 1996 to improve surface water quality, enhance fish and wildlife management habitats, expand public use and access to waterways and increase awareness to protect resources. Since 1996 the Pigeon River Fund has invested $3.8 million to support grant projects addressing water quality in Haywood, Buncombe and Madison counties.

828.254.4960 or www.cfwnc.org.

Students can join a park ranger in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park this summer in a hands-on work project.

The Summer Student Volunteer Days is for high school and college students.

Here’s what’s available in North Carolina:

• From July 10 through Aug. 14, service projects for students include helping with historic preservation, seed collection, graffiti removal, pulling invasive plants and more. 865.436.1265.

• From July 19 through Aug. 9, students will get involved in “Citizen Science” projects such as salamander monitoring, tree mapping and water quality assessments. 828.497.1907.

• From July 24 through Aug. 23, students can help do trail maintenance alongside park trail staff to contribute to the public’s enjoyment and safety of the Smokies’ trail system. Students will work on drainage surfaces, build staircases and remove vegetation. 828.497.1949.

Kids will explore local agriculture in the 4-H Farm to Fork Day Camp in Haywood County held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 31 to Aug. 2.

The Farm Bureau is sponsoring the camp for children ages six to 12. The theme this year is “Heritage Farming in Appalachia.”

Day campers will complete hands-on activities to learn about their food and will explore local farms in the area, including the historical farm near Cherokee in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There also will be activities such as making ice cream, Appalachian storytelling and traditional Appalachian crafts.

The cost for the camp is $35, which includes all materials and snacks.

828.456.3575.

Western Carolina University has gotten more kudos for lowering energy use and costs and promoting utility savings.

The ninth-annual Mountain Wildlife Days will be held Friday, July 20, and Saturday, July 21, at Sapphire Valley Resort near Cashiers, featuring a smorgasbord of wildlife-related events and programs.

International birder and Highlands-Cashiers resident Romney Bathurst will present “Around the World in 80 Birds” at 7:30 p.m. July 23 at the Highlands Civic Center.

Bathurst will present photos to accompany her talk, which will be about birding trips to more than 50 countries and all the continents.

The evening at the Highlands Civic Center will begin with light refreshments at 7 p.m., with the talk beginning at 7:30 p.m. Free, though donations in support of the Highlands Plateau Audubon Society’s educational and community programs are appreciated.

828.526.1939.

Local poet and artist Terry Michelsen will visit City Lights Bookstore in Sylva to read from her collection of poetry Soaring on Wings of Word at 6:30 p.m. July 13.

Soaring on Wings of Word is a compilation of six previously published chapbooks. “Terry Michelsen knows that to write a poem, she must take her gloves off ‘... because bare hands do a better job.’ She brings a lively wit, as well as a keen attentiveness to every encounter. Light and shadow live here, and she brings the reader to both,” said poet Kathryn Byer.

A discussion and book signing will follow the reading.

828.586.9499.

The Highlands Biological Station has released Highlands Botanical Garden: A Naturalist’s Guide, a guide to the garden, with maps, historical overview and profiles of a generous selection of its hundreds of native plants.

Established in 1962, the garden is a refuge and demonstration garden for the diverse flora of the southern Appalachians.

Copies of Highlands Botanical Garden: A Naturalist’s Guide are available for sale at the biological station for $25, and arrangements can be made for shipping books to other locations. Book sales support the Highlands Biological Station and Foundation.

828.526.2602.