Outdoors
Up Moses Creek: Earthquakes
I was walking back into the house when Becky met me at the door, excited: “I think we just had an earthquake! Did you feel it?” She’d heard a low roar, she said, and then a closet door beside her rattled, as if something inside wanted out. “It went on for maybe 20 seconds.” This was on May 10, at 9:04 a.m., to be exact. And all I could say was “What?”
Amid Pisgah logging plans post-Helene, Forest Service shuts out public
In early April, a U.S. Forest Service office in East Tennessee’s Cherokee National Forest issued a memo inviting the public to weigh in on its recovery operations in the wake of Tropical Storm Helene. The storm had felled trees across tens of thousands of acres of the forest, the agency said, and those trees posed the risk of fueling wildfires.
Troxler: Raw milk puts human health at risk
From childhood, we have learned that milk is a foundational food, growing strong bones and a healthy body. People likely remember the slogan “Milk, It Does a Body Good” and our meals being served with a glass of milk. Milk is a staple of childhood and a product families can confidently serve their kids.
Botany, beauty and Bartram: The flower hunter's legacy
More than two centuries after William Bartram explored the Southern Appalachian foothills, his words, like his footsteps, still echo through the ridgelines and river valleys he once traversed.
Word from the Smokies: Scientific inquiry, a thriving enterprise in the Smokies
Birds, bees, bears, dragonflies, salamanders, hemlocks, fungi. Scientific research in Great Smoky Mountains National Park addresses a wide swath of subjects. From Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and states much farther away, scientists from several disciplines have found the park fertile ground for inquiry.
Damage is done: Macon to make changes following damage caused by debris removal
Over the last few months, Maconians have sounded the alarm on what they see as excessive debris removal in the county’s waterways. Now, as the cleanup effort wraps up, citizens are maintaining pressure, urging elected officials to learn from the debacle and institute safeguards for the future.
The Joyful Botanist: Let this umbrella make you smile
Were you suddenly stuck on a north facing hillside in the Blue Ridge mountains during a Summer thunderstorm and were without jacket or hood, in theory you could pull off the leaf of one of my favorite wildflowers, flip it upside down and wear it on your head like one of those cheesy umbrella hats — that is, if you are near to where the umbrella leaf grows.
Wildfire season is here. Helene and DOGE could make it worse.
Limited resources and tricky topography already pose challenges. Now those problems have been exacerbated.
When Chris and Sara Evensen bought their home off Elk Mountain Scenic Highway in 2018, they felt like they’d hit the natural beauty jackpot: a nice home on two acres, ensconced in a gorgeous hardwood forest.
Wildlife Commission offers measures to protect animals from black bears
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) is providing guidance to livestock owners on methods to protect their animals from becoming prey to black bears.
Black bears tend to consume a mostly plant-based diet and are attracted to livestock feed, such as grains and corn.
