Outdoors
The Joyful Botanist: Something Spicy
Many of the first signs of springtime are subtle. There are little shifts in the breeze as the sun begins to feel a bit warmer and remains in the sky a little bit longer each day. Birdsong increases morning and evening, and other flying beings begin buzzing around looking to forage some pollen and nectar.
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.
Word from the Smokies: Ranger-made goods add personal touch to park stores
Mike Meldrum could claim his current occupation as a third career — if he weren’t so careful to avoid calling it a job.
“I want to have fun and feel like I’m doing something worthwhile with my time,” said Meldrum, a former park ranger whose handiwork has raised $37,000 in support of Great Smoky Mountains National Park during the last two years alone.
Up Moses Creek: ‘The sun is not so central as a man.’ — Henry Thoreau
Just as the morning sun shoots out beams that light up the mountains, so our eyes shoot out beams, too, rays of comprehension that light up what they fall on with human significance and warmth.
Word from the Smokies: Shedding light on the nature of venomous snakes
Southern Appalachia affords many opportunities to watch and learn more about our diverse species of wildlife. At my home near the border of Western North Carolina and East Tennessee, I see migrating and breeding birds, wild turkeys rearing poults, white-tailed deer with their fawns and the occasional black bear.
HCC hosts environmental summit
Haywood Community College in Clyde will welcome multiple speakers, guests and partners to campus for the WNC Environmental Summit from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, March 21,.
Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation announces new ambassadors
The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation is welcoming a slate of community ambassadors to guide the next steps of its Blue Ridge Rising initiative. The group of leaders will help implement strategies to unify gateway communities surrounding the Blue Ridge Parkway for the betterment of the region.
Reminder: burning trash is against state law
The open burning of trash, metal, plastic and all other man-made materials not only harms the environment and poses a public health risk, it’s against state law.
Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation earns Public Lands Alliance Award
The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation received the 2025 Outstanding Public Engagement Award from the Public Lands Alliance (PLA) during the organization’s annual convention and trade show in Las Vegas.
