The Southern Highland Reader

STATEWIDE–When the state of North Carolina announced a new online reservation system for its state park campgrounds late last year, there was uncertainty about how the system would be received, and about how well it would work.

The Raleigh News and Observer reports that all is well. In fact, all is very well.

Over 1,300 reservations have been made for 2,000 available campsites for 2010, the paper reports.

An excerpt:

The new system was launched in July, making it easier for people to reserve spots up to 11 months in advance at any park. Reservations can be made for stays as short as one night or as long as two weeks.

The new system should eliminate what used to be long lines starting New Year’s Day at popular parks such as Kerr, Jordan and Falls lakes. Under the old system, about 2,000 campsites could only be reserved by paying in person at the park or taking the chance on the U.S. Postal Service. Visitors were permitted to reserve spots only up to a week in duration.

Read the story here.

CULLOWHEE–When outfitter Burt Kornegay, owner of Slickrock Expeditions, got an email from a friend inviting him to a save-the-Dillsboro-Dam shindig, he fired off a pithy response. Naturally, it was immediately shared all around the interwebs, where by complete happenstance it filtered all the way down to me.

Here it is, with his permission:

First, the note from his friend:

Yo, read all about it….

Saturday night there is a benefit in support of saving the Dillsboro Dam. So, all you anti-establishment, anti-Duke Power people come on down and catch the 7:30 set of singer-songwriter Barbara Duncan. If you’ve not heard her, you owe it to yourself to check this out and to have a few beers in the process, not to mention to support a good cause. So, let’s make Sat. eve. a party night and fill up Guadalupe (that also serves great food).

Hope to see you there …

Then, Burt’s response:

Hey, Partner, Hold on there!

Why do you say that fighting to keep the Dillsboro dam is “a good cause”?  Because doing so spites bad ole Duke?  Let’s not forget that the dam plugs up and drowns the Tuckaseegee River, halting the travel of river creatures and backing up an unnatural mile-long trough of deadwater behind it. Also, from a human perspective now, the dam stands in the way of creating a real, honest-to-goodness “river park” in Dillsboro.  By honest-to-goodness river park, I mean a park with a river that actually flows, like at East LaPorte (probably the most popular public place in our county).  A real river park would make a pleasurable place for all of us to go, and it would be good for businesses in Dillsboro too.  Hundreds of old concrete plugs like the Dillsboro dam are coming down all across the US,  cheered on by river-loving and civic-minded people just like yourself, and I say, Right On!

As for your rebel claim that it is “anti-establishment” to fight for the dam, because doing so is anti-Duke, I say, wasn’t the dam built by the county’s moneyed “establishment” in the first place, back when other segments of the local “establishment” were as busy as beavers gnawing out railroad lines, felling the virgin forest, and turning the Tuckaseegee into flowing mud?  I mean, what could be more “establishment” than a dam?  (Well, perhaps a skyscraper or aircraft carrier.)  And what could be more “establishment” than to align yourself with the likes of county manager Ken “Dam or Die” Westmoreland, who doesn’t mind taxing us to the tune of more than a quarter-million-$ to pay lawyers, in his attempts to do  .  . . what?  Why, to milk still more $ from Duke! When it comes to the Dillsboro dam, the “anti-” lies in taking it down.

Kornegay’s longtime Jackson County business has been the focus of some media features lately. Here and here from the Smoky Mountain News, for example. The Sylva Herald has also written him up (you can search that story at their paid archives, here).

Recent news from the legal struggle over the dam from the Sylva Herald here (link will expire in one week), and from the Smoky Mountain News here.

REGIONAL–With a steady resurgence of the mountain black bear population in progress (and there was never any great shortage), its no surprise that they’re in the news so often these days. But even so, this week was a humdinger.

Bryson City is used to bears, given its proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and lots of National Forest. Still, when a female and her cub came to town, found a tree they liked, and camped out, it caused a stir.

Clay Wilson at the Smoky Mountain Times got some mileage out of the story. Here’s an excerpt:

“I’ve never seen so many people,” said retired Swain County Schools teacher Shirley Sutton, who with her husband Eugene owns the property where the tree is.

Sutton had spotted the bears early Monday morning. She called the police to report the situation.

“They said just leave (them) alone, and they would come down,” Sutton said just before noon on Tuesday, with the bears still visible out her living room window. “But they haven’t come down.”

Also this week a Cherokee man was brought up on federal charges of dealing in poached bear parts, some of which are used in homeopathic treatments in Asia and elsewhere. Jon Ostendorff at the Asheville Citizen-Times wrote it up. His lead:

A Cherokee man must make a public apology for illegally selling 51 bear gall bladders, the U.S. Department of Justice ruled.

Last but by no means least was the misadventure in Cherokee, where a handler at one of the tourist attraction “bear parks” made famous recently by game show host Bob Barker was bitten by one of her charges. The feds are looking in to this incident.

Again, on the bear beat, Ostendorff:

Mary Clapsaddle, 75, who has been managing the park for about 20 years, was recovering at Mission Hospital from injuries to her hand and arm, said her son, Kole Clapsaddle. He owns the business.

She was airlifted to the hospital after the attack on Monday. A bear bit her while she was giving water to the animal about 12:45 p.m.

Clapsaddle said his mother broke safety rules when she stepped into a pen with a bear. He said handlers are supposed to place food and water in one part of the pen while the bear is secured in another part.

“She didn’t follow the rules,” he said. “If you follow the rules, you don’t get hurt.”

Here’s the rest of Ostendorff’s story.

REGIONAL-The ongoing conflict over usage rights on the Chattooga River is worth following, if, for no other reason, as a harbinger of things to come.

In its December issue, Blue Ridge Outdoors writer Graham Averill does a nice job of making the issue clear, and the magazine throws in maps, a timeline and a “headwaters highlights” section.

Here is Averill’s lead:

For three decades, paddlers have yearned to paddle the pristine waters of the Upper Chattooga River. Earlier this year, the U.S. Forest Service finally granted limited access of the Upper Chattooga to paddlers, but a flurry of legal threats—including a legal challenge from the paddling community—prompted the Forest Service to rescind their decision a few weeks ago, once again leaving boaters high and dry.

Paddlers have been banned from the entire 21-mile headwaters of the Chattooga and its tributaries since 1976, after the U.S. Forest Service divided the river in two parts due to a series of user conflicts. Citing fistfights, slashed boats, and gun play, the forest service separated the two user groups: Boating would be allowed on the lower Chattooga, but the upper 21 miles of the river and its headwaters would be reserved for fishing.

Another clip:

Many conservation groups, including Georgia Forest Watch and the Chattooga Conservancy, support the current zoning of the river into boating and non-boating sections. Other popular recreation areas like Tsali and Bent Creek are also zoned; some trails allow mountain bikes, ATVs or horses, while others are designated foot traffic only. Anglers also support the current zoning of the Chattooga, saying that it’s a more-than-equitable compromise: the 36-mile lower Chattooga is given to boaters, while the 21-mile upper Chattooga is protected for fishermen and hikers seeking a wilderness experience.

Ironically, no parties concerned in the Chattooga access issue seemed to be happy with the Forest Service’s recent decision. Soon after it was announced, the Forest Service was threatened with legal action from all sides: four separate appeals were filed by boaters, anglers, and conservation organizations. As a result, the Forest Service withdrew its decision to fully consider the concerns raised by the user groups.

Averill sources the Cullowhee-based group American Whitewater quite a bit in the story, and offers quotes from all sides.

Read the story here.

GSMNP–Smoky Mountain News outdoor writer Don Hendershot wrote last week that the 2010 omnibus spending bill, due to be signed in a couple of weeks, might  include the long-awaited cash settlement that would (in theory) lay to rest Swain County’s North Shore Road controversy.

Hendershot quotes anonymous sources, and hints that the dollar amount could be greater than the projected $30 million.

Here’s an excerpt from Hendershot’s story:

After more fits, there was another start at construction back in 2000 when then Rep. Charles Taylor and then Sen. Jesse Helms appropriated $16 million for construction of the North Shore Road. Even though the $16 million was about $550 million short of the estimated cost of such a road, the appropriation spurred some Swain County residents to action.

The Citizens for the Economic Future of Swain County was created in 2001. Although totally lacking in acronym-imagination, the CEFSC did strike a chord with many Swain County residents and environmental groups with its proposal for a cash settlement in lieu of the improbable North Shore Road. Through some mathematical calisthenics the group came up with a settlement figure of $52 million.

Read the whole piece here

See a timeline through 2001, also from the Smoky Mountain News, here.

GSMNP-The Knoxville News-Sentinel reported over the weekend about cautious optimism on the part of Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials about their efforts to curtail the invasion of the hemlock woolly adelgid.

An excerpt:

“The work to preserve Eastern hemlock trees and forests in 2009 progressed and showed successes despite increased decline and obvious mortality of trees throughout the park,” the report states.

“‘Cautiously optimistic’ is a good term for it,” said park spokesman Bob Miller.

A three-pronged strategy, using a combination of predatory beetles, foliar treatments and systemic treatments, is being followed to destroy hemlock woolly adelgids on the trees.

Because of cost, accessibility issues and priorities given to most-visited areas, the treatment area is limited in scope and includes about 132,000 hemlocks in the park.

Read the story here.Read a post at Ruminations from the Distant Hills here.Our post “Saying Goodbye to the Hemlock”, from last year, is here.

ROBBINSVILLE–In a move that apparently came as a surprise to members of the Graham County Travel and Tourism Board, Graham County commissioners disbanded the board in a 3-1 vote last week.

Interesting political shenanigans are nothing new in the lightly-populated county, and the commissioners’ vote has the feel of more of the same.

Writes James Budd in the Graham Star:

Travel and Tourism Board Chairman Dirk Cody said commissioners did not discuss their plans with the board, but he would have resigned if asked …

“I told Trull and Snyder if they had a problem with me, I would have been glad to step down,” Cody said.

Cody added that travel and tourism is too vital to Graham County’s economy to tamper with.

The N.C. Department of Commerce reports tourism was responsible for putting $23.42 million in Graham County’s economy in 2008. More than 270 jobs with an annual payroll of $4.34 million were generated from tourism last year.

[Board member Linda] Ditmore said she was surprised by the commission’s vote and had no warning.

“I don’t understand why it was disbanded,” she said. “We cannot exist without an effective travel and tourism authority.”

Travel and tourism boards and authorities oversee occupancy tax revenues and invest them in tourism marketing efforts in many North Carolina counties.

Read Budd’s story here.

DILLSBORO–Dillsboro invites folks to experience Christmas spirit in early December as this walkabout mountain town glows in holiday splendor for the 26th annual Dillsboro Festival of Lights & Luminaries.

The four-night festival, which takes place Dec. 4-5 and Dec. 11-12, begins each evening at dusk when merchant “elves” illuminate the streets with 2,500 white paper bag luminaries. The merchants also flip the switches on strands of tiny white lights trimming the town’s buildings, many of which date to the 1800s.

Once the town is aglow, carolers fill the streets with music, musicians stroll the sidewalks playing Christmas favorites, and Santa visits with children in the town hall.

Shopkeepers add to the festivities by staying open late and serving holiday treats with hot cider and cocoa.

“If you’re having trouble getting into the holiday spirit, this festival will do wonders,” says Julie Spiro of the Jackson County Tourism Authority. “We’re often told that visiting the luminaries festival is like stepping into a Christmas painting.”

There’s no admission charge for the Festival of Lights & Luminaries, and lodging is plentiful with more than half of Jackson’s County guest rooms located in Dillsboro or within 15 minutes.

For information, go to www.visitdillsboro.org, or call the Jackson County Visitors Center at (800) 962-1911.

SYLVA–The 5th Great Smoky Mountains Book Fair takes place Saturday, Nov. 14, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Christian Life Center of the Sylva First United Methodist Church.

More than 50 authors will be on hand to greet book lovers and discuss their works. The fair will have activities for all ages, including storytelling, bookmaking and poetry writing. Author presentations will cover a wide variety of interests, as well as how to get published. A panel discussion will focus on a writer’s sense of place.

Authors scheduled to appear include: Ron Rash, Pamela Duncan, Vickie Lane, Alan Wolf, Bob Plott, Fred Chappell, Jim Casada, Sheila Kay Adams, Ed Schubert, Terry Taylor, Wayne Erbsen, Doug Elliot and North Carolina Poet Laureate Katherine Stripling Byer.

Adams, who is also a musician and storyteller, will perform with Wayne Erbsen, a radio show host and musician who tells stories in song. Following their presentation, Wolf, an Asheville performance poet, will read the winning poems from a contest for students from first through 12th grades in Jackson, Swain, Macon and Haywood counties.

“This year we have a program that will excite everyone, from school children to their grandparents,” said Joyce Moore, one of the organizers and owner of City Lights Bookstore in Sylva. “I can’t wait to see the book making demonstrations and listen to the storytelling and folk songs or hear the panels.”

Admission is free, and 20 percent of all book sales go toward the new Jackson County Public Library Complex. The Fair is sponsored by City Lights Book Store, the Friends of the Jackson County Main Library, the Jackson County Public Library and the Downtown Sylva Association.

A special feature this year is called “The Poet Is In.” For a donation to the library, folks can receive a poem written on the spot by Byer, who is in her fourth year as N.C. Poet Laureate.

On Friday evening, Nov. 13, Gary Carden’s play, “The Prince of Dark Corners” will be staged at the First United Methodist Church. The play begins at 7:30 p.m. and stars Franklin actor Steve Brady. Tickets for the play are $10 for adults and $5 for children.

GSMNP–National Geographic Traveler, in its sixth rating of worldwide travel destinations, calls the Great Smoky Mountains National Park “a national treasure surrounded by a bathtub ring of ugly, unplanned development.”

An excerpt from a story on the matter from the Knoxville News Sentinel:

The survey of 437 experts, which including travel writers, historic preservationists, ecologists and others, placed the Smokies in the next-to-worst category: “Places with Troubles.”

The judges whose comments were published with the story were slightly more lenient on the North Carolina side of the Smokies than the Tennessee side, which one judge described as displaying “the worst excesses of mass tourist development … ”

Tourism officials from Tennessee told the News Sentinel that the rankings were inherently biased against more popular and accessible locations.

Read the Knoxville News Sentinel story here.
Read the National Geographic Traveler story here.

GSMNP–Those thumps you heard earlier were tourism folks fainting dead away at the news that the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will close its wildly popular Cades Cove loop for three months in the spring for repaving and sprucing up.

An excerpt from the Knoxville News Sentinel:

The park examined a “full range of options” to do the work, according to Superintendent Dale Ditmanson.

All would have required unsuitable detours for the 3,000 to 4,000 vehicles that enter the cove each day, Ditmanson said.

Night-time work also was considered, but the road would have had to be closed for the rebuilding of the sub-base.

The park chose to close the road and recycle it in place as the most efficient and “environmentally responsible” way to complete the work, Ditmanson said.

Read the story here.

The Western North Carolina Pottery Festival returns for its fifth year on Saturday, Nov. 7, with an expanded lineup and a special clay “Olympics” competition.

Event organizers continue to be surprised by the popularity achieved by the festival in a short period of time. With dozens of well-known applicants from across the nation, the number of juried potters has been expanded to 42 this year. Last year’s show had 36 exhibitors.

Dillsboro, NC

The 2009 festival includes potters from 13 states, including Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, New York and New Jersey, as well as North Carolina and surrounding states. The featured potter is Trent Berning of California.

“There are name potters in the show we never expected to have, and we had to turn away 30 potters, so there is competition to get in,” said organizer Joe Frank McKee of Dillsboro’s Tree House Pottery. “It’s become a premier event. We have potters from every type of clay medium.”

Berning, of Berning Clay Gallery in Fallbrook, Calif., has a master’s degree in ceramics from the University of Tennessee and is an instructor at two colleges. He is known for creating large pots featuring slip decoration, which uses fine clay in a variety of colors blended into liquid form and applied to pots.

Another artist of note is Richard Aerni of Rochester, NY. Aerni, a potter for 30 years, specializes in single-fired, wood-ash glazed functional stoneware. His work is sold in galleries across the country and is on display at the Smithsonian Institute.

New this year is the clay Olympics challenge from 1-3 p.m. Friday at Tree House Pottery. The competition is sponsored by Shimpo, a pottery equipment company, and includes 20 potters attempting to create the tallest cylinder and widest bowl in 10 minutes.

Saturday’s festival hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine. Admission is $2 per person and includes a ticket for a day-long raffle. Children under 12 are admitted free.

“All the smiling faces in Jackson County and the people supporting the WNC Pottery Festival make this a special event,” said McKee. “Our potters like interacting with people and are willing to share information. They’re not just here for money, they’re here to share their craft.”

CULLOWHEE–Organizers of Mountain Heritage Day, Western Carolina University’s long-running mountain folkways festival, will explore uncharted regions of hades this week.

This is because the large festival’s usual site on the valley floor is too soggy to be used, and so organizers will relocate the whole shebang on a moment’s notice to another part of campus.

Here’s a release from Western:

CULLOWHEE – Mountain Heritage Day, Western Carolina University’s annual festival of mountain culture, will be held at an alternate location on campus this Saturday, Sept. 26, because of recent heavy rains in the area.

Festival activities will take place along Memorial Drive and Killian Building Lane, which will be closed to traffic, and around adjacent university buildings, said festival Chairman Scott Philyaw. The regular festival site, an intramural field located near the Cordelia Camp Building, is too wet to be used during the festival, Philyaw said.

Memorial Drive will be closed at its intersection with Norton Road, and Killian Building Lane will be closed at its intersection with Centennial Drive. About 130 arts and crafts vendors are scheduled to display their wares at the festival, and their booths will be located along Memorial Drive and Killian Building Lane, Philyaw said.

Despite the change in location, most festival activities will go on as planned. Mountain Heritage Day will offer two stages of traditional music and dance; old-fashioned mountain food; exhibitions of folk arts and skills; and demonstrations of Cherokee Indian ball (also known as “stickball”), shape-note singing, black powder shooting and an 18th-century hunters’ camp.

The festival Circle Tent will offer historical presentations, children’s activities, storytelling, and guitar and fiddle circles. Other items on the agenda include a 5K foot race and woodcutting contest.

WCU’s Mountain Heritage Center will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. to allow festival visitors to view its exhibits and displays. The museum is located on the ground floor of H.F. Robinson Administration Building.

Three activities – an antique auto show, demonstration of horses and mules at work, and hayrides – have been canceled because of the change in location.

Festival activities begin at 8 a.m. and continue until 6 p.m. Admission and parking at Mountain Heritage Day are free. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs.

Pets are not allowed at the festival site, but service animals are welcome. For more information about Mountain Heritage Day, call (828) 227-3193.

Visitors are encouraged to stick around after the festival to cheer on the football Catamounts as they take on the Furman Paladins at E.J. Whitmire Stadium. Kickoff is 6 p.m. For tickets, call the WCU athletics ticket office at 800-34-GOWCU.

CULLOWHEE – Twenty-two top high school marching bands from four states will assemble for Western Carolina University’s ninth annual Tournament of Champions, an invitational competition hosted by WCU’s award-winning Pride of the Mountains Marching Band at E.J. Whitmire Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 10.

Tuscola High School Band, from the 2008 competition

The high school musicians will be competing for various awards, including the prestigious Chancellor’s Award Trophy, a large glass traveling trophy that is presented to the grand champion band, and the North Carolina Roll of Honor, awarded to the highest scoring band from North Carolina.

“The Tournament of Champions has become one of the major marching band events in the entire Southeast,” said Bob Buckner, Pride of the Mountains Marching Band director. “Its tradition has become one of attracting bands that are very serious about competition. The show is so competitive that ‘making the night show’ now is recognized as a major accomplishment. The day is marked by drama, music and the excitement of seeing and hearing young people work together toward a single goal.”

The tournament-hosting Pride of the Mountains Marching Band is the 2009 recipient of the prestigious Sudler Trophy, the nation’s highest and most-coveted award for college and university marching bands. Western Carolina is the first institution in the state of North Carolina and the first member of the Southern Conference selected for the award, which has been called the “Heisman Trophy” of the collegiate marching band world. Past recipients of the honor include the universities of Texas, Michigan, Illinois, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Alabama, and Ohio State, Louisiana State, Penn State and Auburn universities.

The Oct. 10 competition will consist of two sessions. Preliminaries will begin at 8 a.m. and continue through the day. The three class champions will be announced at 3:45 p.m., and the three class champs and the next seven highest scoring bands will advance to the finals. The finals competition will begin at 7 p.m.

The Pride of the Mountains Marching Band will perform its halftime show “Born to Be Alive” at 3 p.m., signifying the end of the preliminaries. The band will then play the national anthem at 6:45 p.m., and again perform “Born to Be Alive” at the end of the finals competition.

Participating North Carolina bands (and towns where located) are Brevard, Pisgah (Canton), South Rowan (China Grove), East Lincoln (Denver), Chase (Forest City), Franklin, North Lincoln (Lincolnton), Marvin Ridge (Waxhaw), Tuscola (Waynesville) and North Buncombe (Weaverville).

Georgia high schools participating are Harrison (Kennesaw) and Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee).

South Carolina high schools participating are Boiling Springs, Clover, Nation Ford (Fort Mill), White Knoll (Lexington), North Augusta, Northwestern (Rock Hill) and Eastside (Taylors).

The Tennessee high schools participating are Volunteer (Church Hill), Science Hill (Johnson City) and Dobyns-Bennett (Kingsport).

Tickets are $10 for the preliminary competition. Tickets for the finals are $8 if purchased in advance or at the gate before 5 p.m., and are $10 if purchased after 5 p.m. Children under the age of 12 will be admitted free when accompanied by an adult.

GSMNP–A Tennessee man has a date with a magistrate after his pit bull severely injured a deer near Elkmont last week.

The unleashed 100 lb. dog attacked a mature 130 lb. buck, and the deer was so badly wounded that it had to be euthanized.

A news report is here, but the online National Parks Traveler goes into more depth, discussing past incidents:

An excerpt:

A … spokesman at the park said such incidents are fairly rare in the Smokies, and described another situation several years ago that illustrates the value in the “leash law” for protecting pets as well as wildlife. In that case the dog was riding in the bed of a pickup truck which was being driven through the Cades Cove area.

The dog spotted a black bear, jumped out of the truck, and headed for the bear, which was large enough that it wasn’t intimidated by the dog. A chase ensured, and the dog became the prey, running back toward the owner, who had stopped his truck alongside the road. In this case, the pursuing bear reportedly broke off the chase when the dog ran into a group of people who had gathered to watch the action. That case fortunately ended without further incident for both the dog and the bear, but this one could have taken a nasty turn.

Read the post here.

NANTAHALA-Western North Carolina’s largest outdoor gear fair will feature an unprecedented number of events, when NOC’s Guest Appreciation Festvial (GAF) kicks off September 25-27, at NOC’s headquarters on the Nantahala River.

This is the 26th year for the end-of-season sale and swap. A destination event, visitors can expect games, giveaways, video premieres, rafting, live music, restaurant specials and much more throughout the weekend.

The event begins on Friday, when NOC opens its Used Gear Marketplace. At the same time, the Outfitter’s Store opens its doors to blowout brand new bikes, boats, apparel, tents and more. NOC’s famous Outfitter’s Store is the biggest specialty retailer of whitewater gear in the country and also features a wide selection of general outdoor apparel, so expect to find a variety of sale items.

This installment of GAF features more live music than ever before, with Woody Pines, The HumBuckers, The Steve Wohlrab Jazz Trio and additional musicians performing throughout the entire weekend.

In addition to sales, live music and regularly-scheduled rafting trips, Saturday features a packed line-up of events, including The Subaru Sumo Thunder Challenge, the ShredReady/IR Pumpkin Pursuit, a Crowded Canoe Competition, the Jackson Kayak Big Trick Competition, Foamy Boat Building, free fishing and kayaking clinics, restaurant specials, games, video premieres, kids contests and more.

Also during GAF weekend, the International Whitewater Hall of Fame will hold its 2009 induction ceremony on Saturday evening at Relia’s Garden Restaurant. There are meetand-greet events with the honorees, open to the public on Saturday afternoon.

NOC’s Guest Appreciation Festival usually sees visitation around 2,000 people. Visitors should be prepared to use marked satellite parking lots east of NOC on Highway 19, and ride the NOC-provided, free shuttles to the event.

DILLSBORO–It’s a big weekend for the Jackson County Green Energy Park, a series of artisan studios, greenhouses and other ventures powered by captured methane from an abandoned landfill.

Chalking at Art at the Park, 2008

The county owned-facility, located outside Dillsboro, hosts its second annual “Art at the Park” on Saturday, from 9am until 2pm.

Family-oriented activities will include sidewalk chalk, mural painting, weaving, tile mosaics, chalk pastel drawing, take-home art projects, and more.  Adults will enjoy free horticulture workshops throughout the day.  The event will be catered by Bubacz’s Underground Cafe’, of Sylva.

Scheduled are live demonstrations of glassblowing, pottery and blacksmithing, as well as the unveiling of the park’s new glassblowing studio.

Horticulture workshops (Free, but please RSVP at 631-0271)

9:00 – 10:30 am – Basic Propagation of Woody & Herbaceous Perennials
Presented by George Thomas, Instructor, Horticulture Technology at Haywood Community College. No experience necessary – beginners welcome. Participants will learn propagation techniques for various perennial plants with a focus on native species. This workshop will include hands-on experience. Bring paper and pen to take notes.

10:30 – 11:30 am – The Art of Bonsai
Presented by Sage Smith, Horticulture Student at Haywood Community College. Bonsai, the art of shaping woody plants to look like miniature trees, has been practiced for thousands of years. Participants will learn basic techniques for shaping, watering, and re-potting plants to create fascinating living sculptures. No experience necessary.

11:30 – 12:30 – Landscaping With Native Plants
Presented by Marsha Crites, Master Gardener and Owner of Harvest Moon Gardens Landscaping. Participants will hear a short talk on landscaping with native plants, followed by a walk through the grounds at the Green Energy Park to discuss and identify the various native species. No experience necessary.

12:30 – 1:30 – Houseplant Care and Maintenance
Presented by Bo Keen, of Ray’s Florist in Dillsboro. Participants will learn about indoor/house plant care, feeding, handling, repotting and propagation. Bring your plants in for problem identification and solutions. This workshop will have a focused question/answer session.

CASHIERS–The US Forest Service is planning changes at spectacular Panthertown Valley, and Cashiers’ Friends of Panthertown organization is holding a public meeting to explain those changes.

The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 9 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Albert Carlton-Cashiers Community Library.

The changes are described by the organization and the Cashiers Crossroads Chronicle newspaper as “subtle”.

Here’s an excerpt from the newspaper’s coverage:

There are a little less than 80 miles of trails in Panthertown Valley. [Nina] Elliott, [Friends of Panthertown Coordinator], said the changes aren’t going to add miles, but will focus more on signage and what trails can accommodate various users (horseback riding, biking or hiking.)

“There are no signs,” said Elliott of its trails currently. “Panthertown Valley is a back country area, so most trails aren’t marked. It provides an experience for people to go out and find solitude in nature. However, the Forest Service has deemed it necessary to mark trails, at least minimally at trail intersections. It’s a safety issue. People get lost all the time. We’ve all been lost in Panthertown before. These signs have a lot of information on a little place. It’s not going to affect the experience for users in Panthertown.

Read the whole story here.

Download a pdf description of Forest Service changes here.

Tour de Tuck: Sept. 19

SYLVA – Cyclists looking for an endurance test will find it in Jackson County on Sept. 19 during the fourth annual Tour de Tuck Bike Challenge.

The Tour de Tuck is a demanding 105-mile timed ride featuring 40 miles along the Blue Ridge Parkway, and a cumulative elevation gain of 11,000 feet. The ride is named after the Tuckasegee River, which borders much of the closing stretch.

Completing the Tour de Tuck has become a point of pride among participants. Several of the riders who originally register for the century ride decide at the cutoff point to switch to the metric century ride, which is 60 miles in length and not as grueling.

“The Tour de Tuck attracts a certain type of rider who’s looking for a fierce challenge and something a little bit different,” said course director Greg Duff. “Because of the Parkway, it is somewhat solitary, unlike the huge rides where you’re always with a large group.”

Rider feedback from the first three years has been complimentary of the event’s organization and the commitment of volunteers. There are six aid stations throughout the course, a number of SAG vehicles, many volunteers along the route, and public safety officers placed at all major intersections. Participants also receive a post-ride meal.

“This is one of the best organized rides I’ve attended. Each turn was monitored so that out-of-towners, like myself, felt confident we were on course and could enjoy the incredible beauty,” said rider Rusty Infinger of Greenville, S.C. “I was truly impressed with the number of volunteers and their dedication.”

The Tour de Tuck offers two options – the 105-mile century ride and a shorter, 60-mile metric century ride. Both start and finish at Mark Watson Park in Sylva. All participants receive a goody bag and catered post-race meal.

Starting time for the Tour de Tuck is 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 19. The event is sponsored by the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce. Volunteers are provided by the Sylva Rotary Club.

Entry fee is $55. Registration is only available online at www.tourdetuck.com. For additional information, call (800) 962-1911.

REGIONAL–Drive to Atlanta much? Me either, anymore.

But the one constant in that two-and-a-half jaunt is change, and that change isn’t going away anytime soon.

The Georgia Department of Transportation recently told an open house crowd of some 250 people at Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School about its plans to widen US 441 to four lanes from Clayton to the North Carolina line, south of Franklin. It’s a 7.5 mile stretch, and the road work will cost about $110 million.

The route is a major connector between the Atlanta area and the Smokies.

Here’s an excerpt from a story in the Highlands Highlander:

The plans include creating a four-lane highway to the North Carolina state line with a 20-foot raised median. Pope said the original plans included a 20-foot raised median through Dillard, but that has been changed to a 6-foot median. She added that the goal was to “minimize the impact on businesses.”

Here’s the whole piece.