The National Park Service announces four new species found in the GSMNP The Great Smoky Mountains were already home to more than 13,000 known species of animals. And it turns out that number is still growing. As part of its ongoing All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory and Discover Life in America initiatives, the park is working to identify the many and mini
A guide to not getting attacked, eaten, arrested, or infamous on the internet while on your trip to the Smokies There are a lot of sentences I never thought I’d have to type, but right there at the top of the list is the following: Don’t touch wild bears. We learn a lot of things in our lives, but one
The GSMNP warns visitors about disturbing this mostly unseen residents’ habitat Before we moved to the mountains of East Tennessee, I spent a significant time knocking around the woods of rural Southern Indiana. It was the ‘80s and I was given freedom to roam that would be considered shocking these days. I certainly wouldn’t give my own kids that sort
A pair of tragic animal encounters has been reported in Tennessee. Should you be concerned about your next vacation? Two incidents in the news recently have served as sobering reminders about observing recommended practices and exercising due care in the mountains of Tennessee. One incident involved a black bear that had to be shot and killed after invading a man’s
What do you do when an emergency strikes in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park? In early June, a couple of North Carolina teens on a hiking, fishing and camping trip in the Pisgah National Forest found themselves facing life and death. One of the boys stepped over a log and felt a prick on his foot. He turned around
We’ve spent 30 years blundering our way around the mountains of East Tennessee, and now you can learn from our mistakes We spend a lot of our time on this Earth being reminded that mistakes – and learning from them – are part of the human experience. In fact, the great Canadian Philosopher Alanis Morrisette once told us: “You live, you
Try these can’t miss options when traveling to the “other” side of the Smokies I spend some time kicking around analogies for the East Tennessee – Western North Carolina tourism relationship. I noodled around the idea of a “Beaches” reference, the Bette Midler vehicle famous chiefly for launching the “Wind Beneath my Wings.” But I don’t think the idea that
Western North Carolina is a tourist destination that has more than a casino going for it I must admit the first time I visited Cherokee, North Carolina – circa 1991 or so – it didn’t make much of an impression. Of course, I was a sullen teenager who found the drive across the mountain full of more tedium than wonder. The
From Blue Ghosts to White Squirrels, you never know what you might find in the mountains From Big Foot to Feral People, there are plenty of tall tales of strange creatures that live in the shadows of the Great Smoky Mountains and surrounding forests. But as they say, the truth can be stranger than fiction. There are several odd, bizarre
Plants to be wary of on your next trip to the Smokies When thinking about poisonous plants of the Smokies, I started to feel a little haughty. “Who in the world goes through the mountains just eating random plants?” Then, a torrent of memories from my youth flooded back. All of them revolving around my love of all things sour.