The School of Appalachia: Modern Survival Skills

Bake bread together

An Appalachian at heart, Australian Alan Scott co-wrote the treatise on traditional bread baking, The Bread Builders (Chelsea Green Publishing, 1999), and led a 20th-century revival of the ancient craft of building outdoor masonry ovens. An oven that was hand-built by Scott forms the baking and teaching heart of artisanal Smoke Signals Baking in Marshall, North Carolina.

“This connection to the past is present in all that we do,” says Smoke Signals baker and owner Tara Jensen. “Each workshop participant walks away with an enhanced understanding of the local grain economy, the legacy of wood-fired baking in the area, and a set of recipes and formulas for their own kitchens.”

• WHERE: Smoke Signals, 590 Barnard Road, Marshall, North Carolina, smokesignalsbaking.com.
• COURSE: “Naturally Leavened Bread Basics” (also pizza and pie workshops).
• SYLLABUS: Bake bread in the outdoor oven, and learn about milling stone ground flour, caring for a sourdough starter, and more. 
• FEES: $75 for workshops; rates vary for private instruction.
• WHEN: Offered two Sundays each month for three hours; private instruction by appointment (groups of four or more). Check website for current workshops.
• HOW: For more information or to register online, visit smokesignals.com or email loveartbread@gmail.com.
• EXTRA CREDIT: Visit Blannahassett Island, a French Broad River island in downtown Marshall that is the home of Marshall High Studios, a community art and craft hub housed in a former school.

Brew your own beer

With more than 20 craft breweries and a thriving homebrew scene, the greater Asheville area is widely considered the Southern Appalachian craft brew capital. If you plan ahead, you can even learn to brew your own beer or ale at Hops & Vines, a one-stop shop for specialty beer and wine as well as home brewing supplies.

• WHERE: Hops & Vines, 797 Haywood Rd. Ste 100, West Asheville, North Carolina, hopsandvines.net.
• COURSE: “Beginner Home Brewing.”
• SYLLABUS: Introduction to the art of micro-brewing, including everything you need to know to start making your own beer.
• FEES: $45.
• WHEN: One Saturday per month from 12–4 p.m. Check website for upcoming dates.
• HOW: For more information or to sign up, call Hops & Vines at 828.252.5275.
• EXTRA CREDIT: If possible, attend the follow-up class two weeks later to bottle and bring home your brew.

Practice Permaculture

Permaculture—a combination of “permanent” and “agriculture”—models manmade systems (such as architecture, gardening, and transportation) on natural processes. The goal is to learn how to live more sustainably, and to put those lessons into practice at home and in your community.

Permaculture design is one of the many Wild Abundance courses available to people who want to “get their mind and body engaged in sustainable living,” says founder and director Natalie Bogwalker.

• WHERE: Wild Abundance, Asheville, wildabundance.net.
• COURSE: Sustainable-living classes range from private sessions (on topics such as permaculture, survival skills, organic gardening, or food preservation) to a two-week Permaculture Design Certification Course.
• SYLLABUS: Learn practical skills for living closer to the earth.
• FEES: $75-$150 classes; $250-$500 daily, private sessions; $950-$1,250 permaculture certification.
• WHEN: Private classes by appointment; Permaculture Design Certification Course, September 12–23; other classes and events available monthly. Check online calendar for updated schedule.
• HOW: For more information or to register, go to wildabundance.net or call 828.775.7052. 
• EXTRA CREDIT: Save the date for the Firefly Gathering, an event held each June near Asheville. Bogwalker co-founded the multi-day and multigenerational celebration of nature, community, and sustainable living, with classes on eco-homesteading, primitive skills, permaculture, and more. Learn more at fireflygathering.org.

Learn to fly fish

Orvis professionals teach the basics of fly-fishing in some of the country’s best trout streams.

• WHERE: Orvis workshops are held at The Lodge at Buckberry Creek in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, and at Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.
• COURSE:  Orvis Fly Fishing School.
• SYLLABUS: Get schooled in fly-casting techniques, knot-tying skills, choosing the best gear and tackle, reading water and currents, and safely releasing fish, as well as a primer on stream entomology.
• FEES: $489 plus lodging.
• WHEN: Two-day weekend workshops are held multiple times a month from spring through fall. 
• HOW: For more information about Orvis Fly Fishing Schools, call 866.531.6213.
• EXTRA CREDIT: Extend your stay to explore Great Smoky Mountains National Park or Biltmore Estate. In September and April, Gatlinburg hosts the Smoky Mountain Trout Tournament.

Forage for food

Living off the land was an essential survival skill for early Appalachian settlers. While modern-day Appalachian explorers easily can tote food into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, spending a day outdoors searching for food offers the opportunity to see and experience the park in a more meaningful and memorable way. The Smoky Mountain Field School, a partnership between the University of Tennessee and the National Park Service, offers a variety of food-related workshops.

• WHERE: Smoky Mountain Field School, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, smfs.utk.edu.
• COURSE: “Foraging for Food and Farmacy” or “Edible and Poisonous Mushrooms.”
• SYLLABUS: Learn how to identify what’s edible and medicinal in the park, and about how Native Americans and early settlers lived off the land.
• FEES: $79.
• WHEN: Both courses are held on a Saturday from 9:30 a.m.–4 p.m. The foraging workshop typically is offered once in April, June, and August; the mushroom program once in July and August (the best month to find mushrooms).
• HOW: For more information or to register, go to smfs.utk.edu.
• EXTRA CREDIT: Book a three-hour, forage-to-table tour ($75) with Asheville-based No Taste Like Home (notastelikehome.org). Tours are available daily year-round; however, mid April to mid October is prime time to forage for food in the wild near Asheville.

Rock out with jewelry and earth sciences

Founded in 1983, the William Holland School of Lapidary Arts is a hidden gem of a hobbyist school that unearths the science of rocks and gems. Here in the mountains of Northern Georgia, volunteer instructors lead courses in jewelry-making, scrimshaw, cabochons, and other facets of lapidary arts.

• WHERE: William Holland School of Lapidary Arts, 230 Lapidary Lane, Young Harris, Georgia, lapidaryschool.org.
• COURSE: “Faceting 1,” “Beading 1,” or “Enameling 1.”
• SYLLABUS: Learn the basics of gem faceting (cut at least one stone), professional-level bead stringing (make your own necklaces), or enameling techniques (including cloisonné and copper etching).
• FEES: $370 for a week’s lodging (including all meals), plus lab fees and materials.
• WHEN: Classes run April to early November for one-week sessions.
• HOW: Register online at lapidaryschool.org or call 706.379.2126.
• EXTRA CREDIT: Find inspiration and make new friends at Tuesday night auctions (proceeds help offset the cost of equipment and classroom supplies) and Thursday night tailgating sessions to buy, sell, or trade jewelry and other lapidary-related items.

Take better nature photos

Anyone with a smartphone can take a photo of a mountain waterfall or stream. Capturing the motion of falling water or the sunlight reflecting off the surface of a stream, however, takes expertise and the proper tools. The difference between taking photos and practicing the art of nature photography lies in the details. At four-day photography workshops held at the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont, the national park is the classroom, with award-winning photographers as the instructors.

• WHERE: Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont, located inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park, gsmit.org.
• COURSE: Photography Workshop.
• SYLLABUS: Classroom and field instruction in topics such as nature and wildlife photography, close-up techniques, and Photoshop; plus a concluding critique session of work completed during the program.
• FEES: $629–642 (Includes dormitory lodging and meals).
• WHEN: One Friday–Monday photography workshop is offered each season.
• HOW: For more information or to register, see gsmit.org.
• EXTRA CREDIT: Take advantage of the optional shoots available during each session at locations such as Cades Cove, Elkmont, Tremont, and Foothills Parkway.

Track the Weather

Stay ahead of weather patterns in Western North Carolina while becoming versed in mountain weather folklore. 

• WHERE: North Carolina Arboretum, 100 Frederick Law Olmsted Way, Asheville, ncarboretum.org.
• COURSE: “Meteorology of the Blue Ridge.”
• SYLLABUS: Read the skies using a cloud chart and learn how to analyze surface pressure as well as apply computer forecasting models. 
• FEES: $98 for non-members; fees vary for other classes.
• WHEN: A five-week class will be offered this fall; see online course catalog for dates.
• HOW: Register at ncarboretum.org or call 828.665.2492.
• EXTRA CREDIT: The Arboretum’s full catalog of courses range from gardening and watercolor to seminars focused on how to engage children in the outdoors. “Meteorology of the Blue Ridge” fulfills a core requirement for the Blue Ridge Naturalist Certificate program, a 240-hour curriculum covering ecology, botany, geology, and plant identification.