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Holly Kays photo
Above the Pandemic
It was an apocalyptic kind of springtime. Winter’s retreat would normally signal the advance of tourist season, but in 2020, stores and restaurants were closed, downtown deserted. Read more
Apr 1, 2021
On the Trail in the Smokies
When a mountain winter takes hold and lingers, I’m a fan of lower-elevation hikes. One of my favorites in Great Smoky Mountains National Park is Noland Creek Trail, near Bryson City. Read more
Feb 1, 2021
Slope Style
Growing up in rural Southwestern Virginia, Shawn Cassell couldn’t wait for his birthday. It wasn’t about the presents or the cake that interested him, more so it was the chance it might snow on Feb. 8. Read more
Feb 1, 2021
A conversation With the Smokies’ Plant Protector
Joshua Albritton has always loved wild places, and as a geography student at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville a gig with the National Park Service was his dream. Read more
Feb 1, 2021
Beetles: First At A Lot of Things
The world stands on the shoulders of beetles. Some of the oldest and most diverse insects known to science, beetles are believed to have emerged around 300 million years ago. Read more
Feb 1, 2021
Holly Kays photo
Refuge on the Parkway
It was a warm winter, full of rain in place of snow and bulbs bursting forth too early. Down in town, it felt more like a flowerless spring than a mountain winter. The Blue Ridge Parkway, as always, offered an escape. Read more
Feb 1, 2021
The Way Things Change
Standing in a forest in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in western North Carolina, it’s difficult to imagine anything interrupting the familiar sounds of nature. Read more
Dec 1, 2020
NPS photo
A Conversation With the Smokies’ History Sleuth
Antoine Fletcher, an anthropologist by training, has been tasked with getting the word out about scientific research in the park—and with heading up an ongoing effort to uncover long-ignored African American history in the Smokies. Read more
Dec 1, 2020
