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No spam whatsoever, just one great photo a week. More than 17,000 Smokies lovers have joined already.
This photo of a surprise snowfall last month on Hemphill Bald is by Jason Stanley.
Send a free gift of the Smokies to all your friends via our new Facebook app A Day in the Smokies. They'll thank you for it! Email a hike, a beautiful view, a funny critter...
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Dolly Pays for Trail Repairs
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Look how Dolly Parton is helping the park now! She's donating the proceeds of her latest CD to the Trails Forever program. Here are some photos of Trails Forever crews working hard to repair paths through the park.
So far GSMA sales of Sha-Kon-O-Hey have raised over $80,000. 
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Rare Bird Sighted -- LeConte Sparrow
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Meet the shy little LeConte Sparrow!
The above photo is the first documented sighting (and only the second siting ever) of a LeConte sparrow inside the park! It was spotted and photographed by Benjamin Zank along the trail from the Sugarlands to Gatlinburg. The only previous sighting was in Cades Cove.
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| Our New Business Members |
What
a fantastic year the GSMA and GSMNP have had. The 75th anniversary
celebration and increases in park visitation and GSMA sales have us on track to give the
park $2,000,000 in 2009! This
donation is made possible by the support of our members, including our Business Members,
so please patronize them when visiting the Smokies.
Below are some of our new Business Members. You can see all of them on our website by clicking on Our Business Members. To see all the discounts offered to GSMA members, click on Discounts & Freebies. Then pick your favorite category: Lodging, B & B,
Restaurants, and many more.
If you'd like to have
your business included in this announcement and on our website,
contact Westy Fletcher at 423.487.3131 or at Westy@GSMAssoc.org.
Apple Valley Country Stores
7138
East Lamar Alexander Pkwy
Townsend TN 37882
tel: 865.448.9878 Jennifer Maples
email: applevalleyfarms@aol.com
www.applevalleycountrystores.com
GSMA members in good standing will receive 10% off purchases.
Smoky Mountains National Park Store
3030
Wears Valley Road
Sevierville TN 37862
tel: 865.774.9670 Carol Kueny
email: sales@moonshine-ridge.com
www.moonshine-ridge.com
Wellington Place
1020
Middle Creek Road
Sevierville TN 37862
tel: 865.774.2221 Vanessa Spurgeon
email: pamorgan@brookdaleliving.com
www.brookdaleliving.com
The Day Hiker
634
Parkway
Suite #1
Gatlinburg TN 37738
tel: 877.day-hike Joseph Guenther
email: jumpinjoe1@aol.com
GSMA members in good standing will receive a 10% discount.
Ski Mountain Chalet & Condo Rentals
416
Ski Mountain Road
Gatlinburg TN 37738
tel: 800.824.4077
email: skimtnchal@aol.com
www.skimtnchalets.com
GSMA members in good standing will receive a 10% discount on
lodging. July, October and
holidays excluded.
BB&T
216
Foothills Mall
Maryville TN 37801
tel: 865.681.5609 Bill Pyle
email: wpyle@BBandT.com
www.BBandT.com
River Rat/USA Raft
205
Wears Valley Road
Townsend TN 37882
tel: 865.448.8888 Taz Cable
email: tubing8888@aol.com
www.smokymtnriverrat.com
GSMA members in good standing will receive $3 Off Rafting,
$1 Off Tubing, and up to $8 off Combo Packages.
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Winter in the Smokies
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Send out distinctive holiday cards this year and show your environmental and social awareness at the same time by donating to a good cause. Your friends will love these stunning images of Great Smoky Mountains National Park in snow.
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Road Advisories
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I-40 between Tennessee and Asheville, NC (near mile marker 3, very close to the Tennessee state line) is blocked because of a huge rockslide. Find alternate routes if you were planning to travel this stretch of I-40.
The Gatlinburg Bypass and the Spur will have periodic single lane closures to clear vegetation from November 2-January 15. The work will be suspended during times of heaviest traffic.
Clingmans Dome road is closed until summer as is Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail and the parking area for the Sinks.
The National Park Service lists road closures on their website also.
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Special Deep Discounts -- Great Christmas Presents
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Say Happy Holidays with Gift Memberships & Matching Funds
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All of us at GSMA wish you and your family Happy Holidays from the Smokies!
This Cub
Report will be the last edition you receive before the
holidays, so we want to take this opportunity to remind you that a gift
membership in GSMA would be a thoughtful and generous way to wish a Happy
Holiday to the special people in your life. What better way to support to the park?
All existing or new members who purchase a gift
membership for a new member (not a renewal) are entitled to a
complimentary park t-shirt! This offer is good through December 31st.
Many
of your employers will match charitable donations. So, please ask your company if they participate in a matching gift program and you can really
make a difference since your membership amount will be doubled! (And be sure to send us
the appropriate paperwork to fill out along with your payment. Some companies will even allow you to submit this information on-line.)
You can make a big difference this
holiday season and give desperately needed help to the park.
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Clingmans Dome
Sunset Panorama
Photo by Ron Ford
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Elk Frolicking in Cataloochee
Abrams Falls
Enjoy this new video of elk scampering around Cataloochee by Valerie Polk.
Relax by taking a virtual video visit to Abrams Falls courtesy of Valerie Polk.
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Elk Poaching Tragedy
Park Lovers Keep a Close Eye on Beloved Animals
Gone, but not forgotten. Elk # 21, a beautiful 13 year-old bull, was killed in Cataloochee on Friday the 13th. Photo by Pat Maier.
On Friday morning, November
13, Rangers found the carcass of bull #21 lying along the edge of one of the
pastures in the Cataloochee area in Haywood County, North Carolina. The animal was believed to have been
shot and was taken to the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine for a forensic exam.
An immediate investigation was initiated involving Park Rangers, a National
Park Service (NPS) Special Agent, and the North Carolina Wildlife Resources
Commission. A vehicle description
lead them to a suspect from Granville County. An NPS Special Agent traveled to Granville County where he
located the suspect at his home.
The suspect reportedly confessed to the offense. Photo by Susan Moore.
The suspect's name is not being released pending the filing
of charges. Those convicted of
poaching in a national park can face up to six months in jail and/or a fine of
up to $5,000. Offenders can also
be forced to forfeit the weapon and the vehicle used in the crime.
Acting Chief Ranger, Steve Kloster said, "The suspect was quickly identified
and a strong case developed because of the willingness of members of the
community to come forward and talk to Rangers and state wildlife officers. The many visitors and volunteers who
come to Cataloochee expressly to watch the elk constitute a very effective
surveillance network which has undoubtedly prevented elk
poaching from occurring earlier."
"While the loss of one bull elk may not jeopardize the success of the Park's
Elk Program, we do see this as a very serious theft of the public's enjoyment
of their national park." Kloster continued. "Thousands of visitors come to see these elk each year, and
many of them know each animal by sight.
Number 21 was one of the largest and most majestic breeding bulls in the
herd, so he will certainly be missed."
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Christmas in the Smokies
Enjoy the Good Old Days With Your Family
Relive the joy of Christmas Past at Sugarlands on December 12 (9 am-4 pm) and the Holiday Homecoming at Oconaluftee on December 19 (10 am-2 pm). To see what last year's event was like, here's a short video. There will be kid's activities, live seasonal music, heritage crafts demonstrations, a chance to visit with old-time residents, and a living history presentation.
Photo by Caitlin Miller
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Terrific New Books
Great Christmas Gifts
Check out these two fascinating new books about the park and the Cherokee people. In 3000 Miles in the Great Smokies Bill Hart shares 40 years of hiking, camping, and angling experiences in the park. A great gift for the men on your list. And in White Feather Nancy Pafford gives us a new insight into the plight of the Cherokee people's struggle during the Trail of Tears removal.
 
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Free and Painless Donations to Park via GoodSearch.com
Shop Online and the Park Gets a Percentage of Your Spending
What if Great Smoky Mountains Association earned a donation every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our cause? Well, now it can!
GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!
GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 30 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's, and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you'll be supporting your favorite cause.
And if you download the GoodSearch - Great Smoky Mountains Association toolbar, our cause will earn money every time you shop and search online - even if you forget to go to GoodShop or GoodSearch first! Add the Great Smoky Mountains Association toolbar at -- http://www.goodsearch.com/toolbar/great-smoky-mountains-association
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Smokies Christmas Music
Holiday Sounds Appalachian Style
Christmas on the Mountain - Traditional Appalachian mountain instruments featuring dulcimer, fiddle, mandolin, guitar, autoharp, and string bass. Includes Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Joy to the World, Away in a Manger, and more.
Smoky Mountain Christmas - Instrumental featuring the holiday sounds of traditional mountain instruments with a distinctive local flavor. Includes Tennessee Christmas, O Come All Ye Faithful, The Gatlinburg Carol, and more.
The Peace of Christmas - A vocal compilation by Jim and Jimmy Hendricks. Includes Winter Wonderland, Mary Did You Know, White Christmas, and more.
  
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15% Discount
for GSMA Members!
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All Great Smoky Mountains Association Members support the park with
every purchase they make while enjoying a 15% discount plus many more
benefits such as a free subscription to Smokies Life magazine, Smokies
Guide newspaper, Bearpaw newsletter, Cub Report monthly e-newsletter, and discounts at many other parks!
A new Members Only area of the website is being developed where special offers and information will be available via password!
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Gift Memberships
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Make a charitable donation, support the park, and give a present all at the same time!
Click here to view the possibilities.
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Contact Membership@GSMAssoc.org
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Any Questions?
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For questions about online purchases, click here and Doug will help you.
For questions about membership, click here and Judy or Marti will help you.
For questions about business membership, click here and Westy will help you.
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