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 In This Issue
(click on title to go directly to story)
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'Women of the Smokies'
spotted in New York City
"Women of the Smokies" author Courtney Lix met up with Smoky Mountain superstar Dolly Parton during a recent stop on her Pure and Simple concert tour in New York City. Courtney presented Dolly with an autographed copy of her newest GSMA-published book, in which Dolly is one of 19 women featured for their contributions to the national park and the Smoky Mountain region.
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Final day to vote is July 5
In celebration of the National Park Service's Centennial, Partners in Preservation has embarked on its first national campaign, focused on raising awareness about the preservation needs of historic structures within 20 sites of the National Park Service system. The program will award $2 million in grants, with grant recipients decided by popular vote.
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NPS Photo
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Here in the Smokies, if/when we win, grant funds will be applied toward preservation of the 1959 Clingmans Dome observation tower. Renovation efforts will include correcting a structure settlement issue and repairing the overall deteriorated condition of the tower, including delaminated surfaces, spalls, exposed rebar, damaged handrails, and missing flagstones.
Through July 5, the public is encouraged to visit VoteYourPark.org and place their votes. Voters are also eligible to enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip to Yellowstone National Park sponsored by National Geographic. The five parks with the most votes at the end of the voting period will be awarded grants for their historic restoration projects.
So in this particular case the old saying "Vote Early & Often" is highly encouraged in support of much-needed repairs of this iconic Smoky Mountain structure.
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Parson Branch closed due to danger from dead hemlocks
GSMNP officials have announced the temporary closure of Parson Branch Road due to the concentration of hazard trees lining the roadway. The 8-mile, one-way gravel roadway begins in Cades Cove and exits along US Highway 129. Typically the road is opened each season between April and November.
Park crews originally delayed opening the road due to a damaged, 20-linear-foot section of roadway caused by an uprooted dead tree. After further inspection, crews identified more than 1,700 hazardous trees within falling distance of the 8-mile roadway. The estimated cost of hazardous tree removal for the area ranges between $300,000 and $450,000.
While closed to vehicles, the road will be open to hikers and horseback riders who should assess the risk for travel as they would in any area of the backcountry. Due to the nature of wide corridor, bicyclists may also use the road during the closure. Dogs on a 6-foot leash are also allowed.
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Smoky Mountain Mystery:
The Wild Man of Cataloochee
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The "wild man" of Cataloochee was in reality Arley Phillips, whose family moved from Cataloochee Valley in the 1930s to make way for establishment of the national park. - Photo used by permission from Mountaineer Publishing in Waynesville, N.C.
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On July 13, 1973, near where Rough Fork Creek intersects with the end of the main Cataloochee Valley road, seasonal national park ranger Charles Hughes had a violent encounter with the "wild man" of Cataloochee. Hughes was checking up on fishermen along Rough Fork when he met a man with a fly rod and a heavy beard.
When asked his name, the man replied, "I've got no name, I've lived in these woods all my life." When the ranger demanded to see his fishing license, the man reached into his heavy canvas hunting jacket for a pistol.
During a prolonged scuffle, the ranger succeeded in punching the man in the face but failed to subdue him. As Hughes attempted to turn around his vehicle and drive up the narrow gravel road for help, the "wild man" heaved a large rock at the ranger's Jeep and broke a window...
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Spring isn't the only time to feast your eyes on wildflowers. The Smoky Mountains boast some interesting and gorgeous specimens that bloom during summer and early fall. Let's see if you can identify some of them. The first person to answer all ten of the following questions correctly will win a copy of Great Smoky Mountains Wildflowers.
Last month's Moonshine winner: Linda Edison, Missouri
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Festival of the Fireflies
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Festival of the Fireflies
Video by Gary and Sawyer Wilson
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Fireflies (or lightning bugs to many) are a thing of wonder, especially to children. GSMA videographer Gary Wilson and his six-year-old son, Sawyer, spent a couple of evenings in Cades Cove recently filming the magic show these little beetles create, seemingly out of thin air. Click on the image above and enjoy!
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Cades Cove Bike Volunteers
win 2015 Hartzog Award
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And the winners are... Cades Cove Bike Patrol Volunteers - A GSMA video by Valerie Polk
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Click on the image above to meet the Cades Cove Bike Patrol, winners of a National Park Service Hartzog Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service. These volunteers are providing a safer, more enjoyable experience for visitors every Wednesday and Saturday morning during the summer. Since the bike patrol was established, more visitors are taking part in biking around the Cove on these days, and fewer are having accidents, results that can be attributed to the presence of these volunteers. They were selected among nominees from parks across the nation for this prestigious award. Congratulations from all of us here at GSMA!
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NEW - For anyone who has ever biked in Cades Cove, brag about it with our new moving bike patch. The bicyclist on this patch swivels and appears to be peddling in front of the Methodist Church on his way around the 11-mile loop.
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Mingus Mill, located just a couple miles north of Oconaluftee Visitor Center on Newfound Gap Road, is a 'must see' when you're in the Smokemont area.
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"With our weekend headquarters in Cherokee this year, we've partnered with the Cherokee Indian Museum to provide the bulk of our Saturday activities," said Marketing and Membership Director Lisa Duff. Program offerings will include traditional Native American dance, pottery making, storytelling, medicinal plants, and more. From this year's vantage point, we're also excited to include the annual Mountain Life Festival at Oconaluftee Visitor Center as an on-your-own activity.
"GSMNP Superintendent Cassius Cash will lead a hike this year as part of the NPS Centennial Hike 100 program," said Duff. "Additionally, the recently announced Top 100 Most Influential People in Park History will be recognized during a ceremony Friday night. It's probably an understatement to say we've got a lot going on this year."
Click below for detailed information, including how to register.
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June Hike 100 - Cataloochee Valley
Photo by Tony Fortier-Bensen
GSMA members and staff have logged another nearly 10 miles on their pursuit to hike 100 miles in Great Smoky Mountains National Park during the NPS Centennial. Our group set out from the end of Cataloochee Valley Road on a remarkably beautiful Saturday morning, stopped at the Woody house for a look around, found the graves of two Civil War-era soldiers, took lots of pictures at the Big Poplars, played in the creek, and crossed over this bridge to end our hike. All in all, an outstanding day and hike led by Chris Hoge (left).
The next GSMA-sponsored Hike 100 outing is set for Aug. 20 in the park's Big Creek section. Click HERE to read more about this hike. If you cannot make it to Big Creek on Aug. 20, you might consider hiking with GSMNP Superintendent Cassius Cash on the Gatlinburg Trail. Details of his hike are still being formulated and can be found HERE.
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Recommended July Hike:
A winter image on Cataloochee Divide - Photo by Lisa Duff
By Marti Smith
Marketing and Membership Associate
GSMNP 900 Mile Club Member
Cataloochee Valley is one of the park's most culturally rich areas. It's also one of the most beautiful, with numerous trails originating from this picturesque place, including Cataloochee Divide.
Cataloochee Divide is a beautiful, undulating crest trail that runs along the national park's border with North Carolina at its eastern edge. It begins at the Cataloochee entrance to the park at Cove Creek Gap and ends six miles later at Double Gap near The Swag (GSMA Business Member), a private resort near Maggie Valley.
This trail offers something year round: spring wildflowers; a higher elevation cooler walk in summer; pretty autumn foliage; and snowy winter views toward Asheville's Mount Pisgah.
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Shop the Smokies:
Ask most young visitors to the national park about their future career path, and they tell you: "I want to be a park ranger when I grow up!" What better way to get kids interested in the future of our national parks than the Junior Ranger program. Our ranger bucket hat and vest completes the package.
"Bear Bloopers" by Carolyn Jourdan (co-author of the popular "Bear in the Backseat" series) offers you a new collection of hilarious, heartbreaking, and terrifying encounters with black bears in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Rangers, scientists, wildlife photographers, wilderness guides, tourists, and others do all the wrong things when meeting one of the world famous icons of the Smokies. Order yours today.
Your last chance to take home the 2016 Spring Mountain Laurel Mug has arrived. Seize the Day and Grab this Mug - before they are gone forever! Made in America exclusively for Great Smoky Mountains National Park, this handcrafted mug of dusty rose and cream features a bouquet of beautiful Mountain Laurel, the very same that graces the hilldsides of the Smokies every spring.
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We're halfway through the National Park Service's Centennial year, which means we're halfway to the drawing for our Chestnut Challenge winner. As of June 28, 324 members have joined or renewed at the Chestnut Level (or higher), making them automatically eligible to win our Chestnut Challenge prize package.
That list of items includes:
- A private, full-day tour of Cades Cove with retired GSMNP ranger Mike Meldrum. Few know the Cove's secrets like Mike, who served many years as a volunteer and park ranger in this area, considered by many as the park's most impressive cultural and natural gem.
- Exclusive VIP Guest Pass for two to 32 Gatlinburg-area attractions, including all Ripley's locations, the Space Needle and Sky Lift, Ober Gatlinburg, Christ in the Smokies, Hillbilly Golf, and much more! Expires December 31, 2018.
The 2016 Chestnut Challenge winner will be drawn Aug. 25, 2016, the 100th Birthday of the National Park Service. To learn more about upgrading your membership, click HERE or give us a call at 865.436.7318, Ext. 222 or 325.
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Waterfall Recommendation:
Little Creek Falls
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| | GSMA's new Marketing and Membership Associate Dana Murphy at Little Creek Falls - Photo by Lisa Duff |
Some 80 inches of annual rainfall drench the summits of the Great Smoky Mountains before plummeting more than a vertical mile to the valleys below. This combination of climate and geography - not to mention the need to escape the summer heat - make the Smokies a premier place for watching waterfalls.
Of the park's 40 or so major waterfalls, three are visible from a road: Meigs Falls and The Sinks along Little River Road and Place of a Thousand Drips on Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. Most of the others require rountrip hikes of between two and eight miles. Read more about waterfalls in the summer Smokies Guide.
Little Creek Falls (pictured above) are found on Deep Low Gap Trail, which is accessible from several points in the Smokemont and Deep Creek areas of the park. With no one exact route, it's entirely up to you how best to proceed to Little Creek Falls. From Mingus Mill, it's about a 12-mile round trip; from Thomas Divide, it's about the same.
The shortest, though not the easiest route, is to start on Cooper Creek Trail, which would make for about a 3-mile round trip. It's not easy because the folks who operate the Cooper Creek Trout Farm at the end of Cooper Creek Road don't exactly take kindly to hikers accessing the trail from the back of their property. But maybe they'd be more amenable if you were to buy some fish first.
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GSMA Staff Spotlight
Gary Wilson
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"Finding Gary" - A self portrait
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If you're a regular Cub Report reader, chances are good you've seen Gary's handiwork. As GSMA's webmaster and cinematographer, Gary has captured the best this national park has to offer, from black bears to bees, fall foliage to fighting fish. In fact, Gary's next full-length film will feature a side of the park few ever see - the world under the water.
Q: Where do you hail from, Gary?
A: I spent my formative years in the Allegheny Mountains of central Pennsylvania, in a small town called Duncanville. My brother, along with my friends and I, played in the woods behind our house quite a bit, and my parents would always take us on camping and fishing trips. I remember playing in the streams with my friends collecting crayfish and minnows and also picking blackberries. I graduated from Penn State and took a job at a small video game production house in Pittsburgh...
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Monthly Visitation Count
Wondering if this park is on target to beat last year's record 10.7 million visitors? Each month in this location we'll keep track by updating the park's visitation count according to the National Park Service's Recreation Visitors Report.
| January | 379,730
| | February | 353,352
| | March | 778,211
| | April | 840,712
| | May | 923,564 |
Year-to-Date Total: 3,276,749* *Number subject to change following verification |
Citizens National Bank has 19 branches and over 50 ATM locations throughout Sevier, Jefferson and Knox counties in East Tennessee. Eight branches are located inside grocery stores and are open weekdays until 7 p.m. and Saturdays until 2 p.m. CNB offers free checking, free Internet banking and free bill pay. Download their free banking app available for smartphones.
Chestnut Tree Inn
Cherokee, N.C.
Official hotel of GSMA's
Mountain Perks
Bryson City, N.C.
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The Smokies are just a click away...
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Got questions? We have answers.
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Connecting Today to Yesterday; Preserving Today for Tomorrow
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