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TravelCountry.com specializes in outdoor gear for hiking and backing. They stock an extensive selection of North Face clothing and gear.

Planning a hike soon along the Blue Ridge Parkway or in the Pisgah National Forest? Heard about a place called DuPont State Forest that your buddy said was a great place to hike? Or just in the mood to browse through some photos of the mountains? Then relax and have a look around!

This site is your on-line hiking guidebook for the Mountain region of North Carolina, containing all of the information you need to make your next trip complete. Have fun browsing and hiking!

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News

Trail Work at Tsali

The Tsali trails will be receiving some maintenance this fall, according to this article in the Smoky Mountain News. Vegetation will be trimmed and areas of poor drainage will be improved. Be ready for some brief trail closures as the work commences. Check out the article for more info.

Posted on August 29, 2010 3:00 pm

Interview for the Smoky Mountain News

The Smoky Mountain News published an article about waterfalls in Western North Carolina. I was interviewed by Elizabeth Jensen – check out the article to see the plug to NorthCarolinaWaterfalls.info, plus quotes from myself and other great local waterfall “Gurus” such as Kevin Adams and Rich Stevenson, and a neat interactive waterfalls map!

Posted on August 27, 2010 2:28 am

Crest of the Craggies Hike

Next week, take an opportunity to go on a guided hike along the crest of the Craggy Mountains on the Mountains to Sea Trail! Experience grand views into the Craggy Mountain Roadless Area/Wilderness Study Area as the trail ascends around the Craggy Pinnacle; descend into the coolness and quiet of the northern hardwood forest in [...]

Posted on August 5, 2010 7:23 pm

Lake Lure to buy land for public park, including trails

Lake Lure is planning to establish a 200 acre public park, which is expected to include hiking and mountain biking trails. Horseback riding and picnicking are also planned in the new park according to this Citizen-Times article, and the area could serve as part of a much longer trail. The land is part of a [...]

Posted on July 7, 2010 6:13 pm

8000 Acres of Mountain Land To Be Conserved

8000 acres of mountain land are to be conserved and potentially sold to the state for public use – most likely as Game Lands. Located southeast of Rosman, NC, along the upper East Fork of the French Broad River, the land contains waterfalls and rare mountain bogs, and abuts the highest peak in the state [...]

Posted on June 18, 2010 3:09 am

Articles

Improvements Planned for Catawba Falls Trail

Momentum in the Catawba Falls access issue has finally come to a head, with the recent sale of two parcels of property totalling 88 acres to the US Forest Service, officially making the access route to the falls public property, which literally took an Act of Congress, the 2010 Interior and Environment Appropriations bill. For [...]

Posted on April 2, 2010 2:35 am

Proposal to add 50,000 acres to Blue Ridge Parkway lands

According to the Asheville Citizen Times and the Times-News Online today, the Blue Ridge Parkway Protection Act has been introduced into the house, which would authorize $75 million to acquire high priority lands adjacent to the existing Parkway corridor. The goal of the bill, which is being introduced while the Parkway celebrates its 75th anniversary, [...]

Posted on January 26, 2010 6:13 pm

Visit to Catawba Falls

Catawba Falls is located just off of I-40 in the Pisgah National Forest, near Old Fort, in McDowell County. Despite its’ being on National Forest property, however, the falls has long since been off-limits to the general public due to the only reasonable access trail being on private property. But good news! Recently, the Foothills [...]

Posted on December 28, 2009 4:03 am

A New Battle Between Mt. Mitchell and Clingman’s Dome?

In response to my post about the new observation platform atop Mt. Mitchell, Allen said: “Now that the old 45 tower has been replaced by the observation deck on Mt. Mitchell, is a person standing on the Clingmans Dome tower in the Smokies at a higher elevation, or does the Mt. Mitchell deck still put [...]

Posted on March 26, 2009 2:48 pm

How a Bear Made Me Sick

One fine Saturday in June, 2007, I decided to take a short hike up to the waterfall on Hickey Fork Creek. It’s a fairly easy hike, and I decided to leave my water in the car for this one. After 20 minutes on the trail I arrived at the falls, soaked in the scene for [...]

Posted on March 21, 2008 8:48 pm

A Call To Action: Hemlocks Threatened by Tiny Hemlock Wooly Adelgid

Update 8/7/07: Hemlocks which still appear to be healthy along the Parkway and Linville Falls are likely ones which have been chemically treated, rather than helped by the predator beetles. Hemlocks are dying rapidly where untreated or treated only by the predator beetles, and it appears that the biological control method will be ineffective. Since [...]

Posted on August 7, 2007 2:08 pm

Graveyard Fields Trail Renovation

A major trail re-construction and re-location project at Graveyard Fields will eliminate erosion, protect sensitive plant habitats, re-build a bridge washed out by the storms of September 2004, and provide a generally more pleasant hiking experience to visitors of one of Western North Carolina’s most popular recreation areas. The relocated trails are quite a distance [...]

Posted on June 15, 2006 3:02 pm

WNC’s Forests Threatened by Exotic Diseases

Dogwood Anthracnose. Chestnut Blight. Butternut Canker. Gypsy Moth. Hemlock Wooly Adelgid. Beech Bark Disease. Oak Decline. Sudden Oak Death. Balsam Wooly Adelgid. Locust Miner Beetle… The list goes on and on. These threats, or potential threats in the case of Sudden Oak Death, are ravaging the forests of Western North Carolina and much of the [...]

Posted on June 13, 2006 2:56 pm

Shortcutting Switchbacks Tramples Trillium!

WNC’s mountainous terrain and large tracts of public lands bode well to our recreational enjoyment, including various forms of backcountry travel such as hiking and mountain biking. And, of course, most of this travel occurs on trails. Ah, the trail. A path to a waterfall, a path to a view, a path to freedom and [...]

Posted on April 1, 2005 5:15 pm

Opinion & Personal

Photos in WNC Magazine

Check out some of my photos in print! Several were used in WNC Magazine – of Skinny Dip Falls and Whiteside Mountain, on pages 114, 116 and 117. Need photos for your publication? Drop me a line and let me know. You can find the selection in the photo galleries on both hikewnc.info and mtbikewnc.com.

Posted on June 8, 2008 8:15 pm

Archived news and more articles are on the WNCOutdoors.info Blog.

Hiking in Western North Carolina

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