The Environmental Journal of Southern Appalachia

Thomas Fraser

North Ridge Trail Trail Day 3

OAK RIDGE Tennessee Citizens for Wilderness Planning and the North Ridge Trail maintenance volunteers invite everyone to our 2024 National Trails Day work project on the North Ridge Trail.

Work on the Orchard Lane access trail will begin at 9 a.m. June 1.

The access trail is located along a water drainage route. Erosion along the ditch has made the trail difficult to follow. We will work to relocate the first 130 feet of the access trail away from the water route.

Bring drinking water, sunscreen, insect repellent and good gloves. TCWP will provide some work tools, but feel free to bring any of your personal tools, including grubbing tools such as mattocks, Pulaskis, fire rakes, rogue hoes and/or McLeods fire tools. After the work is completed, a pizza lunch will be provided a short drive from the work location.

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GATLINBURG — A missing man who was the subject of a search in Great Smoky Mountains National Park was found on Wednesday.

Jacob Riggs was located in the vicinity of Tremont by a park visitor who recognized that he was in need of care. The visitor brought Riggs to the Incident Command Post near the Townsend Wye. Riggs had minor injuries and exposure to weather. He was evaluated onsite and taken to a local hospital. 

The previous story is below:

Park rangers are searching for a 35-year-old man near the Townsend Wye, Tremont and Cades Cove areas of the park. Jacob Riggs was last seen in Maynardville, Tenn. on April 7. His vehicle was found in the park on April 8. 

Riggs is a white male, with black hair and a dark beard, and brown eyes. He is 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 185 pounds.  

Several organizations are helping the National Park Service in the search and more resources are en route.  
Anyone who saw Riggs or has information about his whereabouts is asked to please contact the national park.
— CALL the NPS Tip Line 888-653-0009
— ONLINE go.nps.gov/SubmitATip 
— EMAIL This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
— EMERGENCY dial 9-1-1 

City Nature Challenge logo 

KNOXVILLE — People across 13 counties in East Tennessee are urged to record animals, plants and fungi they observe for four days in late April.

City Nature Challenge 2024 is international, but the Knoxville-area challenge includes anyone in Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Grainger, Jefferson, Knox, Loudon, Morgan, Roane, Scott, Sevier and Union counties. It will run April 26 through April 29 via the iNaturalist app, which is available on Google play or the App Store. While the focus is largely centered on urban areas, participants don’t have to live within a city or town to record their observations.

Participants can upload photos from a digital camera to the iNaturalist website even if they lack a smartphone. Zoo Knoxville, Tennessee Butterfly Monitoring Challenge, the city of Knoxville, Ijams Nature Center, Sierra Club, South Doyle Middle School and Discover Life in America are partnering to support the project. No experience is needed to participate. Results will be announced on May 6.

Friday, 05 April 2024 07:10

View the partial eclipse in the Park

Eclipse KoutchmyThe central, dark image shows the total eclipse on March 9, 2016 from Earth, with the central pupil created by the sun covered by a dark moon as seen from the NASA and ESA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory. Faint structures in the sun’s corona extend outward from this disk with the corona imaged in white light, easily visible from the ground only during an eclipse.  NASA 

GATLINBURG  A total solar eclipse will be visible across a swath of the United States on April 8, stretching from Texas to Maine. Great Smoky Mountains National Park lies outside the path of totality but will experience an 86 to 87 percent obstruction of the sun during the event.

In the Smokies, viewers will experience a partial eclipse, when the moon only partially blocks the sun. In the national park, the moon will begin its intersection of the sun’s orbit at 1:49 p.m., the obstruction will reach its maximum extent at 3:08 p.m., and the event will conclude at 4:23 p.m. 

A total eclipse is lineup of the sun, the moon, and Earth. The moon will be directly between the sun and Earth, casting a shadow on Earth. A total eclipse occurs when the moon covers the entirety of the sun except for the corona, or sun’s atmosphere.

Viewing a solar eclipse without proper eye protection is dangerous and can result in long-term vision impairment or blindness. Regular sunglasses — no matter how dark — are not safe for viewing the eclipse. To ensure safe viewing, park staff will make available one free pair of glasses per family/group at the viewing locations listed below while supplies last. If visitors wish to have enough glasses for everyone in their group to view the eclipse at the same time, they will need to bring eclipse glasses along or purchase them. The park’s retail partner, Smokies Life, will have the glasses available for sale ($1.50 each) at park store locations.

Park staff and volunteers will be available to provide eclipse information and safe, facilitated viewing at the following locations from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.:

  • Newfound Gap parking lot

  • Various locations around Cades Cove Loop Road, including near the John Oliver Cabin and at the Cades Cove Overlook

  • Outside the Oconaluftee Visitor Center
A Junior Ranger Eclipse Explorer activity book will be available for free at the above locations for anyone who wants to earn a Junior Ranger Eclipse Explorer badge.
The next total eclipse visible from the United States will occur in 2044.
— Great Smoky Mountains National Park

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The 4th annual Great Smokies Eco-Adventure, based at Camp Atagahi, promises you a unique, memorable experience

The event is hosted by Discover Life in America (DLiA) and A Walk in the Woods Guide Service. This exciting fundraising event features “glamping” (glamorous camping), gourmet food and drink, as well as guided nature hikes in the Smokies — including an excursion on the Appalachian Trail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, during peak wildflower season.

The Eco-Adventure will be held Sunday, April 21-23 near Gatlinburg, and all proceeds support DLiA’s mission to conduct biodiversity research in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Tickets are limited.

Discover Life in America’s mission is connecting communities and scientists in discovering, understanding and conserving the natural world. DLiA’s flagship project, the ATBI (All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory), is a joint effort with the National Park Service to identify and understand every species within Great Smoky Mountains National Park. To date, DLiA has helped add 12,083 species to the inventory of life in the park, including 1,079 that are new to science. Learn more at dlia.org.

Cody GentryCody Gentry

KNOXVILLE — Transportation Engineering Specialist Cody Gentry is the city’s first Vision Zero coordinator.

As the city’s first Vision Zero coordinator, Gentry will oversee efforts by multiple city departments and community groups, including Bike Walk Knoxville, to improve roadway safety and meet the Vision Zero goal, which City Council unanimously endorsed in 2021.

Gentry has worked in the city’s engineering department for 17 years, most recently as a key member of the Neighborhood Transportation Safety Program. The neighborhood-driven program seeks solutions to vehicle speed and traffic safety concerns on residential streets. 

“I’m eager for Cody to lend his significant experience to our Vision Zero efforts and find multi-modal solutions to road safety across Knoxville,” said Mayor Indya Kincannon. “We must work together across multiple city departments and community groups in order to reach our goal of ending deadly crashes by 2040. Cody is the person to bring those components together.”

GATLINBURG Laurel Creek, Cherokee Orchard, Greenbrier and Upper Tremont roads and some sections of Foothills Parkway remained closed early Wednesday after a Tuesday storm packing 85 mph winds downed trees and damaged vehicles and structures across Great Smoky Mountains National Park. No injuries were reported.

The closures were still in effect as of 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, according to park officials. Newfound Gap Road is open. Current road closures are listed on the park website.

A National Weather Service wind advisory and high wind warning remained in effect until 2 p.m. Tuesday. Wind gusts peaked at 85 mph in the park between 2 and 3 a.m, according to the park service.

Sugarlands and Oconaluftee visitor centers are open. Visitors coming to the park today are encouraged to stop in a visitor center for updates on current conditions.

TWRA logo

WAVERLY — The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency will preview its recommendations for the 2024-25 hunting and trapping seasons at the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission’s March 21-22 meeting at Buffalo Ridge Refuge in Humphreys County.

Thursday committee meetings begin at 1 p.m. while full commission session starts at 9 a.m. Friday.

Wildlife and Forestry Assistant Chief Wally Akins will share proposed changes to wildlife management areas and the furbearer season. Wildlife and Forestry Assistant Chief Mark McBride will follow with proposals for the “Take of Raptors for Falconry and Migratory Game Bird Seasons.” His presentation will conclude with big game harvest summaries and proposed season changes, including recommendations for the new deer and turkey management units and season dates.

The 2024-25 season setting comment period ended on January 15th. TWRA advises you to check its public comments page after the March commission meeting for a link to provide comments on the season recommendations presented at the meeting. The commission will vote on the proposed regulations at its April 18-19 meeting in Johnson City.

Update: You now have until April 12 to review and comment on the proposals.

Published in Feedbag, Event Archive

KNOXVILLE — Knox County government announced the kickoff of the Plumb Creek Park Stream Enhancement Project, a strategic effort aimed at revitalizing the water quality and ecosystem of Plumb Creek, a tributary of Beaver Creek, supported by federal funding through the American Rescue Plan Act.

(Eds. note: Every Republican representing Tennessee in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House voted against the act that provided the money.)

Plumb Creek Park, located at 1517 Hickey Road, features a disc golf course, playground, shelter, walking trails and an 8-acre dog park.

The project, which began this month, is expected to wrap up in December and include a comprehensive set of restoration activities. Work includes removing obstructions such as culverts and debris; controlling invasive species; stabilizing stream banks; and installing stream structures to improve habitat quality, erosion, and sediment control measures.

Some sections of the park will close temporarily during construction. The dog park will remain open.

This project is funded in part by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a federal initiative to aid state and local governments in mitigating the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

— Knox County 

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ABINGDON — A historic Southern theatre is fostering the next wave of Black playwrights through Black Stories Black Voices, making a visible impact in the Southern Appalachian theatre community and beyond. 
While theaters nationwide face declining numbers, Barter Theatre is experiencing a surge in audiences eager to witness the creativity of Black artists.
Since the founding of Black Stories, Black Voices in 2020, organizers and artists alike have seen an outpouring of support:
— Growing audiences, especially among Black community members.
— Doubled submissions for play development.
— Becoming a go-to resource for discovering Black talent in theatre.
The 90-year-old Barter Theatre of Abingdon, Virginia is on a mission to provide a safe space for Black artists and audiences to share their stories and assert their belonging in American theatre. In the past four years, it’s become clear: Barter isn’t just a safe space for Black artists — it’s drawing larger, enthusiastic audiences too.
Cris Eli Blak is the latest playwright to participate in Barter’s initiative, which engages Black theatre makers from across the Southern states to identify, develop and present the region’s Black stories on stage. A winner of the 2024 Appalachian Festival of Plays & Playwrights, his play “Girl on a Hill” will be performed on Feb. 23.

— Barter Theatre