2017 Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage in Great Smoky Mountains set for April 11-15, 2017 in Gatlinburg | May We See in Spring New Shades of Green We’ve Never Seen Before!

Many have asked if the wildfires would prevent the 67th Annual Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage in the Great Smoky Mountains and the answer is no way! The popular event is scheduled for April 11-15, 2017 in Gatlinburg. Several trails were affected by the fires and the event planners are currently making adjustments to some of the outdoor programs. Registration for the Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage will begin on March 1, 2017 at 8:00 a.m.

The 67th Annual Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage in the Great Smoky Mountains is a four-day special event that offers 100+ guided walks and indoor presentations that explore the Smokies’ lush, natural environments at one of the best times of year!

Guided walks and hikes are led by naturalists and National Park staff allowing participants to view first-hand the awe-inspiring beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains and learn more about the most biologically-diverse place on planet Earth! Indoor sessions take place at Mills Conference Center at the Gatlinburg Convention Center. This is an excellent opportunity to learn all about the wonders of the Smokies in springtime! There will be programs on wildflowers, trees, mosses, fungi, butterflies, bugs, birds, bears, cultural heritage, and more!

Registration is required for the 67th Annual Spring Wildflower Pigrimage in the Smoky Mountains either online at www.springwildflowerpilgrimage.org or onsite at Mills Conference Center at the Gatlinburg Convention Center. Follow the Annual Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage on Facebook.

Fire reminds us that nature is not static.  Ecosystems are processes, constantly changing from one state to another, with an ever-changing cast of characters fulfilling the vital roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers.  No matter how much we want it to, not even rock stays the same, eventually broken down by wind and water, tree roots or lichen.  Trying to keep things exactly the same is just a waste of time. Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society.

We’re looking forward to seeing what new wonders the spring season will bring to the Smokies following last year’s wildfires. As a resilient Gatlinburg resident has said, “May we see in Spring new shades of green we’ve never seen before.” Join us for the 67th Annual Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage in the Smoky Mountains in April 2017!

In the meantime, take a peek at some beautiful Smoky Mountain wildflowers as filmed in the Greenbrier section of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and an area just outside the park!

Great Smoky Mountains National Park Sets Visitation Record in 2016! Over 11 Million Folks Feeling Great in the Smokies!

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park set an all-new visitation record in 2016 with over 11 million visitors! Last year 11,312,785 folks were…feeling great in the Smokies! Over 2,200 of them joined GSMNP Superintendent Cassius Cash on the trail for the Smokies Centennial Hike 100 challenge.

“I continue to be inspired by the number of people enjoying the park, but more importantly, I am moved by their unwavering support and care for this special place,” said Superintendent Cash in a recent press release. “This support is more critical than ever since we have entered into our second century of service and recovery following the Chimney Tops fire. The response of the Smoky Mountains community, both near and far, has been remarkable and we thank you.”

Known as the “People’s Park,” the Great Smoky Mountain National Park benefitted from over 117,000 hours of volunteer service by over 2,230 wonderful people. These folks volunteer their time and energy to provide trail maintenance, invasive plant removal, and provide visitor information on the trails, at the visitor centers and campgrounds within the park.

For more information about visitation, please go to the National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics web page at https://irma.nps.gov/Stats/.

Get Ready for the Smoky Mountain Strong Bluegrass Celebration in Pigeon Forge on February 10 & 11, 2017

Play me some mountain music at the Smoky Mountain Strong Bluegrass Celebration in Pigeon Forge on February 10 & 11, 2017! Some of the most popular names in Bluegrass music are headed to LeConte Center at Pigeon Forge to donate their talents to raise money for the Dollywood Foundation Wildfire Scholarship Fund which will provide financial aid for Sevier County students who lost their homes in last year’s wild firestorm.

Here’s the fantastic line-up for the two-night Smoky Mountain Strong Bluegrass Celebration:

Friday, February 10, 2017
LeConte Center at Pigeon Forge
5:00 p.m. (doors open at 4:00)
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Grascals
Flatt Lonesome
Volume 5

Saturday, February 10, 2017
LeConte Center at Pigeon Forge
4:00 p.m. (doors open at 3:00)
The Lonesome River Band
Barry Bales & Friends
Newtown
Dave Adkins Band

Tickets for both concerts are $50 per person or $30 per person for either of the two concerts. Purchase tickets online at KnoxvilleTickets.com or visit the Department of Tourism offices at LeConte Center at Pigeon Forge. 

Here’s a peek at some of the great talent performing at the Smoky Mountain Strong Bluegrass Celebration. This video was produced by event sponsor Pigeon Forge Dept. of Tourism.

A Mountain Quiltfest at LeConte Center at Pigeon Forge March 21-25, 2017

The 23rd annual A Mountain Quiltfest, one of the leading quilting events in America, will be held at LeConte Center at Pigeon Forge March 21-25, 2017.

 

Hundreds of beautiful new and antique quilts will be on display, over 75 classes and lectures will be offered, and over 50 vendors will be on hand for all your quilting needs. 

This year RaNae Merrill, an award-winning quilter from New York City, will be a featured instructor for the 23rd annual A Smoky Mountain Quiltfest. RaNae’s unique spiral-patterned quilts, as shown above, have already become sought after works of art. Learn more about her at RaNaeMerrillQuilts.com.

To see the variety of quilting classes offered and prices, and to enter a quilt in the Quilt Show, please visit A Mountain Quiltfest Registration.

The 23rd Annual A Mountain Quiltfest is hosted the City of Pigeon Forge Office of Special Events. For more information, give them a call at 865-429-7350.

Get to Know Grandma Gatewood at Rose Glen Literary Festival February 25th in Sevierville

Rose Glen Literary Festival in Sevierville features lectures, workshops and book signings by authors from the Smoky Mountains and Appalachian region. One of this year’s featured authors is Ben Montgomery who wrote Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail, which won the 2014 National Outdoor Book Award for History/Biography.

Ben Montgomery, who is actually Emma Gatewood’s great-nephew, has authored the only biography of the hiking celebrity known as “Grandma Gatewood.” What made her so famous? Her amazing story began in May 1955 when she began her 2,050-mile walk on the Appalachian Trail. Gatewood wore canvas Keds and carried only a homemade drawstring sack. In September of that year, she became the first woman to thru-hike the AT alone. Emma Gatewood was 67 years old. Then she went and hiked it two more times.

At Rose Glen Literary Festival, meet Grandma Gatewood through the words of Ben Montgomery, a 2010 Pulitzer Prize finalist and staff writer at the Tampa Bay Times.

The Rose Glen Literary Festival will be held at the Sevierville Convention Center on Saturday, February 25, 2017 from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. All programs at the festival are free with the exception of the Luncheon ($20 per person).

Other Featured Authors and Books at the 2016 Rose Glen Literary Festival

  • Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson – Heard of the Body Farm? This writing team coauthored Death’s Acre about the University of Tennessee’s Anthropology Research Facility known as the Body Farm which Dr. Bass founded twenty-five years ago. Meet the famous forensic anthropologist, Dr. Bass and National Geographic documentary writer and producer, Jon Jefferson to learn more about this critically-acclaimed book.
  • June Hall McCash – Her most recent Marguerite’s Landing was published in April 2016. A published poet, McCash has also written four historical novels and seven non-fiction books. Almost to Eden, her first novel won the Georgia Author of the Year Award for First Novel in 2011. Since her retirement from Middle East Tennessee University, McCash writes full-time and has won more awards for her work.
  • Jim Stokely – Jim Stokely discovered an unpublished manuscript after the death of his mother, author Wilma Dykeman entitled Family of Earth: A Southern Mountain Childhood which he’s since published. Wilma Dykeman (1920-2006) was living in the English Mountain area of Cocke County, TN during the last months of WWII when she authored this memoir where she tried to explain the purpose of life in wartime.

For more information and Luncheon Tickets, contact Sevierville Chamber of Commerce at 865-453-6411.

Check out this impressive video about the history of Rose Glen and its founders who inspired the creation of the Rose Glen Literary Festival.