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Smoky Mountains

Around Town What To See And Where To Be In The Smokies !

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Winter Schedule

Great Smoky Mountains National Park has announced its winter operating schedule. As cooler weather approaches and visitation decreases, various facilities will close, including campgrounds and picnic areas, and operating hours for some visitor services will be reduced.

Roaring Fork

All dates are subject to minor changes depending on weather conditions over the winter season.

An exuberant mountain stream gave this area its unusual name. Roaring Fork is one of the larger and faster ﬂowing mountain streams in the park. Drive this road after a hard rain and the inspiration behind the name will be apparent.

VISITOR CENTERS Hours Through December 1 Sugarlands Visitor Center, located 2 miles south of Gatlinburg, Tenn., and the Oconaluftee Visitor Center, located 2 miles north of Cherokee, N.C., will serve visitors from 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

The narrow, winding, Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail invites you to slow down and enjoy the forest and historic buildings of the area. The 6-mile-long, one-way, loop road is a favorite side trip for many people who frequently visit the Smokies. It offers rushing mountain streams, glimpses of old-growth forest, and a number of well-preserved log cabins, grist mills, and other historic buildings.

Cades Cove Visitor Center, located halfway around the Cades Cove Loop Road, near Townsend, Tenn., will be opened daily from 9 a.m-5:30 p.m. Clingmans Dome Visitor Contact Station, located near the Clingmans Dome Parking Lot, will be open each day from 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

Before entering the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, a stop at the Noah “Bud” Ogle self-guiding nature trail offers a walking tour of an authentic mountain farmstead and surrounding hardwood forest. Highlights include a streamside tubmill and the Ogle’s handcrafted wooden ﬂume plumbing system.

Hours After December 1 Sugarlands Visitor Center and Oconaluftee Visitor Center will be open daily from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Cades Cove Visitor Center will be open from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Clingmans Dome Visitor Contact Station will be closed. The visitor center hours are posted on the Park's website, www.nps.gov/grsm. ROADS Several of the secondary roads are scheduled to close as follows: The two-way segment of the Roundbottom/Straight Fork Road, just outside Cherokee, will close on November 12. Parson Branch and Rich Mountain Roads will close on November 18, and Clingmans Dome and Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail on December 2. During the winter months, the Park's two main roads, Newfound Gap (U.S. 441) and Little River, will remain open throughout the year, except for temporary closures for extreme winter weather conditions. The Gatlinburg Bypass, Cades Cove Loop Road, Cosby Road, Greenbrier Road, Upper Tremont, Forge Creek, Lakeview Drive, and Foothills Parkway (East and West) will open and close as road and weather conditions mandate. For information about road conditions throughout the season, please visit the Park's website at www.nps.gov/grsm, call the Park's Road and Weather Information Line at 865-436-1200 and f o l l o w t h e p r o m p t s , o r f o l l o w u s o n Tw i t t e r a t SmokiesRoadsNPS. LODGING LeConte Lodge will close for the season on November 26. CAMPING Two of the three major campgrounds will remain open all year. These year-round campgrounds are Cades Cove in Tennessee and Smokemont in North Carolina. Starting in November they will be on a self-registration basis with a reduced number of available sites. Elkmont Campground in Tennessee will remain open through the Thanksgiving weekend and will close on December 1.

The Oliver Tipton Cabin as seen on a snowy winter day in Great Smoky Mountain National park. Photo by Jim Bennett The remaining self-registration campgrounds at Cosby, Cataloochee, Deep Creek, Big Creek, have already closed for the season. CADES COVE CAMPGROUND STORE Cades Cove Campground Store will continue to offer all services daily through December 1. From December 2 - January 5, the souvenir and ice cream area will be open on Saturday and Sunday only, weather permitting. The main store building will be closed after December 2. The public restrooms at the store will be open on the same schedule as the souvenir and ice cream area. Vending machines at the store will remain in service throughout the winter. PICNICKING Four picnic areas will remain open through the winter: Cades Cove, Deep Creek, Greenbrier, and Metcalf Bottoms. Chimneys Picnic Area will be open until December 1. Picnic areas and pavilions that have already closed for the season include Big Creek, Collins Creek, Cosby, and Twin Creeks. Of these, the picnic pavilions at Greenbrier and Deep Creek can be reserved at www.recreation.gov.

Just beyond the Ogle farmstead is the trailhead for Rainbow Falls, one of the park's most popular waterfalls. The hike to the falls is 5.4 miles roundtrip and is considered moderately strenuous. If you plan to attempt this hike, be sure to wear sturdy hiking shoes or boots and carry plenty of water and snacks. The entrance to the motor nature trail is located a short distance past the parking areas for Rainbow Falls. Several homes and other buildings have been preserved in this area. The trailhead for Grotto Falls, another of the park's most popular waterfalls, is located along the route. And a “wet weather” waterfall called Place of a Thousand Drips provides a splendid ﬁnale to your journey. An inexpensive booklet available at the beginning of the motor nature trail details landmarks along the route. Directions To access Roaring Fork, turn off the main parkway in Gatlinburg, TN at trafﬁc light #8 and follow Historic Nature Trail Road to the Cherokee Orchard entrance to the national park. Just beyond the Rainbow Falls trailhead you have the option of taking the one-way Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail (closed in winter). Please note that buses, trailers, and motor homes are not permitted on the motor nature trail.

HORSEBACK STABLES Smokemont Riding Stables is closed for the season. Sugarlands Riding Stables and Smoky Mountain Riding Stables will close on December 1. Cades Cove Riding Stable will be open daily through December 1. From December 2 - January 5, Cades Cove Riding Stables will be open Saturday and Sunday only, weather permitting. All stables closing dates are dependent on weather conditions. HORSE CAMPS Round Bottom, Tow String, Cataloochee, Big Creek, are already closed for the season and Anthony Creek Horse Camp will close on November 12.

In This Issue

• Dog Boarding

Cave Bats in Crisis - White-nose syndrome causing

• Day Care • Grooming

bat extension....see story Page 2

Titanic Spectacular Fireworks - Thanksgiving event at Pigeon Forge Titanic....story on Page 11

Gatlinburg Kicks Off Winter Magic with chili cook-off and much more ..... on Page 4

Waterfalls & Hikes - on Page 6 Meet The Locals - on Page 7 Protect Park Streams - on Page 8 History of Sevierville - on Page 9 Images of the Smokies - a collage of places in the Smokies......on Page 10

Mike Maslona Photo

Home-like environment Indoor and Outdoor play areas

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Page 2 Around Town

Cave Bats in Crisis

Merry Christmas! from Smoky Mountains Around Town

White-Nose Syndrome

program that models cave-dwelling bat birth and death into the future. They ﬁrst tested the model to see if it accurately predicted current bat populations by entering bat data from the past. It proved to be accurate in detailing bat births, survival rates, and deaths each year.

This Little Brown Bat from Pennsylvania shows the classic sign of White-Nose Syndrome with a coating of white fungus on its nose. Cave bats in the Smokies are also infected. USFWS photo courtesy of Ryan von Linden, NY Dept of Environmental Conservation.

Think extinction’s just for dinosaurs, dodos, and passenger pigeons? Think again. It’s happening now, all around us, as the deadly White-Nose Syndrome (linked to the fungus Geomyces destructans) devastates populations of native bats. A bat with White-Nose Syndrome has white fungus growing on its nose, toes, and wing webbing. Scientists aren’t sure what causes the bat to then die, but bats with this white fungus don’t usually make it through the winter. One of the most at-risk bat species is the Little Brown Bat, because it hibernates in caves where the fungus grows. A social bat that’s common on the East Coast, the Little Brown is one of the bats you’re likely to see swooping across the sky at dusk. Right now it numbers over 6.5 million, but scientists think that this entire species may be extinct in 20 or fewer years as White-Nose Syndrome spreads through U.S. caves. How can scientists know when this bat might go extinct? Bat researchers from Boston University, the University of Santa Cruz, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and the Pennsylvania Game Commission used a computer

Pests such as this biting mosquito may become much more common in the next decades as bat populations plummet. Enter the devastating White-Nose Syndrome. The scientists then used the computer model to figure out if Little Brown Bats would go extinct, or nearly so, in our lifetimes. The scientists ran the computer program to simulate bat births, infection with White-Nose Syndrome, and death over the next 100 years. To get rid of errors, they ran the same model 1000 times and analyzed the results with statistical tools. What they found was grim. Researchers ran the models in two ways: the first assumed 45 percent mortality each year. That’s the constant rate of death from White-Nose Syndrome that we’ve seen in caves so far. According to this model, there is a 99 percent chance that the Little Brown Bat will be extinct in just 16 years. That is, by 2026, less than 0.01 percent of the population will be alive. The second version of the model assumed that the disease might get less severe over time, or that some bats might build up resistance, so only 10 percent of the bats would die each year after the first few seasons of the disease. Yet even with this more conservative model there is a 90 percent chance that Little Brown Bats will be extinct within 65 years, by 2075. What do these numbers mean? This is devastating news if you’re a Little Brown or other cave-roosting bat, because you’re very likely to get White-Nose Syndrome and very unlikely to survive it. But even if you’re not a bat, these numbers should be shocking. Bats are essential, if sometimes overlooked, parts of our ecosystem. Bats typically eat up to 50 percent of their body weight in insects each night, reducing disease-carrying mosquito populations and swarms of crop pests are pollinators of flowers and food, particularly of night-blooming plants that have no other way to reproduce nourish the caves in which they live: just as we apply manure to our farm fields, bats fertilize otherwise barren cave floors with guano (bat poop), allowing microorganisms and cave life to thrive. If we lose bats, we’re losing more than a single species: we also lose a key link in our ecosystem that can’t be replaced. Many scientists are trying to understand White-Nose

Syndrome and ﬁnd a way to stop its fatal spread. What to do? Based on their models, scientists estimate that for the Little Brown Bat to survive this century, we would need to see less than 5 percent of the population dying from White-Nose Syndrome each year. But because of the rapid spread of WhiteNose Syndrome, and because we don’t know how we can help infected bats survive on a large scale, the future of cave-roosting bats is very uncertain. What we do know is that we need more funding, time, and research to study White-Nose Syndrome. Only through massive efforts and intensive study can there be a hopeful future for caveroosting bats in the eastern United States. Article referenced: Frick, W.F., Pollock, J. F. , Hicks, A.C., Langwig, K.E., Reynolds, D.S., Turner, G.G., Butchkiski, C.M., and Kunz, T.H. 2010. An emerging disease causes regional population collapse of a common North American bat species. Science 329. Accessed online at www.sciencemag.org

Pests such as this biting mosquito may become much more common in the next decades as bat populations plummet.

The Wicked Dragon Fishing In The Smokies

combination of these, each day or in possession, regardless of whether they are fresh, stored in an ice chest, or otherwise preserved. The combined total must not exceed five fish. Twenty (20) rock bass may be kept in addition to the above limit. A person must stop fishing immediately after obtaining the limit. Size Limits Brook, rainbow, and brown trout: 7 inch minimum Smallmouth bass: 7 inch minimum Rockbass: no minimum

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Check This Paper for Grand Opening 805 E. Parkway, Gatlinburg

Published by:

Smoky Mountains Around Town P.O. Box 368 Gatlinburg, Tennessee 37738

(865) 255-3557 SmokyAroundTown@gmail.com John F. Patti, Publisher Associate Publishers: Elizabeth Patti P. J. West Wyatt Bunch Jim England Kim Bell Jim Woods Steve Moore

Trout or smallmouth bass caught less than the legal length shall be immediately returned to the water from which it was taken. Lures, Bait, and Equipment Fishing is permitted only by the use of one hand-held rod.

Warren Bielenberg Photo

Only artificial flies or lures with a single hook may be used. Dropper flies may be used. Up to two flies on a leader.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park has about 2,115 miles of streams within its boundaries, and protects one of the last wild trout habitats in the eastern United States. The park offers a wide variety of angling experiences from remote, headwater trout streams to large, coolwater smallmouth bass streams. Most streams remain at or near their carrying capacity of ﬁsh and offer a great opportunity to catch these species throughout the year.

Use or possession of any form of fish bait or liquid scent other than artificial flies or lures on or along any park stream while in possession of fishing tackle is prohibited. Prohibited baits include, but are not limited to, minnows (live or preserved), worms, corn, cheese, bread, salmon eggs, pork rinds, liquid scents and natural baits found along streams.

Fishing is permitted year-round in the park, from 30 minutes before official sunrise to 30 minutes after official sunset. The park allows fishing in all streams EXCEPT the following stream and its tributaries upstream from the point described:

Fishing tackle and equipment, including creels and ﬁsh in possession, are subject to inspection by authorized personnel.

Tennessee Lynn Camp Prong upstream of its confluence with Thunderhead Prong. This stream is closed to fishing to allow fish to repopulate following restoration work. For the exact location, consult the appropriate USGS 1:24,000 Quadrangle Map available at park visitor centers. Detailed information, including a complete list of regulations and a map of fishable park waters, is also available at any visitor center or ranger station. Didymo is a non-native single-celled algae species that ruins stream and river beds. It has been found in the streams of 16 states, including Tennessee. License Requirements You must possess a valid fishing license or permit from either Tennessee or North Carolina. Either state license is valid throughout the park and no trout stamp is required. Fishing licenses and permits are not available in the park, but may be purchased in nearby towns or online (links provided by state below). Special permits are required for fishing in Gatlinburg and Cherokee. Tennessee License Requirements Residents and nonresidents age 13 and older must have a valid license. Residents age 65 and older may obtain a special license from the state. North Carolina License Requirements Residents and nonresidents age 16 and older need a license. Residents age 70 and older may obtain a special license from the state. Persons under 16 in North Carolina and under 13 in Tennessee are entitled to the adult daily bag and possession limits and are subject to all other regulations. Season Fishing is permitted year-round in open waters. Time Fishing is allowed from a half hour before official sunrise to a half hour after official sunset. Daily Possession Limits Five (5) brook, rainbow or brown trout, smallmouth bass, or a

Use or possession of double, treble, or gang hooks is prohibited.

Please report violators to nearest ranger or call .... (865) 436-1294. Safety Standing and wading in streams can drain body heat and lead to hypothermia. Rising water levels resulting from sudden mountain storms occur quite frequently, so monitor water level. Water currents are swifter than they appear and footing is treacherous on wet and moss covered rocks. Be A Clean Fisherman If there's a tangle of line, or an empty can at your feet, clean up after your fellow angler. It is unlawful to dispose of fish remains on land or water within 200 feet of a campsite. The National Park Service recommends disposing of fish entrails in a deep pool downstream for the campsite. Brook Trout Fishing Because of the results of recent fisheries research and the success of the park's brook trout restoration effort, in 2006 park management opened brook trout fishing and harvest park-wide for the first time since 1976. The results of a recent three-year brook trout fishing study indicate there was no decline in adult brook trout density or reproductive potential in any of the eight streams opened to fishing during the experimental period compared to eight streams closed to fishing during the same time period.

Disturbing and moving rocks to form channels and rock dams is illegal in the park! Moving rocks is harmful to both fish and aquatic insects that live in the streams. Many fish species that live in the park spawn between April and August. Some of these fish build their nests in small cavities under rocks and even guard the nest. When people move the rock, the nest is destroyed and the eggs and/or young fish die. Aquatic insects need rocks for cover as well. Some aquatic insects can drift off or move when disturbed, but many species attach themselves to the rock and cannot move. When a rock is moved, aquatic insects fall, are crushed by the movement, or dry out and die when the rock is placed out of water. One of the fundamental policies of the National Park Service is to preserve natural resources in an unaltered state. Consequently, it is against the law to move rocks in the stream. Please abide by these rules so that future generations may enjoy the park as well.

Around Town

Page 3

Around the Smokies Nature & Science Biological diversity is the hallmark of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which encompasses over 800 square miles in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. No other area of equal size in a temperate climate can match the park’s amazing diversity of plants, animals and invertebrates. Over 17,000 species have been documented in the park. Scientist believe an additional 30,000 - 80,000 species may live here. Why such a wondrous diversity? Mountains, glaciers, and weather are the big reasons. The park is the largest federally protected upland landmass east of the Mississippi River. Dominated by plant-covered, gently contoured mountains, the crest of the Great Smokies forms the boundary between Tennessee and North Carolina, bisecting the park from northeast to southwest in an unbroken chain that rises more than 5,000 feet for over 36 miles. Elevations in the park range from 875 to 6,643 feet. This range in altitude mimics the latitudinal changes you would experience driving north or south across the eastern United States, say from Georgia to Maine. Plants and animals common in the southern United States thrive in the lowlands of the Smokies while species common in the northern states ﬁnd suitable habitat at the higher elevations. The Great Smoky Mountains are among the oldest mountains in the world, formed perhaps 200-300 million years ago. They are unique in their northeast to southwest orientation, which allowed species to migrate along their slopes during climatic changes such as the last ice age, 10,000 years ago. The glaciers of the last ice age affected the Smoky Mountains without invading them. During that time, glaciers scoured much of North America but did not quite reach as far south as the Smokies. Consequently, these mountains became a refuge for many species of plants and animals that were disrupted from their northern homes. The Smokies have been relatively undisturbed by glaciers or ocean inundation for over a million years, allowing species eons to diversity.

Longest ZipLine In the Smokies

Great Smoky Mountains National Park harbors a wondrous diversity of life. Ken Voorhis Photo In terms of weather, the park’s abundant rainfall and high summertime humidity provide excellent growing conditions. In the Smokies, the average annual rainfall varies from approximately 55 inches in the valleys to over 85 inches on some peaks-more than anywhere else in the country except the Pacific Northwest. During wet years, over eight feet of rain falls in the high country. The relative humidity in the park during the growing season is about twice that of the Rocky Mountain region. Some 100 species of native trees find homes in the Smokies, more than any other North American national park. Almost 95% of the park is forested, and about 25% of that area is old-growth forest remaining in North America. Over 1,500 additional flowering plant species have been identified in the park. The park is the center of diversity for lungless salamanders and is home to more than 200 species of birds, 66 types of mammals, 67 native fish species, 39 varieties of reptiles, and 43 species of amphibians. Mollusks, millipedes, and mushrooms reach record diversity here.

Natural Features & Ecosystems Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the most pristine natural areas in the East. A tour through the park offers visitors breathtaking mountain scenery, including panoramic views, rushing mountain streams, and mature hardwood forests stretching to the horizon. The landscape of the Great Smokies has undergone profound changes throughout the ages. The rocks in this area are mostly of a sedimentary type. That is, they were formed by accumulations of soil, silt, sand, and gravel deposited into a huge shallow sea. Over millions of years, more and more sediments were deposited, becoming layers of hard rock some nine miles or more thick. Approximately 200-300 million years ago, drifting continents gradually collided in a climactic mountain building episode. As the continents collided, tremendous pressures were generated which deformed the once horizontal sedimentary rocks into folded structures. An entire belt of folded and faulted rocks extends over 2,000 miles from what is now Maine to Georgia and is known collectively as the Appalachian Mountains. The Great Smoky Mountains are but a small portion of that range.

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base of 1,292', making it the tallest (but not the highest), mountain in the East. The park's highest summit, Clingmans Dome, is the third tallest peak east of the Mississippi River.

Spring Beauty

In the Smokies high country, over 85" of rain falls on average each year, feeding over 2,100 miles of rushing mountain streams and rivers that flow through the park. The park abounds with the two ingredients essential for waterfalls—water and an elevation gradient. Waterfalls dot the waterways throughout the park, attracting over 200,00 visitors each year to the park's better known falls. The glacial influence on the Smokies climate, coupled with the range of elevation and the southwest to northeast layout of these mountains, accounts for the striking variety of living things found in the park. Five forest types within the park support over 1,500 species of flowering plants and at least 4,000 non-flowering varieties. In fact, the forests of Great Smoky Mountains National Park are world renowned for their biological diversity.

Photo: Leslie M. Weetman, PhD

Threats to Wildflowers Wildflowers in the Smokies face a number of humaninstigated threats, including air pollution, off-trail hiking, and poaching. Long term research conducted in the park shows that ground level ozone pollution is injuring at least 30 species of native plants. Ground level ozone, sometimes called “smog,” is created when nitrogen oxides from automobiles and factories mix with sunlight and natural hydrocarbons. Blackeyed susan, tall milkweed, and coneflower are among the most vulnerable wildflowers.

The Appalachian Mountains are among the oldest mountains in the world. Through the eons, forces such as wind, rain, freezing, and thawing have eroded the Smokies once craggy surfaces. The movement of mammoth ice sheets during the Pleistocene Epoch, from two million to ten thousand years ago, further modiﬁed the environment of the Smokies. Although the glaciers did not reach this far south, their inﬂuence on the climate of the Smokies region produced alpine conditions on the higher crests. The numerous boulders found in the park's streams today originated during this time as they were broken off cliffs and ledges by freezing and thawing activity. The Smokies are among the tallest mountains in the Appalachian chain. Within the park, elevations range from about 875' to 6,643', with sixteen peaks rising more than 5,000 feet. Mount Le Conte towers to 6,593' from a

JAYELL RANCH

Plant poaching appears to be on the rise in the Smokies. Some commercial poachers remove hundreds of plants each trip and make several trips annually. In recent years groups of poachers have been apprehended with well over 1,000 American ginseng roots. Aside from ginseng, the most popular targets are orchids and trilliums. Overzealous gardeners take a serious toll by removing showy wildflowers for transplanting back home and careless hikers trample delicate wildflowers when they leave established trails. Over 2,100 miles of streams and rivers flow through Great Smoky Mountains National Park. John Heidecker Photo

If you observe people digging plants in the park, report the activity to the nearest ranger station or call (865) 436-1230.

Great Smoky Arts & Crafts Community Come and see artisans at work ! The Great Smoky Arts and Crafts Community is the largest group of independent artisans in North America with over 100 artisans. Established in 1937 this 8 mile loop weaves through Gatlinburg Tennessee. These craftsmen and artisans weave, carve, cast, sew, paint and whittle to create a vast variety of collectibles such as jewelry, ceramics, dolls, pottery, quilts, brooms, baskets, candles, leather, silver smithing, wearable fashions, artistic photography, oils and watercolor paintings, stained glass and so much more. The area also has numerous restaurants, and cafés, candy shops, soda fountains, tea rooms and lodging.

You'll discover one-of-a-kind crafts, treasures and artwork, and you can watch the artisans at work. Stop along the way and chat with a painter or potter, or let a broom maker show you how it's done. This a great experience for the entire family or just the two of you. There's plenty of free parking at each shop throughout the trail loop. Ride the "Craft Trolley" if you'd like to see it all without the hassles of driving, a one-fare trip will provide a great way to see everything getting on and off as often as you like. Either way you travel you won't be disappointed, you'll see history in the making and it's the real thing! Turn at trafﬁc light #3 in downtown Gatlinburg on highway 321 and go three miles. You can visit our website at www.gatlinburgcrafts.com.

This sign at Route 321 and Glades Road is a landmark to the Arts & Crafts Community

Page 4 Around Town

Gatlinburg Kicks-Off

Winter Magic When the weather turns cooler and the days get shorter Gatlinburg gears up for Smoky Mountain Winterfest with a full slate of special activities for the entire family.

said, “as it always is. This year we plan a little more emphasis on mountain culture.” The cast includes a dulcimer-guitar duo, Christmas music performers, a four-piece band, a Dickens-style storyteller and, each evening, elves, Frosty the Snowman and

“We have something for everybody to celebrate the holiday season in Gatlinburg,” said Darrell Manis, Special Events Director for the Gatlinburg Convention Center.

Mrs. Claus.

The 24th Annual Chili Cook-off and Winter Magic Kickoff will take place 5-8 p.m. on Nov. 13 on the downtown parkway. The event features the ceremonial lighting of more than three million lights that make Gatlinburg a winter wonderland. Animated displays will be throughout the city and the Great Smoky Arts and Crafts Community, some as much as 40 feet tall. The Chili Cook-off features teams from local businesses, service organizations and restaurants vying to win trophies for cooking up the best batch of chili. While the street event is free, tickets for unlimited chili tasting are $10. There will be a hot chili eating contest and live music featuring Nashville-based Natalie Stovall & the Drive at one end of the parkway and the local band Tuatha Dea - a mixture of Celtic and rock - at the other end. A portion of the ticket sales goes to the Pi Beta Phi Elementary PTA. Back by popular demand, Winter Magic Tunes and Tales features characters in costume singing, playing music and telling stories along the Parkway downtown. The characters will be out each Friday and Saturday from 5-9:30 pm November 29 through December 21. “Tunes & Tales will be wonderful this year,” Manis

Also on the schedule: Great Smoky Arts & Crafts Community Thanksgiving and Christmas Holiday Show, with items made by members of the Gatlinburg Great Smoky Arts & Crafts Community. The free show runs November 26 through December 8 at the Gatlinburg Convention Center. The Festival of Trees, November 26-30, Mills Auditorium. Admission is free and the event, a benefit for Smoky Mountain Area Rescue Ministries, includes more than 75 decorated trees, a Santa Store, a gingerbread house competition and more. A luncheon at noon November 26 kicks off the event. Tickets are available through the SMARM office 865-908-3153. Winter Magic Trolley Ride of Lights with departures at 6:30, 7:30 and 8:30 each evening November 13 through December 30 for a guided tour of the lighting displays. Tickets are $5 and reservations are recommended. On Thanksgiving weekend, November 29 and 30, The Nutcracker “Sweet” is performed at the Gatlinburg Mills Auditorium. The Great Smoky Mountain Dance Theater performs their all-local production at 7 p.m. To learn more about these and other events in Gatlinburg call 800-568-4748 or find mountains of information at www.gatlinburg.com.

Temporary Closure

By Cyndy Montgomery Reeves There is not a better place than Gatlinburg, Tennessee to host The Smoky Mountains Songwriters Festival every year in August. Music and songs have always been a part of mountain living. When songwriters perform their songs for you they also tell you the story behind the song. Once you have attended a singer songwriter show you will ﬁnd yourself seeking out singer/songwriter performances. Every 2nd Monday of the month you will ﬁnd singer/songwriters performing at Crystelle Creek Restaurant in Gatlinburg at the SMSWF Songwriters Showcase hosted by John Condrone. John is an award wining Dove and Grammy Nominated Songwriter. Each month anywhere from 7 to 12 songwriters gather and 30+ original songs are performed during the three hour showcase. Public Invited. No admission fee.

Did You Know The wispy, smoke-like fog that hangs over the Smoky Mountains comes from rain and evaporation from trees. On the high peaks of the Smokies, an average of 85 inches of rain falls each year, qualifying these upper elevation areas as temperate rain forests.

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Vapor Shop - Lounge Coming To Gatlinburg

Phase 1 renovations were completed in 2012 from the trailhead to the trail juncture with Road Prong Trail, but Phase 2 progress was significantly impacted and delayed in 2013 due to January floods and the partial government shutdown. Work will resume in the spring to finish Phase 2 renovations and begin Phase 3 work. These sections along the remaining 0.8 mile of trail include the most continuous technical trail reconstruction needed on the entire rehabilitation project.

“Celebrating Our Appalachian Musical Roots”

Great Smoky Mountains National Park holds one of the best collections of log buildings in the eastern United States. Over 90 historic structures including houses, barns, outbuildings, churches, schools, and grist mills have been preserved or rehabilitated in the park. The best places to see them are at Cades Cove, Cataloochee, Oconaluftee, and along the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. Self-guiding auto tour booklets are available at each place to enhance your visit.

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park ofﬁcials announced the temporary closure of Chimney Tops Trail from Tuesday, November 12 through Thursday, November 14, 2013 to stabilize trail renovation areas for the winter season.

Trails Forever is a partnership program between Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Friends of the Smokies with generous support from the Knoxville based Aslan Foundation. Through this partnership, the Park has performed major trail renovations on Forney Ridge Trail along with the ongoing work on Chimney Tops Trail. For more information about trail closures, please visit the Park’s website at www.nps.gov/grsm or call our Backcountry Information Ofﬁce at 865-436-1297.

Ridge upon ridge of forest straddles the border between North Carolina and Tennessee in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. World renowned for its diversity of plant and animal life, the beauty of its ancient mountains, and the quality of its remnants of Southern Appalachian mountain culture, this is America's most visited national park.

Big Street Entertainment

Chimney Tops Trail

Since April 2012, the Park’s Trails Forever Crew has been rebuilding the trail as part of a three phase project to renovate the popular trail. The crew constructed rock steps along the first 1.2 miles of trail in the steepest areas to prevent erosion along with redefining sections of trail that have become unsafe or difficult to navigate. Crews also improved trail drainage by modifying water bars, constructing drainage structures, and building raised turnpike structures out of sustainable materials to prevent further erosion.

A Wondrous Diversity of Life

Jim Woods, owner of Discount Cigarettes and Beer in the Family Dollar shopping center at Glades road is announcing plans to introduce a full line of E-cigs and paraphernalia to his shop in the near future. E-Cig (electronic cigarette) is a battery powered nicotine delivery system (ENDS) which simulates tobacco smoking. It generally uses a heating element that vaporizes a liquid solution. Some solutions contain a mixture of nicotine and ﬂavorings while others release a ﬂavoured vapor without nicotine. Some are designed in appearance to look like cigarettes while others are considerably different in appearance.

Phase 2 After

Because E-Cigs contain nicotine minors will not be permitted to purchase them.

Smoky Mountains Songwriters Festival Travis) Bobby Tomberlin, (writer of hit songs including BMI's 4 million airplay award winner “One More Day,” Diamond Rio; and cast member of CMT's The Singing Bee) Mark Nesler, (“Just To See You Smile,” Tim McGraw) Chris Wallin,(“Don't Blink,” Kenny Chesney), Marty Dodson, (“We Must Be Doing Something Right”, Billy Currington) and Clay Mills, (“Beautiful Mess” by Diamond Rio) and many others Dozens of other writers will also be performing in a fun and family friendly environment. Hear the stories behind songs recorded by Reba McEntire, Johnny Cash, Keith Urban, Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean, George Strait, Faith Hill, Tanya Tucker, Billy Currington, Billy Ray Cyrus, Montgomery Gentry, Kenny Chesney, Keith Anderson, Alabama and The Oak Ridge Boys, Barbara Streisand and many others!

World renown “Hit” writers and other singer/songwriters will ﬁll 12 different venues with ongoing free performances in downtown Gatlinburg from noon to midnight August 21 – 24, 2014. The public is invited to come enjoy 4 days of free live music in downtown Gatlinburg. For more info: www.smswf.com.

Music historians mark the beginning of commercial country music to be 1927 when Ralph Peer at Okeh-Victor in Bristol, TN. began recording The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers. The Bristol recording sessions of 1927 lead to what is called the “Big Bang of Country Music”. The popularity of the Appalachian musicians at that time proved to the industry executives that there was a market for “mountain” or “hillbilly” music.

Audiences can expect to see an impressive lineup including current top writers such as Bill Labounty, (“Rock My World,” Brooks and Dunn) Kim Williams, (“Ain't Goin' Down Till The Sun Comes Up,” Garth Brooks; “Three Wooden Crosses,” Randy

Due in large part to the success of the Grand Ole Opry, the center of country music shifted to Nashville in the 1940s. In subsequent decades as the country music industry moved into the mainstream, musicians and industry leaders sought to de-emphasize the genre's

Appalachian connections, most notably by dropping the term “hillbilly music” in favor of “country music”. In the late 1980s artists such as Dolly Parton, Ricky Skaggs and Dwight Yoakum helped bring traditional Appalachian inﬂuences back to country music. In the early 21st Century motion pictures “Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou” “Song Catcher” and “Cold Mountain” generated renewed mainstreamed interest in traditional Appalachian music.

Around Town

Page 5

Clingmans Dome

At 6,643 feet, Clingmans Dome is Great Smoky Mountains National Park's highest point. It is the highest point in Tennessee, and the second highest point east of the Mississippi. Only North Carolina's Mt. Mitchell (6,684 feet) rises higher. Clingmans Dome is a popular Park destination. Located along the state-line ridge, it is half in North Carolina and half in Tennessee. The peak is accessible after driving Clingmans Dome Road from Newfound Gap, and then walking a steep half-mile trail. A paved trail leads to a 54-foot observation tower. The Appalachian Trail crosses Clingmans Dome, marking the highest point along its 2,144 mile journey.

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Fireside Puzzle

Towel off A great lake Wallop Cable channel Inhabitant of Brittay Ready to pluck Famous cookie Progressive rock band Finger or toe U.N. agency Building near a silo Entree add-on Spring ﬂowers Condo division Add up Small Old World deer Split Glistening Word with ﬂy or radish Spiel Gambler Defraud Set up Where to get a fast buck? Pine Honk Late starter Deviate Slim girl Beat Granite colored The rich Like some coffee Braces Indian princess Black-and-white predator Small stream Highland tongue “__ we forget” Spot Latin 101 verb Snack “Ve__ in blue jeans...”

ACROSS 1 Direction 5 Petting zoo sound 9 First come, ﬁrst served 13 Unyielding 14 It may be organized 15 Healthful berry 16 Vacation message 19 Fox Series, “___! The Cat” 20 Jottings 21 Make up for 22 Last word of a US island 23 Type of wood 24 Place for target practice 32 Traditional beliefs 33 Delicate 34 Mass of eggs 35 Timeline divisions 36 Coax 38 Hindu sacred texts 39 Best guess: abbr. 40 Not all 41 Box elder 42 “Calm down!” 47 Final: abbr. 48 Delicate 49 Clobber 52 Bob’s companion 54 Jeans brand 57 Just good old friendship 60 First word in a fairy tale 61 Chuckleheads 62 FedEx rival 63 Granitelike rocks 64 Unnamed ones 65 Eye problem

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Page 6 Around Town

DOLLYWOOD COMPANY ANNOUNCES $300 MILLION IN INVESTMENTS

PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. (Aug. 21, 2013)—Entertainment legend Dolly Parton announced today plans for $300 million in capital investments in The Dollywood Company over the next 10 years. The investment includes new attractions, resorts and the creation of more than 2,500 jobs. Construction is under way on the new FireChaser Express rollercoaster, opening in March 2014 at Dollywood. To mark the company’s 30th anniversary in 2015, the 300-room Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort will open adjacent to Parton’s award-winning Dollywood theme park and Dollywood’s Splash Country waterpark, both located in Tennessee’s famed Great Smoky Mountains.

The scope of the company’s future developments resonates in Parton’s native Sevier County and throughout the contiguous counties in East Tennessee. An independent economic impact study commissioned by The Dollywood Company projects that Dollywood and its hospitality investments will add $150 million annually to the local economy. Additionally, more than $7 million in state and local taxes will be generated by the company’s 10-year investments. Approximately 2,500 jobs will be created, primarily in the hospitality and construction industries, due to the addition of the resort.

provides indoor and outdoor dining opportunities, including a wrap-around veranda with views of the pool and surrounding mountains while an indoor pool, carefully situated amid allglass windows, invites the outdoors inside. An intimate amphitheater nestled in the rolling countryside offers outdoor entertainment while an event lawn welcomes craft demonstrations and special entertainment. Fire pits, hammocks and story spots allow guests to take full advantage of the outdoors. The resort’s spa and salon will offer both a serene indoor and outdoor spa experience.

Scheduled to open summer of 2015, Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort is situated on 100 acres and features a design reminiscent of the iconic Southern gathering spot, the front porch. With rocking chairs that invite guests to linger and admire pristine mountain views, the property is nestled amid the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains and offers the best of both worlds—tranquility and adventure—throughout the sprawling resort and surrounding grounds.

Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort is just minutes from neighboring Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited in the U.S. The property joins Dollywood Cabins as the company’s second venture in the lodging industry. Launched in 2009, Dollywood Cabins offers luxurious, amenity-rich cabins just two miles from Dollywood and Dollywood’s Splash Country. FireChaser Express is the latest addition to The Dollywood Company’s list of innovative new rides. In March 2012, Dollywood opened the $20 million Wild Eagle, the country’s first wing coaster. In 2013, Dollywood’s Splash Country followed with the addition of RiverRush, Tennessee’s first and only water coaster. The nation’s first dual-launch family coaster, FireChaser Express travels forward and backward on a winding 2,427-foot track, leaving the loading station in one direction and returning in the opposite direction. Perched 12 stories above the park’s Wilderness Pass area, the coaster’s 39-inch minimum height requirement invites families to ride together.

The resort features a variety of accommodations to suit parties of all sizes. It will include special one- or two-bedroom reunion suites with family parlors that serve as a gathering hub. The resort also includes specialty suites on the ground ﬂoor with private gated porches with outdoor access.

“I’ve always been a big dreamer just like I’ve always wanted to do more for my home here in these beautiful Smoky Mountains,” Parton said, “This is where I nurtured my heart’s dreams, and I want to share more of them. My plans for the next 10 years are to expand my Dollywood properties to offer families more opportunities to play together and grow closer while they make their best memories. It’s truly the culmination of this country girl’s wildest dreams!” “With Dolly Parton’s vision and world-class properties like Dollywood theme park and Dollywood’s Splash Country waterpark as our foundation, The Dollywood Company is poised to become a family vacation destination like no other,” said Craig Ross, President of The Dollywood Company. “Dolly welcomes folks into her home and her heart, and our plans to grow and expand The Dollywood Company are steeped in her desire to bring families closer together by creating experiences delivered from the heart.”

Steaks

Pigeon Forge Pigeon Forge, in East Tennessee, is surrounded by the Great Smoky Mountains and beautiful scenery for every Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort includes more than 8,000 season. Our town is made up of a delightful mix of lifesquare feet of indoor meeting space complete with state-of-the- long residents, young families attracted by nature’s art technology. Outdoors, the property can accommodate beauty, and folks who have chosen to spend their groups as large as 500. The property’s crown jewel is the 2,200retirement years in Pigeon Forge. square-foot Dolly’s Suite Dreams celebrity suite, with décor inspired by Parton. A full-service restaurant, fashioned after an old farmhouse, Early

history of our town dates back to before the Revolutionary War. Our ﬁrst business was established in the early 1800s. While Pigeon Forge once was a small farming community, the lure of the mountains brought more and more visitors to the area, and new businesses were established to meet the needs of these travelers.

Burgers Seafood

and much more

Where The Locals Go

Howard's Steakhouse has been in Gatlinburg since 1946 offering the traditional Howard’s menu. Seating is also available outside next to a running stream. The bar is a long time locals favorite with a hometown atmosphere.

Catering Available The Wild Boar Saloon located upstairs offers a lighter fare with tavern style appetizers and specialty bar drinks. Offering a great night life atmosphere with Karaoke.

976 E Parkway, Downtown Gatlinburg

www.HowardsRestaurantGatlinburg.com (865) 436-3600

Today, Pigeon Forge is a major tourist destination, and while we take care of more than 10 million people who visit each year, our residents are still our top priority. In addition to our Smoky Mountain scenery, Pigeon Forge has plenty of parks and recreational areas, an outstanding community center and public library, as well as an excellent educational system that ranges from pre-school through high school. You’ll ﬁnd Pigeon Forge is an all-American town with a wholesome atmosphere, brimming with family values and old-fashioned Southern hospitality. If you’re thinking about moving here, you should ﬁnd answers to any questions you may have on the pages of this site. Walking Trail Closing Old City Park Part of the walking trail around Pigeon Forge Community Center will be closed while the new wastewater treatment plant is being constructed. After the 2 ½ year construction project is complete the trail will be opened again.

Smoky Mountain Waterfalls & Hikes Grotto Falls The one you can walk behind. There's something magical about standing behind the wall of water as it cascades to the ground at Grotto. This is the only waterfall in the Smokies where you can do this, and the walk to Grotto is easy as pie. It's just minutes out of Gatlinburg off the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, so make it a ﬁrst stop on a day trip into the Park. You can stroll the Trillium Trail through oldgrowth forests, and if you're there in May, get ready to be wowed by the wildﬂowers.

Laurel Falls Paved access to a picture perfect wonder. Take a 2.6 mile walk on the paved trail to Laurel and you'll see why so many consider it a must-see. The 80-foot cascade is one of the most-photgraphed spots in the Smokies for good reason. It's only a few miles from Sugarlands, right outside Gatlinburg. If you come in early morning, you'll beat the crowds and be rewarded with perfect light for photography. Bringing the family? The walk to Laurel Falls is stroller, wheelchair and walker friendly.

Abrams Falls The most water, the deepest pool. But, warning: no swimming!

The ﬁve-mile round trip along Abrams Creek is a moderate hike that's worth every step. Cross the wooden bridge and follow the path along the Cades Cove Valley ﬂoor among pine, oak, hemlock and rhododendron. When you arrive, you'll see why a waterfall that's only 20 feet high is one of the most popular places in the Smokies. The amount of rushing water is staggering, and the pool below is long and deep. The warnings about swimming are worth

heeding! The currents are dangerous and have swept some to their deaths. Look, but don't jump!

Mt. LeConte Hike to the best sunrises & sunsets in the park. At just shy of 6,600 feet, the views from top of LeConte Lodge in the Smokies make it a trek worth taking. You can stock a backpack and head up for a stay at the rustic LeConte Lodge – But warning, there is no electricity and it is a sellout every year for good reason. Please note, there are backcountry campsites nearby. The most spectacular sunrises and sunsets occur on Myrtle Point in the east and Clifftops to the west. Even if you don't have reservations at the Lodge or shelter, the trails to LeConte are worth the day trip and you can reserve lunch at the lodge dining room, if you call ahead. The Alum Cave Bluffs Trail, past storm-tossed boulders, up stone stairs and under Arch Rock, is one of the best hikes in the Smokies. Try the Boulevard Trail for a longer but easier ascent, or a more challenging trek on Rainbow Falls Trail to the top.

Chimney Tops A challenging trek to a bare rock summit with a thrilling 360° view. It's only a couple of miles up, but there's a reason hiking enthusiasts all over the world make the rugged ascent to this bare rock summit. Climb among the rhododendrons, over wood bridges and along a rushing stream to the summit. The last mile is intimidating, and some hesitate at the base of the rocks, but if you are brave, cautious, in good shape and not a nervous nelly about heights, you'll be rewarded with a full 360° view, including Mt. LeConte to the easr. Note: Ofﬁcials at Great Smoky Mountains National Park have announced that the popular Chimney Tops Trail will

Walk Behind Falls be closed each Monday through Thursday from Monday, April 30 through Thursday, October 18 while the trail undergoes a major facelift. The Chimney Tops Trailhead is along Newfound Gap Road about 8 miles south of the Park's Gatlinburg, TN entrance. The work is expected to take two seasons to complete.

Ramsey Cascades Tallest waterfall in the park Ramsey Cascades is the highest waterfall accessible by trail in the park. Most of the water comes from the 6621foot high Mt. Guyot, the second highest mountain in the Great Smoky Mountains. Water drops 100 feet over rock outcroppings and collects in a small pool where numerous salamanders can be found. Trailhead: Drive 5.9 miles from Gatlinburg on 321, then turning right to the Greenbrier area of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. At mile 3.2 turn left at the sign for Ramsey Cascades on to a bridge that crosses the Middle Prong. Drive 1.5 miles to the parking area. The trail to the waterfall gains over 2,000' in elevation over its 4 mile course and the 8-mile roundtrip hike is considered strenuous in difﬁculty but well worth the hike. It takes about 5-7 hours to hike to the waterfall and back. The trail follows rushing rivers and streams for much of its length. The last 2 miles pass through old-growth cove hardwood forest with large tuliptrees, basswoods, silverbells, and yellow birches.

Around Town

Page 7

Meet The Locals!

Br at Cry ook, Neese an stelle C reek R d Brent estaura nt

Nancy and Jody Restaurant at Three Jimmy’s

Porsha and Ramona at Loxx “A Savvy Salon”

Mike Ogle, Pete Ogle and Randy Ogle at a Ogle weekly family tradition

Lori, Jim and Robyn at Howard’s Restaurant Kathy Lindsey & Susan Brandenburg at Gatlinburg City Hall

Rick and Kasey at Epis Fine Wine & Liquor

Barbara and Ron at Skiddy’s

Seated: Brandi & Brandon. Back row left to right: Michael, Charlie, Pat & Fat Bob at Heartwood Galleries

Chainsaw Carving

The beginning of the art form

The ﬁrst booking agency dedicated to promoting and preserving the integrity of performance chainsaw art was founded by Brian Ruth in 1992. It was appropriately named Masters of the Chainsaw. The company represents some of the most respected artists in the U.S., such as Brian Ruth, Ben Risney, Mark Tyoe and Marty Long, as well as select artists from other countries. In 2007, Masters of the Chainsaw, under the direction of Jen Ruth, created the ﬁrst international group of female sculptors under the name Chainsaw Chix. Featured in this all-female team are greats like Stephanie Huber, Angela Polglaze, Lisa Foster, Alicia Charlton, Uschi Elias, and Sara Winter.

town in the mountains of Pennsylvania for this event. The Chainsaw Carver Rendezvous is the biggest gathering of chainsaw carvers in the world. the event has grown so big that it takes over the small town of Ridgway, Pennsylvania. In 2010 American sculptor Bob King was awarded a coveted "Star/Sprocket" on the Carvers Walk of Fame in Mulda, Germany, the location of the World Cup competition. This award conﬁrms Bob has won more carving competitions than any other carver in the world to date. Competitive chainsaw carving has evolved to produce masterful artists around the globe.

Brian Ruth introduced the art as a performance art to Japan in 1995. Since then, he has established a division of Masters of the Chainsaw and a chainsaw carving school in Toei, Japan.

The oldest chainsaw artist records go back to the 1950s, which include artists Ray Murphy and Ken Kaiser. In 1952 Ray Murphy used his father's chainsaw to carve his name into a piece of wood. In 1961 Ken Kaiser created 50 carvings for the Trees of Mystery. Many new artists began to experiment with chainsaw carving, including Brenda Hubbard, Judy McVay, Don Colp, Cherie Currie (former Runaways lead singer), Susan Miller, Mike McVay, and Lois Hollingsworth. At this time chainsaw carvers started loading up their carvings in the back of their trucks, functioning as traveling galleries. In the 1980s the art form really began to grow with Art Moe getting much exposure for the craft at the Lumberjack World Championships held in Hayward, Wisconsin. This event was broadcast nationally. The addition of carving contests from the west coast to the east coast brought carvers together to test their skills and learn from each other. The first Chainsaw Carving World Championships was held in 1987 and won by then 24-yearold Barre Pinske. The 1980s also saw the development of the and their newsletter, The Cutting Edge, mailed out to many members throughout the Pacific Northwest and the rest of the United States. The 80's also brought the first book on chainsaw carving, Fun and Profitable Chainsaw Carving by William Westenhaver and Ron Hovde, published in 1982. Other books soon followed, including a book by Hal MacIntosh published in 1988 titled Chainsaw Art and in 2001 Chainsaw Carving: The Art and Craft. He published material on chainsaw carving that predated the popularity of the Internet.

Although the general impression of the public is that it is largely performance art (because of the noise, sawdust, and very fast carving results), there are a few chainsaw carvers now producing stunning works of art. These works can be produced in a fraction of the time that would normally be expected if only conventional tools such as mallet and gouges were used. Although many carvers continue to use other tools alongside the chainsaw, the chainsaw remains the primary tool. With the growth of the Internet, chainsaw carving has become a worldwide phenomenon with chainsaw carvers all over the world. In the United Kingdom, the English Open Chainsaw Competition draws thousands of visitors annually. English chainsaw artist Matthew Crabb has carved the largest wooden statue of the Virgin Mary in the world, at 9 meters high, to great fanfare in Schochwitz, Germany highlighting the evolution and growth of the art. In Canada many wooden statues produced by the chainsaw artist Pete Ryan decorate the small town of Hope, British Columbia. Glenn Greensides, another Canadian artist, branched out into Japan in 1995 and visited Japan each year for 12 consecutive years to create one 5 meter tall sculpture from an exported British Columbia log depicting the upcoming year's Japanese zodiac symbol. In Japan , the Toei Chainsaw Art Club established the World Chainsaw Art Competition, which was the ﬁrst chainsaw carving competition in the country. The 2011 World Chainsaw Art Competition at the Toei Dome will be dedicated to raising money for disaster relief due to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster that has affected the country. 1999 marked the ﬁrst year of the Ridgway Chainsaw Carving Rendezvous, every February hundreds of carvers go to a small

As the art has evolved, special chainsaw blades and chains have been developed for carving. In Finland such equipment is affectionally called konepuukko ("mechanical puukko "). The chainsaw "blades" are technically known as "guide bars". For chainsaw carving these bars have very small noses (typically around 25 mm diameter). This enables the artist to create detail in the carving that would be impossible with a standard guide bar. The chains that are used on these guide bars are normally modified by reducing the length of the teeth in order that they are able to cut efficiently at the tip of the bar. The reason for this modification is that all chains manufactured currently (circa 2007) are made to be used on standard guide bars only. These "carving bars" are manufactured by "Cannon", "GB", and by a companies in Japan supplying "Stihl" and others. The other very important advantage with these guide bars is that they do not "kickback" when using the tip. they are therefore very safe to use in comparison with standard guide bars. In order to reach the high levels of skill required to be a "chainsaw carver", a considerable amount of instruction and practice is required in the safe operation of a chainsaw. This is then followed by plenty of study and practice in carving basic shapes which then ultimately leads on to more ambitious projects. It is extremely important that anyone using a chainsaw to wear the proper protective clothing. A cut from a chainsaw is not just a cut, it actually removes a whole centimeter or more of flesh and bone. A victim can die very quickly from blood loss.

Page 8 Around Town

Cades Cove!

Cades Cove is a broad, verdant valley surrounded by mountains and is one of the most popular destinations in the Great Smokies. It offers some of the best opportunities for wildlife viewing in the park. Large numbers of white-tailed deer are frequently seen, and sightings of black bear, coyote, ground hog, turkey, raccoon, skunk, and other animals are also possible. The valley has a rich history. For hundreds of years Cherokee Indians hunted in Cades Cove but archeologists have found no evidence of major settlements. The ﬁrst Europeans settled in the cove sometime between 1818 and 1821. By 1830 the population of the area had already swelled to 271. Cades Cove offers the widest variety of historic buildings of any area in the national park. Scattered along the loop road are three churches, a working grist mill, barns, log houses, and many other faithfully restored eighteenth and nineteenth century structures. An inexpensive self-guiding tour booklet available at the entrance to the road provides in-depth information about the buildings and the people who built and used them. An 11-mile, one-way loop road circles the cove offering motorists the opportunity to sightsee at a leisurely pace. Allow at least two to four hours to tour Cades Cove, longer if you walk some of the area's trails. Trafﬁc is heavy during the tourist season in summer and fall and on weekends year-round. While driving the loop road please be courteous to other visitors and use pullouts when stopping to enjoy the scenery or view wildlife.

Highlights... wildlife viewing, historic buildings, and bicycling

A visitor center (open daily), restrooms, and the Cable Mill historic area are located half-way around the loop road. Numerous trails originate in the cove, including the ﬁve-mile roundtrip trail to Abrams Falls and the short Cades Cove Nature Trail. Longer hikes to Thunderhead Mountain and Rocky Top (made famous by the popular song) also begin in the cove. Several designated backcountry campsites (camping by permit only) are located along trails. Only bicycle and foot trafﬁc are allowed on the loop road until 10:00 a.m. every Saturday and Wednesday morning from early May until late September. Otherwise the road is open to motor vehicles from sunrise until sunset daily, weather permitting. A campground with 159 sites is open year round in Cades Cove. Tents and RVs up to 35 feet can be accommodated in the campground. The Anthony Creek horse camp is located nearby and offers easy access to the backcountry. Call (877) 444-6777 or visit us at http://www.recreation.gov to reserve a site.

Mileage to Cades Cove: from Cherokee - 57 from Gatlinburg - 27 from Townsend - 9

Protect Park Streams from Rock Snot

The CHAIR SHOP Woodcrafts

Fisherman can accidentally spread Didymo. Make sure you clean all your gear and equipment before visiting. Didymo cells cling to gear and equipment and can be transferred to new uncontaminated streams. These microscopic cells can remain alive for several days in a moist environment. Only one cells is needed to invade park streams. Once a Didymo cell contaminates a stream, it attaches itself ﬁrmly to the streambed and develops a stalk. The end of the stalk produced adhesive pads, which forms a thick mat that smothers the streambed.

Fisherman can accidentally spread Didymo. Make sure you clean all your gear and equipment before visiting. Steve Head

Didymo (Didymosphenia geminata) or "rock snot" is an invasive single-celled algae species that smothers stream and riverbeds with mats of algae up to 8 inches thick. Historically, the range of Didymo was in the northern edges of North America, Europe and Asia, and considered very rare. Today, scientists have found that Didymo is able to adapt to new conditions, such as warmer water, resulting in Didymo being discovered in the streams of 16 states including Tennessee. Didymo occurs at a higher frequency in a controlled and regulated environment, such as in cold-water tailwaters below dams. In fact, Didymo has been found in every tailwater in East Tennessee, including Watauga, South Holston and the Noris and Cherokee Dams on the Tennessee River. Didymo can also thrive in cool, clear water environments like the streams found in the park. Didymo is spread accidentally on ﬁshing equipment like waders, boots, and ﬁshing line in addition to recreation equipment such as boats, life jackets and inner tubes. Do not be responsible for spreading Didymo to park streams!

Handmade From Native Woods

Specialize In: Dining Rocking Chairs Custom Furniture

Identify Didymo by: 1. Color: brown, tan or white (not green); may have long white “tails” 2. Texture: feels like wool or cotton (not slimy) 3. Strength: has stalks ﬁrmly attached to rocks

(865) 436-7413 830 Cantrell Circle,Gatlinburg, TN 37738

Didymo mats can completely cover long stretches of streambed blocking sunlight from reaching native plants and ﬁsh. Didymo threatens aquatic habitats and biodiversity of the stream, killing native plants and ﬁsh by limiting sunlight. Do not assume a stream or river is free from the infestation of Didymo.

Skiddy’s

Where The Locals Really Meet!

To Prevent the Spread of Didymo: 1.Before coming to the park, clean all gear and equipment by: REMOVING debris and strands of alga from your gear CLEANING all gear in 2.5-5.0% solution of household bleach and hot water for 10 minutes. Hard to remove debris should be scrubbed with a biodegradable detergent. DRYING all gear to touch, and then continue drying time for at least 48 more hours. 2.Use only clean thoroughly dried gear and equipment. 3.Report sightings of suspect algae to Great Smoky Mountains National Park staff.

Best Burgers In Town !

Cold Beer, Great Steaks, Live Music, Pool Table and a casual local atmosphere.

Directions:Take Glades Road to its end. Turn left and go one mile. On the right.

4133 Birds Creek Road • (865) 436-4192

PUZZLE ANSWERS 1

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Best Sports Bar For Good Times & Fun! (865) 325-1210

Directions: At trafﬁc light #3 in Gatlinburg turn onto 321. Go 2.7 miles to Glades Road and turn left. We are on the left.

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1359 E. Parkway, Suite F, Gatlinburg

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Dine In or Take Out

www.ogleschairshop.com

(Off Glades Road)

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Loxx

Sevierville History

“A Savvy Salon”

History in the Making By Carroll McMahan Tennessee archaeology dates the State's first inhabitants to 12,000 years ago. The earliest artifacts from the Paleo-Indian period date from 10,000 BC and suggest that the first Tennesseans were hunters of great mastodons. By the 18th century, the only native people living permanently in Tennessee were the Cherokee, who had claimed all the central and eastern portions of Tennessee as their hunting grounds in the 16th and 17th centuries, and called themselves the “Principal People.” It is believed that they were a detached Iroquoian tribe. These are some of the Native Americans John Sevier fought in order to protect European settlers in and around Sevierville. Sequoyah (Sequoia), a well known Tennessean, was born in 1776 to a Cherokee mother and a Virginia fur trader. In 1821, Sequoyah developed the Cherokee alphabet and by the early 19th century the Cherokee had distinguished themselves as the first and only literate Native American tribe. Today, the Cherokee language is the second most widely used Native American language. You can see the archaeological exhibit of east Tennessee’s first inhabitants at the Sevier County Heritage Museum in historic downtown Sevierville. While the Pigeon River provided essential transportation for agriculture and commerce, it has also been the cause of many floods occurring off its banks. The earliest recorded flood was in 1875 when the river measured 19.5 feet. Floods as recently as 1963 have left Sevierville as a declared disaster area by the Small Business Administration. In 1966, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) began a flood protection program which was completed in 1967 in which work was done on the west prong of the Little Pigeon River thereby preventing further flooding. Since the completion of that project, there have been no further floods in Sevierville.

Sevierville (Severe ville) is named for John Sevier, one of the leading ﬁgures in the history of Tennessee. Sevier was a frontiersman, soldier, war hero and politician who served under George Washington in the American Revolution and distinguished himself at the battle of King’s Mountain. In 1874, he became the ﬁrst governor of the State of Franklin, a new state that had been carved out of the land around Watauga. Later, Franklin because part of North Carolina and John Sevier was accused of treason for resisting the annexation.

Haircuts Color Specialists Manicures Pedicures

When the State of Tennessee was formed in 1796, Sevier became its ﬁrst governor, serving from 1796 until 1801 and again from 1803 until 1809. Sevier later served as a state senator from 1809 until 1811 and was a member of the US House of Representatives in 1811. Nicknamed “Nolichucky Jack” for his exploits along the Nolichucky River, Sevier died in Georgia during a boundary negotiation with Creek Indians in 1815. Sevierville has evolved from frontier town to bustling county seat since its founding in 1795. But the last ﬁfty years have been particularly important in shaping the City of Sevierville today.

Walk-ins Welcome

(865)

479 Forks of the River Parkway

For more info go to: www.seviercountyhistory.com .

How to Safely View Wildlife

429-1663

Sevierville, Tennessee 37862

Great Smoky Mountains National Park ofﬁcials remind park visitors to exercise caution as they view and photograph wildlife to best protect both the animals and themselves. Park Rangers have recently received numerous reports of increased interactions between visitors and wildlife such as bears, white-tailed deer, and elk.

Biologists recently removed the antlers of a large bull elk that routinely spends time in high use, public areas in ﬁelds adjacent to the Oconluftee Visitor Center, Mountain Farm Museum, and the Oconaluftee River Trail. Dominant bull elk typically defend their territory during the fall breeding season, known as the rut, by charging and sparring with competitors. Unfortunately, this 800-pound elk charged several visitors posing signiﬁcant to public safety. Now that the rut is essentially over, the elk’s aggressive behavior should lessen and by removing the elk’s antlers which are annually shed, biologists further reduced the risk for harm to visitors.

Park Rangers encourage visitors to use binoculars, spotting scopes, or cameras with telephoto lenses to best enjoy wildlife. Feeding, touching, disturbing, and willfully approaching wildlife within 50 yards (150 feet), or any distance that disturbs or displaces wildlife, are illegal in the park. If approached by wildlife, visitors should slowly back away to put distance between the animal and themselves creating space for the animal to pass. Often animals simply need adequate space to cross a trail, road, or public area as they travel through the park in search of forage and cover.

Park ofﬁcials have taken numerous steps over the past several years to prevent nuisance wildlife behavior by improving the design of bear-proof garbage cans and sanitation schedules, and promoting public awareness in our visitor centers and through our website and social media. The Park also created several volunteer programs including the Elk Bugle Corp and Oconaluftee Field Rovers who provide on-site, timely information to park visitors so they may safely view wildlife. As a result of these efforts, wildlife biologists have relocated far fewer bears than in the 1980s and managed fewer nuisance animals.

“Wild animals typically avoid visitor interaction unless they become food conditioned,” said Park Wildlife Biologist Bill Stiver. “If an animal starts approaching and threatening human safety, we have several proactive steps we take to effectively manage the situation that bests protects the animal and the public. However, if the negative behavior escalates, our options in dealing with the animal quickly become limited.”

At 480 feet, Fontana Dam, located on the southwestern boundary of the park, is the tallest concrete dam east of the Rocky Mountains. The dam impounds the Little Tennessee River forming Fontana Lake and produces hydroelectric power.

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Page 10 Around Town

Images Of The Smokies

Around Town

Page 11

Titanic’s Spectacular Fireworks

commercial success of his productions. For the 1986 World's Fair in Vancouver, Canada, Joslyn was commissioned by the State of California Department of Tourism to produce “Discover the California's,” which debuted as one of the major attractions at the Exposition. Among other projects, he was also designated by the Spanish Sociedad Estatal Quinto Centenario Commission to produce “Great Voyages of Discovery: Spanish Treasure Galleons” for the World's Fair in Spain. For this exhibit, he worked closely with renowned explorer Mel Fischer. On another front, with the endorsement and assistance of the United States Department of Defense, Joslyn produced a special about the Vietnam Era and the men still missing in action (MIA's – Where Are They?). In 2001 John Joslyn

Thanksgiving Evening 7:30 pm Pigeon Forge, Tennessee – The night sky will be ablaze in colorful bursts of light and fantasy during the Titanic Museum Attraction's second annual fireworks extravaganza honoring the lives and legacies of the ship's passengers, crew and rescuers. It will be the largest fireworks event of the year on the Smoky Mountain Parkway, and we look forward to celebrating a joyful evening with our community friends and neighbors.” announces John Joslyn, expedition leader of the first private exploration dive to Titanic and co-owner of the Titanic Museum Attraction.

was the only television producer invited to a Scientiﬁc Summit meeting in Cairo to discuss a project involving the opening of The Great Pyramid of Khufu and the attempt to repair the Great Sphinx.

“Since the Titanic Museum Attraction's grand opening in 2010, fireworks have been seen as glowing tributes to the 2,208 passengers and crew who sailed on Titanic,” said Joslyn, “Our Thanksgiving fireworks display also serves to usher in a new Christmas season of hope and promise for all of us,” adds Joslyn. The annual tradition of a magical snowfall from the ship's bow will be renewed on Thanksgiving weekend and will remain in the forecast for every Saturday in December. To help make the season even brighter, Father Christmas, dressed in a style most familiar to the children aboard Titanic in 1912, will make special stops at Titanic on these magical snow days. Plus meet our Titanic 'Fantasy' Princess – at the ship every Thursday – Sunday. Visitors to the Titanic Museum Attraction will also be able to view thousands of holiday lights, Edwardian-period decorations, costumed merrymarkers, and a magical Gift Shoppe brimming with original, one-of-a-kind gifts. “Every day, but especially during the holidays, we remember and honor the men, women and particularly the children who sailed on the Titanic. At this special time, our guests truly experience what it was like onboard the ship in 1912, and how it might have looked on a Christmas voyage 101 years ago,” says Joslyn. Information about other winter events at Titanic Museum Attraction can be found online at www.titanicattaction.com. The Titanic Museum Attraction in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, opens daily at 9 a.m. Reservations are strongly suggested since many days sell out entirely. Passengers may purchase tickets at www.titanicattraction.com or by phone at (800) 381-7670. Titanic Museum Attraction: Cedar Bay Entertainment, LLC owns and operates the Titanic Museum Attraction in Branson, Missouri, and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. A privately owned-andoperated entertainment and development company, Cedar Bay is headquartered in Branson, Missouri, the site of its first Titanic Museum Attraction. Since its opening in 2006, Titanic Branson has welcomed more than 5 million “passengers” aboard the museum. Titanic Pigeon Forge opened in 2010 and has already welcomed 2 million visitors. For additional information about the museums, visit us at: www.titanicattraction.com or

call 800-381-7670

Joslyn has been involved with numerous television tie-ins, including the creation of a collectibles line using actual artifacts from the Andrea Doria shipwreck to accompany the premiere of the two-hour Discovery Channel special, which he also produced. This television special "S.S. Andrea Doria – A Journey of Adventure" was shown in 1998.

Owner: John Joslyn, CEO, President For over three decades, John Joslyn has been a major force in innovative exhibitions, attractions, television programming, and marketing. He is known around the world as an adventurer, explorer and pioneer-producer. His televised exploits have earned him great commercial success, as well as universal respect as a leading producer of highquality, well-researched programming for television. Joslyn has developed and currently oversees two high-end Titanic museum-attractions in Branson, Mo and Pigeon Forge, Tn. Joslyn's association with Titanic began in the mid1980s, when he co-founded and served as General Manager of Titanic Ventures Limited Partnership, the predecessor company to R.M.S. Titanic, Inc. He also mounted and was Co-Expedition Leader of the 1987 Titanic Expedition in collaboration with the distinguished French Institute for Research and Exploration of the Sea ("IFREMER").

This historic expedition was the first to recover and restore artifacts from the ocean floor. In order to recover these artifacts, Joslyn and his team of scientific and salvage experts successfully completed 32 dives to the Titanic's final resting place in the North Atlantic to 12,500 feet in the "Nautile" the French institute's deep-diving submersible. This is the greatest number of deep-sea dives ever completed for any televised project. The resulting television special produced by Joslyn, “Return to the Titanic...LIVE” shown on in 27 countries worldwide in 1987 remains one of the highest-rated syndicated specials of all-time (seen by 22 million households in the U.S. alone). Joslyn has a long record of producing and marketing films and television specials that bring excitement and adventure to the audience -- as shown by the

Joslyn founded Westgate Entertainment, Inc. ("Westgate"), in 1980, after serving half-dozen years in executive positions with the NBC and CBS Television Networks. One of Westgate's ﬁrst projects was the production, in 1980, of "Return of the Lone Ranger” followed by the ﬁrst syndicated entertainment news coverage available to television stations (prior to Entertainment Tonight). This entertainment news syndication (NIWS) attracted an unprecedented 175 subscriber stations within a year.

Based on that success, Joslyn was recruited by Universal Pictures in 1981 to develop a new marketing tool for the industry. He subsequently pioneered the “Electronic Press Kit,” which became the buzz in marketing for major studio ﬁlm releases. In the process, Joslyn worked closely with both studio executives and such top ﬁlmmakers and stars as Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, Mel Gibson, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Burt Reynolds,

While continuing to develop other projects, Joslyn moved into television production in 1986. He has since created and served as the Executive Producer of more than a dozen major syndicated and network television specials for NBC, CBS, ABC, the Discovery Channel and The Learning Channel. Among them, “The Mystery of Al Capone's Vaults” (1986) and “Return to the Titanic...LIVE” (1987) hold the records as the two highest-rated syndicated specials (seen respectively by 28 million and 22 million households in the U.S. alone).

Titanic Pigeon Forge Captain

Christmas at the Titanic

Birthday Parties

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Pigeon Forge Titanic Crew

Titanic Weddings

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Where are you going today? Let us do all the driving for you and get you there and back safe and sound.