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CURRENT Features

Can The Hemlocks Be Saved?

The prospects for one of the mountains’ most beautiful trees look better than they did a decade back.

Fountain Of Youth: A.T. Thru-Hiker Brings the Spirit

Kayla Carter is a role model for recruiting young people to outdoor pursuits.

Photo Essay: A Celebration of Covered Bridges

Echoes from earlier times commingle with soft fall light to create the romance of the covered bridge.

John Fox, Jr. – The Mountains Were His Muse

Friend of Theodore Roosevelt, husband of opera diva – to the extent there was national fame back in the early 1900s, “Lonesome Pine” author John Fox, Jr. had it.

Brown Mountain Lights: The Mystery Continues (and Maybe Even Deepens)

Since we last explored the Brown Mountain Lights (March/April 1995), new scientific research teams were formed, the Burke County Tourism Authority offered sold-out symposia, the lights were featured in a National Geographic show and more.

Current Issue

Virginia Tech’s Tom McAvoy and Carrie Jubb examining hemlocks at the university’s Kentland Farm test forest.

Can The Hemlocks Be Saved?

The prospects for one of the mountains’ most beautiful trees look better than they did a decade back.
Noah Naseri and Kayla Carter pause at the Virginia/Tennessee line during their Appalachian Trail hike.

Fountain Of Youth: A.T. Thru-Hiker Brings the Spirit

Kayla Carter is a role model for recruiting young people to outdoor pursuits.
The iconic red wooden covered bridge at Granny’s Squirrel, North Carolina, connects the Cherokee County towns of Murphy and Andrews. Tiny Granny’s Squirrel takes its name from one of the Cherokee Indian women who lived in the area.

Photo Essay: A Celebration of Covered Bridges

Echoes from earlier times commingle with soft fall light to create the romance of the covered bridge.
John Fox, Jr.

John Fox, Jr. – The Mountains Were His Muse

Friend of Theodore Roosevelt, husband of opera diva – to the extent there was national fame back in the early 1900s, “Lonesome Pine” author John Fox, Jr. had it.
Ed Phillips took this shot of the lights at night.

Brown Mountain Lights: The Mystery Continues (and Maybe Even Deepens)

Since we last explored the Brown Mountain Lights (March/April 1995), new scientific research teams were formed, the Burke County Tourism Authority offered sold-out symposia, the lights were featured in a National Geographic show and more.
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Departments

At Coopers Rock State Forest, new Stargazer cabins invite guests to look up through skylights and telescopes.
Country Roads

Even Closer to Almost Heaven

New Stargazer cabins at Coopers Rock State Forest offer a skyward escape in the mountains of West Virginia.

June 29, 2026
©Duncan Seaman
Country Roads

A Mountain Tradition Turns 90 

Visitors flock to Galax, Virginia, each summer for the Old Fiddlers’ Convention, a days-long celebration of Appalachian music.

June 29, 2026
Synchronous Fireflies
Creature Feature

The Light Fantastic

Fireflies are struggling with the effects of artificial light.

June 29, 2026

CALENDAR OF EVENTS