Page 6 - Gem Mining News Today

Hike the classics The 2021 Classic Hikes of the Smokies Series is underway.  These hikes, offered the second Tuesday of each month, feature interpretation of the history, flora and fauna of some of the best trails in America’s most-visited national park. Hikes vary in distance, difficulty and location within the park. Registration is $35 for each hike or $180 for all 10, which works out to one free hike. Proceeds benefit Friends of the Smokies’ Smokies Trails Forever program, whi...

Letter writer has her facts wrong To the Editor: This is in response to the recent letter by Carol Adams of Glenville: “Trump was 1,000 Percent Correct.” She attempts to refute the “accusation” that the acts of violence committed at the U.S. Capitol were committed by people supporting Donald Trump. To save space, I’ll refer you to the Department of Justice/F.B.I. and Forbes magazine www.justice.gov/opa/investigations-regarding-violence-capitol, and generally: www.fbi.gov/wan...

To the Editor: I am alarmed by the variety and sheer numbers of claims of election fraud we still see, claims that change or evolve over time to fit a...

Paving begins on park road Cracks and bumps in the road show the need for repaving. NPS photo A paving project expected to last through the end of November is now underway on the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s most-used thoroughfare, Newfound Gap Road.  The project involves the 8-mile section between the Chimneys Picnic Area and Newfound Gap. Though it is expected to wrap up by Nov. 30, delays are possible should inclement weather pose a problem.  Weekday, single-lane cl...

The annual Great Smoky Mountains National Park Science Colloquium and Teacher Workshop will return this year, but in a virtual format.  The free...

Hit the open road virtually at 11 a.m., Tuesday, March 2, for author Hawk Hagebak’s humorous take on motorcycling up and down the Blue Ridge Parkway.&...

Trump deserved to be impeached To the Editor: Senator Patrick Leahy (eight-term Democratic senator from Vermont) recently wrote a column charging former President Trump with a dozen, well, transgressions, you might say. I’ll paraphrase for simplicity and space. (1) Donald Trump failed to uphold his oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution, (2) emerged as the greatest threat to the Constitution and American democracy in a generation, (3) sparked the flames of sedition a...

“Connecting Legacies: A First Look at the Dreier Black Mountain College Archive” features archival objects from the Theodore Dreier Sr. Document Colle...

Groups praise reversal of Trump administration conservation funding policy Conservation groups are applauding a Feb. 11 order from Acting Secretary of the Interior Scott de la Vega that rescinds and revokes a previous order from the Trump Administration’s Interior Secretary David Bernhardt regarding implementation of the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act.  Considered a landmark victory for conservation, the GAOA uses royalties from offshore oil and natural gas to permanently a...

Cawthorn cares only about Cawthorn To the Editor: In the six weeks since being sworn in as North Carolina’s new 11th District representative in Congress, Madison Cawthorn has voted against direct cash payments to his constituents and against financial support for apprenticeship programs at local community colleges. These are two votes that really would have helped people in Western North Carolina. Cawthorn said that his office would prioritize communications rather than work on legi...