In January, a lot of us dream of Florida’s sunny beaches. But for Floridians Kristian and Ingrid Yanez, a snowy Newfound Gap was their dream come true. Even with Saturday morning’s chilling 17 degrees atop the Smokies, sibling rivalry is rarely this much fun.

At 5046 feet elevation, Newfound Gap’s temperatures are usually 10º–15º cooler than Bryson City. And it receives much more precipitation, making it the best place to find snow. But before heading out, please check the road conditions.

For updated road and weather information call the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at (865) 436-1200. Once you hear a voice, dial extension 631 for road information or extension 630 for a weather forecast.

You can get that same information via the Internet by going to twitter.com/smokiesroadsnps to read recent road notification postings. This is a Twitter website maintained by the Park, but anybody can access it at any time without having to establish a Twitter account. The webpage is updated 3-4 times a week.

Best wishes for a safe and happy holiday from the Bryson City / Swain County Chamber of Commerce.

Yesterday’s 37th annual Christmas parade had everything you would expect — colorful floats, music, fire trucks, celebrities and, of course, Santa. Even the green ‘Grinch’ received applause. But the biggest cheer went up for the Swain High Maroon Devils football team – 2011 State 1AA football champions and Grand Marshals of the parade. Led by homecoming queen Mary Shell, our local heroes proudly held their trophy high throughout the parade. The entire county shares your pride, guys.

Wearing pajamas is part of the fun and tradition of riding the Polar Express train, although the practice is normally reserved for the children. Normally.

Based on the popular book and movie, the 1-1/4 hour Polar Express excursions continue thru Christmas Eve. And after Christmas, December 26–29, four additional excursions will be taking Santa back to the North Pole.

For more information, visit the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad website, or download this PDF flier.

Hoyt Lucas pedals his unicycle in a recent Bryson City Christmas parade. Since the 1970s, the town has celebrated the Christmas season with a parade, and on Saturday December 10*, the 37th annual edition will circle through town with floats, fire trucks, bands, classic cars, beauty queens and lots of candy for the kids. The parade begins at 2 pm, and later at 6 pm, Santa and Mrs. Claus will be at the Train Depot for visits and photos. The evening concludes with a candlelit walk through town singing carols prior to the lighting of the tree on the square.

There’s a lot more about “A Bryson City Christmas” on our website.

NOTE NEW DATE: The Parade date has changed from the 3rd to the 10th to show support for our own Swain County High School Maroon Devils playing in the State Championship game on December 3.

More than likely, you’ve never considered visiting the North Pole. It’s too far away and there’s a lot of snow and ice. But there’s a much faster and easier way… through Bryson City.

Each year, throughout November and December, the Polar Express departs from the Bryson City depot on a round trip journey to the North Pole where riders are greeted by Santa (above) who joins them on the return trip to Bryson City. Children are encouraged to wear pajamas to hear the story, meet Santa, enjoy caroling, hot cocoa and games.

Based on the popular book and movie, the 1-1/4 hour excursions continue thru Christmas Eve. And after Christmas, December 26–29, four additional excursions will be taking Santa back to the North Pole.

For more information, visit the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad website, or download this PDF flier.

It’s a marketing technique that’s uniquely Cherokee — street chiefs and dancers perform on curbside stages outside retail shops and souvenir stores, attracting crowds of shoppers. The shows, often featuring the traditional, ‘friendship dance’, ‘eagle dance’ and ‘hoop dance’, are free; yet tipping is encouraged, particularly when the “chiefs” pose for photographs. It’s a tradition that began years ago with the late Chief Henry, who was once billed as “The World’s Most Photographed Indian.”

And yes, their Native American regalia often represents indian nations and traditions other than Cherokee.

Robin Montieth hands out candy at last year’s Trick or Treat Day, the annual Halloween event where hoards of costumed children invade downtown Bryson City (now that’s scary!).

This year, on Monday October 31, the town will again close off Everett Street at 3:30 and turn the two-block area over to the kids. There’ll be prizes for the best costumes. Merchants will provide the treats. And if this year is anything like last — the largest turnout in the history of the event — the trick will be not running out of treats.

Henry Singer, age 4, gets a little boost from his father Rob during Bryson City’s third annual “Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day.”

The first Saturday of October every year has been named Take A Kid Mountain Biking Day by the International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA). IMBA, along with the National Park Service and other sponsors organize the event, and this year over 200 events were hosted nationwide.

Bryson City Bicycles hosted the local event at the Deep Creek area of the National Park. Fourteen local kids braved the chilly October morning to take the ride along Deep Creek. Ranger Doug talked to the group about his police bike, wildlife in the park, and how to treat the park with respect. After the ride, kids participated in bike riding games like paperboy, slowest rider, cone slalom and stop on a line. The day wrapped up with prizes and snacks.

Photo by Scott Baste

Swain County’s history chronicles a number of tragic deaths — like poor Andrew Jackson Lambert, who on July 9, 1886 became the only man to be hanged in Swain County. He was an innocent man.

Lambert is one of the seven ghosts that haunt the woods beside the Tuckaseegee River in Whittier. Tim “the storyteller” Hall relates each of their stories (all true) on his “Tuckaseegee Terror Tales Tour”, a spooky covered wagon ride through those Whittier woods.

Tim normally spins yarns at his Storytelling Center of the Southern Appalachian on Everett Street in Bryson City.  But in the spirit of Halloween, he’s offering the ghostly wagon rides in Whittier every Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening in October. The rides ($5) begin at 7 pm and last about 30 minutes. For more information, call 828-488-5705 or check out Tim’s Facebook page.

The Nantahala River’s summer-long parade of inflatable rafts, kayaks and duckies was recently interrupted for an entirely different kind of parade — the Nantahala Outdoor Center’s annual “Christmas in August” parade of outrageous, oddball rafts.

Each year in early August, NOC closes its facilities for a one-day staff appreciation celebration. The parade is the biggest draw of the event, but there’s also a duckie rodeo in the Nantahala Falls, BBQ, live music and a DJ’d dance party. The “French Broad Express” (above) was just one of many ‘floats’ constructed by NOC staffers, each attempting to out-shine the others. More photos

Thanks to Lloyd Brown, of Miami, for this week’s Postcard photo.

If you don’t think football is big in Bryson City and Swain County, you should have seen the turnout for Thursday’s Pep Rally and Parade. Despite the drizzle, Everett Street was lined with enthusiastic fans cheering for their home town heroes.

Favored to win the tough Smoky Mountain Conference, the Swain Maroon Devils began their season with 21–14 win at East Henderson Friday night. This week, they’ll face Smoky Mountain High for the first home game of the year.

Want to attend a Maroon Devils home game? Kickoff is at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $5. The stadium is on Fontana Road, just north of town.

SWAIN COUNTY MAROON DEVILS 2011 HOME SCHEDULE
08/26 Smoky Mountain (Sylva, NC)
09/24 Pikeville, KY
10/07 Cherokee, NC
10/14 Andrews, NC
10/28 Murphy, NC

A group of colorful rafts emerge from the morning mist. They’ve just begun their eight-mile journey down the wild and scenic Nantahala River.

The first few minutes of a Nantahala rafting trip are rather calm and uneventful, giving everyone in the boat time to get settled and practice paddling. Guides will take this time to discuss maneuvering techniques and teamwork. But just around the bend is one of the most exciting whitewater features on the river — Patton’s Run. And that’s when the fun begins.

For more about whitewater rafting in the Smokies, including a directory of outfitters, visit the Travel Guide to Bryson City and The Great Smoky Mountains.

For centuries, tales of Cherokee history and folklore have been passed from generation to generation in spoken form, most likely at day’s end by the light of a campfire. And that tradition is carried on today at the Friday and Saturday evening bonfires at Cherokee’s Island Park.

Above, storyteller John John Toineeta entertains his audience with a scary story. He and other storytellers and dancers teach traditional dances and Cherokee legends each Friday and Saturdays starting at 7:00pm. There are free marshmallows to roast and you might be invited to join in a Cherokee dance. Storytelling runs through October 1 and then takes a few weeks off before moving to the Haunted Indian Village October 21-31 with all scary stories.

Farmers from all over Western North Carolina brought their work horses and antique plows to last week’s Strawberry Jam festival at Darnell Farms, just east of Bryson City. R.A. Luker (above) of the Tuckasegee Community took part in the plowing demonstrations using this 19th century Oliver #83 plow pulled by his two Belgian Draft Horses, Dick and Don.

Jeff and Nate Darnell stage the festival each spring at the peak of the Strawberry season to celebrate the delicious berry …and possibly, as someone laughed, “to get the field plowed.”

Three-year-old Jewlz White samples one of the juicy ripe strawberries she had just picked at Darnell Farms yesterday. She and her grandparents came from the Stecoah Community to pick berries at the Darnell’s Strawberry Jam festival, held annually at the peak of the berry season.

Yesterday, at the Swain County Chamber of Commerce’s annual Easter egg hunt, local children had the opportunity to meet the famed Easter Bunny up close and in person. As he’s done in years past, the legendary great white rabbit again included Bryson City on his world tour of holiday egg hunts.

Chamber Executive Director Karen Wilmot was thrilled with the Big Bunny’s arrival saying “Bryson City is indeed fortunate to have such a celebrity at our egg hunt. The kids were awe-struck. And the Bunny almost seemed dazed by their admiration. We’re already working to book him again for 2012. Keep your fingers crossed.”

The National Park’s new 6,300-square-foot Oconaluftee facility is much more than a mere Visitor Center. Its centerpiece is an impressive museum dedicated to the Smokies’ cultural heritage, beginning with the Early People — the Cherokees. It follows the influx of European settlers in the late 1700s and documents many facets of their often hardscrabble life in the mountains — including ‘moonshining’.

The museum complements the Park’s other museum at Sugarlands Visitor Center, just outside of Gatlinburg, Tennessee, which highlights the natural resources and biodiversity of the park.

Located two miles north of Cherokee, NC at the park entrance, the new facility includes a much larger and more convenient comfort station. The spacious bookstore is run by the Great Smoky Mountains Association. The old Visitor Center, built in 1941, will now house office space for park staff and meeting space for park functions.

No tax dollars were used for this Visitor Center. The Great Smoky Mountains Association provided over three million dollars to finance the construction of the buildings. Friends of the Smokies spent more than $500,000 for the information and cultural resource exhibits.

The Visitor Center opens at 8:00 am every day except Christmas. Closing times vary with the season — from 4:30 pm in mid-winter to 7:00 pm in mid-summer. For more visitor information, visit the GSMNP website.

Preserving the rich heritage of traditional Appalachian arts and crafts is a passion for artisans throughout the Smokies. Their creativity and craftsmanship is on display at more than a dozen Bryson City area shops and galleries.

For some of these artisans, preserving that heritage includes sharing their knowledge through classes in pottery, weaving, basketmaking and quilting. Elise Pincu Delfield offers classes to locals and vacationers of all ages at her Bryson City studio-gallery, Pincu Pottery. Above, she introduces students (l-r) Katharine Beckwith, Haylee Gerard and Gillian Gerard to the potter’s wheel.

For other vacation learning opportunities in the Bryson City area, visit the “Learn Something New” page of the Bryson City online travel guide.

Dreams of a white Christmas came true in the Smokies this year, with a thick blanket of snow that’s still falling on the 26th. About seven inches was measured at the Whittier home above where a lighted holly tree illuminates the snowy scene.