The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians opens its hatchery-supported tribal waters for fishing on March 28, one week ahead of the North Carolina state trout season. Cherokee’s “Enterprise Waters” include more than thirty miles of clear, stocked streams and three easily accessed ponds. The Fisheries & Wildlife Management program, which manages the tribal trout hatchery, will have stocked 20,000 pounds of rainbow, brook, brown and some golden trout for opening day.

The cost of a tribal fishing license, which is all you need to fish tribal waters, is $7 per day, $14 for two days, $20 for three days and $28 for five days. A $200 annual permit is good March 28, 2009 through February 28, 2010. The daily creel limit is 10 for adult anglers and a parent/guardian with a child or children.

The tribe offers three handicapped fishing piers which can accommodate wheelchairs. One is located at the fishing ponds in Big Cove and two are along the Oconaluftee River in downtown Cherokee.

Cherokee also features a catch & release fly fishing only section — more than two miles long — which begins at the Blue Ridge Parkway bridge on Big Cove Road and ends at the River Valley Campround. This section of stream requires a catch & release special use permit for $20 which is good for a 365 days from the date of purchase and at least a daily tribal fishing permit.

Photo by J.R. vanLienden

Former World Champion Hoop Dancer Eddie Swimmer performs at the annual Swain County Heritage Festival in Bryson City, NC. Held each year on the Memorial Day weekend, the festival celebrates the rich Appalachian heritage of the Great Smoky Mountains, including the area’s original inhabitants, the Cherokee Nation.

Eddie uses between 36 and 42 hoops in his dance (see video), creating different arrangements of the hoops to make symbols including the eagle, turtle and butterfly. “Past generations felt it was necessary to drop the culture and heritage in order to move forward and make a living,” says Swimmer. “Now, generations want it all back. We are proud and want to bring the tradition back. Teaching people outside the culture is one way I can do that.” Read more about Eddie Swimmer on his website.

All of Bryson City is up in lights for the holidays, including the old railroad depot (above) where the Polar Express departs for the North Pole.

There are no giant Macy’s balloons. And the biggest celebrities are this year’s homecoming queens. Yet it’s earned the title of “The Biggest Little Christmas Parade in the Smokies”, a Bryson City holiday tradition that will be repeated for the 34th time this Saturday, December 6th.

The 2 o’clock parade is just part of a day-long celebration. In the morning, children can have Breakfast with Santa at the Bryson City Fire Department. At 10 a.m., runners will compete in the Holiday 5K street race. And after the parade, there’ll be singing and storytelling at the Calhoun House Country Inn on Everett Street.

At 6 p.m. the town’s annual Spirit of Christmas celebration will begin. Santa and Mrs. Claus will be available for photos and Christmas wishes. Shops and galleries will be open, luminaries will line historic Everett Street, carolers and musical artists will perform, and a flat-bed truck with a living nativity scene will lead a candle-light stroll through town at the end of the evening.

As the destination of the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad’s Polar Express train ride, the town of Whittier doubles as Santa’s North Pole throughout November and December. The lights not only delight the train’s passengers, they’re a must-see for residents and visitors alike.

Want to ride the Polar Express train to the North Pole? Each year, throughout November and December, the train departs from the Bryson City, NC train depot on its magical journey to the North Pole. Children are encouraged to wear pajamas to hear the story, meet Santa, enjoy caroling, hot cocoa and games. Above, Santa gives those children who “believe” a shiny bell as a momento of their train ride to the North Pole.

Most days he assists customers at the N.C. Clampitt Hardware Store on Main Street in Bryson City. But come mid-October, Frank O’Neil is transformed into his alter-ego — the award-winning pumpkin artist. Above, Frank shows off four of his ‘ghastly’ jack-o-lanterns on the front porch of the Charleston Station gift shop.

Jeanna Davis of Waynesville, NC carries home the pumpkin she picked from the Peanuts Great Pumpkin Patch last Saturday. She and her parents rode the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad’s annual “Pumpkin Patch Express” from the Bryson City depot.

Aboard the excursion train, children hear the story “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.” At The Great Pumpkin Patch, they meet Charlie Brown, Lucy and Snoopy, enjoy campfire marshmallows, a coloring station, temporary tattoos, trick or treating, petting zoo, bouncy train, giant hay bale maze, hay rides, bobbing for apples, apple cider or apple juice, and treats.

The Peanuts Great Pumpkin Patch Express continues over the next two weekends — October 17–19 and October 24-26. For information, call 800-872-4681 or visit www.gsmr.com. You’ll find lodging information at GreatSmokies.com.

The Mountain Farm Museum is indeed a collection of 19th century relics, but there’s nothing stuffy about this open air museum. Its location — in a lush green valley on the banks of the Oconaluftee River — is literally in the shadow of the Great Smoky Mountains. In summer, the Museum is a working farm, with crops such as squash, corn and tomatoes cultivated in the garden and live farm animals grazing in the fields.

Just as it was a century ago, fall is a busy time on the farm as the summer’s crops are preserved for the winter. And on Saturday, September 20, you can see it all, with live demonstrations of soap making, hearth cooking, hominy, apple butter and cider, plus a working cane mill and wood-fired cooker used for the making of sorghum syrup. The event is the annual Mountain Life Festival, a one day event from 10 am – 4 pm.

The Davis House — All the historic log structures in the Mountain Farm Museum were gathered from throughout the Smoky Mountains when the museum was constructed in the 1950s. The main farmhouse (above) was originally built by John E. Davis and his two oldest sons in the Indian Creek – Thomas Divide area north of Bryson City. The log house was built from chestnut wood before the chestnut blight decimated the American Chestnut in our forests during the 1930s and early 1940s.

The Mountain Farm Museum is located adjacent to the Oconaluftee Visitor Center on US 441 north of Cherokee and just inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Museum is open daily from sunrise to sunset, year around.

If Bryson City appears deserted on some Friday nights in the Fall, it’s because almost everyone’s attending “the game” at Swain County High School. Having won seven state football championships over the years, the Maroon Devils enjoy a loyal and passionate hometown following. The passion peaked in the late ’80s when the team won three consecutive state championships led by former University of Tennessee and NFL quarterback and current U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler. The team’s most recent state title was in 2004.

Want to see what all the fuss is about? Attend one of the Maroon Devils’ remaining home games. Kickoff is at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $5. The stadium is on Fontana Road, just north of town.

SWAIN COUNTY MAROON DEVILS 2008 HOME SCHEDULE
August 22 — Swain County 6 – Polk County 14 (above photo)
September 5 — Asheville School
September 12 — Franklin
September 26 — Robbinsville (homecoming)
October 10 — Hayesville
October 31 — Rosman

Of all the ways to enjoy the Great Smokies, nothing is more relaxing than a pontoon boat outing on beautiful Fontana Lake. With the entire north shore of the 35-mile-long lake protected by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, wildlife sightings are common, including black bears and bald eagles. Several marinas rent the covered boats for full-day or half-day outings. Photo by J.R. vanLienden, Masterpiece Portraits.

It’s blueberry time in the Smokies. And several “You Pick’em” berry farms — like the one above in the Whittier community — should have plump, sweet berries from now through late summer.

Want to make something special with your berries? Try this Blueberry Buttermilk Pancake recipe provided by the Folkestone Inn Bed & Breakfast.

Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes
Makes twelve 1/4 cup pancakes, four servings

1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder

1 egg, beaten
1-3/4 cups buttermilk
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Sift together flour, salt, sugar, baking soda and baking powder. In a separate bowl, combine the egg, buttermilk and oil. Add liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring as little as possible (only until combined). Stir in 1 cup blueberries.

Heat griddle to 375 degrees F. Brush with oil or melted butter. Pour 1/4 cup of batter to make each pancake. Cook until edge of each pancake loses its gloss, then flip. Uncooked batter can be placed in the refrigerator for the next day. (Recipe can be doubled)

Floating down Deep Creek on an inner tube is not just a thrill, it’s a cheap thrill. For less than $5, you can rent a tube for the entire day. Then try your best to stay in the tube as it bounces over Deep Creek’s whitewater rapids.

The Deep Creek Recreation area is just inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, two miles north of Bryson City. There’s camping, picnicking, hiking trails, trout fishing and three beautiful waterfalls. Tubes (with protective seats) can be rented from several vendors near the park entrance.

For years, Bryson City’s Fourth of July fireworks show has been one of the best in the Western North Carolina mountains, the culmination of “Freedom Fest“, the town’s old fashioned Independence Day celebration. The day begins with a 5K race, includes music, food and crafts before ending with the fireworks. Above, the dome of Bryson City’s century-old courthouse building is silhouetted against last year’s pyrotechnics.

With eleven fish on his stringer, four-year-old Gaige Jones walked away with top honors at the Sixth Annual Kids Fishing Tournament, sponsored by the Fontana Lake Users Association. The tournament was held June 7 at the public boat ramp at the Old 288 Riverside Park, two miles west of downtown Bryson City, NC.

A visit to Bryson City will take you back to simpler, less complicated times… especially when you step into Soda Pops, the old fashioned ice cream emporium on Everett Street. Owner and chief soda jerk Paul Crawley serves all the old favorites, including floats, shakes, and banana splits. Visitors Paul and Mary Dameron dropped in to share a chocolate malt …just like the good old days.

On a recent visit to the Smokies, Susan Murphy spent the morning photographing daughters Alana (left) and Mary Caitlin with each of the sixteen colorfully painted bears that now grace Cherokee’s streets and plazas. Each bear was created by a local tribal artist as part of a public art program sponsored by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Do you like model airplanes? On any given Saturday, you’re likely to find members of the Kituwah RC Club flying their radio-controlled model airplanes over the old Governors Island airfield (US 19 east of Bryson City). RC enthusiast Mark Ramsey (above) travels all the way from Morristown, Tennessee to use “one of the smoothest fields in the region.”

It’s a free show and club members enjoy an audience.