FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge Parkway (FRIENDS) has launched a two-year 25th anniversary celebration commemorating the volunteer-driven organization’s founding in North Carolina in 1988 and in Virginia the following year. “We believe the best way to celebrate a quarter century of service to the Blue Ridge Parkway is with a renewed commitment to America’s...
Learn MoreWho builds those thousands of miles of park trails and how do they do it? To a hiker, a trail is a possibility. To a bear, a trail is a path of least resistance. To a child, a trail is an adventure. To a runner, a trail is a workout. To a historian, a trail is a story. And to a traildog, a trail is paycheck, commute, office, passion. A trail is the whole, entire point....
Learn MoreStudents can join a ranger in Great Smoky Mountains National Park this summer in a hands-on work project. The Summer Student Volunteer Days is for high school and college students. Here’s what’s available in North Carolina: • From July 10 through Aug. 14, service projects for students include helping with historic preservation, seed collection, graffiti removal, pulling...
Learn MoreIt would seem the first step is to plan the route. This may appear simple at first glance. Wouldn’t one always elect the easiest? Not necessarily – often the trail takes a detour from “easy” to incorporate a scenic view or historic site that happens to be along the way. And how would one know about these distractions? OK, so research might come...
Learn MoreStarting on Oct. 30, 2012 the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will close the Chimney Tops trail Monday through Thursday every week for roughly three years to do trail maintenance and recovery. The Chimney Tops trail has been a favorite for nearly all visitors that grace the Smokies. The trail will still be open on weekends. Chimney Tops is long overdue for trail...
Learn MoreVolunteer forest stewards are needed to help maintain and clear hiking trails in Panthertown Valley, a backcountry recreation area in Nantahala National Forest, beginning at 9:30 a.m. March 21. Friends of Panthertown is hosting its first trail work day of the spring. Volunteers will meet at the Salt Rock Gap trailhead at the end of Breedlove Road at 9:30 a.m. From there,...
Learn MoreIn a collaborative effort between the U.S. Access Board, the National Center on Accessibility (NCA), and Oklahoma State University, NCA is seeking to provide qualified professionals, resource specialists and operations staff of parks in the United States with descriptive and comparative information about the status of construction practices of pedestrian/hiker, natural...
Learn MoreIn the wake of a storm that hit the Columbia River Gorge, volunteers with the Mt. Hood Chapter of the Pacific Crest Trail Association helped clear blocked hiking trails last weekend. The chapter’s volunteers care for 221 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mount Jefferson Wilderness to Mount Adams. And that help is critical considering that only one U.S. Forest...
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More than 5 million people hit the trails in the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests last year — a number that continues to grow not only as more people move to the mountains but also as outdoor recreation increases in popularity. The use of trails is at an all-time high, but the money to maintain them is shrinking. The Catch-22 has prompted the forest service to...
Learn MoreIt is groups like the American Hiking Society, or Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway. As government funds dry up for our national parks and forests, our wild areas are becoming more dependent on the efforts of volunteers to maintain trails and provide supportive services to visitors. Volunteer groups build bridges, prune encroaching shrubs, clear debris and improve trail...
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I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, producer of this blog, and passionate about hiking. My regular hiking companions have designated me the lead hiker, so I suppose that makes me the slowest Meanderthal. I live in Western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my door, so the content will focus on these areas, but let me know what you would like to see on the site. 
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