Calendar of Events
Upcoming events and things to do in Asheville, NC. Below is a list of events for festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, group meetups and more.
Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.
“The Office’s” mockumentary style used for Blue
Ridge CC Theatre Department’s spring film
production of “Medea”
Get ready to laugh at a tragedy as the Blue Ridge Community College Theatre
Department premieres its spring production of “The Making of Medea: The
Musical? The Movie!” on Friday, April 22 via YouTube.
Produced as a “mockumentary” filmed in a fashion similar to NBC’s “The
Office,” this pre-recorded production turns the classic Greek tragedy of
“Medea” into a comical affair.
According to Theatre Department faculty Jennifer Treadway, the continuous
presence of COVID-19 made switching their usual live, onstage production to a
film all the more simple.
“Live theatre is still taking a huge hit, because if even one of our cast – of an
onstage production – gets COVID, countless others will have to quarantine and
it just puts the entire production on hold,” Treadway stated.
Contrary to a live production, a video has multiple benefits, Treadway said,
including the flexibility of time schedules for actors. Also, since each scene can
be filmed in any order, there’s never a time when the entire cast has to be
present at once.
The classic Greek tragedy “Medea” centers around the titular character as the
wife of Jason, of “Jason and the Argonauts.” When Jason leaves Medea for
another woman, Medea kills his new wife and her own two sons as revenge.
The College’s “Medea” plot will center around a college theatre department
attempting to put on the traditional onstage “Medea” play.
“Since it’s a mockumentary, viewers will get to see all the wild antics that
happen when a theatre department tries to put on a play,” Treadway said. “So
it’s more about the people putting it on rather than the play ‘Medea’ itself.”
To maintain the semblance of a mockumentary and to collect b-roll footage,
the auditions and rehearsals were filmed and will be included in a portion of the
final version. The first rehearsal took place on Feb. 7, and there are now more
than 30 cast and crew members.
Filming will take one month of work, with a shorter turnaround time to edit. The
runtime will be approximately 30 minutes long.

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

Hiking Challenge 6 is here! In Conserving Carolina’s and WPA’s White Squirrel Hiking Challenge 6, you get to explore the places you’re helping to protect—and they’re amazing! We invite you to take eight hikes on lands that Conserving Carolina has helped to protect, enhance, or open to the public.
This challenge includes two all-new Conserving Carolina trails with gorgeous views! Plus, you can see the highest waterfall east of the Rockies, lakes and waterfalls in DuPont State Recreational Forest, expanded trails in Bracken Mountain Preserve, and a beautiful creek in the Green River Game Lands. There’s also the all-time favorite Bearwallow Mountain with its 360-degree views over the mountains and countryside we’re working to protect.
These hikes will take you to some of our region’s “greatest hits,” as well as hidden gems where you may have the woods to yourself. If you’re into mountain biking, you have the option of biking some of these trails. And if you love to swim, fish, or just be near the water, five of these hikes take you to rivers, lakes, or waterfalls.
And the Hikes Are…
Drumroll please…. Here are the 8 hikes for this new Hiking Challenge! You can find more information and links to the full hike descriptions below. Which one will you do first?
- Bearwallow Mountain
- Wildcat Rock Trail – Extended
- Bracken Preserve
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Fawn Lake and Lake Julia
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Holly Road to Hooker Falls
- Green River Game Lands: Green River Cove Trail
- Whitewater Falls
- Youngs Mountain Trail
- LOG YOUR HIKES
- Log each hike as you complete it. You can check your progress in this roster.
- You can do the hikes at your own pace. You can take weeks, months, or over a year—whatever works for you.
- You must complete all your hikes before the start of the next Hiking Challenge. We launch a new challenge about every two years.
- Only hikes that you’ve done after Oct. 1, 2021 count toward Hiking Challenge 6.
- You can complete the hikes on your own or as a group.
- Please share about your hikes with the hashtag #whitesquirrelhikingchallenge (optional)
- Feel free to share about your hikes and connect with other hikers in our Facebook group, the Conserving Carolina Community.
The Hiking Challenge is free and open to all, but you must be a Conserving Carolina member to become a Hiking Challenge 6 Champion. If you are a member and you complete all 8 hikes, you will earn your White Squirrel Patch and exclusive perks from local businesses that support conservation, including Appalachian Coffee Company, Lazy Otter Outfitters, Murphy’s Naturals, and YAM Yoga and Massage. Most importantly, you get to experience eight great places and deepen your personal connection to land conservation.

Join Conserving Carolina and Parsec Financial for a screening of NOVA’s new special, Polar Extremes, hosted by paleontologist and Sant Director of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History, Kirk Johnson. Using the fossil record, Johnson takes viewers on an amazing adventure through time, exposing the numerous polar extremes our planet has experienced over thousands of years.
Johnson uses the evidence of the past to help reveal our planet’s climate today and shares what may be in store for the future.
While visiting Downtown Tryon for the film, be sure to enjoy 4th Friday! A monthly event where businesses in Town extend their hours, staying open until at least 7 pm! There will be live music, dinner specials, refreshments, and more!

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

Hiking Challenge 6 is here! In Conserving Carolina’s and WPA’s White Squirrel Hiking Challenge 6, you get to explore the places you’re helping to protect—and they’re amazing! We invite you to take eight hikes on lands that Conserving Carolina has helped to protect, enhance, or open to the public.
This challenge includes two all-new Conserving Carolina trails with gorgeous views! Plus, you can see the highest waterfall east of the Rockies, lakes and waterfalls in DuPont State Recreational Forest, expanded trails in Bracken Mountain Preserve, and a beautiful creek in the Green River Game Lands. There’s also the all-time favorite Bearwallow Mountain with its 360-degree views over the mountains and countryside we’re working to protect.
These hikes will take you to some of our region’s “greatest hits,” as well as hidden gems where you may have the woods to yourself. If you’re into mountain biking, you have the option of biking some of these trails. And if you love to swim, fish, or just be near the water, five of these hikes take you to rivers, lakes, or waterfalls.
And the Hikes Are…
Drumroll please…. Here are the 8 hikes for this new Hiking Challenge! You can find more information and links to the full hike descriptions below. Which one will you do first?
- Bearwallow Mountain
- Wildcat Rock Trail – Extended
- Bracken Preserve
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Fawn Lake and Lake Julia
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Holly Road to Hooker Falls
- Green River Game Lands: Green River Cove Trail
- Whitewater Falls
- Youngs Mountain Trail
- LOG YOUR HIKES
- Log each hike as you complete it. You can check your progress in this roster.
- You can do the hikes at your own pace. You can take weeks, months, or over a year—whatever works for you.
- You must complete all your hikes before the start of the next Hiking Challenge. We launch a new challenge about every two years.
- Only hikes that you’ve done after Oct. 1, 2021 count toward Hiking Challenge 6.
- You can complete the hikes on your own or as a group.
- Please share about your hikes with the hashtag #whitesquirrelhikingchallenge (optional)
- Feel free to share about your hikes and connect with other hikers in our Facebook group, the Conserving Carolina Community.
The Hiking Challenge is free and open to all, but you must be a Conserving Carolina member to become a Hiking Challenge 6 Champion. If you are a member and you complete all 8 hikes, you will earn your White Squirrel Patch and exclusive perks from local businesses that support conservation, including Appalachian Coffee Company, Lazy Otter Outfitters, Murphy’s Naturals, and YAM Yoga and Massage. Most importantly, you get to experience eight great places and deepen your personal connection to land conservation.

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

In conjunction with Gillian Laub’s Southern Rites exhibition on view through July 4, 2022, join us to view Laub’s 2015 documentary. Please note, face coverings are required to view this film.
Southern Rites visits Montgomery County, Georgia, one year after the town merged its racially segregated proms, and during a historic election campaign that may lead to its first African-American sheriff. Acclaimed photographer Gillian Laub, whose photos first brought the area unwanted notoriety, documents the repercussions when a white town resident is charged with the murder of a young black man. The case divides locals along well-worn racial lines, and the ensuing plea bargain and sentencing uncover complex truths and produce emotional revelations. This timely film debuts the week of the Supreme Court’s landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision 61 years ago. Executive produced by John Legend, Troy Carter and Mike Jackson; written and produced by Josh Alexander.

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.
Wednesday evenings from 6:30-8:30pm at Story Parlor
April 13, April 20, April 27, May 4, May 11, May 18*
*Final class on May 18 runs from 6:30-9:30pm
Make up class reserved for May 25
Story Parlor presents Creativity Lab: a six-week exploration of the creative process, common blocks and obstacles, and ways to kickstart and sustain creative momentum.
Focused on the process and the act of doing, opposed to product or outcome, Creativity Lab explores ways to overcome fear, embrace curiosity, and channel our muse in all creative endeavors.
The six-week workshop is experiential, hands-on, and tactile. The Lab will utilize exercises to help cultivate imagination, innovation, and creativity. Each class will focus on a different part of the creativity process all while building a tool kit for dealing with obstacles in our way, creating positive habits for growth, and investigating the ways our personal narratives intersect with our work.
Registration Includes:
A guidebook with supplementary readings, exercises, and activities
A custom Story Parlor notebook
Access to Creativity Mixers
Who Should Attend:
Anyone looking to kickstart or follow-through with a creative project
Anyone wanting to discover more about their habits and approach to creativity
Anyone hoping to learn more about the process of being creative
Anyone wishing to make creativity a part of their daily life
Anyone looking to explore the intersection of art and the human condition
Anyone interested in identifying their core values’ intersection with creative goals and aspirations
Anyone wanting a creative community in which to play, explore, and experiment

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

Hiking Challenge 6 is here! In Conserving Carolina’s and WPA’s White Squirrel Hiking Challenge 6, you get to explore the places you’re helping to protect—and they’re amazing! We invite you to take eight hikes on lands that Conserving Carolina has helped to protect, enhance, or open to the public.
This challenge includes two all-new Conserving Carolina trails with gorgeous views! Plus, you can see the highest waterfall east of the Rockies, lakes and waterfalls in DuPont State Recreational Forest, expanded trails in Bracken Mountain Preserve, and a beautiful creek in the Green River Game Lands. There’s also the all-time favorite Bearwallow Mountain with its 360-degree views over the mountains and countryside we’re working to protect.
These hikes will take you to some of our region’s “greatest hits,” as well as hidden gems where you may have the woods to yourself. If you’re into mountain biking, you have the option of biking some of these trails. And if you love to swim, fish, or just be near the water, five of these hikes take you to rivers, lakes, or waterfalls.
And the Hikes Are…
Drumroll please…. Here are the 8 hikes for this new Hiking Challenge! You can find more information and links to the full hike descriptions below. Which one will you do first?
- Bearwallow Mountain
- Wildcat Rock Trail – Extended
- Bracken Preserve
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Fawn Lake and Lake Julia
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Holly Road to Hooker Falls
- Green River Game Lands: Green River Cove Trail
- Whitewater Falls
- Youngs Mountain Trail
- LOG YOUR HIKES
- Log each hike as you complete it. You can check your progress in this roster.
- You can do the hikes at your own pace. You can take weeks, months, or over a year—whatever works for you.
- You must complete all your hikes before the start of the next Hiking Challenge. We launch a new challenge about every two years.
- Only hikes that you’ve done after Oct. 1, 2021 count toward Hiking Challenge 6.
- You can complete the hikes on your own or as a group.
- Please share about your hikes with the hashtag #whitesquirrelhikingchallenge (optional)
- Feel free to share about your hikes and connect with other hikers in our Facebook group, the Conserving Carolina Community.
The Hiking Challenge is free and open to all, but you must be a Conserving Carolina member to become a Hiking Challenge 6 Champion. If you are a member and you complete all 8 hikes, you will earn your White Squirrel Patch and exclusive perks from local businesses that support conservation, including Appalachian Coffee Company, Lazy Otter Outfitters, Murphy’s Naturals, and YAM Yoga and Massage. Most importantly, you get to experience eight great places and deepen your personal connection to land conservation.

Documentarian Michael Frienerson will screen his new film on noted NC novelist and poet Fred Chappell. Chappell, a native of nearby Canton, is one of the most innovative and creative writers this state has ever produced. Register to attend through Zoom
This film screening is the final of three events in the Mountain South Lecture Series. Other events that took place included the March 24 Hiking Western North Carolina panel and the April 4 “Somebody Died, Babe”: The Swannanoa Tunnel in Music and Memory panel.
This series is made possible with funding from Professorship of the Mountain South.
Community Expectations
As members of this community, we care about everyone. Faculty, staff, students, and visitors have a shared commitment to take the necessary precautions to avoid spreading COVID-19 while following all recommended health guidelines. Please see UNC Asheville’s Community Expectations. Be respectful of individual choice to wear or not wear a mask in any situation; wear a mask when and where encouraged, following guidelines and precautions outlined by the CDC.
Accessibility
Find accessibility information for campus buildings at maps.unca.edu. For accessibility questions or to request event accommodations, please contact [email protected] or 828.250.3832.
Visitor Parking
Visitors must have a permit to park on campus — please visit the Transportation website to register.
Step Into the heart of Rwanda With Culture Keeper David Kwizera + the LEAF International Rwanda Jr. Troupe! This spring documentary is exactly what you need!
“Daughters of the Dust” is a Sundance-winning film written and directed by Julie Dash. The film centers on an extended, multi-generational family from the Gullah sea islands at the turn of the century. The film demonstrates how craft, particularly indigo dyeing and sweetgrass basket making, is integral to their matrilineal family and culture. It was the first film directed by a Black woman to receive nationwide theatrical release and the cinematography is by esteemed video artist Arthur Jafa. The film was also the inspiration for Beyonce’s “Lemonade” video.

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

Hiking Challenge 6 is here! In Conserving Carolina’s and WPA’s White Squirrel Hiking Challenge 6, you get to explore the places you’re helping to protect—and they’re amazing! We invite you to take eight hikes on lands that Conserving Carolina has helped to protect, enhance, or open to the public.
This challenge includes two all-new Conserving Carolina trails with gorgeous views! Plus, you can see the highest waterfall east of the Rockies, lakes and waterfalls in DuPont State Recreational Forest, expanded trails in Bracken Mountain Preserve, and a beautiful creek in the Green River Game Lands. There’s also the all-time favorite Bearwallow Mountain with its 360-degree views over the mountains and countryside we’re working to protect.
These hikes will take you to some of our region’s “greatest hits,” as well as hidden gems where you may have the woods to yourself. If you’re into mountain biking, you have the option of biking some of these trails. And if you love to swim, fish, or just be near the water, five of these hikes take you to rivers, lakes, or waterfalls.
And the Hikes Are…
Drumroll please…. Here are the 8 hikes for this new Hiking Challenge! You can find more information and links to the full hike descriptions below. Which one will you do first?
- Bearwallow Mountain
- Wildcat Rock Trail – Extended
- Bracken Preserve
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Fawn Lake and Lake Julia
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Holly Road to Hooker Falls
- Green River Game Lands: Green River Cove Trail
- Whitewater Falls
- Youngs Mountain Trail
- LOG YOUR HIKES
- Log each hike as you complete it. You can check your progress in this roster.
- You can do the hikes at your own pace. You can take weeks, months, or over a year—whatever works for you.
- You must complete all your hikes before the start of the next Hiking Challenge. We launch a new challenge about every two years.
- Only hikes that you’ve done after Oct. 1, 2021 count toward Hiking Challenge 6.
- You can complete the hikes on your own or as a group.
- Please share about your hikes with the hashtag #whitesquirrelhikingchallenge (optional)
- Feel free to share about your hikes and connect with other hikers in our Facebook group, the Conserving Carolina Community.
The Hiking Challenge is free and open to all, but you must be a Conserving Carolina member to become a Hiking Challenge 6 Champion. If you are a member and you complete all 8 hikes, you will earn your White Squirrel Patch and exclusive perks from local businesses that support conservation, including Appalachian Coffee Company, Lazy Otter Outfitters, Murphy’s Naturals, and YAM Yoga and Massage. Most importantly, you get to experience eight great places and deepen your personal connection to land conservation.
Step Into the heart of Rwanda With Culture Keeper David Kwizera + the LEAF International Rwanda Jr. Troupe! This spring documentary is exactly what you need!

We invite you to view this 13-minute film and share it with your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and other communities. As you view this film, we hope that you can see your hands, heart, and support at work in the collective efforts of everyone – volunteers, partner agencies, donors, advocates, and our neighbors sharing their lived experience – to address hunger right here in the mountains of Western North Carolina, and to be part of the solution for thousands of families every month.

Hiking Challenge 6 is here! In Conserving Carolina’s and WPA’s White Squirrel Hiking Challenge 6, you get to explore the places you’re helping to protect—and they’re amazing! We invite you to take eight hikes on lands that Conserving Carolina has helped to protect, enhance, or open to the public.
This challenge includes two all-new Conserving Carolina trails with gorgeous views! Plus, you can see the highest waterfall east of the Rockies, lakes and waterfalls in DuPont State Recreational Forest, expanded trails in Bracken Mountain Preserve, and a beautiful creek in the Green River Game Lands. There’s also the all-time favorite Bearwallow Mountain with its 360-degree views over the mountains and countryside we’re working to protect.
These hikes will take you to some of our region’s “greatest hits,” as well as hidden gems where you may have the woods to yourself. If you’re into mountain biking, you have the option of biking some of these trails. And if you love to swim, fish, or just be near the water, five of these hikes take you to rivers, lakes, or waterfalls.
And the Hikes Are…
Drumroll please…. Here are the 8 hikes for this new Hiking Challenge! You can find more information and links to the full hike descriptions below. Which one will you do first?
- Bearwallow Mountain
- Wildcat Rock Trail – Extended
- Bracken Preserve
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Fawn Lake and Lake Julia
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Holly Road to Hooker Falls
- Green River Game Lands: Green River Cove Trail
- Whitewater Falls
- Youngs Mountain Trail
- LOG YOUR HIKES
- Log each hike as you complete it. You can check your progress in this roster.
- You can do the hikes at your own pace. You can take weeks, months, or over a year—whatever works for you.
- You must complete all your hikes before the start of the next Hiking Challenge. We launch a new challenge about every two years.
- Only hikes that you’ve done after Oct. 1, 2021 count toward Hiking Challenge 6.
- You can complete the hikes on your own or as a group.
- Please share about your hikes with the hashtag #whitesquirrelhikingchallenge (optional)
- Feel free to share about your hikes and connect with other hikers in our Facebook group, the Conserving Carolina Community.
The Hiking Challenge is free and open to all, but you must be a Conserving Carolina member to become a Hiking Challenge 6 Champion. If you are a member and you complete all 8 hikes, you will earn your White Squirrel Patch and exclusive perks from local businesses that support conservation, including Appalachian Coffee Company, Lazy Otter Outfitters, Murphy’s Naturals, and YAM Yoga and Massage. Most importantly, you get to experience eight great places and deepen your personal connection to land conservation.

Join the Western North Carolina Historical Association (WNCHA) Saturday, April 30 at 9AM as we hike to Ellicott’s and Governor’s rocks along the Chattooga River.
Along the Chattooga River, the states of NC, SC, and GA intersect. From conflicts between Cherokees and white settlers, to the Walton War between Georgia and North Carolina over their boundaries, this area has seen its share of strife and political challenges. Surveyor Andrew Ellicott initially settled the conflict and placed a marker along the bank of the river in 1811. But eventually his work was challenged by the more precise “Governor’s Rock” a few years afterward. As late as the 1970s though, NC and GA once again disputed the precise location. Join us as we hike through three states and explore the history of this contested boundary.
*This is a backcountry hike. Please do not attempt if you are unsure of your ability*
*With a small trailhead parking area, we are limited to 5 vehicles. We will need a few volunteers to shuttle others in their vehicles. Please let us know if you are willing to do this when you sign the waiver form*
*Participants may wish to carpool to the initial meeting location at Ingles in Cashiers, NC. You will be asked about your preference upon registration, and those interested will be put in contact with one another*
Details:
Meet: We will depart at 9AM from the Ingles in Cashiers (US Hwy 64E, Cashiers, NC, 28717). We will carpool 10 miles to the trailhead (Bull Pen Rd, Cashiers, NC 28717). More information regarding parking and the trailhead will be sent to registrants the day prior to the outing.
Return to Ingles: Approximately 3PM
Hike Length: 6.5 miles total, out and back.
Elevation Gain: 1,220 Feet
Hike Difficulty: Moderately strenuous (using National Park Service metric)
What to Bring:
- Backpack
- Plenty of water (2+ liters)
- Bagged lunch and snacks
- Hiking boots or comfortable trail shoes
- Weather-appropriate clothing (preferably no cotton)
- Sunscreen
- Hiking poles (recommended)
- Hat (recommended)
- Any needed medications.
Rain Date: In the event of inclement weather, participants will be notified in advance, no later than 8PM the evening prior if the event is to be rescheduled.
Tickets: $20 for WNCHA members/$30 non-members. We also have two no-cost, community-funded tickets available. We want our events to be accessible to as many people as possible. If you are able please consider making a donation along with your ticket purchase. These donations are placed in our Community Fund, which allows us to offer tickets at no cost to those who would not be able to attend otherwise.
Step Into the heart of Rwanda With Culture Keeper David Kwizera + the LEAF International Rwanda Jr. Troupe! This spring documentary is exactly what you need!
Step Into the heart of Rwanda With Culture Keeper David Kwizera + the LEAF International Rwanda Jr. Troupe! This spring documentary is exactly what you need!
Step Into the heart of Rwanda With Culture Keeper David Kwizera + the LEAF International Rwanda Jr. Troupe! This spring documentary is exactly what you need!
Step Into the heart of Rwanda With Culture Keeper David Kwizera + the LEAF International Rwanda Jr. Troupe! This spring documentary is exactly what you need!
Wednesday evenings from 6:30-8:30pm at Story Parlor
April 13, April 20, April 27, May 4, May 11, May 18*
*Final class on May 18 runs from 6:30-9:30pm
Make up class reserved for May 25
Story Parlor presents Creativity Lab: a six-week exploration of the creative process, common blocks and obstacles, and ways to kickstart and sustain creative momentum.
Focused on the process and the act of doing, opposed to product or outcome, Creativity Lab explores ways to overcome fear, embrace curiosity, and channel our muse in all creative endeavors.
The six-week workshop is experiential, hands-on, and tactile. The Lab will utilize exercises to help cultivate imagination, innovation, and creativity. Each class will focus on a different part of the creativity process all while building a tool kit for dealing with obstacles in our way, creating positive habits for growth, and investigating the ways our personal narratives intersect with our work.
Registration Includes:
A guidebook with supplementary readings, exercises, and activities
A custom Story Parlor notebook
Access to Creativity Mixers
Who Should Attend:
Anyone looking to kickstart or follow-through with a creative project
Anyone wanting to discover more about their habits and approach to creativity
Anyone hoping to learn more about the process of being creative
Anyone wishing to make creativity a part of their daily life
Anyone looking to explore the intersection of art and the human condition
Anyone interested in identifying their core values’ intersection with creative goals and aspirations
Anyone wanting a creative community in which to play, explore, and experiment
Step Into the heart of Rwanda With Culture Keeper David Kwizera + the LEAF International Rwanda Jr. Troupe! This spring documentary is exactly what you need!

Hiking Challenge 6 is here! In Conserving Carolina’s and WPA’s White Squirrel Hiking Challenge 6, you get to explore the places you’re helping to protect—and they’re amazing! We invite you to take eight hikes on lands that Conserving Carolina has helped to protect, enhance, or open to the public.
This challenge includes two all-new Conserving Carolina trails with gorgeous views! Plus, you can see the highest waterfall east of the Rockies, lakes and waterfalls in DuPont State Recreational Forest, expanded trails in Bracken Mountain Preserve, and a beautiful creek in the Green River Game Lands. There’s also the all-time favorite Bearwallow Mountain with its 360-degree views over the mountains and countryside we’re working to protect.
These hikes will take you to some of our region’s “greatest hits,” as well as hidden gems where you may have the woods to yourself. If you’re into mountain biking, you have the option of biking some of these trails. And if you love to swim, fish, or just be near the water, five of these hikes take you to rivers, lakes, or waterfalls.
And the Hikes Are…
Drumroll please…. Here are the 8 hikes for this new Hiking Challenge! You can find more information and links to the full hike descriptions below. Which one will you do first?
- Bearwallow Mountain
- Wildcat Rock Trail – Extended
- Bracken Preserve
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Fawn Lake and Lake Julia
- DuPont State Recreational Forest: Holly Road to Hooker Falls
- Green River Game Lands: Green River Cove Trail
- Whitewater Falls
- Youngs Mountain Trail
- LOG YOUR HIKES
- Log each hike as you complete it. You can check your progress in this roster.
- You can do the hikes at your own pace. You can take weeks, months, or over a year—whatever works for you.
- You must complete all your hikes before the start of the next Hiking Challenge. We launch a new challenge about every two years.
- Only hikes that you’ve done after Oct. 1, 2021 count toward Hiking Challenge 6.
- You can complete the hikes on your own or as a group.
- Please share about your hikes with the hashtag #whitesquirrelhikingchallenge (optional)
- Feel free to share about your hikes and connect with other hikers in our Facebook group, the Conserving Carolina Community.
The Hiking Challenge is free and open to all, but you must be a Conserving Carolina member to become a Hiking Challenge 6 Champion. If you are a member and you complete all 8 hikes, you will earn your White Squirrel Patch and exclusive perks from local businesses that support conservation, including Appalachian Coffee Company, Lazy Otter Outfitters, Murphy’s Naturals, and YAM Yoga and Massage. Most importantly, you get to experience eight great places and deepen your personal connection to land conservation.

