This insider excursion provides you with tips and local secrets about the best way to do Asheville on a budget! You will have a better understanding of how Asheville became the unique, quirky city you see now and learn everything we are doing to “Keep Asheville Weird.” This is the only walking tour provided that allows you to choose how much you think a walking tour is worth and pay whatever you like. We will follow the urban trail, stop along the way for some free honey tastings and finish the tour with some special beer tastings at one of the best local breweries in South Slope! At the brewery, you will also be able to participate in a free raffle where you receive gifts donated from local businesses like free salsa classes, local theatre performances, books and more! I want you to know and love my city as much as I do and I am excited to share this experience with you!

Pay what you want at the end!

Hit the trails and learn more about the Arboretum’s botanically diverse forest with the return of guided trail walks in 2021! In response to COVID-19, new safety measures have been put in place to protect our guests, members, volunteers and staff: Walks will be limited to 10 people, including the guide, and all participants will be required to wear face coverings for the duration of the walk.

This free hiking program is led by trained volunteer guides who take small groups of participants along woodland trails and through a variety of forest types. Depending on the season, topics of discussion may include wildflowers, plant and tree identification, natural history and more.

Guided trail walks depart from the Baker Exhibit Center Lobby every Tuesday and Saturday at 1 p.m. through the month of October. Walks last 1.5- 2.5 hours and are approximately one to two miles in length, and as such are recommended for guests 14 years or older. Walks are held rain or shine, so all participants should dress appropriately for the weather.

Register In Advance

Space is limited and advance registration is encouraged. Pre-registered participants must check in at the Baker Information Desk no later than 10 minutes before the scheduled program to keep their spot. Unclaimed spots will be offered to other guests.

Guests may sign up for trail walks in the following ways:

• Pre-register online
• Sign up in-person at the Baker Information Desk.

Join us (virtually) for another installment of LitCafé as author Dale Neal discusses his writing and most recent work Appalachian Book of the Dead.

Dale Neal is a novelist, teacher, and veteran journalist, living in Asheville about a mile from the banks of the French Broad River. He is the author of Appalachian Book of the Dead, a Southern Buddhist thriller that was a finalist for the Thomas Wolfe Literary Award.

Cider time!! We will have our usual 1, 3, 5/6 mile options and paces vary. Stay around after for a beer/cider and hang with your fellow runners. Hope to see you all there!!!

Please note this is a change up in the meeting location due to Upcountry being closed. There are a tone of options and they were written before all the greenway changes. Nevertheless. The directions should work. Bring your plucky spirit and sense of adventure and we’ll make it exciting!

Mile 1: follow Haywood to riverside (other side of river) and back

Two options for Mile 3.
New one avoiding Lyman with some more hill work: Down Haywood. R Roberts. L clingman. L Hilliard. L rector. R Owens bell. R clingman. Stay R on Haywood. R Roberts R West Haywood. L club st to trade st. R Roberts. L west Haywood. West Haywood becomes craven. Over bridge. Follow Craven to R. R Haywood. Back to urban.
Old Mile 3: down Haywood, left Roberts st, left craven, left riverside drive, left Lyman, left Roberts, right clingman, left hillard, left rector, left Owen bell lane, right clingman, clingman to Haywood and back to brewery

Mile 6: down Haywood, left Roberts st, left craven, left riverside drive, right Lyman, down Lyman, right amboy, right river view drive, lap around French broad river park, left amboy, left Lyman, left Roberts, right clingman, left hillard,left rector, left Owen bell lane, right clingman, clingman to Haywood rd and back to brewery.

5.7 MILES with a few hills (500 feet elev gain)- down Haywood, cross bridge, L on Hilliard, L Rector, R Clingman, take left at Grey Eagle to stay on Clingman, R Roberts, L Haywood, cross bridge, L Riverview, all the way and left at bottom of hill and loop clockwise around doggie park, continue under bridge on Greenway towards Carrier Park, R on State Street, Right on Wellington, right at the top on Haywood, down Haywood back to Cider.

Maggot Tuesday Workout

Hey Asheville women! Are you a coder, a developer, a designer, an architect of information? This is a group for Asheville women in tech who want a collaborative and supportive space to bring projects to workshops, participate in tutorials facilitated by other members, spark new ideas, write practice code, and develop cool stuff. Maybe (like me) you’re just getting started, and you wish you could bounce ideas off someone, or just ask them how to center that block of text on the page? You should come! We’ll work it out together. Or maybe you’re a veteran web developer who thinks rookies are brave (possibly foolish) souls with no idea what they’re getting into? Please come tell us all the things you wish someone had told you! Let’s skill-share, meet other women in the biz, learn new things, and give each other a leg up!

We’re on Slack!

OUTDOOR SHOW

Join us on Tuesday nights for Magnetic’s signature variety show. There will be an exciting mix of comedy, music, theatre, dance, magic and more! Smoky Park Supper Club is offering us their beautiful outdoor venue, and will be selling food and drinks. The event is BYOC (bring your own chair), and we will, of course, be following strict Covid safety protocols. We can’t wait to see you there!

Join us Tuesday nights, beginning April 13th, as The Magnetic Theatre teams up with the wizards at Smoky Park Supper Club to host a live, outdoor variety show. We’ll be filling Smoky Park’s gorgeous, riverside outdoor space with comedy, theatre, music and so much more.

There will be food and beverages available for purchase.

• This is a BYOC (Bring-Your-Own-Chair) event.
• In accordance with safety guidelines this show will be staged outdoors, with mask and social distancing protocols enforced. There will also be temperature checks and COVID waivers that need to be signed by each attendee at the gate.
• Please arrive at least 15 minutes before the 7pm showtime.
• We do require that masks be worn at all times unless you are actively eating or drinking.

Hosted by Rising Fire Shamanism
Cultivate presence in your life through direct experience. Join us to learn and use an ancient healing technique during each class.

About this Event
*** JOIN US FOR POWERFUL PRACTICES FROM WHEREVER YOU ARE!***
In response to the economic difficulties brought on by COVID, Rising Fire Shamanism is offering our Tuesday Night Shamanic Practice class for free beginning in February 2021 going through December 2021.
Tuesday Night Shamanic Practice class helps cultivate presence in your life through shamanic practices, sacred play, meditation, and centering techniques.

Learn how to transform and release dense energy from your body, mind and energy field. We do this while strengthening our refined energy, or “sami.” The idea is to build our living energy, our “kausay,” with mindfulness. We focus on different methods of experiencing directly each week to build or to enhance the foundation of your personal work.

This class is for the curious and those who would like to refine their personal practices. You will have the opportunity do something different each week; shamanic breathwork, journeying, meditation and more.

Learn more and register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/tuesday-night-shamanic-practices-tickets-112043045766?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch

KEY FACTS: 

• In the past few days, hospital partners are reporting they are using blood at a much higher rate than normal. When demand is high, and the supply is critically low – that is a dangerous equation for the community.
• Because of the critically low supply, The Blood Connection (TBC) is now having to back-order blood products. This has affected 12 hospital partners so far.
• 48% of days this month, TBC DID NOT collect enough blood to cover hospitals’ needs. For comparison, in May of 2020 (during the pandemic) TBC collected enough to cover those needs 84% of the days.
• There is a high likelihood that TBC will have to start rationing blood by the end of the weekend.
• Heading into a holiday weekend – hospitals are stocking up their blood supply. TBC has already not been able to provide those products.
• The community is the ONLY solution to this dangerous problem. The blood supply for local hospitals is in the community’s hands. 

This monthly event, co-sponsored with Blue Ridge Community College’s Small Business Center, the City of Hendersonville Main Street program, and the Hendersonville Merchants & Business Association features several speakers on timely community events and issues affecting our business community. This meeting will be hosted virtually using the Zoom platform. There is no cost to attend but registration is required.

This is the first year for this weekly farmers market, brought to you by the Etowah Lions Club. Vendors will sell fresh produce, meats, sweets, breads, arts and much more.

The North Carolina Arboretum is going wild for art and nature in 2021 with Wild Art! On view April 1 through September 26, this outdoor sculpture exhibition features works by 17 local and national artists drawing inspiration from the natural environment. Situated throughout the Arboretum’s spacious, open-air gardens, the show offers guests a doorway into the wild world from the comfort and safety of cultivated landscapes transformed by art.

The 18 sculptures on display represent a variety of approaches to the theme of “wild art,” from the literal to the abstract, and are crafted from a diverse array of materials that will delight and inspire. Let your imagination take you on a wild journey into the world of plants and animals near and far with Wild Art at The North Carolina Arboretum.

The exhibit is available to all guests during normal Arboretum hours, and there is no admission cost to view the sculptures beyond our usual parking fee of $16 per personal vehicle.

With the convenience of being open year-round, 7 days a week, the WNC Farmers Market offers a selection of farm-fresh produce at the lowest prices in Western N.C. Our popular retail buildings, providing a selection of non-perishables, fruits, vegetables, crafts and more, are open daily.

Beginning June 15, Buncombe County Public Libraries will expand their hours at all library locations.

The new hours will be:

• Tuesday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
• Wednesday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Thursday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
• Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
• Sunday & Monday, Closed

Libraries will be open for browsing, checking out materials, and computer use during these hours. The meeting rooms will be available for public use. We will begin phasing in programs over the following weeks.

In accordance with Governor Roy Cooper’s Executive Order 215, social distancing requirements, capacity limits, and mask mandates in most settings were lifted in Buncombe County on May 14. Unvaccinated individuals are recommended to continue to wear face coverings.

Please note that Buncombe County will be closed for the Juneteenth holiday, so the libraries will be closed on Friday, June 18 and Saturday, June 19.

If you have questions about any library service, please contact your local library or email us for more information.

KEY FACTS: 

• In the past few days, hospital partners are reporting they are using blood at a much higher rate than normal. When demand is high, and the supply is critically low – that is a dangerous equation for the community.
• Because of the critically low supply, The Blood Connection (TBC) is now having to back-order blood products. This has affected 12 hospital partners so far.
• 48% of days this month, TBC DID NOT collect enough blood to cover hospitals’ needs. For comparison, in May of 2020 (during the pandemic) TBC collected enough to cover those needs 84% of the days.
• There is a high likelihood that TBC will have to start rationing blood by the end of the weekend.
• Heading into a holiday weekend – hospitals are stocking up their blood supply. TBC has already not been able to provide those products.
• The community is the ONLY solution to this dangerous problem. The blood supply for local hospitals is in the community’s hands. 

The Queer Comedy Party is back and it is gayer than ever!!! So excited for our new home at the Asheville Beauty Academy. Kicking 2021 off right with headliner Ian Aber. QCP features only queer identifying comedians but all cool chill folx are welcome to attend.

Ian Aber is a comedian, writer and comedy show producer. He was a national Finalist in NBC’s Stand Up For Diversity and performs at clubs, colleges, music venues, bars, warehouses and pretty much anywhere there is comedy. His comedy is featured on Sirius radio and Audible. Ian has opened for Margaret Cho, Jo Firestone and Fortune Feimster and been accepted to and attended the Limestone Comedy Festival, 10,000 Laughs Comedy Festival, Accidental Comedy Festival, Orlando Indie Comedy Festival, Scruffy City Comedy Festival, Whiskey Bear Comedy Festival, Burning Bridges Comedy Festival and Laughing Skull Comedy Festival. He is the host and co-producer of several long running comedy shows in Atlanta including, Date Night, Urban Tree Comedy and Back Story as well as speciality shows like sweetbabycheeses : Grilled Cheese and Comedy, Surrogates Interactive Comedy and Queer History Live. Ian also hosts the new “Str8 Ppl : A Minor Look At The Majority” podcast, half hour interviews with Queer and Straight people about straight culture and society.

QCP is the first Wednesday of every month in the Asheville Beauty Academy Parlor

Looking for a way to give back and support our mission of eliminating racism and empowering women? The YWCA is looking for volunteers. If you have a few hours here and there or would like a regular volunteer gig, we could use your help. Please follow this link to see our current openings or email our volunteer coordinator to discuss alternate opportunities.

Included with admission

Our fun-for-all-ages botanical model train displays invite you to experience our grounds in an engaging new way. Located in the Conservatory in the Walled Garden, the displays feature replicas of structures connected with Biltmore and its founder George Vanderbilt. Each beautifully executed piece was handcrafted from such natural elements as leaves, bark, and twigs.

In compliance with state and local mandates related to COVID-19, all guests must enter the Conservatory via the ADA entrance in the back and follow a one-way route.