NC State Parks’ Year of the Tree continues with a celebration of spring trees. Break out your camera and capture the transformation of trees from winter to spring as they show off their gorgeous blooms throughout the next few months. You may even win a prize for your efforts!

GREAT PRIZES WILL BE AWARDED TO 3 WINNING ENTRIES

1st Prize: The winning photo will be our Facebook cover photo for two weeks, and the photographer will receive two annual passes to Chimney Rock State Park, two boat tour tickets from Lake Lure Tours, and dinner for two at the Old Rock Café.

2nd Prize: After the first place photo, the second place photo will be our Facebook cover photo for one week. The photographer will receive two annual passes to Chimney Rock State Park and dinner for two at the Old Rock Café.

3rd Prize: The third place photographer will receive two adult day passes (or one family pack of day passes) to Chimney Rock State Park and dinner for two at the Old Rock Café.

CONTEST RULES:

1. There is no fee to enter the contest. All photographs must be taken of Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park only in areas accessible to guests between April 1, 2022 – May 31, 2022.
   The contest is open to amateur and professional photographers.
2. Up to three photos per person can be submitted via any of the following ways to be eligible to win:
   • Facebook: First, like the Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park page. Next, send us a private message including your contact information specified in rule #3.
   • E-mail: If you don’t have access to social media, you may email your digital photo with your contact information specified in rule #3 to [email protected].
3. Every entry should be clearly labeled with the photographer’s name, city & state, a brief photo caption, an email address and the best phone number to reach you.
4. Photos should be available at a minimum resolution of 1200 x 1600 pixels (1 MB minimum) to be eligible to win. Photos taken via smart phones, tablets and other mobile devices are welcome if they meet minimum requirements.
5. For entries showing human faces, you must list their name(s) and have written permission from any photographed person(s) to use their image.
6. Entries should reflect the photographer’s interpretation of the theme. Emphasis will be placed on quality, composition and creativity. All entries may be used in promotions of Chimney Rock and park-related activities.
7. Digital images can be optimized but not dramatically altered with photo editing software. Black and white photographs are welcome.
8. Finalists will be chosen by Chimney Rock staff and the winner will be voted on by the public. Decisions regarding winners are final.

Winners will be notified personally and announced on Chimney Rock’s social media. For more information, call 1-828-625-9611, ext. 1812 or email us at [email protected].

It can be ruff out there for our canine companions, but we have pawsitively great news. Buncombe County’s first-ever dog park is now open at our Sports Park in Candler. While this is a soft open, the park features two fenced-in play areas; one for large dogs and one for smaller pups. “We do have plans to add other amenities and water fountains,” exclaims Recreation Services Program Coordinator Mac Stanley. “People are very excited about this new opportunity. Since it was announced, we have gotten letters of support as well as many emails questioning when will the project be completed.”

So join us in a round of apaws as we celebrate the opening of this new venue for hot dogs and cool people. “It’s an amazing place to bring your dog to run free without a leash and interact with other dogs,” says Stanley. “One of my favorite aspects of this new dog park is being able to cultivate a community. Hopefully, this dog park will be instrumental in connecting dogs as well as people within the community.” Paw-yeah, sounds great.

Location: Buncombe County Sports Park, 58 Apac Circle

Hours of operation: Monday-Sunday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. (same as the Sports Park)

Dog park drools rules
Dogs must be:

• On a leash at all times until safely in the fenced-in dog park area
• Vaccinated, licensed, and in good health
• At least four months old to enter
• Wearing a collar with ID tags
• Under voice control of their human and not aggressive

Humans must:

• Be with dogs at all times
• Remove dogs at first sign of aggression
• Pick up poop and dispose of it in receptacles provided
• Be liable for any and all injuries caused by their dogs

Not Allowed:

• Pronged, spike or choke collars
• Aggressive dogs, aggressive humans, or dogs in heat
• Unsupervised children 12 years of age or younger

This is the 43rd year for this weekly tailgate market, where vendors sell fresh-picked seasonal vegetables and fruit, local honey, cut flowers, plant starts and more!

The City of Hendersonville has scheduled its seasonal mulch giveaway program to begin on Thursday, March 24, 2022. Mulch will be available for pick up on Thursdays and Fridays from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. This schedule will continue until around May 7, or until the material is gone.

The mulch will be distributed at the old Wastewater Treatment Plant located at 80 Balfour Road in Hendersonville. The Public Works Department will have a staff member on-site to operate the backhoe and load the material.

In addition to the mulch, the City will be offering composted leaves as a separate material. These leaves were collected during the fall of 2020, ran through a grinder, and composted for a year. This material makes an excellent addition to vegetable and flower gardens.

Welcome to Western NC’s most premier farmers market!

Since 1980, we have been providing Asheville and the surrounding area with a full range of local, sustainably produced produce, meats, eggs, cheeses, breads, plants, prepared foods and crafts. Day vendors complement the members’ offerings with additional products and services.

The North Asheville Tailgate Market is a weekly, Saturday morning gathering of the best farmers, craftsmen, and bakers. With over 40 vendors and more than 40,000 annual customers, the market’s energetic and warm environment welcomes all.

The WNC Farmers Market is the premier destination for buying and selling the region’s best agriculture products directly from farmers & food producers to household & wholesale customers in an environment that celebrates the region’s diverse culture, food & heritage.

House of Operation:

WNC Farmers Market: 24/7, 361 days a year market access for farmers
Office: Monday- Friday, 8am-5pm
Market Shops: 7 days a week, 8 am-5 pm
Wholesale and Truck Sheds: 7 days a week

Featured Artists: Guild Members from the WNC Fiber Handweavers Guild

After two pandemic years operating as ASAP Farmers Market at A-B Tech, Asheville City Market will return downtown on April 2, from 9 a.m. to noon. Every Saturday, N. Market St. will be closed between Woodfin and E. Walnut streets. Customers can enjoy open-air shopping for local goods from nearly 50 vendors, including farmers, artisan food makers, services, and more.

In addition to in-season fruits and vegetables, vendors from across Western North Carolina provide specialty products like cheese, eggs, grassfed meat and pastured pork, rice, pasta, artisan bread, honey, plants, body care products, and much more. As a producer-only market, each vendor has a personal hand in growing, raising, or crafting their products, giving customers the opportunity to connect directly with farmers and other local producers. A weekly list of vendors is available by subscribing to the market’s newsletter at asapconnections.org.

Asheville City Market will offer ASAP’s Double SNAP for Fruits and Vegetables, which matches SNAP dollars with tokens that can be used for produce. For instance, if a SNAP customer swipes their EBT card for $10, they will receive $10 in SNAP tokens as well as $10 in Farm Fresh Bucks. SNAP tokens may be used for SNAP-eligible products from any vendor, including produce, meat, cheese, eggs, bread, plants, and more. Farm Fresh Bucks may only be used for fruits and vegetables.

Free parking for customers is available at HomeTrust Bank and Family Justice Center (across from the YMCA at 35 Woodfin St.). There are bus stops on the N1 and N2 routes one block away, on Broadway

Begin your ecological journey with a class taught by a local naturalist to learn about the fascinating biodiversity of Hickory Nut Gorge.  After your educational morning session ends, the ecology comes alive as you set out to explore the mountain with a guide and see it for yourself.

The Asheville Blue Ridge Rose Society will sell many varieties of roses, including own-root, fragrant, miniature, and old garden roses. Expert rosarians will be on hand to help you choose the perfect rose and to give practical advice on growing and caring for roses. 

Sample of plants from previous sale

Extension Master Gardener^SMvolunteers will offer a huge selection of plants for any garden spot. Choose among perennials for sun or shade, groundcovers, native plants, vegetable starts, herbs, shrubs, and even a few small trees. Garden art, books on gardening and some hard goods will also be available.  Our volunteers will help you select the right plant for the right place and answer your gardening questions.  

Planting activity for children will be offered.  Parental supervision required.

Rain or shine, we’ll see you there!

While the county mask mandate has been lifted, participants for all events and activities are welcome to wear a mask to feel more comfortable.

Click here to download the Spring Fling Plant Sale flyer.

New Location!
The Interchange Building
59 Woodfin Place
Asheville, NC 28801
(corner of Charlotte Street and Woodfin Place at Exit 5B off 1-240)

The Asheville Blue Ridge Rose Society will sell many varieties of roses, including own-root, fragrant, miniature, and old garden roses. Expert rosarians will be on hand to help you choose the perfect rose and to give practical advice on growing and caring for roses. 

Sample of plants from previous sale

Extension Master Gardener^SMvolunteers will offer a huge selection of plants for any garden spot. Choose among perennials for sun or shade, groundcovers, native plants, vegetable starts, herbs, shrubs, and even a few small trees. Garden art, books on gardening and some hard goods will also be available.  Our volunteers will help you select the right plant for the right place and answer your gardening questions.  

Planting activity for children will be offered.  Parental supervision required.

Rain or shine, we’ll see you there!

While the county mask mandate has been lifted, participants for all events and activities are welcome to wear a mask to feel more comfortable.

Click here to download the Spring Fling Plant Sale flyer.

Dates: July 11 – 16, 2022
Application: Available now through MyBMC
Cost: A $600 fee covers all housing, meals, classes, materials, and concert tickets. Spots are limited and applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Please note: Proof of COVID-19 vaccination is required for all students, faculty, and summer staff for the 2022 season. Please see our FAQ page for more information.

Program Summary

Brevard Music Center (BMC) presents The Brevard Project: Reimagining the Future of Orchestral Programming, a six-day intensive seminar and think-tank on orchestral programming intended for professionals and influencers in the orchestral field. Presented by Brevard Music Center in partnership with Bard College, the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University, the Chicago Sinfonietta, the South Dakota Symphony, the University of Michigan School of Music, and Project Director Joseph Horowitz, The Brevard Project takes place July 11-16, 2022. The central goals of The Brevard Project are to re-evaluate the artistic mission of the American orchestra and to share the skills needed to curate a more comprehensive, more inclusive American orchestral repertoire.

Curriculum

The Brevard Project: Reimagining the Future of Orchestral Programing complements Brevard Music Center’s week-long “Dvořák’s Prophecy” festival from July 11-16 and is inspired by Joseph Horowitz’s acclaimed new book Dvořák’s Prophecy and the Vexed Fate of Black Classical Music. Part think-tank, part seminar, this inaugural Project gathering equips practitioners and scholars alike to begin to answer questions about the dense nexus of culture and race, of historical, political, and moral reckonings surrounding the story of American orchestral music. The central goals of this program are to re-evaluate the artistic mission of the American orchestra and to share the skills needed to curate a more comprehensive, more inclusive American orchestral repertoire. The Brevard Project is designed for conductors, artistic administrators, executive directors, community engagement specialists, conservatory students, and engaged orchestra Board members.

Moving forward requires a fresh and closer look at our musical past – and to the lagging formation of an American symphonic canon. A new narrative of American classical music will be proposed that explores timely and topical issues that impact present and future orchestral programming. Why did our repertoire remain so stubbornly Eurocentric? What can we learn from this history? What can be mined from the treasure trove of long-hidden indigenous and Black music that can help to pave the future?

Classroom sessions will be highly interactive, drawing upon first-hand accounts of humanities-infused approaches to programming and community engagement. Topics of exploration include creating a “new paradigm” for American orchestral repertoire, rethinking the concert experience, and redefining the role of the music director. Participants will be challenged to envision programming and organizational initiatives to promote symphonic events grounded in the American experience, past and present.

The Faculty

A remarkable faculty has been assembled for this groundbreaking exercise.
*virtual participant

Joseph Horowitz, Project Director
Leon Botstein, President, Bard College; Music Director, American Symphony; Founder, Bard Festival and The Orchestra Now
Lorenzo Candelaria, Dean, Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University
Mark Clague, Music Historian, University of Michigan
JoAnn Falletta*, Music Director, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
Christopher Gibbs*, Music Historian, Bard Conservatory; Artistic Co-Director, Bard Festival
Delta David Gier, Music Director, South Dakota Symphony
Blake-Anthony Johnson, CEO, Chicago Sinfonietta
Keith Lockhart*, Artistic Director, Brevard Music Center
Douglas McLennan, Founder/Editor, ArtsJournal
Jason Posnock, Chief Artistic Officer, Brevard Music Center
Jesse Rosen, Former CEO, League of American Orchestras
Larry Tamburri, CEO, Newark School of the Arts (former CEO, Pittsburgh and New Jersey Symphonies)

The Performers

Lara Downes, Pianist, producer, arts advocate
Sidney Outlaw, Baritone/pedagogue, Ithaca College
George Shirley, Tenor/pedagogue, University of Michigan

Enrollment Information

Conductors, artistic administrators, executive directors, community engagement specialists, conservatory students, and Board members are all encouraged to apply for The Brevard Project.

Capacity is limited. A $600 fee covers all housing, meals, classes, materials, and concert tickets for the week. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Apply now through MyBMC.

Old Kentucky Home -The Thomas Wolfe Memorial

American Novelist Thomas Wolfe (1900-1938)

Considered by many to be one of the giants of 20th-century American literature, Thomas Wolfe immortalized his childhood home in his epic autobiographical novel, Look Homeward, Angel. Wolfe’s colorful portrayal of his family, his hometown of “Altamont” Asheville, North Carolina, and “Dixieland” the Old Kentucky Home boardinghouse, earned the Victorian period house a place as one of American literature’s most famous landmarks.

House tours are offered daily at half past each hour. Last tour leaves at 4:30 pm.
Group tours by reservation.

Adult – $5.00
Student (ages 7-17) – $2.00
Adult Group (10+) – $2.50 each
Student Group – $2.00 each
6 & under – Free

Hours of Operation

Join us for this moderate 4.3 mile round trip hike on a section of one of the oldest wagon roads into the Valley from Old Fort.  The hike starts at Arthur Joe and Mary Hemphill’s pavilion at Fortune Fields and follows the Catawba River down to the upper Falls, passing Davis Falls on the way and following the old wagon road.  Arthur Joe’s ancestor, Capt. Thomas Hemphill (1746-1826) was an original Revolutionary War patriot who owned part of this popular stage road up from Old Fort. Arthur Joe and Mary donated this large tract to conservation.  The hike will be led by Rick and Melinda Halford, who are the caretakers of the tract.

Cost: $50 for members/$65 for non-members. Some fees apply.

Difficulty:  Moderate, 4.3 miles round-trip. Moderate 500ft elevation change, but numerous rocky stream crossings. Learn more here. 

Please e-mail [email protected] with any inquiries. 

Coronavirus Protocol:

• Please bring a mask to the event to use in the event of carpooling.
• No one who is sick, running a fever or potentially exposed to COVID should attend
• If not vaccinated, masks should be worn in all group settings like sign-in and congregation
  times.
• Social distancing while on the trails is recommended

9:00am-2:00pm: Hike. Tickets: $50 for members/$65 for non-members. Some fees apply. Register Here.

Led by Stewart/Owen Dance Co-Directors, Vanessa Owen and Gavin Stewart, this open level adult contemporary dance class gradually awakens the body and senses through guided improvisation and a follow along warm-up, followed by foundational across-the-floor exercises and center-work combinations. All experience levels welcome!

In person: $10, pay at the door

Online: $7 suggested donation, contact [email protected] for class link and details.

About Stewart/Owen Dance: Gavin Stewart and Vanessa Owen, a husband and wife duo, are the co-directors of Western North Carolina based Stewart/Owen Dance. Their choreography has been presented by festivals and companies across the U.S., and their careers have most notably taken them around the globe on fifteen U.S. State Department tours to teach, perform and choreograph contemporary dance with Washington D.C. based Company E. In 2017 they made North Carolina their home base where they work towards building a sustainable community for professional dance artists to set roots. They have choreographed music videos for artists such as Moses Sumney, Sylvan Esso and Ben Phantom. Gavin and Vanessa won the Audience Choice Award at the NYC Dance Gallery Festival 2018, were commissioned as Dance Gallery 2019 Level UP Artists, are recipients of a McDowell Regional Artist Project Grant, a North Carolina Artist Support Grant and were voted “Artists Who Most Pushed the Boundaries with the Human Body” by 2020 Asheville Fringe Arts Festival. Since the pandemic, they have focused on producing COVID-conscious dance experiences for live audiences, including drive-up performances and a guided walk-along dance exhibit presented in residence with Asheville’s beloved Wortham Center for the Performing Arts.

April 1st through May 26th, 2022

Call ahead for the latest updates: 828-298-7928.

Sam Johnson will be demonstrating how he creates fly rods out of bamboo – a natural resource of which we have an abundant amount!

Featured Artists: Judi Harwood (clay) Colin Richmond (clay) Cori Saraceni (mixed media) Lyn Lyndall (leather) Lauren Faulkenberry (paper)