Calendar of Events

Start off your 4th of July with a BANG and join us at Asheville Outlets (ShopAshevilleOutlets.com) for a fun, flat and fast 5K at the Asheville Outlets. Choose from the timed 5K run/walk or a 1 mile untimed walk.

Event Schedule:
July 4 – 6:30 a.m. – Race Day Packet Pick-Up and Registration Begins
July 4 – 8:00 a.m. – 5K Adult and Youth Race Begins
July 4 – 8:05 a.m. – 1 Mile Walk Begins
July 4 – 9:00 a.m. – 5K Awards

$5 from every registration will go towards Wounded Warrior Project or Veterans for Peace. To register, visit: https://raceroster.com/events/2019/22665/asheville-independence-day-5k. All runners will receive a drawstring goodie bag courtesy of Asheville Outlets.

Asheville’s Independence Day 5k will get you starting your July 4th with a bang! This is a flat, family friendly course that starts and ends at the Asheville Outlet Mall.

Every Saturday in July the park stays open late, until 9:00 p.m., so you can make more time for family memories. Enjoy evening train and stage shows, rides at dusk, and fun throughout the park.

This tour goes exploring through our 80 acres of working farmland. Head to the top of UFO hill for a spectacular view, walk alongside the creek through forest, see the grazing animals on pasture, and learn about regenerative agriculture. You will get an overview of our farm history but a more in-depth look at our farming practices. We will be traversing over rough terrain, so suitable hiking attire is suggested.

Every Saturday in July the park stays open late, until 9:00 p.m., so you can make more time for family memories. Enjoy evening train and stage shows, rides at dusk, and fun throughout the park.

Summer Cycle is This Saturday!

HOSTED BY: Asheville on Bikes and the event sponsors.

This free, family-friendly event is open to the public and includes easy-to-follow route options for bike riders of all ages and abilities, followed by a celebration at New Belgium Brewing. Summer Cycle is perfect for the new or returning bike rider to get started and meet new friends to ride with in Asheville. Volunteers needed too!

Pick your Summer Cycle route! 

• 2 mile easy River Arts District loop
• 10 mile Main Route that tours the best of the RAD& West Asheville.
• 14 mile Ride More Route that adds an extra loop to the Main Route

Summer Cycle ’19 Schedule:

• 3:00pm – Gather at New Belgium Brewing
• 3:30pm – Kick off with all-ages balance bike loop, then all rides depart
• 4:30pm (ish) – Return to New Belgium Brewing for post-ride celebration.

Participants are asked to have their bicycle in good condition and bring a water bottle, lights, and bike bell. Costumes are encouraged, helmets are required!  There is lots more info at AoB’s Facebook page, where you can RSVP and even VOLUNTEER to help make it happen.

Come get SPARKLED with Finklepott’s Original Fairy Hair!
Sierra Nevada Brewing IN LOWER PARK
100 Sierra Nevada Way Mills River, NC 28732
***ENTRANCE FEE REQUIRED***
Sign up here to reserve your spot and for more information:
http://bit.ly/SierraNevada07172019

In this free, fun and educational event, you’ll have a chance to learn about the endangered Carolina northern flying squirrel and build nest boxes to aid in its recovery!

Join Defenders and special guest presenter U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service biologist Sue Cameron on Thursday, July 18th to learn about the endangered Carolina northern flying squirrel. Ms. Cameron coordinates efforts to recover the squirrel, and you’ll learn what makes it special and why it is endangered, as well as effective strategies aimed at helping it recover. You’ll also hear from Anna Norton – live and on location at Southern Highlands Reserve – about the unique role the Reserve is playing in the squirrel’s recovery.

Following the presentation, you’ll have the chance to help these critters in the wild by assembling flying squirrel nest boxes that the NC Wildlife Resources Commission will install as part of their monitoring program. Refreshments will also be provided.

Then, join us on Saturday, July 20th for a walkabout along Flat Laurel Creek Trail, Pisgah National Forest, NC. We’ll enjoy this cool, high elevation spruce-fir forest – an endangered ecosystem in our region and home to several other rare species – while we explore what makes this squirrel habitat unique. We’ll also examine previously installed nest boxes in the area for upgrading through the Resource Commission’s programs and a collaborative red spruce restoration project underway.

Sponsored by weilerwoodsforwildlife.com. Nest boxes made possible by deltechomes.com.

Wildlife Workshop: Carolina Northern Flying Squirrels

Thursday, July 18th, 2019, 5:15pm – 7:00pm
Defenders of Wildlife’s Southeast Office
1 Rankin Avenue, 2nd Floor
Asheville, NC 28801

-AND-

Wildlife Walkabout

Saturday, July 20th, 2019, 8:00am – 1:00pm
Flat Laurel Creek Trail, Pisgah National Forest
Route 215
Canton, NC 28716

For more info, contact Tracy at [email protected].

Bicycle and Pedestrian Task Force

Vision: For Asheville to be a community of connected pathways that is healthy, safe and accessible for people of all ages.

Mission: To educate the public about bicycle and pedestrian transportation; to advocate for the development and maintenance of safe, convenient and inter-connected facilities; to promote the benefits of walking and biking for individuals and community health.

Jesse Barry, known for her soulful blues pipes and contagious enthusiasm on stage, began her music career at the tender age of eight years old. Influenced by Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, Carole King, Etta James, and Susan Tedeschi, Jesse has created her own, unique blues sound. She is often described as an “old soul” and audiences are stunned by the huge voice that comes out of her small body. Popularly known as “Skinny Legs” from Skinny Legs and All, a band she created as a teenager, Jesse has placed in the Mountain Xpress “Best Of” blues band category three years in a row, and has performed at B.B. King’s Club for the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee, and at the Springing the Blues Festival in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. Jesse competed on the popular TV show “American Idol” in season 9 and has made a lasting impact on her hometown, Asheville, North Carolina. She has recorded 3 albums with Skinny Legs and All and is currently working with her blues, funk, and soul group Jesse Barry and The Jam, special events band A Social Function, and her new Steely Dan tribute band Dirty Logic.

Join us at Hickory Nut Gap to see Jesse Barry and The Jam perform, eat farm-to-fork food, and prepare to dance!

Every Saturday in July the park stays open late, until 9:00 p.m., so you can make more time for family memories. Enjoy evening train and stage shows, rides at dusk, and fun throughout the park.

Put on your dancing boots and join Friends of the Smokies for the 2nd annual “Smokies Stomp” Barn Party just outside of Asheville, NC. The Smokies Stomp supports projects and programs in Great Smoky Mountains National Park like Parks As Classrooms, which brings thousands of schoolchildren into the Smokies every year. Folks will be treated to a gourmet farm-to-table dinner, live music, drinks, square dancing, and the opportunity to visit with rangers from the National Park Service. So come on out for fun and fundraising at the Smokies Stomp Barn Party!

July 20-21, 2019

Skip down the yellow brick road to auditions for next season’s opener, The Wizard of Oz! Mark your calendar for these dates (and make sure you note the ages for each time slot).

Director Jerry Crouch is seeking a large cast of children, teens, and adults! All roles are open to actors of all races and ethnicities:

Saturday, July 20: 12:00-3:00 pm – Auditions for children (ages 6-11)
Saturday, July 20: 3:00-6:00 pm – Auditions for teens (ages 12-18)
Sunday, July 21: 1:00-5:00 pm – Auditions for adults (ages 19+)

MUSICAL

By L. Frank Baum with Music and Lyrics by Harold Arlen and E. Y. Harburg

Directed by Jerry Crouch; Music Direction by Sarah Fowler; Choreography by Alexa Edelman

PRODUCTION DATES: October 4-27, 2019; Performances Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30 pm and Sunday afternoons at 2:30 pm, plus 2 Thursday night performances 10/17 and 10/24 at 7:30 pm. Cast must plan to arrive at least 1 hour prior to show time.

REHEARSALS: August 11-October 3, 2019; Rehearsals generally held Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday nights from 6:30-9:30 pm. All actors will not necessarily be needed for every rehearsal or for the entire rehearsal. Full rehearsal calendar available at auditions – you are able to list any conflicts you have with the rehearsal schedule at this time.

AUDITION INFO: Please bring your own sheet music (prepare 32 bars; not a song from Wizard of Oz) in the key in which you will sing it

Do you love cars? If so, then join us at Asheville Outlets (ShopAshevilleOutlets.com) for Cruise ‘In, a monthly car show featuring an exciting display of cars, trucks, motorcycles and special interest vehicles behind the Food Court on Sundays, May 19, June 16, July 21, August 18, September 15, October 20 and November 17, 2019 from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Cruise ‘In is free to car owners and spectators.

ASHEVILLE, JULY 23, 2019– The West Asheville Tailgate Market will be hosting their very first “Pepperpalooza” in the parking lot of the Grace Baptist Church, 718 Haywood Road, from 3:30-6:30pm. Pepperpalooza is a festival dedicated to celebrating the pepper is all it’s many colors, shapes, sizes, flavors…and levels of heat intensity.

Pepperpalooza is a fundraiser for the West Asheville Tailgate Market and all proceeds will go toward the growth of the market including kids activities, food tastings, cooking demos, and partnerships with other local non-profits for food-based educational programs in the future.

This at-market festival has several components including a raffle, hot pepper eating contest (for adults), bell pepper tastings (for kids), local hot sauce tastings, pepper roasting, ristra making, kids crafts, and a talk on the history of peppers. And of course, Pepperpalooza wouldn’t live up to its name without some rockin’ live music from local musicians.

The raffle includes 5 big prize packages including an assortment of food and crafts from WATM vendors. Raffle tickets are just $5 to enter or $12 for 3 and can be purchased on the WATM website or in person at the Pepperpalooza festival on July 23rd.

The main event will be the hot pepper eating contest where those who enter will get to eat their way up the Scoville Scale in intensity (milk and bread will be available to contestants once they tap out). The person who can take the most heat will win $50 in market bucks and a WATM t-shirt. The kiddos can play too! We’ll have a colorful bell pepper tasting where they can eat the rainbow of sweet peppers to pick which color they like best.

All those who yearn to feel the burn can taste an assortment of hot sauces which are being donated from local companies. For $3 you get a bowl of chips as a blank canvas to taste an assortment of sauces. That same $3 enters you into a raffle to win a bottle of all the hot sauces in the tasting.

Discover the beauty of the Appalachia’s both wild and rural. Your day begins with the expansive views of Chimney Rock State Park where your group is welcome to enjoy one of the many leisure or intensive hiking trails on the property. Lunch at the award-winning Old Rock Cafe is included with this package to enjoy at your leisure after 11am. At 2pm, join the park’s animal educators for the Animal Encounter, an interactive experience where you can touch, feel, and learn about the wildlife at the park. After meeting the animals of the wild, your group will drive an easy 20 minutes North up 74A for the evening portion of your day trip.

Starting at 4pm, your evening encounter begins with an in-depth tour of the farm’s history and agricultural model along with a meet-and-greet of our farm animals. Choose our standard top-tier tour or upgrade to a horseback ride for an intimate farm experience. Immediately following the tour, your group will be treated to a plated Farm-to-Fork meal prepared by our expert catering chef including an adult beverage of your choice. Finish the day with engaging conversations and gorgeous long-range views as the sun sets.

Every Saturday in July the park stays open late, until 9:00 p.m., so you can make more time for family memories. Enjoy evening train and stage shows, rides at dusk, and fun throughout the park.

You are invited to the 2nd Annual Back to School Blessing on Saturday, July 27, 2019. Last year we gave away over 700 backpacks filled with school supplies and had over 1,000 people in attendance. This year we have a goal to give away 1,000 backpacks filled of school supplies and expect 2,000 people in attendance. The 2nd Annual Back to School Blessing will also include food, cotton candy, popcorn, snow cones, inflatable attractions, raffle prizes and more, all for FREE! For more information and to register for FREE backpacks, visit newcovenantchurch.com.

This tour goes exploring through our 80 acres of working farmland. Head to the top of UFO hill for a spectacular view, walk alongside the creek through forest, see the grazing animals on pasture, and learn about regenerative agriculture. You will get an overview of our farm history but a more in-depth look at our farming practices. We will be traversing over rough terrain, so suitable hiking attire is suggested.

Wide trails, mostly good footing through forests of hemlock, beech, and poplar. One fairly steep two-mile climb at the beginning, then six easy stream crossings. Includes parts of Sycamore Cove trail, Grassy Road, Thrift Cove, and Black Mtn. Type: figure 8 loop. Ascent: 1450’. Max elev: 2950’. Avg moving pace: 2.7 mph. Difficulty (1=effortless, 10=hard): 6. Dogs: welcome if well-behaved, subject to area restrictions. Trailhead: Pisgah Ranger Station / Visitors Center, 1600 Pisgah Hwy. Directions from Waffle House to Mills River Ingles (9.7 miles): Left (south) on NC-191 Brevard Rd for 9.4 miles; right on NC-280 Boylston Hwy for 0.3 miles. From Mills River Ingles to the Ranger Station (13.7 miles): Right (south) on NC-280 Boylston Hwy for 12.1 miles. Right on US-276 N for 1.6 miles. Meet in the back lot (first right entering from the south). Est. return to Waffle House: 2:00 p.m. PLEASE DON’T SIGNUP IF YOU’RE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THE DISTANCE, ASCENT, OR PACE. PLEASE UPDATE YOUR RSVP TO “NO” IF YOU SIGNUP, BUT CHANGE YOUR MIND

The Carolina Mountain Meetup Group was founded by the Carolina Mountain Club to access the Meetup platform. As long-standing hiking and trail maintaining club, the mission of the Carolina Mountain Club is • to explore the mountains of Western North Carolina and adjacent regions through its hiking trails and rivers, • to carry out the responsibilities we have been given by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to develop and maintain our assigned section of the Appalachian Trail and to act as its stewards, • to develop and maintain other hiking trails in Western North Carolina as approved by the Club Council, • to encourage the conservation of our natural scenery, • to foster in Club members knowledge and enjoyment of hiking, trail construction and maintenance, and fellowship and enjoyment of the out-of-doors.

Pet policy: Pets are not permitted on regular Carolina Mountain Club hikes. However, they may be permitted on Carolina Mountain Meetup hikes at the leaders discretion only if specifically stated in the hike description.

To view the Carolina Mountain Club website go to: http://www.carolinamountainclub.org/index.cfm/do/home.main

This meetup group gives paddlers of all skill levels a chance to meet other paddlers for flat water and mildwater paddling. We get together to share our love of water and the outdoors. We paddle mostly local/regional waters, and may also plan overnight, weekend, or longer trips farther away. We share tips, information, and knowledge. All members are welcome to post trips and/or discussions. All are welcome. We have NO RULES except be safe and have fun.

“Mildwater” means different things to different people. For new paddlers, mild may mean lakes and flat rivers. For those who have whitewater experience, Class 2+ or Class 3 whitewater may be mild. Meetup organizers provide descriptions of their outings. It is your responsibility to read those descriptions, ask questions if needed, and decide whether a given outing is right for you, given your skills and equipment.

You can’t beat a walk with a friend over good conversation. So, why not take a walk with lots of friends and a history expert to boot? Buncombe County Libraries is excited to announce its Strolling Through History program focused on getting you moving while taking in some experiential history. “Each one of the strolls is a little different. We’ll talk about the evolution of the architecture, famous (or not quite so famous) residents, important events, and more,” explains Pack Memorial Librarian Katherine Calhoun Cutshall. “On our Haywood Street stroll, we talked about how the street has seen two major rebirths and discussed the careers of two WWI nurses who grew up on the street while it was mostly residential.”

Pack Librarians are always looking for innovative ways to showcase the library’s portfolio of initiatives and resources. “The North Carolina Room is a hidden gem in our library system, so programs like Strolling Through History bring the collection to the streets of downtown while showing off resources and programs in a fun new way,” notes Katherine. And of course, exercising your muscles and social skills are important at any age

So, how can you get involved with the monthly Strolling Through History? There are two versions: one for elder adults and one for babies and their caregivers. If you’re interested in participating, the elder adults strolls are the third Friday of every month, and the babies and caretakers strolls are the third Wednesday of every month (except July). All strolls will meet at Pack Memorial Library at 10:30 a.m., and participants should wear comfortable shoes and bring water to stay hydrated. Registration is required.