Brute Heart’s Jackie Beckey Performs at Oconaluftee on September 11 and at Cades Cove on September 17

Critically-acclaimed Brute Heart’s Jackie Beckey will perform original, mountain-inspired music at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center on Sunday, September 11, 2016 from 1:00 p.m. until 2:30 p.m. and in Cades Cove at the Becky Cable House on Saturday, September 17, 2016 from 11:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.

The free performances entitled “Appalachian Range: Old Mountains, New Music” are part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Artist-in-Residence program.

Jackie Beckey is one of seven artists who were selected to participate in this special program allowing them to live and create art within the park for 4-6 weeks. The program is made possible by support from Friends of the Smokies and Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts.

Jackie Beckey is a classically trained violinist, composer, librarian, archivist and community-oriented performing artist based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her band, Brute Heart was commissioned in 2012 by the Walker Art Center to compose an original score the film classic, “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.”

Connect with Jackie and Brute Heart on Facebook. Here is a great recent article on Beckey at The Current.

For more information on other Artists-in-Residence programs, visit Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The Old Mill in Pigeon Forge Hosts 13th Annual Heritage Day on September 24th

Come and play and spend the day at The Old Mill in Pigeon Forge at their 13th Annual Heritage Day on Saturday, September 24, 2016. The free event is from 10:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. and features activities and music of the Smoky Mountain pioneers!

Music will fill the air at Old Mill Square where there’ll be plenty banjos, dulcimers, mandolins, guitars, and fiddles making good ol’ mountain music…like grandma used to play! There’ll be square dancing and line dancing, cloggers, and even twirlers to round out the live entertainment. And for more fun, there’ll be bingo and old-fashioned games for all ages.

That’s not all for the 13th Annual Heritage Day at The Old Mill, oh no! The young set will have a great time at the petting zoo and arts and crafts tent with pumpkin painting and more fun activities. They will have a fire truck along with an exhibit of antique engine and tractors.

Enjoy the sights and smells of sorghum molasses, apple butter and moonshine, a staple of pioneer settlers, being made by those artisans who’ve kept to the old ways and traditions. You may learn a thing or two about cast iron cooking over an open fire.

Take a free guided tour of the centerpiece of it all, the 185 year-old water-powered grist meal that’s still grinding corn and wheat today. The Old Mill is a registered National Historic Landmark with it’s beautiful water wheel along the banks of the Little Pigeon River.

Pack up the family, along with some lawn chairs and a blanket, and have a good ol’ time in Pigeon Forge this fall! The Old Mill and Old Mill Square are located at traffic light #7 on the Parkway.

For more information, call The Old Mill at 865-428-0771 or visit The Old Mill.

Monarch Butterfly Tagging in September & October! Welcome to the the Fields of Joy in Cades Cove!

Monarch Butterfly Tagging in Cades Cove this fall! The Great Smoky Mountain Institute at Tremont offers a tremendous opportunity to become a citizen scientist and have a whole lot of fun as the Monarch Butterflies grace the meadows of Cades Cove on their migration southward. Tremont staff and volunteers offer up butterfly nets and special tags to help you help them carefully document the life of these awe-inspiring creatures of nature!

Scientists want to learn more about the Monarch Butterfly’s population status and migration pattern as they fly en masse to Mexico each winter and you can help them at this very special event in Cades Cove each September and October. Welcome to the fields of joy in the Smokies!

All ages can participate in Monarch Butterfly Tagging in Cades Cove and the Great Smoky Mountain Institute at Tremont requires that all participants ages 18 and under be accompanied by an adult. The tagging session programs last about 1 1/2 hours leaving time to enjoy the rest of all Cades Cove has to offer. Pack a picnic and have a wonderful day in Cades Cove with family, friends, co-workers, church group, school group, or whomever! It’s a memory that’ll last a lifetime we promise!

The 2016 Monarch Butterfly Tagging Dates in Coves Cove:
Thursday, September 15
Monday, September 19
Wednesday, September 21
Saturday, September 24
Tuesday, September 27
Thursday, September 29
Sunday, October 2
Monday, October 3
Friday, October 7
Saturday, October 8
Tuesday, October 11
Thursday, October 13
Sunday, October 16
Monday, October 17
Wednesday, October 19
Saturday, October 22
Tuesday, October 25
Thursday, October 27
Saturday, October 29
Monday, October 31

To better serve participants, these day are limited to 15 people with no more than 8 folks per party. Each party/family may attend only one day of tagging to give everyone an opportunity to participate in this unique event. If you have a group between 10-25 people, special reservations can be made for $18 per person. Please email Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont’s Tiffany at tiffany@gsmit.org for details and to schedule a group outing date. Please note that these group outing dates differ from the ones listed above, so be sure to send Tiffany an email.

To sign up for individuals or groups of less than 10, please visit Tremont’s Monarch Tagging Sign-up Form.

Please Donate for the Monarchs! 
If you can, please consider making a donation for this free program. Every single contribution, no matter how small, makes a big difference. Bring your donation on your tagging day or visit Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont to donate online. All truth and beauty near to me and you through fields of joy!

Wears Valley Fall Fest October 14 – 16 | Celebrate Autumn and Keep Sevier Beautiful!

Don’t miss the 3rd Annual Wears Valley Fall Fest October 14 – 16, 2016! This annual fundraiser for Keep Sevier Beautiful is a great way to celebrate Autumn in the Smokies! The festival is open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday; and 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Friday night on the Main Stage, it’s the Miss Fall Fest Pageant where local young ladies compete for the title and crown. On the Main Stage throughout the festival, you’ll hear some fine Country, Bluegrass, and Southern Gospel Music along with Traditional Native American Interactive Dance. Side stages will provide intimate venues for the weaving of some authentic Smoky Mountain Tales where you’ll laugh and learn about life in the mountains.

Wears Valley Fall Fest features an Antique Tractor Show and tractor rides for the kids. What make this particular fall festival so unique are the opportunities for fun while learning stewardship for our natural resources. The Fall Fest Kid’s Tent provides a free craft area where they can make all kinds of cool stuff out of re-purposed and natural items. Volunteers from Keep Sevier Beautiful and Lane Construction will be on hand to help make t-shirt bags, Fall and Christmas decorations, bird houses, and other fun items to take home.

There will be a wide variety of exhibitors and vendors at the festival showing off their artwork and jewelry as well as live demonstrations of metal crafts, basket making, and woodworking. And don’t worry about going hungry, there’ll be plenty of kettle corn, candy apples, and fried Twinkies for dessert first, then you can enjoy some grilled chicken or steak on a stick.

Directions to the Wears Valley Fall Fest from Pigeon Forge – At traffic light #3 on the Parkway turn onto Wears Valley Road and travel for approximately 7 miles. To access the Festival’s Free Parking, turn left on Robeson Road (you’ll see festival activities from the road as you approach.)

Admission to the Wears Valley Fall Festival is $3 per person, $5 for 4 or less people, and no more than $10 for a entire carload of folks! Admission is by donation; please remember this is Keep Sevier Beautiful’s largest fundraiser of the year so be generous is you’re so inclined!

Be sure to check out Wears Valley Fall Fest on Facebook! For more information, call Keep Sevier Beautiful at 865-774-6677 or visit WearsValleyFallFest.com.

2016 Robert A. Tino Smoky Mountain Homecoming September 30 – October 2

It’s the Robert A. Tino Smoky Mountain Homecoming at Sunset View Farm in Sevierville September 30 through October 2, 2016. The historic Sunset View Farm (est. 1844) is home to the Robert A. Tino Gallery and the family opens it to the public for their annual autumn celebration of mountain heritage.

Join renowned landscape artist Robert A. Tino and his artisan and craftsmen friends to celebrate the fall season. The farm grounds are full of activities for kids of all ages. The festival begins at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, September 30 and will be open the weekend from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.

See farm animals, antique tractors, and authentic Appalachian Arts & Crafts. There’s a special Children’s Area (for the real kids) with a Pick n’ Paint Pumpkin Patch and Art Lessons.

It’s not a true Smoky Mountain Homecoming without lots of bluegrass music and mountain storytelling; well worry not, because there’ll be a gracious plenty of both at this harvest festival!

And there’ll be a gracious plenty of succulent barbeque and old-fashioned sweet treats of all kinds at the Robert A. Tino Smoky Mountain Homecoming!

Admission is $5 per person with children ages 12 and under free. Guests will receive $5.00 off any single Tino art purchase valued at $100 or more with your admission ticket. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Robert A. Tino Art Scholarship at Sevier County High School.

For more information, visit Robert A. Tino Smoky Mountain Homecoming on Facebook or call 800-675-6961.

Robert A. Tino has galleries in Sevierville, TN at 812 Old Douglas Dam Road and in Highlands, NC at 381 Main Street.