The first trail runner, I’m guessing, was a Neanderthal in minimalist footwear fleeing a saber-toothed tiger. About 300,000 years later came seasonal trail runners, motivated less by predators than by …
Getting a Good View of the Supermoon at Obed Wild and Scenic River
Soft-spoken ranger Rick Ryan stood near the edge of a precipice 100 feet above Clear Creek and said this: “Parks are great places where we can go to find ourselves …
A Canine View of Knoxville-Area Dog Parks
As I approached Maryville’s PetSafe Pistol Creek Dog Park with Pepper, the 6-month old black Lab I was puppysitting, my worst fears about dog parks were realized. A big fight …
Green Clean: Seeking ‘Shinrin-Yoku’ on the Boogerman Trail
Reeking of the usual quiet desperation, I needed a cleansing session of forest-bathing, or shinrin-yoku—a kind of wellness therapy researched by the Japanese for over 30 years, reputed to prevent …
Hiking the Smoke Ring Trail Around the GSMNP
“It won’t rain on me,” said Travis “Shepherd” Hall, the long-distance hiker who was descending the Smokies’ Chestnut Top Trail with me last Friday afternoon. Hall, who hiked the Appalachian …