Wilderness Wildlife Week 2010 Schedule for Day 3

History, music, wildlife and arts and crafts of the Smokies have been keeping the crowds attending the annual Wilderness Wildlife Week entertained, excited and educated and the new programs have all been a big hit.

Attendees to this annual event that takes place in the Music Road convention center in Pigeon Forge have come around the country to be inspired by the great photographers and the interesting presents of free lectures and yes...the guided hikes in the Great Smoky Mountains national park.

Even if you just attend Wilderness Wildlife Week for only 1 day, you will be forever changed and have a far deeper understand of the biodiversity and the beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains and its people.

The classes and demonstrations on today's action packed schedule are no exception especially one of my favorite local old time bands the Boogertown Gap, learn the fine art of dowsing (limited space), and don't miss national park vegetation expert Kristine Johnson and her lecture on Restoring Native Plant Communities in the Smokies - she is exceptional and her enthusiasm is contagious!

Be sure to remember to be in the Guitar Room before 6:00 pm if you are looking to sign up for any of the hikes on Wednesday.

Wilderness Wildlife Week Schedule for January 11th, 2010

• 7:00 am - 9:00 pm The Information Desk is open.


• 8:30 am - 9:30 am Green Power Switch. Presented by: Lucas Harkleroad - In the Guitar Room.


• 9:00 am - 10:00 am Slides from Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. Presented by: Bob and Gloria Epperson - In the Dobro Room.


• 9:00 am - 10:00 am Lost Species, Bird Program. Presented by: Paul James - In the Ukelele Room.


• 9:30 am - 10:30 am The Spirits of Cades Cove - slide presentation. Presented by: Mike Meldrum - In the Harp Room.


• 10:00 am - 11:00 am NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: Whose Scat is That? Presented by: Joel and Kathy Zachry - In the Violin Room.


• 10:00 am - 11:00 am How to Write About Your Outdoor Experiences. Presented by: Dr. Glenn Himebaugh - In the Guitar Room.


• 10:00 am - 11:00 am The Art of Dowsing: Do you have the gift? Presented by: Charlie Monday - In the Cello D Room. (Limit 30 students. Pre-registration at the Information Desk is required.)


• 10:30 am - 11:30 am Native American Stories. Presented by: Lloyd Arneach - In the Dobro Room.


• 10:30 am - 11:30 am Restoring Native Plant Communities in the Smokies. Presented by: Kristine Johnson - In the Ukelele Room.


• 11:00 am - 12:00 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: What a Sevier Place to Live! A History of Sevierville. Presented by: Kathy Gwinn - In the Harp Room.


• 11:30 am - 12:30 pm The Fontana Project. Presented by: Jerry Span - In the Violin Room.


• 11:30 am - 12:30 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: Update on the Smokies ATBI - The project whose mission is to document all forms of life in GSMNP. Presented by: Todd Witcher - In the Guitar Room.


• 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm What's in Your Pack? Presented by: Lee Lewis - In the Dobro Room.


• 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Creating a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife. Presented by: Phyllis Rollins - In the Ukelele Room.


• 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm Wildflowers of Tennessee. Presented by: Jack Carman - In the Harp Room.


• 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: Of Ginseng, Golden Apples, and Rainbow Fish - Ancient tales and mountain treasures. Presented by: Doug Elliott - In the Violin Room.


• 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm Woodpeckers - Nature's Home Builders. Presented by: Steve Garr - In the Guitar Room.


• 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm Close Up and Macro Photography Workshop. Presented by: Andrea Shetley - In the Music Road Hotel Breakfast Room. (Limit 15 students. Pre-registration at the Information Desk required the day of the workshop.)


• 1:45 pm - 2:45 pm Where's Mommy? Rehabilitation of Orphaned Wildlife. Presented by: Phylis Rollins - In the Ukelele Room.


• 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm The Art of Dowsing: Do you have the gift? Presented by: Charlie Monday - Meet in the hallway next to the Cello Room.(Limit 30 students. Pre-registration at the Information Desk is required.)


• 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm KIDS TRACK: Oh! Possum Live Animal Show. Presented by: Lynne McCoy - In the Dobro Room.


• 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: Herbs, Hives, and Hens: Will explore hunting for herbs, beehives, and hen nest of the early mountain people. Presented by: W.C. and Glenna Julian and Donna Stinett - In the Harp Room.


• 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm Introduction to Old Time Banjo. Presented by: Tony Thomas - In the Violin Room.


• 2:30 pm - 3:45 pm Cross Country Skiing and Hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Presented by: Wendell Liemohn - In the Guitar Room.


• 3:15 pm - 4:15 pm The Back of Beyond - Horace Kephart in the Smokies. Presented by: Arthur McDade - In the Ukelele Room.


• 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: New Heart Songs of the Smokies. Presented by: Bob and Sharon Brittle - In the Dobro Room.


• 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm KIDS TRACK: Learn about Bears through Activities. Presented by: Anne Allison and Kathy Sherrard - Room: Music Road Hotel Breakfast Room. (Limit 20 students. Pre-registration at Information Desk is required.)


• 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm Ranger Recollections #1. Presented by: Joe Kelley - In the Harp Room.


• 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm Old String Time Band Concert. Presented by: Boogertown Gap - In the Violin Room.


• 4:15 pm - 5:15 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: Down by the Old Mill Stream - slide presentation. Presented by: Mike Meldrum - In the Guitar Room.


• 4:45 pm - 5:45 pm Hike Twentymile - Learn about the remote area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park known as Twentymile. Presented by: Jerry Span - In the Ukelele Room.


• 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: The Scarab and Sacred Sphere of Dung Beetles and the Source of Life. Presented by: Doug Elliott - In the Dobro/Harp Room.


• 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm Music of our American Roots. Presented by: Lost Mill String Band - In the Violin Room.


• 7:00 pm NEW WILDERNESS WILDLIFE WEEK PROGRAM: Heaven and Nature Sing. Presented by: Judy Felts, Lee Porter, and Ken Jenkins - In the Dobro/Harp room.

Wilderness Wildlife Week partisipants can takle advantage of dicounts to local Resturanmts in the Smokes and Overnight Cabin Rentals.

Day 6 of Winterfest Wilderness Wildlife week in Pigeon Forge

Wilderness Wildlife Week in Pigeon Forge is till going strong and is rolling onto day 6 on Thursday January 15th with an incredible schedule of lectures and hands on classes.

For the hikers the weather has been cold but the hikes have been fantastic except for a mishap where a hiker broke her ankle in 2 places earlier this week on the MT Le Conte hike.

You can still get information about Winterfest Wilderness Wildlife from 7:00 am - 9:30 pm in the lobby of Music Road Hotel Convention Center and at the end of the hall the Photo and Textiles of the Smokies Exhibit are open from 9:00 am - 6:00 pm.

• 8:30 am - 11:30 am Basic Visual Tracking presented by Joe Kelly


• 8:30 am - 12:30 pm Nature Photography Workshop Don McGowan, Kendall Chiles and Les Saucier


• 8:45 am - 9:45 am Introduction to Musical Instruments in Story and Song with Tony Thomas


• 9:30 am - 10:30 am The Art of Dowsing: Do You Have the Art? By Charlie Monday (Pre-registration is required and is limited to 30 participants)


• 9:30 am - 10:30 am Building Professional Grade Slideshows by Dale Knight


• 10:00 am - 11:00 am Six Months of Hummingbirds in Your Yard with Steve Garr


• 11:00 am - Noon The Walker Sisters of Little Greenbrier with Arthur McDade


• 11:00 am - Noon Be Careful Out There with Joe Taft


• 11:15 am - 12:15 pm Tennessee Town and Country Scapes with Jack Carman


• 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Bringing Back a Legend Cougar Recovery in Eastern North America by Jay Tischendorf


• 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm A Studio in a Cooler by Jim Eastin


• 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm Where's Mommy? Rehabilitating Wildlife presented by Phyllis Rollins


• 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm The Fontana Project with Jerry Span


• 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm What's in the Camera Bag? Presented by Andrea Shetley


• 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm Let's Sketch a Bird - Advanced Drawing with Louise Bales (Pre-registration is required and is limited to 20 participants)


• 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Meet the Knoxville Zoo Bird Show with Nicki Edwards, Erin Gray, Jill Berry and Elisabeth Zafiris


• 2:15 pm - 3:15 pm Creating Sustainable Backyard Habitat for Wildlife with Phyllis Rollins


• 2:15 pm - 3:15 pm Hike Twentymile with Jerry Span


• 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm The Art of Dowsing: Do You have the Gift? Presented Charlie Monday (Pre-registration is required and is limited to 30 participants)


• 3:00 pm - 6:00 pm Wood Carving, Butterfly, Flower - PART 2 with Don Taylor Limited to 8 participants: pre-registration is required Participants must bring own carving knife Continued from Tuesday, 2:00 - 5:00 pm


• 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm Nature's Magical Moments: Reflection on Nature and Self by Ellen Hitchcock


• 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm Digital Photography-Shooting Like a Pro! With Richard Iceland


• 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm Mountain Families, Lives and Music performed by the Boogertown Gap Band


• 4:30 pm - 5:30 pm Hills-N-Hollows: An Appalachian Sampler with Mike and Kathy Gwinn


• 4:45 pm - 5:45 pm Hiking and Photography with Robert Schuffert


• 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm Music and Memories from an Earlier Time Greenbrier the Whaley Family Singers


• 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm Young Teddy Roosevelt by Mark Klemestrud


• 6:00 pm Sign ups for Saturday Hikes


• 7:00 pm Slow Jam with Tony Thomas - you can bring Your Own Instrument or simply enjoy and listen


• 7:00 - 7:45 pm The Wood Pickers: Old Time Celtic and Bluegrass Music performed by Jeanie Hilten and Friends


• 7:30 - 9:00 pm Conversations with a Tramp and an Evening with John Muir and Lee Stetson


• 8:30 pm "Lore of the Stars and Moon" with Stuart Carroll and if the Weather permits, the group will go outdoors

Wildlife viewing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Elk!

Almost 10 million visitors a year come to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to see the beautiful mountain views, fish the mountains streams and observe the bounty of wildlife that lives in the park. With all of the fantastic animals to watch in the park the most impressive and exciting is the North American Elk.

Elk were brought into the Great Smoky Mountains national park in 2001 as an experimental introduction which appears to be going quite well.

These huge animals once roamed all of the Smokies and the surrounding areas of Tennessee and North Carolina until the 1800's when elk were hunted to extinction in both states.

Now Elk can be found a quick ride away from Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge in the Cataloochee section of the Great Smoky Mountains national park and have been spreading out to Cosby, Oconaluftee, Smokemont and Big Creek.

A full gown male bull elk can grow up to almost 700 pounds and have a rack of antlers that can be as large as 5 feet across. Elk have a lifespan of 15 years and give birth to their young in the late spring and early summer.

The best time of the year to watch the elk in the Great Smoky Mountains national park is in September and October when the elk go into rut. At this time male elks called bulls bellow back and forth called bugling and fight to gather female elks called cows for their harem.

Year round the elk in the Great Smoky Mountains national park are a fantastic part of nature the whole family can enjoy.

Information about North American Elk in the Smokies.