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Wilderness
Wildlife Week 2019 Invites
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Outdoor Enthusiasts
to Pigeon Forge for
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Excursions, Seminars,
and More This Spring
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Pigeon
Forge, TN – April 2019 / Newsmaker Alert / Featuring more than
200 free sessions and activities spanning five days, Pigeon Forge’s award-winning
Wilderness
Wildlife Week is set for May 7-11. The event is headquartered at the
LeConte
Center at Pigeon Forge.
In its 29th year, Wilderness
Wildlife Week offers a variety of workshops, lectures, seminars, concerts,
hikes and other activities designed to introduce or reacquaint participants
of all ages with the great outdoors.
“Whether it’s a hike through
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, learning about wildflowers, or participating
in our kids’ trout fishing tournament, Wilderness Wildlife Week brings
together leading experts with outdoor enthusiasts of all ages and experiences,”
said Leon Downey, Pigeon Forge
executive director of tourism. “Over the course of five days, participants
have an opportunity to learn about the beautiful Smoky Mountains that we
call home.”
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The
event’s headline session features Jeff Rennicke in a program entitled Hiking
Towards Hope: Empowering the New Greatest Generation in the Great Outdoors
(May 7 at 7 p.m.). Forensics expert Dr. Bill Bass (May 8 at 7:45 p.m.)
returns with special guest emcee Frank Murphy to discuss forensic cases
throughout the Smoky Mountains region. Ken Jenkins, Judy Felts and friends
host the moving program Heaven & Nature Sing (May 9 at 7:30
p.m.) with Ken providing a second evening session entitled Inside Adventure:
My Unplanned and Exciting Happenings in the Smokies (May 11 at 5:30
p.m.). Additionally, Pulitzer prize finalist Ben Montgomery shares the
story of Grandma Gatewood and her experience on the Appalachian Trail during
The
Fascinating Story of Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: The Inspiring True Story
of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail (May 10 at 7:45 p.m.).
Outdoors enthusiasts, nature
lovers or those who simply want to learn more about Great Smoky Mountains
National Park can choose from lecture topics ranging from the area’s rich
heritage to conservation. Workshops focus on photography, fishing, wildflowers
and more.
Among the new sessions this
year are Love, Trails and Dinosaurs: The Inspirational Story of the
First Person With Autism to Complete All Great Smoky Mountains National
Park Trails with Theresa Moore, Cherokee Myths and Truths with
Jon Elder, I Found It in the Archives: Researching History and Family
at Great Smoky Mountains National Park with Michael Aday, Neatless,
Wheatless and Sleepless: East Tennessee’s Contributions to World War II
with Kathy Gwinn, and Ephemeral by Nature with Stephen Lyn Bales
where he looks into some of the unusual animals in the Smokies including
Appalachian pandas.
Outdoor excursions of all
levels are available throughout the week. Highlights include an 11-plus-mile
hike to the Mt. Cammerer Fire Tower located less than a mile off the Appalachian
Trail (May 10 from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), a six-hour hike highlighting
the People and Places of Cades Cove (May 10 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.), and
a nearly five-mile Hen Wallow Falls trek that takes hikers through a hemlock
and rhododendron forest (May 10 from 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.).
A special kids’ fishing tournament
kicks off on Saturday, May 11 with registration at LeConte Center Circle
Drive covered pavilion. The Wilderness Wildlife Week Youth Trout Tournament
will run from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. for children ages seven to 12. There is
no fee to participate in this tournament. Fishing supplies are not provided
to participants.
Throughout the concourse
more than 40 exhibits and vendors, including the not-for-profit Cades Cove
Preservation Association, East Tennessee Historical Society, and Keep Sevier
Beautiful, are open daily during the event beginning at 10 a.m.
This spring celebration of
the great outdoors is free and open to the public. For more information,
a complete schedule and registration details, visit MyPigeonForge.com.
About Pigeon Forge
Pigeon
Forge is located in East Tennessee, approximately 35 miles from Knoxville
and McGhee-Tyson Airport. Two-thirds
of the nation’s population east of the Mississippi River lives within a
day’s drive, making it an easily accessible family vacation destination.
The city’s neighbor is Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most-visited
national park in the U.S. It also is home to Dolly Parton’s Dollywood theme
park, Tennessee’s most-visited ticketed attraction. More information about
all aspects of Pigeon Forge are available at MyPigeonForge.com
or toll-free at 800-251-9100.
Media Contacts:
Trish
McGee
615-327-1189 ext. 327
Katherine
Henry
615-327-1189 ext 350
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