High Country Press

Sep. 20, 2017. Looking to stay up-to-date on what’s happening in your neighborhood? Want to keep an eye on criminal activity in your area? Take a look at these recent incident and arrest reports from the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office and the Boone Police Department. Read more…
Compiled by Kate Herman

July 26, 2017. BANNER ELK, N.C. — How well can you spell? For the children competing in the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, six will enter, but only one speller will leave with the title of C-H-A-M-P-I-O-N. The Lees-McRae College Theatre Arts production, The 25th Putnam County Spelling Bee, will kick off the fall semester with performances from Sept. 28-30 at 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 1 at 2 p.m. in Hayes Auditorium and Broyhill Theatre.Directed by Gabriel Vanover, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is praised for its unique balance of charm and comedy. / Read more…

What’s going on in your community? Here’s a brief update on the emails we received today. Check back each day for an updated list of events going on in the area. As always, please feel free to email us about your event or update.

Quilt Meeting, 10/5

Mayview Madness 5k Race Packet Pick Up at Stick Boy Bread Company Thursday &Friday, 9/30

Confederate Women as Leaders and C.E.O.s: A New Destiny, 10/11 

Read more…
Compiled by Kate Herman

Sept. 21, 2017. The following are recent obituary notices from Austin and Barnes and Hampton funeral homes in Boone and Reins-Sturdivant in Newland. Send obituary notices to jesse@highcountrypress.com. Compiled by Jesse Wood / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. Anticipation and emotion about an Appalachian State football game is at fever pitch for Saturday’s clash with Wake Forest, schools only 86 miles apart. It will mark Wake Forest’s first time playing the Mountaineers in Boone. Billed as “Black Saturday” for Appalachian State, the game will kick off at 3:30 p.m. in Kidd Brewer Stadium. It will be televised on ESPN3. By Tim Gardner / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. In his latest fall color report, Dr. Howard Neufeld, an App State professor known as the ‘Fall Color Guy,’ said that fall color may arrive at least seven days earlier than he’s seen before. “If colors continue to develop at the pace of this last week, I may have to state, for about the first time ever, that I think colors may come early this year, by at least 7 days. However, the coming week is supposed to be warm (mid-70s in the Boone area) and that may slow down the color development,” Neufeld wrote. By Jesse Wood • Photo by Skip Sickler / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. A look at the recent deed transfers in Watauga County. The information comes courtesy of the Watauga County Register of Deeds. Compiled by Debbie Carter / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. Fall starts tomorrow. The Autumn Equinox will occur at 4:02 p.m. on Friday in the Northern Hemisphere. RaysWeather.com forecasts that the sunny, warm and dry weather we’ve had for the past week will continue. Photo by Sharon Glatthorn / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. As a part of the Constitution Day celebration at Appalachian State University, Representative Virginia Foxx took part in the ceremony by reading Article I Section I of the U.S. Constitution. Constitution Day commemorates the formation and signing of the U.S. Constitution on Sept. 17, 1787. / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. It’s the spookiest time of the year again at Tweetsie Railroad! The Ghost Train will return on Friday and Saturday nights from Sept. 22 to Oct. 28, 2017, transforming North Carolina¹s first theme park into a delightfully frightful destination. Each year, visitors travel from all over the Southeast to enjoy this family-friendly Halloween celebration and take in the gorgeous fall leaves in the Blue Ridge Mountains. / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. On the eve of one of the most anticipated college football games in North Carolina this year, several local agencies have partnered to create a signature event that will kickoff the weekend for locals, visitors, and fans of both teams. Touchdown Boone takes place Friday, Sept. 22, from 5-8 p.m. in Downtown Boone, just one day prior to Appalachian State University playing host to Wake Forest University at Kidd Brewer Stadium. / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. The Watauga Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Boone will hold its annual customer appreciation sale located at 1200 Archie Carroll Road on Saturday, Sept. 30 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. All proceeds from the ReStore serve as a primary revenue source for the local Watauga Habitat affiliate. / Read more…

Sept. 21, 2017. From Friday to Sunday, Sept. 22 to 24, 2017, N.C.-based Americana band Possum Jenkins and dB Productions will host the 4th annual Carolina Ramble & Reunion at beautiful Brayshaw farm near Boone in Bethel, N.C. The Ramble is an intimate, fall music festival featuring food, camping, games, and fun for the whole family. / Read more…

Sept. 20, 2017. Approximately fifty people gathered at Grandfather Mountain on Tuesday to honor and commemorate two key individuals for their service on the Woolly Worm Festival for the past 39 years.  The Kiwanis Club of Blowing Rock held a luncheon to celebrate achievements of the Festival founder, Jim Morton, who passed away in April, and Roy Krege, who has served as “Mr. Woolly Worm” since the early days of the event and announced his retirement at last year’s festival. By Jan Todd / Read more…

July. 26, 2017. In the effort to reduce the impact of climate change one approach is to decrease greenhouse gases by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.  This can be done by growing plants, especially long-lived plants like trees.  On October 6, Appalachian State University will host the ASU Forest Offsets Workshop to discuss how this might be encouraged and implemented on a large scale in the Appalachian region. This workshop will take place from 9 to 4 in the Plemmons Student Union (263 Locust Street, Boone, NC, 28608), and will involve forest researchers, project developers, and forest landowners. By Kate Herman / Read more…

Sept. 20, 2017. Carolina Climbers Coalition (CCC) is pleased to announce the purchase of Buckeye Knob in Watauga County, North Carolina. The purchase was made possible with a $120,000 loan from the Access Fund Climbing Conservation Loan Program. CCC and adjacent landowners also worked together to donate access and recreation easements, providing access to Buckeye Knob and permanent climbing access to the nearby Barn Boulders. / Read more…

July 26, 2017. North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Wayne Goodwin will be the featured speaker at the Watauga County Democratic Party’s Fall Rally on Saturday, September 30. The rally is hosted by the ASU chapter of the College Democrats. / Read more…

July 26, 2017. Come and join Appalachian State on September 23rd, 2017 at 8 a.m. for our annual Black Saturday 5K! Everyone is invited to participate, and door prizes will be handed out to some lucky participants! The Black Saturday 5K started to help raise money for the Jim Avant Scholarship Fund, to award money to hard-working Recreation Management students at Appalachian State / Read more…

What’s going on in your community? Here’s a brief update on the emails we received today. Check back each day for an updated list of events going on in the area. As always, please feel free to email us about your event or update.

Fire Prevention week, 10/8- 1o/14

Blue Prints and Bow Ties Live Auction and Gala, 10/19

High Country Walk & Run for Breast Cancer, 10/28

Entries for Songwriting Contest Accepted, 10/1

Fall Festival and Campout

Read more…
Compiled by Kate Herman

Sept. 19, 2017. The Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce held its annual State of the Town in the American Legion building on Monday evening. Interested citizens received updates on the U.S. 321 widening project, the Middle Fork Greenway project, chamber activities, tourism and other projects in town. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

What’s going on in your community? Here’s a brief update on the emails we received today. Check back each day for an updated list of events going on in the area. As always, please feel free to email us about your event or update.

OUT in the High Country Training Opportunity, 10/13

Watauga County Gospel Singing, 9/23

Emily Arbour to Sing at St. Mary of the Hills, 9/30

Read more…
Compiled by Katie Benfield

Sep. 19, 2017. Social dancing is an ageless art where dancers of all ages can experience the joy of rhythm and beat together. On Saturday, September 30th, the Boone Shag Club and Appalachian State University Department of Theater and Dance will host the 2nd Annual Community-Wide Fall Shag Dance. The event will take place on Appalachian State University’s campus at the Reich College of Education Building.Tickets are available for $25, which includes dinner, the live band, and dance. By Kate Herman – Photos by Ken Ketchie and Sandi Solomon / Read more…

Sep. 18, 2017. The Hughlene Bostian Frank Visiting Writers Series at Appalachian State University will resume Sept. 21 with two presentations by Jeremy B. Jones, an award-winning writer of creative nonfiction. Jones is both a frequently published essayist and the author of “Bearwallow: A Personal History of a Mountain Homeland” (John F. Blair Publisher, 2014), which won the 2014 Appalachian Book of the Year in nonfiction and was awarded a gold medal in the 2015 Independent Publisher Book of the Year Awards in memoir. / Read more…

What’s going on in your community? Here’s a brief update on the emails we received today. Check back each day for an updated list of events going on in the area. As always, please feel free to email us about your event or update.

Beech Mountain Season Pass Sale, 10/2

Celebrating 50 Years on Top! 11/24

Beech Mountain Resort Specials

Legal Aid N.C. Clinic: Landlord/Tenant Rights, 9/28

Small Business Bootcamp, 9/27

Blue Ridge Parkway Evening Program, 9/23

Weekly Events at Lost Province Brewing Company, 9/18-9/24

Starting Monday, Sept. 18, join Lees-McRae College in the Outdoor Nation Campus Challenge   

Brahm Presents Coffee with the Curator, featuring “The Village of Blowing Rock: Exploring our History”, 9/19

Brahm Presents Waste Land, 9/21

Free Admission through Museum Day, 9/23

Brahm’s Item of the Week

Read more…
Compiled by Kate Herman

Sept. 18, 2017  “American Assassin” stars Dylan O’Brien as CIA asset Mitch Rapp. The paperback-based Rapp is an action hero akin to Jack Ryan, Jack Reacher, Jason Bourne, and I’ll even throw James Bond in there. O’Brien is best known for the “Maze Runner” series, a teenagers-in-a-dystopian-future franchise akin to “The Hunger Games,” “Divergent,” and “The Host.” All he needs now is an unimaginative superhero film and he’ll be the king of late-to-the-party knockoffs.By Bob Garver. / Read more…

Sept. 18, 2017. Randy Kelly, program advisor for Student Engagement and Leadership at App State and manager of Legends, is retiring after 31 years of working for the university. His retirement celebration party was held at Appalachian Mountain Brewery on Saturday. His last show as Legends manager was Friday’s sold out show featuring Chase Rice. By Jesse Wood • Photos by Ken Ketchie / Read more…

Sept. 18, 2017. High Country temperatures are beginning to cool, but not the busy summer real estate season. In August local Realtor activity hit a high for the year, surpassing 200 for the second straight month. Interest rates dropped throughout the month, and by mid-September were at their lowest levels of 2017. / Read more…

Sept. 18, 2017. Appalachian State had to have an offensive rally and a last-second defensive stand to survive in their Sun Belt Conference opener at Texas State last Saturday night.  The Mountaineers got both. With quarterback Taylor Lamb igniting a comeback by throwing several third-down completions to true freshman receivers and senior safety A.J. Howard making a tackle at the 1-yard line on the final play, Appalachian State claimed what aptly could be described as a magical 20-13 victory. By Tim Gardner / Read more…

Sept. 18, 2017. North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Wayne Goodwin will be the featured speaker at the Watauga County Democratic Party’s Fall Rally on Saturday, September 30. The rally is hosted by the ASU chapter of the College Democrats. / Read more…

Sept. 15, 2017 BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State Athletics has announced kickoff times for three of its remaining 2017 home football contests.
The Oct. 7 homecoming game vs. New Mexico State will begin at 3:30 p.m. Kickoff for the Oct. 21 tilt vs. Coastal Carolina, which is part of the App State Family Weekend, is also 3:30 p.m. The Dec. 2 regular-season finale against Louisiana will kick off at 2:30 p.m.
Television coverage will be announced later, and game times are subject to change.
The Nov. 9 Thursday night home game against Georgia Southern has already been announced as a 7:30 p.m. kickoff, televised by ESPNU. / Read more…

July. 26, 2017. On Wednesday September 6, The Avery Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting and open house event for Rustik by Underwood from 5 p.m.- 8 p.m. Complimentary beer, wine, and appetizers were provided. Toni Gualt won the raffle prize. Rustik by Underwood is located at 65 Orchard lane, Banner Elk N.C. By Kate Herman – Photos by Ken Ketchie / Read more…

July 26, 2017. (Mouth of Wilson, VA)—Grayson Highlands State Park’s 41st Annual Fall Festival will be held Saturday, September 23 and Sunday, September 24, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is a $10 per day parking fee. / Read more…

July. 26, 2017. On October 3, from 4:30 p.m.- 6:00 p.m., AppalFRESH (Appalachian Food Research for Equity, Sustainability and Health) Collaborative will be hosting Community FEaST (Food, Engagement, and Storytelling).  The FEaST invites local members and the Appalachian State University community to gather around a 100-yard-continuous-table for a free meal. The meal is vegetarian-friendly and will include baked potatoes, salad and a plethora of toppings. AppalFRESH Collaborative is a campus group that is composed of students, faculty, and staff. By Kate Herman – Photos by Carla Ramsdell / Read more…

Sept. 14, 2017. On Sept. 13, Boone Police Department along ASU Police, and Watauga County Sheriff’s Office came together in effort to help locate and identify the campsites of homeless persons in the area of the Greenway Trail. In addition to the Town of Boone, ASU and Watauga County both have properties that they patrol located close to the Greenway Trail. / Read more…

Sept. 14, 2017. School performance data released by the N.C. State Board of Education shows that Watauga County Schools has improved its four year graduation rate for the second year running, reaching a record high of 91.2 percent. The school system exceeded a 90 percent graduation rate for the first time last year. / Read more…