Uwharries

As I write this article, we’re in the wake of our second major snowstorm this season – several inches of pretty snow capped with an ugly layer of ice. I’m stuck in a condo in Atlanta, negotiating slippery sidewalks with an elderly terrier. My plans to drive up to the Uwharries for the week are […]

The snow at Christmas in 2010 was a rare event in the Uwharries as it was in much of North Carolina. These photos were taken by Ruth Ann Grissom and Watson Ross as they enjoyed the event. Read story related to these photos.

We’ve had some heavy machinery on our land in southern Randolph County the past few months. Rest assured – this earth-moving equipment has NOT been there to prepare the land for a subdivision, fast-food chain or strip mall. It’s part of a wetlands restoration project through the state Ecosystem Enhancement Program (EEP). When streams or […]

Photos chronicling the restoration of a stream through the North Carolina Ecosystem Enhancement Program (EEP). This project, flowing into the Uwharrie River in southern Randolph County, allows water to flow in a slow, meandering path from a breeched pond to the river. The project replaces compromised streams and ditches that had caused silting and water […]

Ask an outdoor enthusiast to name a special natural area in the state and he might mention mountain bogs, Carolina bays or longleaf pine savannas. If pressed to identify one in the piedmont, he might squint and scratch his head and stammer. The piedmont is often described as fragmented, cultivated and compromised. The gentle hills […]

Four years ago, my sister, Amy, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her treatment – six rounds of chemo, two surgeries and 33 sessions of radiation – took a toll on her right shoulder. Her surgeon suggested some basic exercises for strength and mobility. She also started swimming laps. She liked being buoyant in the warm […]

The ground between Roberdo and Wadeville sometimes shakes when the Warrior football team of West Montgomery High takes to the field, but last October the tremors were due to a special project on land adjacent to the campus. The “West Montgomery tract” includes an 80-acre stand of mature longleaf that the US Forest Service has […]

This last week in September finally saw a break in the heat from our hotter than average summer this year. Bringing us out of near-drought conditions, rain finally came and with it the 60s and 70s temps we’d all been waiting for so longingly. Unfortunately for some areas this sudden rush of rainfall also resulted […]

In fall, native plants in the Uwharries offer up a bounty of fruits for wildlife and humans alike. Muscadines seemed to ripen a little early this year. My mom and I picked dozens of deep purple berries in mid-August. Their musky scent helped us locate several vines. Their flavor is just as intense. There’s nothing […]

With our warm late summer temperatures, moist conditions from humidity and evening thunderstorms, this is certainly the time of year to spot mushrooms in the woods. Growing up in the area, I’d always took note of mushrooms, but rarely given them more than a passing glance. Then a few years ago, I overheard a biologist […]