Community Calendar

October is one of the best times of year to stargaze at Grandfather Mountain. The air is cool and clear, and the summer constellations are still very prominent, with some early winter sights making their appearance later in the evening. Our goal for this class is to create a familiarity with the night sky and learn the basics of stargazing that can be applied on your own on any clear night throughout the year. We’ll start in the classroom by exploring some of the best print and digital resources for exploring the night sky and cover some of the basics of stargazing and how to orient to the night sky. We’ll also discuss the use of planispheres, star maps and star charts to find some of the most beautiful deep sky wonders that can be seen through binoculars or small telescopes. During the evening hours, we’ll be out at various viewing locations on the mountain, practicing our stargazing skills while looking for meteors and learning about some of the most prominent stars, constellations and other objects visible this time of year. This event costs $60 for general admission and $51 for members of Grandfather Mountain’s Bridge Club – plus tax. Limited to 15 participants.

Writers are encouraged to meet at Mountains Branch Library in Lake Lure on the third Thursday of every month at 10:30am to share their work and offer feedback and ideas with other writers! No registration is needed.

Spend 2+ hours as a jeweler!

We will work with silver wire to create a set of three textured stacking rings.

Learn the techniques you need to fuse the silver, hammer, and polish the rings to a nice shine. Leave class feeling accomplished and ready to show off your work!

You will use a torch in this workshop. (Don't be intimidated, we'll walk you through it!)

Close-toed shoes recommended and please tie long hair back for safety.

$115, all tools and materials needed for class will be provided.

*Arrive 15 minutes early to sign the safety waiver and get settled.

**Convenient parking is available just below the studio in either the Harrah's Parking Garage.

Spend 2+ hours as a jeweler!

We will work with silver wire to create a set of three textured stacking rings.

Learn the techniques you need to fuse the silver, hammer, and polish the rings to a nice shine. Leave class feeling accomplished and ready to show off your work!

You will use a torch in this workshop. (Don't be intimidated, we'll walk you through it!)

Close-toed shoes recommended and please tie long hair back for safety.

$115, all tools and materials needed for class will be provided.

*Arrive 15 minutes early to sign the safety waiver and get settled.

**Convenient parking is available just below the studio in either the Harrah's Parking Garage.

RiddleFest 2025 will feature ETSU faculty members Roy Andrade and Kalia Yeagle. They will explore “Music of the Appalachian Highlands, Setting the Stage for the Birth of Country Music.” Andrade (guitar, mandolin, banjo) and Yeagle (fiddle) teach in the Bluegrass, Old Time, and Roots Music program in the Department of Appalachian Studies at East Tennessee State University. Together they have been investigating the musicians and music of the southern Appalachian Mountains with reference to the musical development of Lesley Riddle and AP Carter and the birth of country music in the early twentieth century. RiddleFest 2025 Free Seminar and Concert will be held on October 25th in the Burnsville Town Center. The evening concert will open with the ETSU Old Time Ramblers, a string band composed of ETSU students in the Bluegrass, Old Time, and Roots Music program. Tickets for the Concert are $20 for adults.

Writers are encouraged to meet at Mountains Branch Library in Lake Lure on the third Thursday of every month at 10:30am to share their work and offer feedback and ideas with other writers! No registration is needed.

Writers are encouraged to meet at Mountains Branch Library in Lake Lure on the third Thursday of every month at 10:30am to share their work and offer feedback and ideas with other writers! No registration is needed.

Writers are encouraged to meet at Mountains Branch Library in Lake Lure on the third Thursday of every month at 10:30am to share their work and offer feedback and ideas with other writers! No registration is needed.

Writers are encouraged to meet at Mountains Branch Library in Lake Lure on the third Thursday of every month at 10:30am to share their work and offer feedback and ideas with other writers! No registration is needed.

Writers are encouraged to meet at Mountains Branch Library in Lake Lure on the third Thursday of every month at 10:30am to share their work and offer feedback and ideas with other writers! No registration is needed.