The story of the elk in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Cataloochee Valley — and the story of the valley itself — has nearly come full circle.

Elk now stand in the open fields where other elk roamed more than 100 years ago. In the interim, more than 1,000 people settled here to build a life and community this valley, erecting homes, churches and schools and establishing farmland.

But similar to those elk ancestors, the people are gone now, largely due to resettlement during the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s development.

First reintroduced in 2001, a new elk herd now populates the valley, attracting thousands of visitors who come to see them and enjoy the beauty of the valley.

Here, Carolina Public Press offers a photo essay on the valley and the herd.

And go here to read more from Carolina Public Press about the elk, the park staff and volunteers, and the visitors who come to see them.

[galobj viewid=77]

Close window X

Republish this article

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. You may republish our stories for free, online or in print. Simply copy and paste the article contents from the box below. Note, some images and interactive features may not be included here. Read our Republishing Guidelines for more information.

Photo essay: In a secluded WNC valley, a herd of elk live in the limelight

by Colby Rabon, Carolina Public Press
July 3, 2013

<h1>Photo essay: In a secluded WNC valley, a herd of elk live in the limelight</h1> <p class="byline">by Colby Rabon, Carolina Public Press <br />July 3, 2013</p> <div class="wp-block-image wp-caption"> <figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img src="http://carolinapublicpress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/2013CataloocheeElkSelects11-199x300.gif" alt="One of the estimated 140 elk living in Cataloochee looks across the valley in June. Colby Rabon/Carolina Public Press" class="wp-image-15921" height="300" width="199" /><figcaption>One of the estimated 140 elk living in Cataloochee looks across the valley in June. Colby Rabon/Carolina Public Press</figcaption></figure> </div> <p>The story of the elk in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Cataloochee Valley — and the story of the valley itself — has nearly come full circle.</p> <p>Elk now stand in the open fields where other elk roamed more than 100 years ago. In the interim, more than 1,000 people settled here to build a life and community this valley, erecting homes, churches and schools and establishing farmland.</p> <p>But similar to those elk ancestors, the people are gone now, largely due to resettlement during the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s development.</p> <p>First reintroduced in 2001, a new elk herd now populates the valley, attracting thousands of visitors who come to see them and enjoy the beauty of the valley.</p> <p>Here, Carolina Public Press offers a photo essay on the valley and the herd.</p> <p><a href="http://carolinapublicpress.org/15893/elk-herd-transforms-cataloochee-as-thousands-of-visitors-seek-eyeful" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">And go here to read more from Carolina Public Press about the elk, the park staff and volunteers, and the visitors who come to see them.</a></p> <p><strong>[galobj viewid=77]</strong></p> <p>This <a target="_blank" href="https://carolinapublicpress.org/15920/photo-essay-in-a-secluded-wnc-valley-a-herd-of-elk-live-in-the-limelight/">article</a> first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://carolinapublicpress.org">Carolina Public Press</a> and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.<img src="https://i0.wp.com/carolinapublicpress.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/cropped-cropped-CPPlogo_icon_RGB.png?fit=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1" style="width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;"><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://carolinapublicpress.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=15920" style="width:1px;height:1px;"></p> Copy to Clipboard

1