Tracking the Threat: The Growing Reality of Tick-Borne Illness in Western North Carolina
By Marge Farrington | Published 2026-05-17T17:57:19.761Z
Lifestyle
WNC -- May 17, 2026: For decades, residents and visitors enjoying the Blue Ridge Mountains operated under a comforting piece of local folklore: while our woods were full of ticks, the deep South didn't have to worry much about Lyme disease.
WNC -- May 17, 2026: For decades, residents and visitors enjoying the Blue Ridge Mountains operated under a comforting piece of local folklore: while our woods were full of ticks, the deep South didn't have to worry much about Lyme disease.Today, public health data and regional scientific tracking have completely debunked that myth. Led by multi-year surveillance from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) and independent university researchers, the data shows that t