Helen Bradshaw

Helen Bradshaw is a freelance writer and a born-and-raised Floridian. As such, she has an aptitude for finding alligators and an affinity for the weird and wonderful stories of the South. She graduated from Northwestern University with a focus in environmental journalism.

A cat stands on a desk with a typewriter

Arts & Culture

Hemingway’s Six-Toed Cats Are Thriving and Plentiful in Key West

Rather than a farewell to arms, these cats say hello to extra toes. On the Hemingway Home’s sixtieth anniversary, a look at one of the writer’s strangest legacies.

Four baby sea turtles move toward the ocean on a beach

Land & Conservation

Sea Turtles Set a Record in a Hurricane-Filled Year

It’s been a good season for nesting, but storms brought extra challenges for hatchlings

Land & Conservation

This Is Hardly the First Time Monkeys Have Gone Missing

The latest saga in South Carolina is part of long tradition of AWOL primates, many of whom are never found

All Day Darling in Asheville, North Carolina

Food & Drink

New Orleans Shows Solidarity with North Carolina in a New Collaborative Dinner Series

Chefs from both cities are raising funds and braising ribs to support Helene recovery

Food & Drink

Melissa M. Martin on Cooking by the Cajun Calendar

In her new cookbook, Bayou, the Louisiana chef shares her thoughts on the slow life, old-school fishing, and biscuits made with soda

Arts & Culture

Checking In on Sam, the Farm Cat Who Found His Way Home After Eleven Years

The South Carolina feline is thriving after being reunited with his owner and mending fences with his former canine nemesis

A dark furry ape like figure moves through a marshy landscape

SOUTHERN MYTHS AND LEGENDS

A Close Encounter with the Florida Skunk Ape

The stinky, four-toed cryptid is said to lurk in swamps across the Sunshine State. Years ago, I almost met him.

Land & Conservation

In the Hurricane-Ravaged South, Old-School Seed Saving Becomes More Important than Ever

Farmers, gardeners, and seed collectives are rallying together to rebuild in the short term—and forge a more resilient future

An aerial view of Uncle Shuck’s corn maze

Seven Southern

Seven Southern Corn Mazes We Wouldn’t Mind Getting Lost In

Straw hats off to these seriously complex designs

SOUTHERN MYTHS AND LEGENDS

Meet the Ozark Howler, the South’s Most Cryptic Cryptid

The shape-shifter with a haunting scream is uniquely suited to its “complicated” home turf

A woman walks across a plank over water toward her farm

Hurricane Helene

Western North Carolina Farms Rush to Rebuild Before Winter Hits

After Helene, farmers have been supporting one another, but food and fencing are still desperately needed in agricultural communities

A portrait of a woman wearing a red suit

Travel

My Town: Pamela Brown’s Lexington, Kentucky

The CNN anchor shares her favorite hometown spots, from dive bars to horse barns

The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in North Carolina

Seven Southern

Seven Haunted Southern Places You Might Not Have Heard Of

These spooky locales will take you off the beaten path and into macabre urban legend

HURRICANES HELENE AND MILTON

How One Florida Zoo Got Creative to Keep Its Animals Safe During the Hurricanes

As the winds raged outside, the St. Augustine Alligator Farm had vultures in bathroom stalls, small animals tucked away—and gators where they always are