These are stressful times. So much strife in the world, polarized beliefs, and intolerance. Some days it's too much for a sensitive person, and I have to turn off the news and turn off my thoughts. I use nature, and the grand expanse of Smoky Mountains at my doorstep,...
The last week of October 2012, the long arms of Hurricane Sandy produced a Smoky Mountains wonderland of snow in autumn. The Smokies offered stunning photos from all the overlooks. The photo above was taken from the Gatlinburg by-pass, with the Park Vista hotel in the...
All of the Smoky Mtns photos on this page are of the Elijah Oliver cabin. Elijah was John Oliver's son, and he was born in Cades Cove in 1824. After a time away from the Smoky Mountains, he returned to Cades Cove after the Civil War. Notice the "strangers room"...
Rainbow Falls has been a popular Smokies hiking destination since long before the formation of the National Park. LeConte Creek plunges near 80 feet over a massive cliff face that Harvey Broome called an "ethereal diorama," creating the highest single-drop waterfall...
Matilda "Aunt Tildy" Shields married Henry Whitehead after her first husband ran off. Henry built the house pictured above in the Chestnut Flats area of Cades Cove in 1895. Notice the brick chimney! This structure might be called the ultimate log cabin, or sometime...
It's a Spiritual Sunday again. Time to ponder whatever comes to mind. Like walking in the Smokies with your head pointed upwards. Watch the squirrels jump from treetop to treetop. Appreciate the soft sunlight filtering down through the canopy. Maybe spot a woodpecker...
Dogwood Rain is one of my most enduring Smoky Mtns photos. This shot was taken along the Middle Prong in the Tremont area of the Smokies, which is one of my favorite locations. The photograph was taken in a light drizzle, umbrella in hand. With the rainy mist hanging...
John Oliver was a pioneer who built his log cabin around 1826 in the Cades Cove area of the Great Smoky Mountains. The homestead is typical of the time with logs trimmed with a broad ax, fit together with dovetail corner joints, and the cracks filled in with a mortar...
Lately I've become hooked on black and white conversions. A couple of weeks ago I posted some black and white Smoky Mountains photos from Cades Cove. Today's offerings are from along the Roaring Fork. In the digital era the camera's sensor records everything in color....
George Washington "Carter" Shields lived on this homestead from around 1910 to 1920, although the cabin dates from the 1830s. Carter Shields place is one of the stops along the Cades Cove loop road in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Carter Shields was a...
The Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail is a narrow, one-way loop and a wonderful opportunity for Smoky Mountains photos. Start from stoplight number 8 in Gatlinburg, proceed up the hill and enter the Smokies at the Cherokee Orchard entrance. The six-mile route will take...
If you follow this blog, you know that I enjoy volunteering to help shuttle Appalachian Trail hikers between Gatlinburg and the Trail. I love to get up early, pick up the hikers at their hotel, and head up the mountain. Everyone has a story, and they are all happy to...