Our 5-week trip primarily in the Appalachian
Mountains followed the unfolding of spring as we traveled north with blooming
dogwoods and azaleas dotting our path from Georgia
to Massachusetts.
Like our previous trip we hoped to avoid freezing temperatures, which we did.
:-)
Our trip had its ups and downs. We were at the highest point in the United States east of the Mississippi and in one of the east’s deepest gorges. As we drove from Georgia to Virginia we drove up and down steep grades snaking our way around hairpin turns watching the elevation change by thousands of feet, but thankfully the 4Runner did fine pulling our little trailer over the mountains.
We enjoyed our time along the way, hiking, taking pictures, sight seeing, and letterboxing. Mostly we hiked. We hiked together and sometimes we did his and her hikes, where Bill’s hikes were more rugged or longer. We hiked in the rain a couple times, but mostly hiked in the sunshine.
We saw quite a few waterfalls and cascades: some from far away, some from close up. Some huge or tall and others a mere trickle over some rocks. Some were right by the road and some required steep hikes or lots of steps to see. Sometimes Bill scrambled to precarious places to get the best possible vantage point. We just loved the sounds as we walked along a cascading stream. Here are the major ones.
The mountain trails typically did not get above tree line, but we’d hike to balds, towers, and rock outcroppings. At Stone Mountain, the biggest rock outcropping, we hiked up and got a great view. At Clingmans Dome and Mt Mitchell (the tallest peaks on our route) we took the steep paths to the observation towers. We saw Mt Mitchell from Clingmans Dome, but it was too cloudy to see Clingmans Dome from Mt Mitchell.
We also enjoyed the mountain vistas as we drove, stopping at many overlooks along the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive.
We were fascinated by the effects of lighting and weather changes to the view. Coming back to an overlook when the clouds were rising on a misty morning or at sunset created a different look than when we saw things in the middle of a clear day. And we certainly understood why the mountains were called the Smokies and the Blue Ridge.
We spotted interesting wildlife along the way: deer, elk, and one bear! Snakes interrupted both of us on separate hikes and we enjoyed having enough time to watch the smaller things.
Barbara letterboxed some: tackling Stone Mountain letterboxing with Massachusetts friends Melissa and Matt, finding boxes along a tough trail at Unicoi State Park with Melissa, and having a picnic lunch with Linda near the US’s first letterbox, Max Patch.
Although most of our time was in nature, we got a little history, as well: Revolutionary War history in South Carolina (we’ll be back for more of that), Appalachian pioneer life, and Roosevelt era history.
And then there were the
unexpected things like meeting a former colleague of Bill’s while hiking, a
serendipitous dinner with a letterboxing friend in Atlanta, lunch at a restaurant overlooking
the mountains, or going to a place where everything is made from gourds.
We had a great time. Time to
plan some future trips…
