(2025 Balloons and Beyond Ep 1)

After enduring brutal summer heat in Florida, we left home on a rainy Saturday to visit family in Georgia. We often do this when we travel.

^{_{We enjoyed visits with Henry, Josh, Emilia and Liz, and with my sister, Kitty, and her husband, Mike.}}

Christmas in July.  Breakfast for dinner.  October in August?

Family visits behind us, we were surprised the next morning with brisk temps (50 degrees) as we camped in Cherokee National Forest near Knoxville, TN.   We fired up Pap’s furnace, arose and cooked breakfast to begin the day. Out came our jackets!

From our remote campsite on the North River we moved to Indian Boundary Campground, just 16 miles away, for the next three nights.    On the way, we stopped to enjoy Baby Falls and Bald River Falls, and later rode our bicycles around Indian Boundary Lake.  We continued to wear jackets in the cool October in August weather!     

Pick a Parkway

Perhaps you have driven the Blue Ridge Parkway, a 469-mile scenic highway that winds through the Appalachian Mountains in North Carolina and Virginia, or perhaps the Skyline Drive as it continues another 105 miles from the end of the Parkway through Shenandoah National Park, just 70 miles west of Washington DC.  

How about the Cherohala Skyway?  It connects Tellico Plains, TN and Robbinsville, NC through Cherokee NF in Tennessee and Nantahala NF in North Carolina.  The 43-mile scenic road rises to more than a mile high with mountain vistas, numerous overlooks and sweeping curves popular with motorcycle riders! (it’s very close to the well-known Tail of the Dragon motorcycle route) 

At one overlook, we hiked three miles to a small waterfall. Nearing the falls, we tightly held onto tree branches, roots and rocks as we descended the final quarter mile.  We ate lunch to the sounds of rushing water and gave thanks for God’s wonderful creation!

Cades Cove

The next day we left for a two-day visit to Cades Cove in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  The Cove is known for its 11-mile loop road with historic homesites and churches, and diverse wildlife (see Critter Count below). 

We have visited and camped at the Cove several times in the past, and although the loop road and campground were busy this time with Labor Day visitors, we enjoyed our two drives around the loop road.

^{A number of historic cabins and houses (above) and barns (below) can be toured in Cades Cove}

Critter Count

Deer – 8
Black bear – 2 (plus a couple other we just missed as evidenced by two bear jams)
Turkeys – 10
Glow worms (bioluminescent larvae of fungus gnats) – lots
(faintly glowing on the ground at North River Campground)

^{Deer and black bear were among the critters we saw in Cades Cove}

Next Week

Our travels continue to a deep and very ancient gorge, and we watch dinosaurs and sharks under the moonlight.