Monday, April 27, 2015

The Great Smokies Adventure



Monday 3/31/2014
            Since my youth I have been enchanted, mesmerized by the Appalachian mountains, the Blue Ridge and Smokies that hover as guardians of this land, through the mists of smoky rain and the blue fog that compels the soul to soar and ignites a curious wonder and daring intrepid desire to seek to linger in the heaven of the mountains, exploring the subtle layers of the mystery of this land, from its history, hidden waterfalls and solitude peaks where you step into a fairyland on the earth.  For me the mountains have always been God’s temples and monuments on the earth, the forests the air of life and the rivers a form of baptism as I confess my humble failures in the midst of the extraordinary wonder of nature.  It is in the quiet places, the lost trails and back roads among the blue smoke of this ancient land, I find solace and rest in the healing in the mastery of the Great Smokies.  In the forest you see the miracle in every single tree – and started to understand the interconnected web of life and our duty to protect this land, and guard it as it guards and nourishes us.





          It is not a beauty that overwhelms you at first, rather it hearkens to great you with a subtle grandeur, and the more you explore the land…the more you come to fall in love with its deep impenetrable beauty.  It is a place, though harsh and at times volatile, has the power to soothe the soul.  If we sit quietly in the depths of the woods, one can hear the language of nature and in the language of nature, the glory of God as a creator and masterful artist reveals itself in soft vibrant conversation.      
          The language of nature is a wondrous sonnet that rhymes and beats to its own drum, a language universal; a language that stirs the soul and lifts the heart and fuels the lungs with air.  It is soft as a whisper, whistling in the singing of the leaves dancing in the spring wind, as harsh as the frost of a winter morn, a firestorm in autumn’s sunburst before the collapsing of the sky to the earth where it came.  It is bold and nuanced.  It is in the hills of the Great Smokies and the Blue Ridge Mountains I first fell in love with nature.  I found myself lost in the enchanting spell of this rugged, rambling high country.  This is a land where the mountains rise to meet the sky, colliding to form a vast ocean of blue. 

 This is the land of the blue smoke, where the mists rise out of the dense forests creating an ethereal mystic cloak, a veil of blue color.  The mountains roar with a subtle warmth, a concert of color and light.  Staring off into the sweeping panorama of the Smokies takes your breath away with a quiet wonder.  The scene is does not startle your senses with abrupt jagged, sheer cliff peaks of the Rocky Mountains, rather the Smokies entrance wanderers into its ancient magic, its alluring symphony.  The scene is a living work of art, nature’s watercolor.  The park is a living biosphere, it soars and dances, has mood swings from stormy cloudy mazes that swallow the mountains whole to ceaseless blue skies…The Great Smokies is a land where the mountains rise to meet the sky in an ocean of blue mist, the high country of the Great Smoky Mountains lures you into its mystery.  I am ready to explore, though honest enough to know that it will take 10,000 lifetimes to truly uncover all the secrets of this land…still I return, to quench my thirst.

          Still recovering from sleep deprivation, my mom and I slept in, before venturing into the western end of the Great Smoky National Park around 11:00 a.m.  We had hoped hike to Laurel Falls, a graceful cascade hidden in the forests.  Sadly we could not get a parking spot at this popular hiking trail.  The Smokies has limited parking at top attractions and it is essential to get an early start and have patience when touring the region.  The Smokies sees nearly 13 million visitors a year. 
          We decided to continue to drive to Cades Cove.  This isolated valley in Tennessee is surrounding with ambling beauty of the Smoky Mountains and open sky.  Cades Cove is steeped in history, legend and picturesque vistas.  
          Geologically, Cades Cove is a type of valley known as a “limestone window” created by erosion that removed the older Precambrian sandstone, thus exposing younger Paleozoic limestone buried beneath.  Weathering resistant formations, including Cades sandstone, which underlies Rich Mountain to the north and Elkmont and Thunderhead sandstones which form the Smokes crest to the south surround the cove, leaving it relatively isolated within the Great Smokies.  The weathering of the limestone produced deep, fertile soil, making Cades Cove attractive to early farmers.
          The majority of the rocks that make up Cades Cove are unaltered sedimentary rocks formed between 340 million and 570 million years ago during the Ordovician period. The Precambrian rocks that comprise the high ridges surrounding the cove are Ocoee Super Group sandstones formed approximately 1 billion years ago.   The mountains themselves were formed between 200 million 400 million years ago when the North American and African plates collided, thrusting the rock formations upward.  




          Prior to starting the 11 mile auto loop through historic Cades Cove, my mom and I did a half mile hike (Indian Graveyard) – investigated campground and picnic area. 
          The Cades Cove auto loop is an eleven mile one way road that traverses the history of this hidden valley oasis, where homesteaders lived off the land for centuries.   The Great Smoky National Park is more than just the mountains – it is the life of the mountains, the cultures of Cherokee to frontier settlers and pioneers who called this land home, a home where roots were as deep as the heart and the lungs to life…the people of blue smoke’s spirit lingers in the over a century old log cabins, churches and gristmills.  Cades Cove tells the story of human communities from feuds and friendships, toils and triumphs, the beauty of living in a land of plenty in spite of the perils of drought and storm, hardship and pain.  This land can renew the brokenness of spirit.  The mists of the Smokies like a cloud of prayers from heaven releasing a cleansing rain.
          My mom and I took our time enjoying the sights at Cades Cove, exploring the history of the Grist Mill and breathing in the mountain air imagining the past in the cove from the Cherokee to the bustling farming community to the present day. 
          My mom and I left Cades Cove around four o’clock and drove to the gateway town of Townsend, TN. Stomachs grumbling after a day of sightseeing we decided to stop at the Monte Real Mexican Restaurant.  I love Mexican cuisine and I have the waistline to prove it.  Monte Real offers delicious homemade authentic Mexican food with fresh ingredients.  Their service was upbeat, friendly and prompt.  I ordered the Tacos Carne Asada, seasoned tender steak tacos in made from scratch corn tortillas, cilantro, onion and spicy salsa.  My mom ordered the Pollo Loco, a perfectly seared chicken dish with rice and refried beans.  I have eaten a lot of Mexican food in my time and this ranks among the best…it was so fresh and authentic…muy delicioso!
          After a  ‘dunch’ we drove back into the park and stopped for a view of the roaring rapids of the Little River, where enjoyed a ¼ mile hike (turned around because of creeks and did not have waterproof hiking boots with us).


          We spent the rest of the evening relaxing in the room…I fell asleep around 7:30 still sleep deprived from the trip across the country…more adventures tomorrow.

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