When I go to the beach condo I always catch the sunrise. It's amazing how breathtaking something is that happens everyday, everywhere on this big spinny thing.

I think I figured out the magic of sunrises/sunsets a few years ago, when I realized that while they happen everyday, I'll only get to see so many of them...& one never knows which one will be the last one sees...

Hope that doesn't seem morbid, but it was an epiphany to me...

Anyway, on with the show...

Some of the views from the porch of our cabin...

If anyone remembers my posts about last year's trip, you may recall my account of the terror-filled trip up the mountain to the cabin...different cabin this year, but guess what...she booked us a cabin even higher up that same hill...no place for an acrophobe like me...

I was ready to kill her.

But the rhododendrerons(sp?) were still in bloom...

And I was the one brave enough to peek over the edge of the porch to spot them, directly below...she had to go around the outside to get these shots...

Absolutely beautiful pics again this year Scotz! Glad you had a great time, even if the cabin was a bit higher up than you'd have liked. :nod:

There's an interesting piece of real estate in the middle of the Smokies called Cade's Cove, an odd bit of pasture land in the midst of a moutain range. The native tribes had already been using it for agricultural purposes for a long time when white settlers came to the area in the early 1800s. We had been meaning to take the tour before, but lack of time & a full gas tank had kept us out. This time I topped up first.

In the third pic, mrs Zoid is the figure you see in the foreground...there were deer grazing near a fence at least 1/2 mile away from where we stopped, & she was bound & determined to get pics of them. Problem was, even with her tele lens, she had to travel a good distance to get a shot. From afar, you couldn't tell if they were deer or cattle. She was quite winded on her return...I thought the mountains in the background made a good shot, & her in the picture gives a better perspective of how far away they are

Great pics Scotzoid we went to Townsend a couple of years ago and really enjoyed the country.

Was that last pic scot-free?

Hardly...I was behind the lens...

jay-t, we passed thru Townsend on our way to Cade's Cove...in fact, we got in the habit a few years back of taking the scenic route via the Foothills Pkwy & Townsend to avoid the always heavy traffic going thru Sevierville & Pigeon Forge...looking around at Townsend, we discussed maybe looking for places to stay there next trip, seems to still be the semi-quiet place that Gatlinburg used to be many moons ago...

We camp out just off the parkway when we are there. the Next time you are there check out the little logging measuem pretty neat place.If we ever moved to Tenn thats we I would like to live.

my idea of roughing is a bad hotel.

but you still have to sleep on wrinkled sheets :)

More great pictures. Love Cades Cove. Beautiful country.

Beautiful country.

Echoes of some of the Oz bits of my childhood a million years ago.