Hiking in the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee is AWESOME.... There is SO much to see!! You might see some crazy people wearing matching t-shirts, hiking in the rain!!!!! (Wonder who??) OR--you might see some other neat hikers! OR---you may see some gorgeous cascades and/or waterfalls. OR---maybe you'll see some wildlife ---like a BEAR!!!! Hmmmmm....
Today I'll share with you some things which we saw while hiking next to the Little River, above the Elkmont Campground, on a RAINY day on May 22, 2012.
The picture above shows that you may see some gorgeous little WILDFLOWERS. We saw several different ones along the way. These look like little WILD ROSES.
You may see a big boulder filled with HOLES.... What's up with that????? Think that could be where a woodpecker sharpens his beak????? Nah---don't think so!!!! ha
You can see lots of MOSS and FERNS!!! Some of the rocks were completely covered with moss. Everything was so lush and so green... Gorgeous!
OR if you look closely, you can see a WHALE!!!! (Go with me here and put on your Imagination Caps!!!)
Maybe you can see some GRASS growing on top of ROCKS..... Goodness, we have a hard time getting grass to grow in some of the spots in our yard... How does it grow on top of ROCKS??????? Mercy Me!
There is a beautiful WINDOW in these rocks... Maybe I should buy some curtains... What do you think??? (It's really two fish kissing each other!!!!! ha ha )
Wanna count the rocks down in this river???? Isn't it amazing how CLEAR that water is? WOW!!!!!
Finally, you really need to use your imagination here..... I see a TURTLE next to a very skinny ALLIGATOR... Can you see them???? HINT: The alligator is BROWN. The turtle is right next to the gator ---to the right, with his head on the gator's back!!!!! REMEMBER: Use your imaginations!!!!!
Now ---can you believe what all one can see while hiking in the Smokies????? Isn't it fun?? Do you 'see'???? all kinds of wonderful things when you are hiking???? It's just so much fun being out in nature ---even when it rains!!!!
Hope you had a great Father's Day yesterday. That day is always a little sad for me since I miss my Daddy so much. He's been gone since 1969---but he was so very special to me... HOWEVER, George and I did celebrate Father's Day by going out to dinner at the state park restaurant here. YUM!!!!
Have a wonderful day.
Hugs,
Betsy
64 comments:
You'd make an excellent tour guide... I can see everything you pointed out!
its truly amazing how clear the water is. Hmmm...have to be careful at the rocks. A lot of moss
I enjoyed this post Betsy. Seeing all the sights thru your eyes. The Smokies is a wonderful place and you showed it all beautifully. Have a great day!
Wow,each picture is gorgeous. The rain makes the colours more saturated. I love this post and all the beauty you have shown.
Thank you for this lovely hike, I loved it and can almost feel being there.
DH and I went to Gatlinburg, TN for our honeymoon and did some hiking along a river. We like rivers, rocks, woods. We DO NOT have them way down here in s.e. FL. The last time we were in the mountains, was is 2006 and that was in NC. Before that was in 1999 I think and that was upstate NY.
Thanks again for sharing your excursions.
FlowerLady
Thank you for the lovely walk along the river. I didn't see two fish kissing but I did see two frogs kissing. Betsy, you make these "walks" so much fun and the pictures are so clear I feel like I am right there next to you.
Wow! Betsy, you leave us into a great territory of naturally wonders. The mosses on rock are amazing... the crystal clear water and wildflowers are fantastic.
Glad u had great time around the river hiking.
Have a nice day :)
Hugs
Shilpa
You got my brain clickin with this one Betsy...imagination, I think it keeps you young. I haven't been to the Smokies in many years and your photos just reminded me that I need to go!!! Have a beautiful day...
Grass growing on rocks? That's a new one one me!! Love the moss. I'd like to see what you make out of cloud shapes!
Best,
Bonnie
Everyone else sees the things your imagination point out.....I see the trail I know and love so well. I know EXACTLY where that rock with the holes in it is! You're making me so homesick....I think it's time for me to head south, don't you???
i see the fishy kissy and also the whale and the first rock looks like a face of a whale. i love the photo with the window best of all today. that grass growing there is beautiful. these are all very interesting to me, i love rocks, or is that pebbles or stones.
Thanks for taking me along and letting me 'see' some of the wonderful things that you and George 'saw'!!! Besides seeing the big picture of the beautiful landscape, I like to look for those special little tucked away treasures that most people don't 'see'!
Looks like a wonderful day spent doing what you both enjoy doing the most.
That made it all the more special.
I've really enjoyed hiking the Little River Trail with you through your travelogue. And I didn't even break a sweat. :)
It is actually incredible to hike in the Smokies. I love your vivid imagination too. Rain or no rain, there is beauty in every direction whenever one visits the forest. Thanks for letting us see what you saw!
treasures to be found always in this lovely area
the first boulder full of holes reminded me of a dolphin or whale, so i had no problem following your lead. :)
When I was a kid growing up on the farm, I spent a lot of time hiking or horseback riding through the woods on the farm. I would often "see" the same kinds of things you look for. We had creeks and streams. Fun!
I have to ask...have you and George ever encountered a bear on your hikes? Now that would be an encounter that I wouldn't want to have!
LOL -- I can definitely see that alligator!
What lush and glorious scenery and such crystal clear water. Delicious!
Imagination is a wonderful thing. Mine works overtime sometimes. haha!
Excellent shots, Betsy. MB
You do indeed make a terrific tour guide, Betsy! And I love your imagination! Mine is working this morning, too, and I could see dolphins and alligators and whales and kissing fishes!! What a great way to start the day!! Hope your week is off to a great start!
Sylvia
what a wonderful pictures you have there.
You live in a rich, lush, green Eden!
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
http://deltacountyhistoricalsociety.wordpress.com
Your whale is frowning, mouth is turned down. Your gator is a "snake" to me. Kept seeing a snake and no gator. Hahaha, this Florida girl is used to BIG gators! Yes, once I realized you were calling my "snake" a "gator", then I saw the turtle right away. Such fun! I believe, like anything else, a person sees only what they want to see, in nature, in life, to the extent their heart is open. So Miss Betsy, you have a lovely, wide open heart. Belated Happy Father's Day to George, sure hope his children remembered him. While I miss my dad every day, his love goes on in my children and my grands. He would be so proud of them and I believe he can see them and is. Blessings.
I love hiking very much and your trails is awesome with lovely sights. I must say that your rocks with holes and kissing rocks struck my head! I remembered seeing similar rocks at the tourists spots near the world famous ruins of Angkor Wat in Cambodia. They believed that it was carved long time ago during the era when Cambodia was once a powerful Hindu kingdom.
Can see all the shapes - that's a game we would always play with our kids. Doesn't that look like a......
Lots of fun! These are great photos! Those rocks need a trim! Do wonder what pock marked that one rock! Have an awesome week Betsy and George!
That grass growing on top of the rocks is amazing. I need some of that grass in my yard. I saw your turtle along side a snake! All your photos are great. Makes me want to take a hike today.
I love the crystal clear water and the amazing greenery. The moss is really beautiful. Funny that the grass will grow on rocks.
thank you so much for visiting my blog back.
www.onie26.co
Love seeing the things with my imagination. It is amazing the things you can see if you take the time to look !!
That first picture is wild roses ,we have them along our creek bank and they produce rose hips.
My Father's days are always bittersweet,I used to not go to church on that day because it made me so sad but with time I can now smile about all the nice things said about fathers.
Blessings
Marilyn
I'm sure there are always wonderful things to see there! Some day Mike and I are going to get there on a trip. I like all the neat stuff you see there and show us.
I saw a tic tac toe board and pieces....can you guess which photo? LOL See I can play along!
What fun pics. I really love the moss and ferns. So pretty.
Amazing what other wildlife come to visit ;) These photos are fantastic Betsy. We decided to stay home instead of taking a trip down there, so I am happy to see it in your shots. We're just taking day trips while Gregg is on vacation and keeping fingers crossed that in September when he can take more time off, we'll actually be heading out on a road trip.
Thanks Betsy, for sharing these fantastic photos. They are so calming and also make me feel so cool and refreshed. It's 85 deg. here in SoCal and this looks so nice.
I see plenty of things, but not the same things you do! I do not see a whale, but an alligator! And in the last picture I clearly see a big coral snake! But the oddest of all is the rocks with rock star hair!!! How can that be? And the holey rock a mystery for sure. Thanks for this mysterious an spooky trip!
Those are some strange dimples on some of those large rocks, very unusual . Richard
Ha! I can see the whale, the fish, the turtle, and the alligator, Betsy! hahaha! Great pictures. It looks like a beautiful spot for a hike. :)
Hey....I see the whale and fish kissing:) And maybe instead of woodpeckers sharpening their beaks, it's hillbillies sharpening their knives!!!:)
The more I read your blog and see the pics; the more you have me wanting to visit all the fantastic places Absolutely stunning forests, waterfalls.....and everything is so green....but green different than what grows here in AZ or even back in Wisconsin. It's got a rain forest look to it. Fun pics and wonderful imagination:)
I had to giggle a little when you were seeing things in rocks because I do that as we float around Center Hill lake. The grass on the rock was really tall must be hydroponic. Thanks for showing me the same silly side as me. Peace
what a pretty place. I love the look of all that moss on the rocks
The whale looked like a crock to me! And the moss was cool, How did those rocks get those holes on top of them. Looks like another great trip! sandie
So...I thought the alligator was a snake! Love all the cute and unusual stuff to see in your neck of the woods. Lovely photos!
Can I take off my imagination cap now? It is heavy.
xoxoxo
You are so cute! You had me smiling though this post. I love your imagination. I saw the fish kissing as two frogs, but they might be fish. LOL
I love to play that game of imagination when looking at clouds and rocks. We would have great fun in the Smokies together using our imagination while also seeing all that beauty.
So, did you think of me when you posted all the rock photos??? Sure wish I had a load of them!
How neat...gosh, I sure enjoyed this post...Thanks for pointing out all of the imaginations that can be had in these photos...love em'
hugs
shug
Just beautiful pics. I thought that was a snake in the last picture. I nearly jumped out of my chair.
I didn't see an alligator, but I saw a snake!:) Lovely pictures of a special place!
I did see many of the same shapes as you did, Betsy! Rocks are like clouds as they often look like something else. The moss covered rocks and the wildflowers were beautiful!
That was fun--thanks
Betsy...I see a little person jumping across the rocks in one picture but I won't tell you which one. You'll have to find it yourself:)
See I have an imagination too! Let me know if you find it.
hello Betsy, the moment i click on yours or George link, i already visualize the lovers in uniform, hahaha! And i saw everything you saw there too at your insistence, that alligator is actually a lizard, but the funniest thing is the turtle. I had difficulty finding it but when i saw the head, oh my it got the body too. You are really something Betsy. Happy hiking, and take care on those mossy rocks, they are dangerous.
Betsy,I just love your imagination and I too imagined seeing some of the same things you saw...lol..What a lovely hike that must be...Have a great day!
Shantana
The boulders across the river are great looking and pretty covered by green moss! The one filled with holes is very interesting and how they exist is a mystery and there’s a lot to connect with imagination and wonder.
The underwater is absolutely wonderful!
Vol Fan's Mom and Step-Dad were camping at Elkmont last week :)
amazing sights through your lens, betsy. your refreshing and beautiful photos make me want to go there.
that whale looked like a crock to me, too. you'd definitely make a great tour guide as well.
hope your day is going well.
big hugs!
Wow! I love all of these photos. The stream, rocks, wildflowers, are fantastic. You've really captured the beauty of the Smoky Mountains wonderfully. I loved this posting since I live here.
Thanks for the tour! The crystal clear watch must feel good on a hot summer day! And the first boulder with the holes, I saw a strawberry laying on it's side :)
I enjoyed seeing all of the 'wild life' you saw on your hike. : ) Great photos and a great imagination too.
Really fun photo tour! It's so interesting to see these things you found along the way, things I wouldn't find in the desert like tiny wild roses, moss covered rocks and kissing fish rocks!
Amazing what the mind sees, mine too,lol, great pics and love all things in the water,
Seeing these pictures makes we want to get out on a real hike again!
Love the moss and ferns especially. Hope you rest well.
You have a great imagination! As well as a great eye for photos...
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