Welcome to JOYFUL REFLECTIONS. Also welcome to DECEMBER . Hope you have an awesome and grateful month!

Monday, October 29, 2018

Fall Colors in North Carolina --October 22-26, 2018

Along the Blue Ridge Parkway,  October 23, 2018
Dear Friends,   We have had a busy but wonderful week...   From October 22-26,  we met our good friends,  Neal and Patti,  in Maggie Valley, North Carolina  for some fun times together.   Then,  yesterday,  we went with son Mark and his girlfriend Diana to the Smoky Mountains for the day... To say that I'm weary today is an understatement ---but it is a "HAPPY" kind of weary!!!!!

While in Maggie Valley,   we saw the elk in Cataloochee Valley.   We drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway.   We did some hiking.  We saw several waterfalls.   We drove down several  'back' roads and forest roads.   AND ---we DID see some pretty Autumn Colors.   As everyone says this year,  the colors are not as bright or as vivid  as usual in October.  BUT---that made us search even harder!!!

I haven't had much time to go through my pictures ---but did go through and pick out some of the pretty colors we saw.   Hope you enjoy FALL IN NORTH CAROLINA!!!!


A Mountain QUILT --full of Fall Colors,  taken from the Blue Ridge Parkway,  10/25/18



My Favorite Fall Color,  RED;  Taken on 10/23/18  off of Highway 215



Some Yellows/Oranges/Browns;  taken on 10/24/18 off of the unpaved Balsam Mountain Road (also known as the Heintooga Ridge Road),  10/24/18



Don't you love seeing all of the Fall Colors as we checked out the mountain ranges  from the Blue Ridge Parkway, 10/25/18?



Beautiful Tree showing off its colors;  Along the Blue Ridge Parkway, 10/23/18



I love the blue sky behind that brilliant yellow and red trees;  Taken along the Balsam Mountain Road, 10/24/18



Betsy and her RED Trees  (I love 'em);  Taken at the Deep Creek Area near Bryson City,  NC on 10/24/18



Fall Colors along the Blue Ridge Parkway,  10/25/18



Multi-Fall-Colors;  Taken at the Deep Creek area,  Bryson City, NC  on 10/24/18



A close-up showing the Fall Colors in the mountains,  taken from Highway 276 on 10/25/18



I'll close by showing you one of my favorite pictures  along the Blue Ridge Parkway,  10/25/18;  That is Looking Glass Rock behind the Autumn Colors.

As I said above,  the colors around our area (and others) are sparse  and/or dull for the most part this year.  We had a very rainy and warm September and a very WARM October...  In order to have pretty colors each fall,  we need some COLD weather  and we just didn't get much until about the week of Oct. 15.....  

Every year is different depending upon what Mother Nature gives us...  This year may not have been the prettiest --but we searched and searched ---and you can enjoy some of what we actually found!!!!!  The challenge was FUN!  Hope you enjoyed the pictures.

Hugs,

29 comments:

eileeninmd said...

Hello Betsy,

You did manage to find some pretty fall colors. Your photos are beautiful. I love the views of the mountains and trees. I am glad you are having a fun and busy time. Happy Monday, enjoy your day and week ahead!

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

You got some beautiful fall color in these photos, Betsy. Well done!

Ginny Hartzler said...

i love the big RED tree! That is my favorite! Seems like it may be November before we get any colors here!

George said...

We had a lot of fun searching for autumn colors with Patti and Neal, and as your pictures show, we found some beautiful colors.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

What amazing color! We were there when it was still spotty color but we've loved driving the Parkway in the Fall. I'm so glad you shared your photos. Makes me feel like I didn't miss out this year! Hugs, Diane

Kim@stuffcould.... said...

Oh what pretty colors in them there mountains! I love Maggie Valley.....you captured it well. The last one is my favorite too

Janice K said...

Thank you for your kind words, Betsy....I just have not been blogging hardly at all lately. Your mountains look beautiful, and you definitely did find some reds. We are just starting to see some reds up here. It has almost seemed like the leaves have been falling for awhile before even changing colors. Our daughter visited last weekend from Missouri, which was also her birthday. Our trees usually are always at their brightest at that time, but I know she was disappointed, because everything was still green or brown.

Hope you are doing well....Blessings to you....Janice

Ann said...

Beautiful fall colors. We don't have a whole lot of it here so I'm enjoying yours.

Shug said...

I got so excited when I read this post......I just showed Sam the beauty in each and every photo. We were in Maggie Valley on our trip out that way. Oh goodness....it was beautiful in September, but it is even more beautiful now. A great drive! By the way...I love your header. The shades of blue are so pretty.....

The Furry Gnome said...

Absolutely beautiful.

Liene said...

We found some fall color on the Cherohala Skyway! Just as you said, much later than previous years and not as vivid, but it was just last year when the remnants of a hurricane came through and blew everything down - so I'm not complaining! Happy autumn!!!

Kay G. said...

Pretty fall colors! We are going to Ashville not this weekend but next weekend, I hope the leaves will still have some color!
P.S. Richard and I had our honeymoon in Fontana, NC! I remember Bryson City very well. xx

Ruth Hiebert said...

In my humble opinion you found amazing color.I love those red trees.Oh my! We just don't see that around here.Thanks for sharing g these awesome pictures.

Chatty Crone said...

I am with you - I love the R E D ! We don't get that deep red down here. I miss that from Chicago.

Lady Fi said...

The colours are wonderful!

Betsy said...

Such beautiful colors Betsy. We have had a strange fall too. The varied weather we saw as we drove cross country the first two weeks of October explain a LOT! Now get some much needed rest my friend.
Blessings,
Betsy

BeachGypsy said...

Hello there my friend Betsy!--love these pretty pictures. We were there just days before y'all and there were just a few tinges of color beginning to happen. I didn't care one bit---I was just thrilled to be back in my mountains and I love the scenery in any season. You can't go wrong in the mountains there, beauty in all the seasons, right? the winter scenes with all the heaped up snow are very pretty to LOOK AT but I sure don't relish driving in that, or feeling the COLD though, ha ha LOL Are you all rested up and recovered from the hiking??--gosh that is one long hike!!

Dee said...

Love your pictures, Betsy! We were in Pigeon Forge from the 7th through the 13th of October for our 50th Anniversary. We didn't see any color but we had a fantastic time. We have been through that area many, many times over the years and over to Cherokee but never saw a bear. This time up on Roaring Creek drive we saw three. Mountains were still beautiful as was Cades Cove. We love streams and waterfalls and sure got to enjoy them plus the little pigeon river. I bet you are tired now.

Arkansas Patti said...

I think your colors are great. We have had various shades of brown for the past 8 years. This year the reds are popping up which makes me happy. Enjoy.

KathyA said...

Good friends, gorgeous tree colors, and blue skies. It doesn't get much better than that!!

Maggie Valley sounds really interesting!

David said...

Betsy, Beautiful fall colors! Not so much here so far and I don't think that we'll measure up to last year in any case. Thanks for the restaurant tips! Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Linda said...

Lovely photos, Our colors turned Saturday in the mountains and are starting to change in the valley.

Small Kucing said...

Lovely colors, Betsy. So bless with such scenic view

Silver in AZ said...

just gorgeous photos!!

Lowcarb team member said...

Hello Betsy,
A "HAPPY" kind of weary sounds good.
I loved seeing your photographs and thought you shared some lovely colour.
It is a wonderful season.

As we say goodbye to October I wish you a happy November.

All the best Jan

Heidrun Khokhar, KleinsteMotte said...

Yes this year the colors came much later and the leaves are still on many trees as it has not been very cold. Frost has been rare thus far. It feels like there was a shift as our spring came very late with snow in mid April but then fall stayed unusually long and is still warmer than most years.

Linda P said...

Marvelous Autumn colours! I hope you're well and can enjoy the wonders of nature at this time of year at home and away.

diane b said...

The colours are amazing even though you don't think they are at their best.The mountain quilts are beautiful.

Connie said...

Such amazing and pretty views! Nice that you got to visit with friends also.