"Jewelled Arc of the Waterfall"

Waterfall

I do not ask for youth, nor for delay

in the rising of time's irreversible river

that takes the jewelled arc of the waterfall

in which I glimpse, minute by glinting minute,

all that I have and all I am always losing

as sunlight lights each drop fast, fast falling.

I do not dream that you, young again,

might come to me darkly in love's green darkness

where the dust of the bracken spices the air

moss, crushed, gives out an astringent sweetness

and water holds our reflections

motionless, as if for ever.

It is enough now to come into a room

and find the kindness we have for each other

-- calling it love -- in eyes that are shrewd

but trustful still, face chastened by years

of careful judgement; to sit in the afternoons

in mild conversation, without nostalgia.

But when you leave me, with your jauntiness

sinewed by resolution more than strength

-- suddenly then I love you with a quick

intensity, remembering that water,

however luminous and grand, falls fast

and only once to the dark pool below.                       

                                               

By Lauris Dorothy Edmond (1924-2000)

Rich Mountain Road

 

We drove to Cade Cove and turned onto a dirt road that took us on an adventure that was more then what we had anticipated.  Rich Mountain Road is steep, winding, and rough with many a sharp turn and very risky for a car.  We crossed Indian Grave Gap Trail and one will have to be physically fit to hike that trail.  It was a 8 mile, one-way gravel road winding around Rich Mountain that leads to Tuckaleechee Cove and Townsend, TN.  The road has stunning views down into Cades Cove.  You can see Cades Cove Missionary Baptist Church.  It is one of the most remote locations in the Smokies.

Clouds Came Down to Earth

"Clouds Came Down to Earth"

 

Clouds came down to Earth

And sit at my feet,

No place to wander

Not far the eye could see,

For thick and grey was the air,

The trees did not bend,

from the whisper of the wind

Nor did the birds whimper

As stillness fell on the earth

Covering her in blankets of grey...

By PL Fallin

August "Land of Blue Smoke" Gallery

Cloudy but hot August day in the Smoky Mountains.  The pictures speak for themselves. 

Shaconage "Blue, Like Smoke"

I set my camera to take black and white pictures of the cloudy mountain peaks.  The clouds were so thick you could not see the mountain range or even the steep cliffs.  It was a visual "smoke without fire" effect.  The Cherokees called the Smoky Mountains Shaconage meaning "Blue, Like smoke." 

Where Sleepless Waters Flow

What does one do when they cannot have a restful night and sleep does not come.  This person turns toward nature sounds and looks at photos of a mountain creek.  I close my eyes and imagine hearing the rushing waters breaking over the rocks. The rhythmic sounds of flowing waters is better then counting sheep.

To The River Charles

River! that in silence windest
Through the meadows, bright and free,
Till at length thy rest thou findest
In the bosom of the sea!

Four long years of mingled feeling,
Half in rest, and half in strife,
I have seen thy waters stealing
Onward, like the stream of life.

Thou hast taught me, Silent River!
Many a lesson, deep and long;
Thou hast been a generous giver;
I can give thee but a song.

Oft in sadness and in illness,
I have watched thy current glide,
Till the beauty of its stillness
Overflowed me, like a tide.

And in better hours and brighter,
When I saw thy waters gleam,
I have felt my heart beat lighter,
And leap onward with thy stream.

Not for this alone I love thee,
Nor because thy waves of blue
From celestial seas above thee
Take their own celestial hue.

Where yon shadowy woodlands hide thee,
And thy waters disappear,
Friends I love have dwelt beside thee,
And have made thy margin dear.

More than this;--thy name reminds me
Of three friends, all true and tried;
And that name, like magic, binds me
Closer, closer to thy side.

Friends my soul with joy remembers!
How like quivering flames they start,
When I fan the living embers
On the hearth-stone of my heart!

'T is for this, thou Silent River!
That my spirit leans to thee;
Thou hast been a generous giver,
Take this idle song from me.

By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The Snow Maiden

 

I call the snow covered trees the snow maidens of the Smoky Mountains for the beauty of the white delicate snow flakes that cover their branches. We have a snow maiden in our family who has a delicate beautiful soul that she needs to discover. 

 

The Snow Maiden

 

The Snow cascaded, swirled and blew,

In the Magical Kingdom

Of The Land of Snow;

Amidst The snow flakes and fairies,

The Snow Maiden dances,

Twirling on pointed toes

From moonbeam to shadow;

Her silhouette we follow

From forest to meadow;

Snow and Ice are her friends,

The coated white earth is her floor;

Center stage from heaven

The stars shine on her,

Seeking no other;

She is The Snow Maiden

Graceful and Fair,

In her fairy white dress

With star light in her hair;

Delicate and graceful

From finger tip to toe,

She's eloquent to behold;

Her eyes sparkles like Crystals

Amidst the snow fairies and sprites

She waltzes in solace

With mystical delight;

From winter's breath she came

Twirling and dancing in the chilled air;

Through the forest and the fields

The wind whispers her name,

Brilliant and translucent...Crystal

The maiden of heaven's white veil.

 

by PL Fallin

 

"Pleasure in The Pathless Woods"

These are random photos of different rivers and woods I took at Deep Creek and within the Smoky Mountain Park.  It was approaching sunset and the orange glow within the trees is from the sun rays hitting the mountain side in the background.  I took over thousand pictures on this trip and only used a select few to post on this blog.  The mountains and forest with its many rivers and waterfalls brings me great pleasure.  Lord Byron describes my feelings of nature best...excerpt from "The Deep Sea."

"There is a pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar:
I love not man less, but Nature more
From these our interviews, in which I steal
From all I may be, or have been before,
To mingle with the Universe, and feel
What I can ne'er express, yet cannot all conceal."

By Lord Byron

Author George Gordon Byron [1788-1824] quote 'I can never get people to understand that poetry is the expression of excited passion, and that there is no such thing as a life of passion any more than a continuous earthquake, or an eternal fever.' 

Mt. Le Conte

In the top photo, Mt. Le Conte is in the background descending into the clouds. That picture was taken at mid morning when the air was misty.  The photo below was taken later in the afternoon when the sun was bright and any time you take photos at mid day, it washes the colors out.  You can see all 4 subpeaks. The four subpeaks are above 6,000 ft on the mountain (referred to as the LeConte massif): West Point (6,344 ft/1,934 m), High Top (6,593 ft/2,010 m), Cliff Tops (6,555 ft/1,998 m), and Myrtle Point (6,200 ft/1,890 m). In addition, Balsam Point (5,840+ ft/1,780+ m) serves as the dramatic west end of the massif.

Icicle Trees

 

 Early morning, the tree branches had beautiful shaped icicle branches when we drive over the Smoky Mountains.  Later in the day, the ice melted and icicles were falling everywhere.

Kephart Prong Trail

We hiked Kephart Prong Trail for a short distance.  It branches into several trails of various lengths. I enjoyed the colorful leaves floating in the water over the rocks.

Before Winter Grey

The lovely paintings of brilliant colors are now memories.  These pictures were taken in November before the leaves have fallen. The roads are now closed to many of the mountain trails and winter grey has painted a new picture.

The Wood Nymph

The Wood Nymph

A glint of her hair or a flash of her shoulder —
That is the most I can boast to have seen,
Then all is lost as the shadows enfold her,
Forest glades making a screen of their green,
Could I cast off all the cares of tomorrow— Could I forget all the fret of today
Then, my heart free from the burdens I borrow,
Nature’s chaste spirit her face would display.

By Ellis Parker Butler

Ellis Parker Butler (December 5, 1869 – September 13, 1937) was an American author. He was the author of more than 30 books and more than 2,000 stories and essays and is most famous for his short story " Pigs Is Pigs ", in which a bureaucratic stationmaster insists on levying the livestock rate for a shipment of two pet guinea pigs, which soon start proliferating geometrically. His most famous character was Philo Gubb .

A Mountain Riddle

 

 Riddles in the Dark
 by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

Riddle 1:What has roots as nobody sees,
Is taller than trees,
Up, up it goes,
And yet never grows?

Riddle 2:
Voiceless it cries,
Wingless flutters,
Toothless bites,
Mouthless mutters.

Riddle 3:
It cannot be seen, cannot be felt,
Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt.
It lies behind stars and under hills,
And empty holes it fills.
It comes out first and follows after,
Ends life, kills laughter.

Riddle 4:
Alive without breath,
As cold as death;
Never thirsty, ever drinking,
All in mail never clinking.

Riddle 5:
This thing all things devours;
Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;
Gnaws iron, bites steel;
Grinds hard stones to meal;
Slays king, ruins town,
And beats mountain down.

Answers: (1) mountain, (2) wind, (3) dark, (4) fish, (5) time

Deep Creek Loop Hike

There are so many creeks and streams in the Smoky Mountains.  This one was located in the Deep Creek Trailhead located north of Bryson City, North Carolina.  We hiked to one of the waterfalls in the loop.

Clingmans Dome Smoky Mountains

The view from top of Clingmans Dome which is a mountain in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina.  At 6,643 feet, it is the highest point in Tennessee and the second highest point east of the Mississippi.  The view is spectacular on a clear day you can see over a 100 miles and into seven states.  I prefer the Smoky Mountains over the Rocky Mountains in Colorado because of the beautiful evergreen trees and gorgeous hardwoods. It is a sea of green beauty with the clouds flowing among the blue horizon.

Snow Flowers of the Smoky Mountains

These flowers had endured a snow storm the week before.  Their white petals against brown stalks and white snow on the ground was something I had not seen before. Brush branches were white with ice cycles and there was still snow on the evergreen trees.