SkyWatch Friday: Arkansas Sunset

March 9, 2012

Sunset from Mt. Nebo, Arkansas. February 27, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

This is the scene Betsy and I enjoyed on our first evening on Mt. Nebo in Arkansas.  We were on the back porch of ‘our’ cabin as we were treated to a spectacular sunset.  The color in the sky was simply amazing.

Watery Wednesday: Dierks Lake

March 7, 2012

Dierks Lake, Arkansas. February 27, 2012.

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This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

Betsy and I went searching for waterfalls on our first day in Arkansas, and while coming back from a bushwhack to see Panther Bluff Falls, we met the caretaker of a camping area nearby who recommend we visit  Dierks Lake, which was only a mile or so down the road.

Dierks Lake was formed when the Army Corps of Engineers built a dam on the Saline River in southwestern Arkansas.  The picture above was taken near the public boat ramp on the lake.  I’m glad we took the caretaker’s advice.

Our World: Arkansas Vacation

March 5, 2012

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This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Last week Betsy and I were in Arkansas.  We try to go there about this time each year.  We have a favorite cabin on the top of Mt. Nebo which we think of as ‘our’ cabin.  The views from the cabin, especially the sunsets, are spectacular this time of the year.

If you know anything about us, you know that it is hard for us to travel anywhere without looking for waterfalls to visit.  This trip was no different.  We drove from our home to Arkadelphia in southwestern Arkansas, where we spent the night.  We then visited three waterfalls — Panther Bluff, Cossatot, and Shady Lake Cascade — before heading north to Mt. Nebo State Park.

Although we spent most of our time at Mt. Nebo, we did take day trips to Mount Magazine State Park and Petit Jean State Park.  We did some hiking in both parks, especially Petit Jean, where we hiked to visit beautiful Cedar Falls.

We had a wonderful visit in Arkansas, as we always do.  We had some concerns about the severe weather back here in Tennessee, as we heard of tornadoes near Crossville.  We also had some interesting moments heading home as we kept hearing tornado warnings along our route on Friday.  But fortunately we made it safe and sound and found everything in order at home, except for flashing digital clocks because the electricity had gone off.

Pictures will follow.

SkyWatch Friday: Morning in the Mountains

March 2, 2012

Morning sky above Gatlinberg, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. October 14, 2011.

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This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

The picture above was taken this past October on the Gatlinberg Bypass.  Betsy and I had gotten up early in the morning to see the autumn color in the Smokies.  The morning was cloudy and murky, and it looked as if we had picked a poor day for our trip.  But as we were taking the bypass around Gatlinberg, the sun broke through the clouds and blue skies started to appear.  I like the streaks of light on the mountain in the background and the sunny highlights in the foreground.

Watery Wednesday: Mingo Falls

February 29, 2012

Mingo Falls, Cherokee, North Carolina. January 31, 2012.

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This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

Mingo Falls is a 150-foot beauty near Cherokee, North Carolina.  It is easy to get to Fa, and the hike from the trailhead is steep, but short.  There are stairs for much of the way.  We visited Mingo Falls on January 31 of this year when a rock slide on the interstate caused us to take a detour through the Smoky Mountains.

Down Memory Lane: Iris (2008)

February 27, 2012

One way to make winter days more bearable is to look through pictures taken on sunny summer days.  These are some of the iris that bloomed in our yard during the late spring of 2008.  We have more roses than iris, but we do enjoy the iris which bloom earlier than the roses.

To see larger versions of these pictures and others, click HERE.

Spring in the Glade

February 24, 2012

Our side flower bed under a blanket of snow. Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. February 19, 2012. (Photo by Betsy).

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Betsy took the picture above this past Sunday.  These are some of the spring flowers that shot up during our mild winter.  Of course now that they are sending up flower stalks, we get snow and cold!

But one thing about Tennessee weather is that if you don’t like it stay around for a day — it will change.

Crocus in our side flower bed, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. February 21, 2012.

This picture was taken on Tuesday.  The snow is gone and we have a crocus in bloom.  I actually saw a crocus in bloom before the snow storm, but I didn’t get a picture.  It didn’t survive the storm.

It rained most of Wednesday, and just after dark the warning sirens here in the Glade went off.  Fortunately all we got was more rain.

Crocus in our flower bed. February 21, 2012.

Yesterday was a bright, warm, sunny, Spring-like day.  I can hardly wait to see what today brings.

Watery Wednesday: Soco Falls

February 22, 2012

Soco Falls, Cherokee, North Carolina. January 31, 2012.

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This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

Thanks to the rock slide that closed the interstate and our detour through the Smoky Mountains, Betsy and I were able to revisit Soco Falls.  Soco Falls is on the Qualla Indian Reservation between Maggie Valley and Cherokee in North Carolina.  The pull off is on a hairpin turn and is easy to miss, but I’m glad we didn’t miss it.  We had this beautiful waterfall all to ourselves.

The Women in My Life

February 20, 2012

Betsy and Mrs. P at Wetumpka Falls, Tullahoma, Tennessee. February 9, 2012.

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A couple of weeks ago Betsy and I took Dad for a ride with us as we checked out a couple of waterfalls in the Tullahoma, Tennessee, area.  One of the waterfalls we visited was Wetumpka Falls northwest of town.

This picture was taken at Wetumpka Falls, and shows the women in my life.  Betsy needs no introduction to readers of this blog.  Behind her is our Prius, affectionately known as Mrs. P.  If you look closely on the dash of Mrs. P, you can make out our GPS unit, Miss Barbeak.

It seems to me that at least one of these women is always telling me where to go!

SkyWatch Friday: Sunset Afterglow

February 17, 2012

The western sky shortly after sunset, Ormond Beach, Florida. August 4, 2009.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

We celebrated Betsy’s birthday in 2009 at Ormond Beach, Florida.  We had a room that looked out over the ocean, but I captured this beautiful sky photo by going to the other side of the building and shooting the western sky shortly after sunset.  The landscape may not be as pretty as the ocean, but the sky couldn’t be any more glorious.