Posts Tagged ‘Tennessee’

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Family Time

November 30, 2012

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

It’s always a special time for Betsy when her middle son from Texas visits east Tennessee with his wife and two daughters.  They have many people to see in a short time, but we were able to spend the afternoon of Friday following Thanksgiving with them at Fall Creek Falls State Park.  We had a delicious lunch and  visit in the park lodge and then went to the Fall Creek Falls overlook to see the waterfall and take some pictures.

Judging from the smiles, it’s safe to say that everyone enjoyed themselves.

 

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Posted in Family | 16 Comments »

Fall Creek Falls

November 28, 2012

Fall Creek Falls, Fall Creek Falls State Park, Tennessee. November 23, 2012.

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Betsy and I went to one of our very favorites places — Fall Creek Falls State Park here in Tennessee — on the Friday after Thanksgiving to meet one of her Texas sons and family for lunch and a visit.

After a delicious lunch and much conversation we all went to the overlook to see Fall Creek Falls.  There wasn’t a great deal of water going over the falls, and the sun was in the worst possible position for pictures, but I tried to get one anyway.  I was shooting into the sun, so the falls and its bowl were in shadow.  But the iron in the water gave the rocks of the waterfall a neat color that I just had to try and capture.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 18 Comments »

Our World: Another Smokies Panorama

November 26, 2012

Looking toward the Smoky Mountains from the Foothills Parkway, Tennessee. October 23, 2012.

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

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.

This is another panorama I put together after Betsy and I traveled the Foothills Parkway in late October.  We stopped at several overlooks along the way, and at several of them I took photos which I hoped I could merge into a single panorama image.  This picture was taken looking toward the Smokies.  I like both the autumn color in the foreground and the blue sky above the mountains.

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Posted in Our World | 16 Comments »

Skywatch Friday: Betsy’s Sky Pictures (2)

November 16, 2012

Sunset on the Cumberland Plateau. October 23, 2012.    (Photo by Betsy)

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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.

Betsy and I drove the Foothills Parkway in October so we could enjoy some of the Smokies’ autumn color.  As we drove home in, Betsy was able to get some pictures of the evening sky as we drove up onto the Plateau.  As you can see from the photo above, the sunset was spectacular.

Evening sky on the Cumberland Plateau. October 23, 2012. (Photo by Betsy)

Even after the sun dropped below the Plateau on the west, the sky continued to put on a show.

Evening sky on the Cumberland Plateau. October 23, 2012. (Photo by Betsy)

The variety of cloud forms and colors was amazing.

Evening sky on the Cumberland Plateau. October 23, 2012. (Photo by Betsy)

Each passing moment seemed to bring new color and forms — even the trail of a passing jet.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 17 Comments »

Smoky Mountains Panorama

October 31, 2012

A panorama of the Smoky Mountains as seen from the Foothills Parkway in Tennessee. October 23, 2012.

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

Last week Betsy and I drove along the Foothills Parkway, which is just west of the Smoky Mountains.  We were able to enjoy the autumn colors and beautiful views without getting caught in all the traffic of the Smoky Mountains National Park.

The views were spectacular, and I was inspired to try to get a panorama of the scene.  The picture above is my first effort, created by merging three photos in Photoshop.  I don’t think it looks too shabby, if I do say so myself.

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Posted in Autumn | 19 Comments »

Our World: Ocoee River

October 29, 2012

The Ocoee River in Tennessee, August 17, 2012.

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

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.

In August Betsy and I had to go to Young Harris, Georgia, so Betsy could attend a bridal shower for her future daughter-in-law.  Since there are several waterfalls in the area that we haven’t visited, we decided to go down a day early and do some hiking.

We decided to take the ‘scenic route’, and drove along the Ocoee River here in Tennessee for several miles.  The Ocoeee River was the site of the whitewater slalom events during the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics.  A mile-long Olympic whitewater course was built by the Forest Service fed by releases of water from Ocoee Dam #3.

White water on the Ocoee River in Tennessee. August 17, 2012.

Downstream from the Olympic course is a 4.5-mile whitewater rafting area fed by water released from Ocoee Dam #2.  This section of the river has been open to the public since the 1970s, mainly for daytime releases of water on weekends and holidays.  We stopped along this public section of the river to get some pictures.

Rafts on the Ocoee River in Tennessee. August 17, 2012.

There were many rafts and kayaks along this stretch of the river.  While the rapids were not the highest we’ve seen, people seemed to be having a lot of fun floating down the river.

Kayaks on the Ocoee. August 17, 2012.

All of the rafts we saw made it through the rapids near us without incident.

Oops! A kayak going over in white water on the Ocoee River. August 17, 2012.

Not all of the kayaks were so lucky.

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Posted in Our World | 21 Comments »

SkyWatch Friday: Smoky Mountains Sky

October 26, 2012

Looking toward the Smoky Mountains from the Foothills Parkway, Tennessee. October 14, 2010.

(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.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the nation’s most visited national park.  People come throughout the year to see the mountains.  They come in October to see the autumn colors.  But the sky is also worth seeing and enjoying.

This picture was taken in early October from the Foothills Parkway looking toward the Smoky Mountains.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 26 Comments »

Middle Prong of Little River

October 24, 2012

A small cascade on the Middle Prong of Little River, Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee. August 27, 2012.

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In late August Betsy and I visited the Smoky Mountains after an early morning appointment in Knoxville.  We drove along the Middle Prong of Little River up past Tremont.  This is off the beaten path in the Smokies, except for fishermen, and we enjoy being able to stop and enjoy the river without having to worry about traffic.

The river was lower than we’ve ever seen it, but there were still places where we could stop and enjoy seeing the water rushing over and around boulders in the stream.

Water swirling over rocks in Middle Prong, Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee. (Photo by Betsy)

Betsy got some wonderful pictures of the clear water flowing over the rocky river bottom.

Middle Prong of Little River, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. August 27, 2012.

We hope that our dry weather soon comes to an end and that there will be more water in the river the next time we go.  But we enjoyed this trip to the beautiful Smokies and look forward to many more.

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Posted in Travels | 17 Comments »

Tennessee Skies

October 5, 2012

A summer sky on the Tennessee Plateau. August 1, 2010.

(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.

The Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee is the highest wooded plateau in the U. S.  On a beautiful summer day we’re high enough that it seems as if we could reach up and touch the white clouds sailing in that blue sky.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 21 Comments »

SkyWatch Friday: Blue Moon Over the Glade

September 7, 2012

Moon rise, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. August 31, 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.

Did you see the full moon last Friday night?  It was the second full moon of the month, so it qualified as a blue moon.

I was beginning to think I would miss it, because the sky was very cloudy as the moon was coming up.

Full moon over Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. August 31, 2012.

But sometimes patience has its rewards.  As the moon got higher, the clouds started to disperse.

Full moon, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. August 31, 2012.

The breaks in the clouds kept getting larger, and I could see more and more of the moon.

Full moon, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. August 31, 2012.

I was finally able to get a fairly decent picture of the blue moon.  We won’t have another one until 2015.

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This has been a very hectic time for us with upcoming weddings, Dad’s birthday, and work on the house.  Betsy and I need a break to recharge our batteries, so, as some of you have done, we’re taking a blogging break.  We will be away from blogging until October 1.  I hope all of you have a very happy and wonderful September.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 16 Comments »

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