Posts Tagged ‘Tennessee’

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Christmas at the Opryland Hotel

December 21, 2009

Christmas decorations in the Cascades at the Opryland Hotel, Nashville, Tennessee. December, 2001.

One of the advantages of wintry weather is that I can get more work done on my computer than I would if the weather were nicer and I spent more time outdoors.  This weekend has enabled me to make progress on a couple of projects, for which I am grateful.

The Opryland Hotel (or more properly the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center) has been an attraction in Nashville, Tennessee, since it first opened in 1977.  It has gone through several expansions and renovations since that time and is now a tourist attraction in its own right.

One of the traditions of Opryland is A Country Christmas, which makes Opryland ‘The Most Christmassy hotel in the nation” according to the Travel Channel.  A Country Christmas is now in its 26th year and includes more than 2 million lights and more than a dozen shows and attractions.  A Country Christmas runs from before Thanksgiving to after New Year’s.

I’m sure the decorations have changed quite a bit since 2001, when Betsy and I toured the Opryland Hotel one evening during Christmas season.  It was our first Christmas together, and the grand display at the hotel seemed a perfect complement to that special time.

To see more of Christmas at the Opryland Hotel click HERE.

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Posted in American Life | 8 Comments »

Skywatch Friday: Unaka Mountain

December 18, 2009

Hoar Frost on Unaka Mountain, Tennessee. November 27, 2009.

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 were in East Tennessee the day after Thanksgiving on a waterfalling trip.  The weather forecast had called for snow flurries and Betsy had hoped that we would see some snow, but there was none.  Friday morning was cold but clear.

The closest Betsy came to seeing snow was this hoar frost on the top of Unaka Mountain.  I had to get a picture of something white for my beautiful bride, so I snapped this picture from the road we were on.

I’m not that thrilled with the hoar frost, but that clear blue sky is beautiful.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 19 Comments »

My World: Baltusrol Falls

December 15, 2009

Baltusrol Falls, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. December 13, 2009.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, Louise and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Most of you know that Betsy and I collect waterfalls.  We’ve just returned from a weekend trip where we drove and hiked to visit several falls.

But we don’t always have to go a great distance to visit a waterfall.  The waterfall in the picture above is only about a quarter of a mile from our house.  It flows from the golf course into a vacant lot down the road from us.

Usually there is only a trickle of water flowing down, but after a heavy rain like we had Saturday night and Sunday morning, it can be quite impressive.

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Posted in My World | 10 Comments »

My World: Rutledge Falls

December 8, 2009

Rutledge Falls, Tullahoma, Tennessee. February 14, 2009.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, Louise and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

One advantage of living here on the Plateau is our close proximity to a number of very nice waterfalls.  I’ve mentioned several times that Fall Creek Falls State Park is only about an hour away.

There are several other waterfalls within a couple of hours of our house.  Rutledge Falls, near Tullahoma, Tennessee, is one of those waterfalls.  We visited Rutledge Falls on Valentine’s Day.  The waterfall is on private property, but the owners grant access to the public.

If you would like to see more of Rutledge Falls click HERE.

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Posted in My World | 12 Comments »

Where It All Began

December 3, 2009

Betsy at Fall Creek Falls State Park, Tennessee. April 21, 2001.

Monday was a cold, rainy day here on the Plateau on Monday, so I had a chance to work on some more of my archived photographs.  One of the folders I was able to work with contained pictures of the first time Betsy and I went to Fall Creek Falls.

Betsy and I had had a couple of dates (dinner, a morning in the park and lunch) before that Saturday morning when we drove to Fall Creek Falls State  Park.  Although Betsy had been to the park a time or two before we met, I had never been there before.

The scenery in the park is fantastic.  It is centered around the Cane Creek Gorge, a fifteen-mile long gash that contains views remeniscent of the Grand Canyon.  A road along the rim provides several overlooks with fantastic views.

Betsy and I were impressed with the five major waterfalls within the park.  We visited each and every one.  But the high point of the day (at least for me) was our first kiss.

We realized we were falling in love on that first date to Fall Creek Falls in April, 2001.  We’ve managed to get back there almost every year since to celebrate that anniversary.  Fall Creek Falls will always be special for us.

If you would like to see more of our first trip to Fall Creek Falls click HERE.

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Posted in Betsy | 7 Comments »

Watery Wednesday # 64: Millstone Creek Falls

December 2, 2009

Millstone Creek Falls, Erwin, Tennessee. November 27, 2009.

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 spent most of Thanksgiving weekend visiting waterfalls in Northeast Tennessee.  Most of them were fairly small, but pretty nonetheless.

Millstone Creek Falls is on undeveloped private property, but the owners allow visitors to the falls.  The owners’ home is on the adjacent lot and the house has a beautiful view of the falls.  But we enjoyed our short hike through the woods to this view of the falls.

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Posted in Watery Wednesday | 7 Comments »

A Reason To Be Thankful

November 30, 2009

Wild turkeys on Bays Mountain, Kingsport, Tennessee. November 26, 2009.

After a delicious Thanksgiving dinner of turkey and all the trimmings, Betsy and I took our friend Reida for a drive to visit a waterfall and to see some of the other sights in the Kingsport, Tennessee area.

One of the places we visited was the Eastman Recreation Area on Bays Mountain.  We saw these critters near the lodge, walking around as if they didn’t have a care in the world.  Since it was the afternoon of Thanksgiving Day, and they were able to enjoy an afternoon stroll, I guess they really had a reason to be thankful!

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Posted in American Life | 18 Comments »

Memories of Centennial Park

November 23, 2009

My very first picture of Betsy. Centennial Park, Nashville, Tennessee. April 7, 2001.

I’m really beginning to like rainy days.  On rainy days I can work on pictures at my computer without feeling guilty.

Betsy and I had our first date on March 29, 2001.  It was a dinner date to discuss the Bible classes that I missed when my work took me out of town.  (That topic never came up).

I thought the dinner date went well, but Betsy was ‘busy’ when I asked her out again.  In spite of that rejection I wanted to see her again, so I took a picture of the spring flowers in bloom in Centennial Park, Nashville, (I worked near the park) and e-mailed it to her with an invitation to go there with me on Saturday morning.  The tulips must have been irresistible because she said ‘yes’.

Centennial Park has beautiful gardens as well a unique feature — a full-sized replica of the Parthenon.  The exterior was being refurbished while we were there, but the main hall with the statue of Athena and an art gallery in the lower level were both open.  We enjoyed our visit to both levels of the Parthenon.

I didn’t have my camera on our first date, but I had it when we were at Centennial Park.  The picture above is the very first picture I took of Betsy (I’ve taken a few more since then).  If you would like to see more of our morning at Centennial Park click HERE.

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Posted in Betsy | 8 Comments »

My World: We Can Still Smell the Roses

November 17, 2009

Sonia Rose, Fairfield Glade. November 16, 2009.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, Louise and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

The rose above isn’t much to look at, but it is a rose, it is fragrant and the picture was taken Monday afternoon.  I’m not sure, but I think this is the latest in the year that we’ve had roses in bloom.

We obviously haven’t had a killing frost this autumn.  Yesterday we had to go to Knoxville fairly early in the morning.  The temperature when we left the house was 39° here at the house, but dropped to 32° before we got off the Plateau.

I’m not sure how much longer this weather will last, but I checked yesterday afternoon and we have three more reblooming iris and 19 rose buds ready to open.  I wonder how much longer we’ll be able to smell the roses?

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Posted in My World | 15 Comments »

Memories of Fall Creek Falls

November 16, 2009
FallCreekFalls05

Fall Creek Falls and Coon Creek Falls. January 8, 2009.

One advantage of the weekend is that I make myself take some time to get things done in the house rather than work outside.  I have a list of indoor projects that’s even longer than the list of outdoor projects!  If I live to see the end of both of those lists, I’m guaranteed to attain a ripe old age.

I managed to work through a folder of pictures taken this past January when Betsy and I visited Fall Creek Falls State Park here in Tennessee.  As you probably know, that is a very special place for the two of us.  Since it is only about an hour away, we do get there fairly often, although we’ve rarely been there in the winter.

One advantage of going in the winter is that the view of some of the falls is not as obstructed as it is when there are leaves on the trees.  And the water flow is usually better than it is in late summer or autumn.  We even got a bonus by visiting a small waterfall, Wildcat Falls, on the way to the park.  It is usually only a trickle but there was a pretty good flow when we stopped by, so of course we took some pictures there as well.

The picture above is of Fall Creek Falls and its smaller companion, Coon Creek  Falls.  To see more of our visit to Fall Creek Falls click HERE.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 16 Comments »

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