Fall in the Smoky Mountains

The rain here in Tennessee has finally started to give way to some fabulous fall weather, and just in time for a visit from Grandma and Grandpa last weekend! Our site seeing opened with a trip to Cades Cove, a historic farming community in the Smoky Mountains active from 1819-1930s. It includes original cabins, churches, and mills, but the public comes to enjoy the scenery and the wild life.







The one-way, one-lane loop around the Cove (11 miles long) coupled with relaxed Southern drivers somewhat offended the efficient Swedish sensibilities of our group, so these photos came mostly from inside the car as we rode along. We didn't stop very often, but even so, it was hard to take a bad picture. If you decide to give the Cove a try, I recommend biking during the hours cars are banned from the road.















And there was, in fact, some wild life as well:



A deer



And even a bear. (No really, it is.) We also saw turkeys and a close-up "boo" (squirrel) who was eating happily out of the working grain mill.

We decided against purchasing the locally ground flour at the gift shop...(though the guide assured us the grain the squirrel was sampling was designated for livestock only).

Even the camp ground rest area was incredibly picturesque:







And oh my goodness, I made it to the end of this post without one picture of Anna and Grandma! Better fix that...