OnRd0411

Tuesday-Thursday, Oct 12-14 (Cades Cove CG, Great Smokey Mtn. NP):
Tuesday, afternoon, I drove around the Cades Cove loop road and saw lots of horses, several deer and one fox who got in the bushes too quick to get his picture. I was amazed at the traffic (on a Tuesday) as it was almost bumper to bumper through most of the loop. I wouldn't want to drive it on a weekend. There were people stopping in the road and gawking at deer in the pastures. You'd think they'd never seen a white tailed deer. A large group of cars were stopped at one place, with cameras and binoculars, and I was sure there must be a bear there. I asked a young lady and she said, excitedly, "There are some deer over on the other side of this field". I said "OK" and kept going. Right up the road there were 2 deer right by the road and I got a picture. I passed one buck, with antlers, but there were a dozen people lined up along the roadside and no way to get a picture. There were 3 churches and several old farmsteads in the valley. Wednesday, I drove the loop road again and saw a coyote cross the road, two cars ahead of me, and two flocks of turkeys too far away to get pictures. I drove 11 miles through one lane, gravel Rich Mtn. Road, from Cades Cove to Townsend, TN. It was an interesting drive through switchbacks, up and over the mountain, but all I saw was trees until I left the park. Then it was cabins, houses and real estate signs. I stopped at a wood carving shop to call home on the cell phone and made a picture of an 8' tall carved bear. I drove back through the park and saw a waterfall visible from the road. I asked a ranger who said it was Meigs Falls. I don't think I had ever noticed it before. I went by the trail for Laurel Falls, which I could have traveled on my cart, but there were over 50 cars overflowing the parking lot and down both sides of the road so I decided to skip it. They say this is the most visited National Park and I can believe it!! This is Wednesday. Maybe I should be glad I won't be here for the weekend. On Thursday, I drove to Noccalula Falls, near Gadsden, AL, to stay until Monday.

Joe, On the Road, Noccalula Falls, Gadsden, AL