Heading East for a Wedding

Me on the icy trail at Clingman's Dome

After lots of pure travel adventures, we set out on a trip to attend a wedding. Scott's nephew, Tim, was marrying the very lovely Lisa at a resort in Georgia. November is not a great time to drive from Colorado to the Appalachians, but we did it.

A raw day to drive

Our first stop was Becca's house in Oklahoma City, where we had some great burgers and Mexican food and saw Aaron play soccer. 

Becca's house in OKC

We ate at Miss Polly's

Then, we took the long boring drive from Oklahoma to Memphis, Tennessee, for some barbeque, chicken 'n waffles and blues. Scott loves Memphis. I can take it or leave it. It always seems kind of rundown and sleazy (but, Scott likes rundown and sleazy, especially when it comes to restaurants).

My Dad grew up there, but never talked much about it. But he did love BBQ. He left long before chicken 'n waffles (invented in Harlem, New York) was ever a thing.

While there, we took a walk on a lovely trail along the Mississippi River. 

A nice fall day

Then, we went on to Gatlinburg, where we had a fabulous trout dinner at the Smoky Mountain Trout House and the weather got very cold and snowy (it was November, who knew????).

Yum!!!

It was probably the clearest (and coldest) time I have ever spent in the Smokies. And, with just a little bit of trepidation about icy roads, we did a quick motor tour.

Scott suited up for the brisk day

We visited Cades Cove, where the big attractions are White-tailed Deer ...

Much more delicate than our Mule deer at home

... historic buildings ...

Scott visiting the Primitive Baptist Church

... and an old, but working grist mill (Cable)...

The Cable Mill with ice on the wheel

Then, we climbed the (icy!) curving walkway at the top of Clingman's Dome to view the surrounding area ...

Clingman's Dome's elevation is 6,643 feet

Unfortunately, like Colorado, the Great Smoky Mountains are experiencing massive tree die-offs due to bugs (the Balsam Woolly Adelgid there; Pine Bark Beetle here). Unfortunately, it's too difficult and expensive to halt the destruction.

A sad view

We drove the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail, where we saw more historic homesteads ...

Pretty on a frosty day

And, a Black Bear way up (about 80 feet up) in a very spindly tree!!! I don't know what was worth such a risky climb.

That looks tricky

Snow and ice

The trip offered some really pretty reminders that winter was on the way: ice, snow and frozen waterfalls.

Plus, it was a chance to revisit historic sites and memories of our many past trips to Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

An Appalachian Trail trailhead

And, we stopped at the beautiful Biltmore House, the estate George Vanderbilt built in Asheville in the 1890s.

Photo: Biltmore.com

We continued on from the Smokeys to north Georgia for Tim and Lisa's wedding. Despite some cold, rainy weather, it was lovely. Classy, warm and so joyous. We are so happy for Tim and Lisa.

Tim and Lisa taking their vows

Then, on to Florida to pick up my china cabinet and china from Jim. 

Well worth the trip!

It was a fast trip because the weather was going to get bad in Colorado. So, we packed it all up and hauled our way home through some strong wind, wicked tumbleweeds and rapidly icing roads. We got home just as the storm hit. It was so icy, we had to wait a few days to unload the trailer.

We got home just as the storm hit. It was so icy, we had to wait a few days to unload the trailer. But, now the cabinet is in place. Well worth the trip!

Trip date: November 12-16, 2013

Travels with Mark: Mount Rushmore

Mount Rushmore

The last stop on my trip with Mark was an impromptu trip to Mount Rushmore - a place that every American should visit. 

We arrived late at night and were surprised by a few things. It is lit so that you can see it from a distance ...

Night viewing from two vantage points

... and appreciate it as you drive by ...

The highway viewpoint

We were even more surprised to find that we could drive right into the park. It is extremely impressive at night ...

We were inside the gates here

But, our greater mission was to hit early for sunrise. We stopped (oh so briefly) to sleep in the room Scott had booked for us as we were driving. Since "season" was over, lots of places were closed. 

But, who cares? We didn't come for restaurants and resorts. 

We came for sunrise.

And, a pretty sunrise it was

Just a few minutes of light change. 

Success!!! 

We got there in time for all the early morning glory.

This is a good place to say a few words about this controversial National Park. 

Yes, it's probably cheesy to carve faces into a mountain. 

And, yes there are very real issues with carving up a mountain that belonged to and is considered sacred to Native Peoples. 

But, this happened a while ago (it was completed in 1941). 

And, you can't put the mountain back.

Lots of controversy, but impressive

So, I think the best thing to do is to balance as carefully as possible the intent of this impressive work of art and the needs of the people who came before.

We both had to pose

That means respecting and properly representing the past and doing no further harm. All these monuments that trampled on Native People's rights are reflections of the time in which they occurred ...

The monument reflecting in the Visitor Center windows

... and, indeed, teaching opportunities. We need to embrace that. 

Closer reflection

Regardless of all the politics, I find it beautiful and surprisingly moving.

The whole thing

Especially when you walk the avenue of flags representing all the U.S. states. 

Celebrating America

After sunrise, we went to breakfast (I mean, this is Mark!) and then back for a few more shots before heading home.

Fortunately, we had blue, blue skies

It's hard to stop taking pictures ...

From a different angle

And, it's hard to believe that much of this was carved with dynamite. Before I learned that, I always imagined guys on scaffolds and climbing ropes working away with chisels.

A crew making a National park video about Mount Rushmore

But, these faces are 60 feet high. 

Big impact

With chisels, they would probably still be working. I can't imagine the anxiety that came with each blast, though.

They really knew what they were doing

Needles Highway

After we got enough Mount Rushmore, we drove the beautiful Needles Highway, with its tunnels constructed to frame Mount Rushmore.

Great views of Mount Rushmore (and Mark)

I am sure Guidebooks tell you that, but I discovered it by mistake the first time I visited when I turned around to get something out of the back seat and looked through the rearview mirror.

I could have missed it completely, but it was cool to make the discovery myself.

Warm enough for shirtsleeves

South Dakota Highway 87 passes Wind Cave National Park and Custer State Park (we didn't have time to visit either). The northern 14 miles of the highway is also known as the Needles Highway. 

This is a spectacular drive through ponderosa pine and Black Hills spruce forests, meadows surrounded by birch and aspen and rugged granite mountains.

Finished in 1922, the narrow, winding highway is named after the high granite "needles" it winds among. 

The Needles

It has two tunnels: Needles Eye Tunnel is 8' 9" wide by 9'8" high; Iron Creek Tunnel, 8' 9" wide by 10'10" high. Both can be very tricky for large vehicles. 

Iron Mountain Tunnel

Because of the highway's mountainous, curving nature, it is closed during the winter.

The roadway was carefully planned by former South Dakota Governor Peter Norbeck, who marked the entire course on foot and by horseback. 

Needles

Needles Highway closes to vehicles with the first snow of the season and does not reopen until April 1, or later depending on conditions. The trail remains open for hikers, walkers, bikers and skiers. 

It was the end of the season (a common theme), so very uncrowded and peaceful. But, it warmed up nicely.

Home

Our drive home was long, but uneventful. 

Just a few wildlife sightings; Male Pronghorn grazing

And, the next day, the entire National Park System and all the Parks closed because of the government shutdown. 

Photo: Rapid City Journal

They even closed off the highway overlooks outside Mount Rushmore.

We were very lucky. We could have been blocked out of everywhere we went. 

 It is also a shame that ridiculous politics deny citizens entrance to these beautiful places.

Final Comments

Mark is a great travel buddy. He's up for anything, likes the same music as I do (or pretends he does) and doesn't mind stalking animals for hours. And, I love showing off my favorite Parks to first-time visitors. 

It was a great trip.

Fun, fun, fun

Trip date: September 26-October 1, 2013

Travels with Mark: Devil's Tower

Devil's Tower in northeastern Wyoming

It's fair to say enough is never enough. Why go home when you can drive many more hours to see two of our nation's most stunning attractions?

We were headed to Devil's Tower and Mount Rushmore

We took off out of Yellowstone's Northeast Entrance across northern Wyoming, taking a far north road that looked interesting. After driving across a plain, we saw that we were approaching a mountain that we would have to drive over. Fortunately, it was still open for the season. We passed a couple of signs warning that there was cattle on the road. Then we came around a bend where we encountered an actual cattle drive. We had to creep past the cattle. But, it a true experience. 

Coming down the snow-topped mountain for winter

After reaching the top of the mountain, we drove down, eventually arriving at Devil's Tower. 

Another new place for Mark

This is a magnificent place. 

A different angle

It's a column of basalt extruded through softer soil which ultimately eroded away ...

Volcanic basalt forms natural columns as it cools

... below the tower are piles of rocks that have fallen as the column continues to erode ...

The trail winds through the rocks

Perhaps you remember it from Close Encounters of the Third Kind ...

We saw this without the ship and landing strip; Photo: Sony Pictures

In real life, it's (almost) as cool ... 

Looks almost like the movie

... and, even though it wasn't crowded ...

A fellow visitor: American Red Squirrel

... there was evidence that we were not the only ones to think so, on land ...

A climber

... and in the air ...

Military planes... hmmmm, what happened in that movie?

We didn't have much time to explore because we got there late in the day and we still had to drive on to Mount Rushmore. But, we made the most of our time.

Saying farewell as it disappears from view

On we drove through the night (and more deer on the road than I have ever seen) to Mount Rushmore.

Trip date: September 26-October 1, 2013