A Smoky Mountain Adventure

We were recently invited to visit friends at a cabin on top of a mountain. On top. Of a mountain. The very top.

It was amazing. The views, the air… the views. Every sight, scent and sound pulled something out of me. The way the mountaintops glistened in the rain and the just-beginning-to-change-color leaves that sent my heart throbbing for fall all over again every morning. The way the cotton candy spun clouds changed color throughout the day and magically enveloped each peak in it’s wispy grasp. The way my kids explored and ran free, each twist and turn giving way to imagination and wonder. I could have just enjoyed the entire four days in the log swing while staring off the balcony, but we mixed it up with long hikes to just about every waterfall we could find and through every tree lined path we could handle.

Each and every turn and corner seemed to take our breath away again, and our adventuring hearts just soared. We vowed to return, and hopefully soon. As much as my heart belongs to the whispers of a sandy shoreline and sings through the hustle of a city street, I’m now exhaling breaths of affection for the colorful welcome of the Smokies ridge. 

I miss waking up to the crisp autumn greetings and the sound of many excited kid’s voices in the morning… sometimes a little too early in the morning. I miss the evening hikes, fires with s’mores and the delighted chatter over night-time “snipe” hunting. (Let me know in the comments if you know what that is! “You might be from the north if…”). I miss the arguments over who sits where on the ride to another town to visit and explore, and the subsequent back seat sleeps that happen on the way back. I miss the crunch of leaves underfoot and the promise of something special and exciting greeting me from the moment my eyes open in the morning.

And you know what? The promise of something special and exciting? That is something we can have every morning, no matter where we happen to sleep and wake. Besides a handful of colorful leaves I picked up on the trails, that promise, that stirring for something grand each day is something that I brought home with me. While breathing in God’s majestic views, I also breathed in a little more life, a little more realization that there is already something great inside of me… and in every one of us. We can choose each day what to make of the atmosphere, of the world around us. So maybe I need a little more fresh a little more adventure in my life, I don’t have to run for the hills to find it, even if it is a great place to be.

Edgar Magnin said, “You are the one who can stretch your own horizon.” And some days, many days, mine could use a little stretching.

And the apples and pumpkins, oh my! We had our share of pumpkin-everything, fresh apple cider and loads of apples… heaven.

A few of our favorite spots:

• Looking Glass Falls in Pisgah Forest
• Moore Cove Falls
• Soco Falls
• Graveyard Field Second Falls
• Joey’s Pancake House in Maggie Valley

The waterfalls were our absolute favorite and so I had to share where we went, each one with it’s own unique personality. At Looking Glass Falls, we spent time climbing, wading through the water and admiring all the sparkling rock that really did look like pieces of glass in the water! Moore Cove Falls was beautiful, because it was such a huge cove to play in and you could stand right under the waterfall… and we did! Soco Falls has an amazing viewing deck… and if you’re a more adventurous climber, you can make your way down to the bottom of the falls, or even up to the very top of the 120 foot ledge, we did it! The falls at Graveyard Field is through a beautiful pathway and the river and water falls are stunning. Massive rocks offer a great place to explore and listen to the sound of rustling water. I can’t wait to go back and trek our way to many more falls in the area!

Have you been to the Smokies? What parts were your favorite?

xo