PLAYING TOURIST

We've been showing off the mountains to our family.....

The colors are beginning to fade and the leaves are disappearing in the higher elevation, but the beauty remains.

If you are familiar with my work, you probably know my quilts almost always are theme or subject based...... Quilters tend to see (think) patchwork patterns, here I see a fish.

Ferns have become a frequent focus for my bead embellished wool felt quilts. The toasty color of this grouping has provided a whole new inspiration for me.

We made the trek to Cataloochee, an old settlement in a large mountain valley that now is part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It's truly off the beaten path, which is rewarding because it's not as heavily visited as many other areas of the park.

Thankfully, someone with foresight fought to save some of the history of this community. There are a few houses, churches, schools and cemeteries to visit.

Here's the Caldwell Place, built in 1903. This family must have been very well off as it's a large house with many architectural details. 'The husband' (in the lead, followed by BIL & SIL) yearns for property to own that must be accessed by a bridge....

We hiked to the Caldwell cemetery......nearly a vertical climb. It was a very small and peaceful resting place. Ya gotta wonder how on earth they got the caskets up there? Sadly, most of the markers indicated infants, so young, no names were even given.

Here's a view of us starting the decent. I was afraid I'd break a leg or my neck.......notice how very steep it is. The leaves were slippery and of course we didn't have our walking sticks with us. However, with care......we managed it without incident.

This area is known for its successful reintroduction of Elk to the Park......I have a few shots to share tomorrow.....we saw about 50 throughout the day!