The Great Smoky Mountains by Lee Mandrell & DeeDee Niederhouse-Mandrell

Author:Lee Mandrell & DeeDee Niederhouse-Mandrell
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Indiana University Press
Published: 2016-06-15T00:00:00+00:00

DEEDEE The Great Smoky Mountains National Park represents why I became a landscape photographer. Among giants such as Yosemite National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and Acadia National Park, the Great Smoky Mountains has a natural beauty all its own! It’s not easy to describe this amazing place, but when you visit the Great Smoky Mountains you understand just how special it is!

Besides the beautiful landscapes, something that really fascinates me is the history of the Smokies. The strength and dedication of the people of the Smokies to preserve the area they called home for generations show us the love they had for the land long before we did. With a life rich in faith, tradition, and a culture all its own, it is like no other place in the United States.

My first experience of the Great Smoky Mountains was in September of 2011. It was difficult to take it all in. There is something there for everyone, but for Lee and me, it is about the land and undisturbed natural beauty. This unmatched beauty is at every turn in the road and on every stretch of trail. Once you drive through Gatlinburg, Tennessee, the first thing you see is the park entrance sign: “Great Smoky Mountains National Park.” It seems like the very moment you pass that sign, something magical happens. You have entered one of the most beautiful places in America! You can’t help but be stopped in your tracks. Driving through the mountains with anticipation of what is around the next corner makes you realize that you just won’t be able to capture the true essence of this place, and you surely won’t be able to capture it in one trip! Since that visit, we have been back several times. Each trip reveals new adventures and new images with the changing seasons and always-changing light.

One of the first things I noticed about the Great Smoky Mountains was the variety of landscapes all within a radius of a few miles. The scenery in Cades Cove is peaceful, with rolling meadows and an array of wildlife, as well as historical cabins and homesteads nestled at the base of the mountains. Small creeks and long fence lines add to the scene and help us see what life may have been like for the original settlers. Only thirty-seven miles away from Cades Cove is Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. The 5.5 mile loop, full of steep grades, mountainous scenery, waterfalls, cascades, hiking trails, and wooded landscapes, is all photograph worthy! A short drive from there is Greenbrier, an area of the park with yet another completely different environment. There you will find beautiful creeks; large, heavily moss-covered rocks and trees; and wooded trails again leading to many unforgettable opportunities to create beautiful images.

The trail to Alum Cave Bluffs is my personal favorite. The trail is about 4.4 miles round trip and is absolutely wonderful! It’s a nature girl’s dream, and the photo opportunities are endless! Stopping all along the trail to just

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.