by Don McGowan | Dec 29, 2018 | December 2018
“…To the kingdom of the West-Wind, where upon the gusty summits sat the ancient Mudjekeewis, ruler of the winds of heaven. Filled with awe was Hiawatha at the aspect of his father. On the air about him wildly tossed and streamed his cloudy tresses, gleamed...
by Don McGowan | Dec 20, 2018 | December 2018
Time always favors water; and water generally conspires with rock; and together they both overcome the march of history, that is to say, human history. Big Creek, the principal drainage of the northeast corner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, flows from the...
by Don McGowan | Dec 15, 2018 | December 2018
Morton Overlook is not only the premier Smokies sunset location for half of the year, it is a visual spectacle all year-round. In those non-iconic times, of which there are many, it often becomes a lens through which the mountains can be seen close-up and with...
by Don McGowan | Dec 8, 2018 | December 2018
Drosera rotundifolia, common sundew, is found around the globe in all sorts of bogs and marshes; but in the Southern Appalachians it can also be found on rocky outcrops in high elevations. Percipitation falling on these outcrops percolates downward with the help of...
by Don McGowan | Dec 1, 2018 | December 2018
The beauty of a Luftee Overlook sunrise is a matchless event in Nature. Looking over the headwater drainages of Beech Flats Prong, across the layered shoulder ridges of the Smokies Crest, the land of the Oconaluftee and its sibling streams is revealed, layer upon...
