National Park Adventure!

On Saturday, I met the Haywood Hikers in Maggie Valley.  I met some of them during a town-sponsored hike.  We drove along the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  With the leaves gone, you can see so much through the trees.  The views of the mountains are gorgeous.  As we were approaching the Smokemont Campground, we saw ELK! It was from a good distance, but I was so excited to see them.  The best time to see elk is early morning or within a few hours of sunset, so we were fortunate to get a glimpse.  Elk were brought into the park a few years ago to help restore the population.  They wear collars and people must stay at least 150 feet away (from all wildlife).  We also saw wild turkeys.  We hiked the Bradley Fork Trail, which runs along a river.  The water was absolutely beautiful.  The trail was pretty easy and not very steep.  We had lunch by the river.  The water is very clean.  I love the sound of rushing water.  When you combine that with mountain air on a crisp fall day, it just doesn’t get much better.