Bryson City NC Sunday October 22 2017

After arriving in Bryson City NC, we spent the day in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park again.  I spent some time at the Farm museum at Oconaluftee Visitor Center and visited the roosters.

     Farm house

     Inside the farm house

              Busy rooster

Then we both explored the Mingus Mill in the late afternoon.

           Inside the mill was quite dark

        Gears

     Old windows

           Water off the flume

     Then we drove up to see the sunset view at Clingman's Dome, even though we knew the observation tower was being renovated.

     A cap of clouds and fog made the sunset interesting.

     I decided to hike up to the observation tower before dark and brought a little flashlight. When I decided to turn around on the steep path, since I was alone, a young woman caught up to me and we decided to continue up together.  Safety in numbers!

I huffed and puffed my way up, but we got to the top before it was too dark to see.  We were met on the way down by her father and a helpful man with a flash light.  Jim and her father got concerned and they came looking for us, even though the path was wide and paved.  The parking lot was dark and foggy when we returned, but it was nice to have extra company.

After driving down from the mountain to have dinner, Jim told me the brakes were grinding.  This was frustrating, since we had a full safety inspection before our trip at Jiffy Lube.  Later, we found that they had not checked the brakes!!!  I called the police for suggestions, since it was a Sunday night.  The officer suggested we park off the road and he called a towing service for us.  They showed up with a tow truck and a 2nd car to take us back to our mountain cabin on the top of a twisty turning cliffside road.  No thanks to Jiffy Lube!!!!  At least we were safe, but stranded with enough food for 2 meals.

Cades Cove in Great Smoky Mountains National Park

On the way to Townsend, TN, Jim got a bad migraine, so I suddenly had to drive for hours and we detoured to avoid the super highways that make me uncomfortable.   We stopped for an almost inedible dinner at the wrong restaurant in Maryville and arrived very late in the dark.  The next day, Jim felt a little better, but not well enough to go out for the day.  I drove to Cades Cove alone later than I planned. 

I stopped to see the John Oliver place on a hill.

After a very long traffic jam, caused by a bear sighting, I stopped at the edge of the road, to learn what was happening.  I photographed the back of a black bear before it walked away.  A lady with a long lens told me it was a male, but there were usually more.  I drove away and after about 50 yards, a woman signaled for me to pull over.  I didn't.  Later, I heard there were SEVEN bears I missed when I didn't pull in.  I'm including my BAD photos of the bear. The joke was on me.  Ha Ha!

At the Methodist Church, rebuilt in 1902, there was a small graveyard.

The Missionary Baptist Church was built in 1915 and was active till 1944.

Near the Cooper Road Trail, the view was lovely.

 The biggest exhibit was at the Cable Mill Historic Area and Visitor Center.  The old John P. Cable Grist Mill was picturesque, even though the light was dappled.  Built in 1868, it is still in use, grinding corn meal and flour.

The Gregg-Cable House had a very rustic roof

and there was a big barn with a "drive through" in the middle.

At the Dan Lawson Place, there was big water puddle reflection in the barn that was interesting.

At the Tipton House, built in the 1870's...

 there was a big Cantilever barn replica across the street.

My last stop in Cades Cove was the Carter Shields Cabin, dated around 1910.

After leaving the park, I reached Townsend, about 5 minutes from our cabin, where I received about 10 urgent messages from my poor husband who had suffered through another nasty migraine headache.  Feeling awful, I rushed back to see him.  

Our Cades Cove Cabin