Hangin' in the Smokies

For the first time, I visited Great Smoky Mountains NP, spending three days in the area. It's beautiful and, this time of year, peaceful...in summer, it might be another story as the park is the most visited in the nation, drawing about 9 million visitors a year. But in November, after the leaves have mostly dropped from the trees, it's much less crowded. And, it's clearer. I visited the park after a cold front, and the famous haze...actually mostly pollution from upstream...was almost totally absent for the first two days. The result was sweeping vistas, both in the park and from the Blue Ridge Parkway just to the southeast.