"A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving."
~Lao Tzu~
~Lao Tzu~
Stay in this Pink Chalet, NO WAY!
We meandered at a leisurely pace, having no fixed plans for arrival, from Murfreesboro, Tennessee where we lodged for the night, towards the Great Smokey Mountains. 
We made a little detour to stroll along a 1.5 mile trail beside a beautiful mountain stream that cascaded into a small waterfall. 
The bridge was out,
so we took the foot path,
strewn with sweet spotty leaves,
where we spied unusual vegetation,
teeny tiny pine cones,
We meandered at a leisurely pace, having no fixed plans for arrival, from Murfreesboro, Tennessee where we lodged for the night, towards the Great Smokey Mountains. 
We made a little detour to stroll along a 1.5 mile trail beside a beautiful mountain stream that cascaded into a small waterfall. 
The bridge was out,
so we took the foot path,
strewn with sweet spotty leaves,
where we spied unusual vegetation,
teeny tiny pine cones,
and dripping mountain springs.
The trees on the trail told a lovers tale
as names, dates, hearts, and sweet sentiments lettered the them,
carved by sweethearts past and present.
As we climbed higher, 
we passed a small cascade of falls.
At the top of the trail we stood on an overlook watching a curtain of crystal
spilling over the gorge edge 
creating tiny rainbows
as it plunged into the pool below.
After our short reprieve we drove on with the Great Smoky Mountains rising up in the distance.
we passed a small cascade of falls.
At the top of the trail we stood on an overlook watching a curtain of crystal
spilling over the gorge edge 
creating tiny rainbows
as it plunged into the pool below.
We arrived in Gatlinburg, Tennessee late in the afternoon and started the winding climb up the mountain to our chalet. Just as we rounded a hairpin turn we came face~to~face with a black bear standing in the road directly in front of our car. Handy Hubby grabbed the camera, which happened to be around my neck, nearly choking me to death as he snapped a few pictures, the first two face~to~face of which were blurry due to me trying to get the strap off my head. The bear quickly scampered up the hillside.
I was beyond excited to see the bear. One of my fondest wishes was to see a black bear in its natural habitat.
I was beyond excited to see the bear. One of my fondest wishes was to see a black bear in its natural habitat.
Our chalet was at the very top of the mountain at the end of the road. Going up the narrow mountain lane was a little hair raising. On one side you literally hug the mountain and on the other you hug air with sheer drops into deep gorges. Cute little chipmunks play dodge as they run across the road with their little tails straight up in the air.
Our anticipation and anxiety mounted as we unlocked the door of our cute pink cottage. Remember when I said cute counts? Well, even more than cute, so does clean!!!!! Stay in that pink chalet, NO WAY! I won't go into detail but needless to say we immediately locked the door and headed back down the mountain where we could get a cell signal to call the owner and to check into a hotel. Oh, but I saw a real live black bear!
Our journey back down the twisted turning back on itself mountain roads got even more hair raising when we got turned around and got lost with darkness fast approaching. We hear the dreaded ding from the dash and realize with horror that the sheer climb up had used far more fuel that we realized it would. What was a half a tank of fuel was now near vapors. Holding our breaths and praying like crazy we coasted right off the mountain into a service station. Whew, that was close!
Long story short, another chalet was available, it was satisfactory so we switched units the next day and were happy mountain dwellers in a cute little yellow and blue chalet.
The views were magnificent. At night we could see the distant lights of two neighboring cities below. As they say, all's well that end's well.
Did I mention that I saw a real honest to goodness live in his natural habitat black bear?
More adventures to come, stay tuned.....
Blessings,
Miss Sandy
