Small Town Scenes from Bryson City

A few recent scenes from Bryson City:

Morning walk at Deep Creek in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park:

Toms Branch Falls at Deep Creek. The water is low but still beautiful as always:

Jewelweed is growing rampant right now. Also known as Touch-Me-Not, not that you shouldn’t touch it, but because if you barely touch the seed pods they will pop open. Hummingbirds love it. It has great medicinal anti-inflammatory properties and is even known to relieve poison ivy rash, bee stings and mosquito bites. Mother Nature takes care of us if we pay attention…because it usually grows right near poison ivy:

A sunset view of town from our house:

Finishing up a garden picket fence (part of the Old Depot Project):

The sunset behind engine 711:

The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad put the big metal “see-saw” into the big hole in the earth last week. It’s now officially a railway turntable with its new 89,000 pound steel bridge in place. The WII steam engine #1702 (built in 1942/43) is being restored and will use the turntable so it doesn’t have to go in reverse. (You can read more about the restoration of 1702 here.)

Gorgeous pick-your-own zinnias at Darnell Farms:

And finally: Brett driving the lawnmower home from the lawn mower repair. A few neighbors passed him along the way. One friend said if he’d turned down Main Street he might have started a parade:

Read more at my “Smokies” page for places I love to visit and photograph.
And make sure to check out the Life Outside blog by Bryson City Outdoors.