Mountain Lagniappe

No matter where I go on photo shoots, I always seem to find lagniappe along the way. Today, I'd like to share a little of the lagniappe I captured during our recent vacation in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Blue Ridge, Georgia. This beautiful butterfly had stopped to get a drink in the parking lot of Fall Branch Falls, the waterfall we visited ... When we go to the mountains, I always hope to capture a bear (with my camera!), but these two little guys seem to be the only kind I ever come across ... Notice the acorn resting on this one's nose ... It rained almost every day we were there, and I managed to capture several pictures of clouds and the ever present mist hanging over the mountains ... Georgia Pines The sunrises were glorious ... I find mountain creeks and rivers fascinating, and love capturing the rocks along the banks, and the rushing water as it flows over and around the rocks. I wish my camera could record the sounds of its babbling, too. Toccoa River, after a heavy rain ... Old iron bridge, Dial Community I love the primitive stone columns supporting the bridge ... Just up the road from the bridge is a small mountain farm community named Dial, Georgia. Founded in 1834, Dial was one of the first communities settled in this region. There is no "town," only small farms and a hand full of modest homes that dot the fields and river banks. They say Dial has not changed in over 100 years and it was, indeed, a little like going back in time, as I captured some of the old out buildings and this beautiful Victorian farm house, which is called the Cochran-Davenport House ... Notice the way the floor of the old "spring house" curves. This beautiful and peaceful scene under the shade trees seemed to be beckoning to travelers to stop and "sit a spell." Fire pits are the up and coming thing for "outdoor rooms" these days, but I still prefer the real thing, like this one ... All of the buildings featured in the above pictures are part of The Sustainable Arts Society, which, according to their website, is an organization "fostering creative endeavors in visual arts, music, dance, drama, writing, and environmental sustainability in the rural, pristine setting of the North Georgia Mountains of Southern Appalachia." If you would like to read more about the Society, you can click on the above link. Not too far down the road from the Cochran-Davenport house, the 1941 movie classic, "How Green was My Valley," came to mind as we passed this breathtakingly beautiful valley ... I would love to go back to Blue Ridge in the Fall and capture its mountains and valleys and rivers and waterfalls and country mountain roads ... in all their Fall glory. I can imagine the endless "How Great Thou Art" moments that will be waiting there for someone to come along and discover them ... "just up the road a bit ... just around the bend ... or just over the hill."

Fall Branch Falls, Blue Ridge, Georgia

I love everything about the mountains (except the steep, narrow, winding roads on the taller ones!). The terrain is so different from our flat Delta lands in Mississippi, and I find every hill, valley, ridge, gap, hollow, cove, and bald fascinating. While on our family vacation last week in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Blue Ridge, Georgia, my husband and I ventured out one morning to take a driving tour of some of the back roads near our cabin. Before leaving home, I researched the area and discovered a semi-easily-accessible waterfall nearby, and that was our ultimate destination. The waterfall is called Fall Branch Falls, and it is a double waterfall, with mountain laurel and rhododendron growing along the trail and creek bank. According to the Fannin County, GA website, the hike to the falls takes about 30 minutes round-trip, which we found to be accurate. But before I share my pictures of the waterfall, I'd like to show you some of the scenery we passed along the road to the falls. The winding gravel road itself was beautiful ... And I was pleased to capture this little stream running through a hollow far below the road. The woods were quiet and still, and we stood on the edge of the road for several minutes enjoying the cool, lush green canopy overhead and the sounds of the water rushing along, as it meandered around and over the rocks. A few miles down the road we came upon the parking area and entrance to the path leading to the waterfall. Parts of the path were nice and level, and, much to my husband's chagrin, I made several stops to get closer looks at the lagniappe along the way (you can click on the pictures, if you would like to get a closer look, too) ... It didn't take long for the rocky path to get steeper, and for a while I felt as if we were climbing straight up ... I was very happy when we came across this sign, with its arrow pointing to the right instead of UP ... The strenuous (to me, anyway) climb was soon forgotten as I got my first glimpse of the falls ... The upper portion of Fall Branch Falls is a series of cascades that lead to a single major drop of approximately 50 feet, with the water plunging into a deep pool at the base of the falls. Although there are dozens of waterfalls in the Blue Ridge area much higher and probably more impressive than Fall Branch Falls, I was thrilled to be able to see it and capture it as it was that day we visited. I hope you enjoyed my tour of Fall Branch Falls. If you are ever in the Blue Ridge, Georgia area, I hope you will take the time to see it for yourself. I'm sure you will find all kinds of lagniappe along the way, too. If you would like to read about some of the other waterfalls in the area, you can click on this link: Fannin County, Georgia

Time Flies ...

There is a lot of truth in the expression, "Time flies when you're having fun." We recently spent a week in the Blue Ridge Mountains for our family vacation, and I can't believe the days passed so quickly. We stayed in this lovely five-bedroom cabin ... Which is located on a beautiful running creek called Noontootla Creek, near Blue Ridge, Georgia. The views were spectacular, and I was able to capture several pictures of the mountains from the back porch which ran the length of the cabin ... I also want to share some pictures I captured during a "back roads" driving tour my husband and I made through the mountains surrounding Blue Ridge. I'm going to save those for next time, and hope you will join me.